When you're a beloved country music star like Dolly Parton, you're bound to get your share of obsessed fans over the years. And, in a recent interview with Chicago's Windy City Times, the 65-year-old country crooner reveals just how obsessed her followers can get, detailing the story of a "loony" fan who once left an actual baby on her doorstep!
Back in 1974, riding high on the success of one of her first hit singles, "Jolene," Parton returned to her house to find the most interesting piece of fan mail she's ever received. "We came home one day and there was a baby in a box at our gate with a note in it. The note said, 'My name is Jolene, my momma has left me here and she wants you to have me.' Of course, we all freaked out!" Parton recalled. "It wasn't like it was a kitten or a puppy dog. It was a baby named Jolene!"
Parton contacted Human Services about the abandoned child and took care of her until authorities arrived, but Dolly says she never found out what happened to little "Jolene" after Human Services took her away. "I have often wondered (what happened to Jolene)," Parton says. "I don't think that person would ever even know about the way that went down. There was no way to track it and I didn't want to. I couldn't take the bay and I didn't want to be involved."
Out of all of Parton's hit tunes, "Jolene" has been covered most by other artists (including The White Stripes, who did an especially memorable version). Its simplicity and spare melancholy touch a universal chord; fans responded to it back in 1974 and continue to do so today. But leaving a baby named "Jolene" on a Dolly's doorstep is taking things just a bit far, don't you think?
Parton has just released her 41st studio album Better Day, and will be touring the United States, England, Europe and Australia for the next four months.
If you want to congratulate her on her continued success, please stick to a nice letter or some flowers! As Dolly told the Windy City Times, "There are some loony people in this world!"
Source: http://www.ivillage.com/dolly-parton-loony-fan-left-baby-my-doorstep/1-a-367815
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