Brad Paisley's Memory Of Dolly Parton's Husband Carl Dean Confirms His Fierce Love Of Privacy
Carl Dean told Dolly Parton early on in their marriage that he would support her career, but from the sidelines, and he certainly held firm. As Brad Paisley revealed in a podcast interview, Dean was so committed to staying behind the scenes that when Parton shot a clip for the music video for "When I Get Where I'm Going," no one even realized he'd tagged along.
Country fans will no doubt remember Paisley and Parton's 2009 collaboration, "When I Get Where I'm Going," and might even tear up just thinking about the sweet music video, which saw Parton, Paisley and other participants holding up pictures of their dearly departed loved ones. Parton held up a photo of her father for her clip, and shot her scene at Paisley's home. And though that took less time than a traditional music video, it still wasn't a quick process. Moreover, Parton didn't exactly dip out quickly. On "Rolling Stone's Nashville Now," Paisley shared, "She was in here a while. Like, we walked around, and talked in the house, and we had a great day, and then she went out to get in the car and I see him waving." The whole time she'd been there, Dean had hung back in the car, which Paisley seemed super enamored by. "Carl Dean, her husband, was so ... he just was so happy to be in the shadows," he said. "He was so happy to just drive her around, and stuff."
Considering how adorable Paisley and wife Kimberly Williams-Paisley's (also super private) relationship is, we're not surprised he thought it was sweet — and we love to see the admiration one of the A-list's longest-lasting couples has for another.
Carl Dean was behind the scenes more often than we realized
Waiting in the car outside Brad Paisley's house wasn't a total one-off for Carl Dean. In fact, Barbara Walters mentioned seeing him when she interviewed Dolly Parton at their home for ABC News in 1982. "I understand you wanted him to be in the pictures and he wouldn't," Walters asked Parton. Parton replied that she'd tried her best, suggesting they be filmed on a tractor from a distance, but that her husband refused to budge. "He said, 'Hell no, I told you 10 years ago not to ask me to do that stuff,'" Parton chuckled.
Granted, Dean did make the odd appearance while Parton was being interviewed for print publications. As seen in "Dolly on Dolly," a 1979 Cosmopolitan profile done on the singer happened to take place over Dean's birthday. Though initially he was described as having gone pale when he learned there was a reporter present, he ultimately had a blast and even poked fun at the paparazzi's attempts at getting a picture of him. Dean was also present when Parton did an interview with Ladies' Home Journal in 1982, and similar to how he'd hung out in the car while his missus was at Paisley's home, the journalist learned that he regularly visited the set of "The Best Little W***ehouse in Texas," but kept his distance. Dean even spoke with the reporter but eschewed pictures. "Soon as you pose for 'just one picture,' well, how do you say no to the next?" he was quoted as saying.
Ultimately, Dean might not have wanted to lead a public life, but there's no question he loved being near his beloved wife and supporting her from the sidelines. On behalf of Parton fans everywhere, we'll forever thank him for that.