Parton, Dolly, 1946-

Dolly Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album debut in 1967 with Hello, I'm Dolly. She has sold more than 100 million records worldwide. Outside of her work in the music industry, she also co-owns The Dollywood Company, which manages a number of entertainment venues, including the Dollywood theme park, the Splash Country water park, and a number of dinner theatre venues including The Dolly Parton Stampede and Pirates Voyage. She has founded a number of charitable and philanthropic organizations, chief among which is the Dollywood Foundation, which manages a number of projects to bring education and poverty relief to East Tennessee where she grew up.