Dolly Parton’s late husband, Carl Dean, was last photographed five years before his death.
The businessman, who led an ultra-private life, was seen leaving a local post office with an assistant near his house in Brentwood, Tenn., on Dec. 3, 2019.
He appeared to be healthy as he walked along the building before opening the passenger door of a white SUV and getting in.
Dean, who was 77 at the time, wore a blue-and-white plaid collared shirt with blue jeans and a beige jacket.
He also sported tan shoes and his gold wedding band.
The outing marked both the last time Dean was seen in public — and the first time he had been photographed in decades.
Parton, 79, announced via Instagram on Monday night that her husband of nearly 60 years died at the age of 82.
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together,” she said in a statement. “Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years. Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
The “Jolene” singer shared that Dean will be “laid to rest in a private ceremony with immediate family attending.”
“The family has asked for privacy during this difficult time,” the statement read.
Dean, who ran an asphalt road-paving business, famously stayed out of the spotlight ever since Parton rose to fame in the ’60s.
“He’s sort of shy and quiet,” she told People in 1977. “What we have together is so sweet and good that I’d never want it to get jumbled up with the other.”
However, the 10-time Grammy winner didn’t hold back from gushing about their relationship over the years.
“We’re really very proud of our marriage,” she told the Toronto Sun in 2011. “It’s the first for both of us — and the last.”
Meanwhile, Dean made a rare comment to “Entertainment Tonight” in 2016, saying, “My first thought was ‘I’m gonna marry that girl. My second thought was ‘Lord, she’s good lookin’.’ And that was the day my life began. I wouldn’t trade the last 50 years for nothing on this earth.”
The couple met outside a laundromat in 1964 when Parton was just 18 years old. They tied the knot two years later but never had children.
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