Dolly Parton to Miss Governors Awards Due to Health Issues

Legendary country music icon Dolly Parton, 79, will not be able to attend the 16th Governors Awards ceremony in Hollywood on November 16th due to ongoing health challenges. Earlier this week, Parton announced that she was postponing a series of six concerts in Las Vegas that had sold out in less than two hours, citing the same issues that are preventing her from traveling to the awards show.

It has been a difficult year for the beloved singer-songwriter and actress. In March, Parton's husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, passed away. Despite her absence, Parton's remarkable philanthropic work will surely be celebrated at the Governors Awards, where she was tapped by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' board of governors to receive the prestigious Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.

Parton's philanthropy has had a profound impact, including donating $2 million to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center that helped fund the critical early stages of development of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. She has also spent millions of dollars to give away more than 285 million books to children through her Dollywood Foundation and Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, inspiring a lifelong love of reading. Parton's generosity and advocacy for the LGBTQ community have cemented her status as a beloved figure both in the entertainment industry and beyond.