By Mashable | Created at 2026-09-15 11:51:10 | Updated at 2026-09-19 14:45:31
4 days ago
"She was genuine and humble, supportive and blisteringly funny, with a bawdy sense of humor that would send any rude guy looking for a place to hide."
By
Shannon Connellan
Senior Editor
Shannon Connellan is Mashable's Senior Editor, General Assignments, based in London. She has been Mashable's UK Editor (and still manages the illustrious UK team) and Australia Editor, but emotionally, she lives searching for Exit 8. A Tomatometer-approved critic, Shannon writes about entertainment, tech, social good, science, culture, and Australian horror, and loves to nerd out with movie stars, filmmakers, and TV creators.
on September 15, 2026
Each year, the Emmys' tribute to stars who've passed away is always a moving moment, however this year's "In Memoriam" segment seemed especially sombre.
As well as paying tribute to the late Catherine O'Hara, Rob Reiner, Tim Curry, Robert Duvall, Isiah Whitlock Jr., James Van Der Beek, Anthony Head, Hayden Panetierre, and sadly many more, the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards honoured a bright light missing from this year's ceremony: Dolly Parton.
Following the screen and music icon's death in August, the Emmys saw two of Parton's friends honouring her on stage: her Steel Magnolias co-star Sally Field and country music star Reba McEntire performing Parton's 1983 ballad "Appalachian Memories."
"If there are truly angels on earth, then we just lost one: Dolly Parton," said Field in her speech, seen in the video above. "Over the years, I never stopped loving her. Though we lived very far apart, I adored her from day one. How could you not? She was genuine and humble, supportive and blisteringly funny, with a bawdy sense of humor that would send any rude guy looking for a place to hide. I couldn't see then what a real giant Dolly was — not just as an artist, but as a human."
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Shannon Connellan is Mashable's Senior Editor, General Assignments, based in London. She has been Mashable's UK Editor (and still manages the illustrious UK team) and Australia Editor, but emotionally, she lives searching for Exit 8. A Tomatometer-approved critic, Shannon writes about entertainment, tech, social good, science, culture, and Australian horror, and loves to nerd out with movie stars, filmmakers, and TV creators.
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