When Dolly Parton died last month, I was overwhelmed by the outpouring of tributes from fans around the globe.
Donald Trump ordered United States flags to fly at half-staff, as did several state governors, including my own here in Georgia, Brian Kemp. King Charles and Queen Camilla honored her. Every living former president had something nice to say about her, and the state of Tennessee is working on renaming the Nashville airport in her honor. Outside Buckingham Palace, the King’s Guard band even played "9 to 5."
Musicians from Mick Jagger to Beyoncé to Reba McEntire to Paul McCartney honored her legacy. Actors and athletes did the same. On social media, it seemed like every single account or influencer I follow had something positive to say, even those in other countries. Several of my colleagues here and I were completely devastated by the news.
But I may have found the one person who didn't care for her: Anna Wintour.
If you don't know who that is, she was the editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine from 1988 to 2025 and has been described as the "gatekeeper of the fashion industry." She also has a reputation for being snobbish and demanding and was apparently the inspiration for the Miranda character in The Devil Wears Prada, if you have read that book or watched the movie.
Making the cover of Vogue magazine was once a sign that you'd arrived if you were famous for something, though some of that magic has worn off. And I think it's especially meaningless to those of us who have watched the magazine feature every first lady since Hillary Clinton — except Laura Bush and our current one, Melania Trump, you know, the actual fashion model. They made it clear that it's not for Republicans.
For what it's worth, Melania did appear on the cover in 2005, when she first married the president, but once he got political, much of the fashion industry shut the door on her. She says she has "more important things to do" than worry about it. I agree.
Anyway, Melania is in good company because the latest rumor circling is that Wintour refused to put one of the most iconic women in the world, Dolly, on the cover, calling her too "tacky," too "country," and too "camp."
Well, that's Vogue's loss. Dolly was a beautiful woman, inside and out. Her style may not have been traditional enough for the fashion industry, but it's part of what made her who she was. I'd much rather see authentic women on the cover of magazines than some Hollywood leftist wearing whatever boring (or ugly) outfit is trendy at that moment.
Vogue did do a feature on Dolly in its January 1994 issue, but even then, she was not allowed to grace the cover. It reran that piece after the singer's August death. But staff reportedly pitched her as a cover model at least four times during Wintour's tenure, and the pitches were rejected every time.
Something else I'd like to point out is that Dolly herself liked to poke fun at her over-the-top appearance. Some of her most iconic quotes are about her looks.
"People always ask me how long it takes to do my hair. I don’t know, I’m never there," she said of the blonde wigs she favored, ironically in an interview with Vogue.
"I am a self-made woman, and I have the doctor bills to prove it," she once said of her numerous cosmetic procedures.
And one of my favorites came from an interview with Good Morning America: "You don’t have to look like everybody else. You don’t have to be a raving beauty to be special and to be beautiful."
Damn straight. Wintour could learn a thing or two from that. Give me Dolly any day.
