Dolly Parton 'Cute or Stupid'? Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Act Made Husband 'Jealous'

Parton recalled the lead-up to her attire's reveal in an interview with Alex Ross of People. When her longtime husband Carl Thomas Dean offered a light-hearted jab over her appearance, Parton retorted with equally sarcastic snark.

“It turned out pretty cool and my husband liked it. He said, ‘Those shorts were a little too short.’ I said, ‘Jealous?’” a laughing Parton recalled. “I said, ‘They weren't as short as the other girls!’ He was just being funny. I think he thought, because everybody's making a to-do over it, he thought, well, maybe you shouldn't be showing your butt at that age. But anyway, he got a kick out of it too."

Parton was the latest addition to the illustrious history of the Cowboys' Thanksgiving halftime show produced in conjunction with The Salvation Army. Before the Cowboys finished off a 45-10 holiday shellacking, Parton performed shortened versions of her renowned hits "Jolene" and "9 to 5" as well as covers of Leonard Cohen's "Dance Me to the End of Love" and Queen's "We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions." The performance came days after the release of "Rockstar," Parton's 49th studio album.

Promoting her new brand of baking mixes in conjunction with Ducan Hines, Parton said he hopes her appearance at AT&T Stadium inspired viewers to project confidence and have fun in what they were doing, no matter the potential response. 

“I try not to get into anything I don't think I can pull off, just like that little Dallas Cowgirl outfit," Parton said. "I really thought, 'well, I'm just going to do this for fun, because I mean, I've never been to one of their halftime shows, and they're so famous, the girls."

"All the guys love them, my husband included, and I kind of did it for him. I thought, well, if I can pull this off, it'll be cute, and if not, then they'll just think if some older woman did a stupid thing!"