dolly parton is a 'backwoods barbie'

on parton's storied breasts, nicknamed "shock" and "awe": "they do seem like public property in a way. they served me well--i don't know if i'm supporting them or they're supporting me. i've always had nice ones but of course i've had 'em jacked up a bit. and they're part of the persona--it always takes a little pressure off me."

on style: "i know my style has been a joke to a lot of people and still is. i've used this line often but by now i hope people see that there's a brain beneath the wigs. and a heart beneath the boobs."

on plastic surgery: "ain't nothing i can do about the numbers but there's plenty i can do about how i look. and how i act...if somebody asks me point-blank, 'have you had plastic surgery?' it's like, well, duh. i never talk about it unless someone asks me. but i don't want to lie about it." she claims her husband, carl dean, has even made playful banter this: "why should i cheat on her when i get a new woman every six months?" she says of his reaction to her collagen procedures

on eating disorder rumors: "my weight is in line for someone my size, but people are telling me i'm too skinny now so i'm going to gain 10 or 12 pounds. people worry about me but i'm healthy."

on tabloids and personal relationships put on the line: "the thing that bothers me the most about the tabloids is that sometimes they hurt members of my family. it's embarrassing. they don't know how to deal with it. i just say, 'hey, you think i like this? i am truly, truly sorry. this is what you get for being my buddy. so please accept my apologies. there's not a thing i can do about it.'"

depression and how to stay afloat: "man, i saw how it is when people get depressed, get to drinking and drugs. i've never done that. and that's another reason i think i've lasted. because i've had to kick my own behind. and if i don't kick my behind, somebody that loves me dearly would. a good friend or family member would say, 'well, that's enough of that.'" she wouldn't describe her husband as a confidant: "i don't like to trouble him. i always lean on my sisters or judy [ogle, her friend since third grade]."

on her public persona: "people think i'm always so happy. i'm not. but i always try to be happy. i have a lot to be grateful for."

on struggles within the industry: "when i came in, it was always that the men were better than us. we were second-class citizens." by parton's 40s, "they stopped programming me on the radio because of my age. even with major labels i couldn't get a real good contract. they'd say, 'hey now, let's get real, dolly. it's not like you're as young as you used to be and you've had your day.' i still kept going, i kept saying, i'm going to make my record even if i have to sell them out of the back of my car.'"

on children: "i'm child-like enough that being with kids gives me an outlet, too. i love my nieces and nephews and though i don't have children of my own, i realize that's probably good. now everybody's kids can be mine. and i do love it."