Reba McEntire is sharing a heartbreaking detail about her final days of friendship with Dolly Parton — and it’s leaving us with one big question.
A month after Parton’s death at 80 following a brief battle with cancer, McEntire just revealed that she never got the chance to find out why the country legend had tried to reach her weeks before she passed. That’s right: Dolly called Reba a few weeks before the Dollywood icon ended up passing away — but Reba missed the call.
Related: WTF?! Someone Vandalized Dolly Parton’s Star On The Hollywood Walk Of Fame!
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight over the weekend, Reba revealed:
“She [Dolly] did call me the last of July, and I was in a meeting and I missed her call. I tried to get back in touch with her and I couldn’t. Never made connection. And then when my buddy called me and said, ‘Dolly’s gone,’ I thought, ‘I’ll never know why she called me.’”
Wow.
That is truly heartbreaking.
McEntire then offered a quiet, emotional thought about the unanswered question, saying:
“I’ll find out one day.”
FYI, the two country icons shared a longtime friendship and worked together several times, including Parton’s memorable appearance on Reba’s eponymous sitcom and their 2021 recording of Does He Love You.
But their bond also went far beyond the businesses of music and television. After eight members of McEntire’s band died in a 1991 plane crash, Parton stepped in and offered McEntire her own band to help her return to performing.
And then, after Parton’s death was announced, McEntire paid tribute to her friend, writing that she would “never forget our last conversation” and would always hold it with love in her heart.
Now, that missed call carries a LOT of weight. Whatever Dolly wanted to say, Reba never got to hear it — at least not in this life.
[Image via FayesVision/MEGA/WENN]
