Dolly Parton - wearing the low-cut iconic bunny suit made famous by Playboy magazine - was on the cover of the October 1978 issue of Playboy. Now the magazine editors have asked her to appear again on the cover. This time, Parton gave them an emphatic "no," explaining she wouldn't do a repeat appearance because of all the work she now does with children.
When Ad Week recently asked the country superstar to name her favorite magazine cover out of all the covers she has appeared on over the years, Parton answered,
"Well, I don't know if it's my favorite, but the one I get the most comments about is Playboy."
Even though you didn't pose inside? asked Ad Week.
"No, I didn't! But I did wear the little Bunny suit on the cover."
Then came the news-making comment from Parton about Playboy's contact with her.
"They just recently wanted me to do another cover and I said, please don't ask me. And I didn't do it again because of all the programs I do for children now and the Imagination Library. Back then I was young!"
The songstress created the Imagination Library, which provides free books to children all over the world. So far, her brainchild has distributed more than 60 million books, with 750,000 books being distributed each month, the Boot reports.
Her ongoing interaction with children is also fostered by the popular 150-acre theme park Dollywood that she created in her native East Tennessee. The park is a magnet for children and their families.
Parton has a lot of company of women who have graced Playboy's cover, some of the multiple times, according to Before It's News. In addition to the singer, others who have appeared on the magazine's cover include Mariah Carey, Kim Kardashian, Charlize Theron, Barbra Streisand, Suzanne Somers, Anna Nicole Smith, Lindsay Lohan, Jenny McCarthy, Drew Barrymore, Carmen Electra, Paris Hilton and many more. Pamela Anderson has been on Playboy's cover a record 151 times!
Parton is content to leave being on Playboy's cover to others. Her Imagination Library is what makes her happy.
"That's one of the things I'm proudest of, of anything I've ever done," she acknowledges. "You can't educate enough children. A lot of that came from the fact that a lot of my own relatives didn't get to go to school because we were mountain people. You have to get out and work and help feed the family. My own dad couldn't read and write. And my dad was very proud of me. He got to live long enough to see the Imagination Library do well, so he felt like he had done something good too - that he was the inspiration for it."
She adds, "If I'm remembered 100 years from now, I hope it will be not for looks but for books."
