The Dolly Parton Archive in the UK

1980s	I really wanted to see her on her home territory and saved hard for 3 years to make the journey to the USA and in 1984 I went to a Dolly Parton exhibition at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.I was very interested in the setting for the stories told in her songs and while in the USA I went to the Smokey Mountains of East Tennessee and saw the places which had inspired her. Dollywood, Dolly Parton's theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, opened in 1986 and I made an annual pilgrimage there to see Dolly. Whilst there I met and made firm friends with many other fans. We met each year in April for opening weekend when Dolly would perform in several concerts over two days. Dolly's fan club relocated to Dollywood and became the Dollywood Ambassadors.
1990s	From 1989 to 1992 I was priviliged to help out in the fan club office while I was visiting prior to each opening weekend and I was asked by Dolly's P.A. if I would like to handle the distribution of a new fan newspaper outside the USA; this was Paper Dolly, a fully approved quarterly newspaper/magazine. Occasionally I would make it to the US more than once a year and I attended the filming of some of the episodes of the Dolly T.V. series in Los Angeles, award ceremonies, promotions and other film set opportunities. There was also a special trip to Las Vegas where we saw her do two shows daily for four days, and more..........
Now	From the time I first heard her I attempted to collect just about anything and everything related to Dolly Parton and this has evolved into an extensive, varied and interesting archive. I am pleased to be able to make it available to researchers and documentary makers.
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