The separation initially proved difficult for Ms. Parton, both emotionally and financially, but it also opened doors to new opportunities like the chance to host her own TV show. She was named female artist of the year by the Country Music Association in each of the first two years (1975 and 1976) after her break with Mr. Wagoner.
Embracing a more pop approach than she had earlier in her career, Ms. Parton continued her ascendance on the charts in the late ’70s with blockbuster hits like “Here You Come Again” and “Heartbreaker.” Both were No. 1 country singles that crossed over to the pop Top 40. The Country Music Association awarded her its top honor, entertainer of the year, in 1978.
After her 1980 recording of “9 to 5” earned her two Grammy Awards and an Oscar nomination, Ms. Parton turned her attention to movies, TV appearances and the development, in the mid-1980s, of Dollywood, her Smoky Mountain theme park, among other business ventures.
In 1987, she released the first of her two albums with Ms. Ronstadt and Ms. Harris, the platinum-selling “Trio.” She hosted “Saturday Night Live” in 1989 and teamed up with Ms. Lynn and Ms. Wynette to record the album “Honky Tonk Angels” in 1993.
She published her memoir, “Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business,” a New York Times best seller, in 1994. The next year, she established the Imagination Library, a philanthropic endeavor through which more than 200 million books have been distributed to babies and young children.
She gave back generously to Sevier County, her home county in Tennessee. In the early 1990s, she began offering $500 to local high school graduates, to help lower the dropout rate; in 2000, she added five $15,000 college scholarships. In 2007, she held a benefit concert to raise money for a new hospital in the county.
