Dolly Parton shot down nickname suggestions from Michael Strahan on the ABC talk show "Live with Kelly and Michael" just a day after defending claims that she is a lesbian, a rumor that has followed her for years.
Strahan made some suggestion of a new nickname for Dolly Parton after learning that she had received an honorary degree from the University of Tennessee. "So now that you have your doctorate, do we call you Dr. Dolly or Double D?" Dolly Parton shot down the nickname ideas by just laughing it off.
Strahan then defended himself saying, "It's an innocent question!"
Meanwhile, Dolly Parton has been rumored of having a secret romantic relationship with one of her oldest childhood friends, Judy Ogle. In a recent interview with "Nightline," she denied the rumors said she even bonded with talk show queen Oprah Winfrey over the false tabloid claims.
Parton has been happily married to her husband, Carl Dean, for 46 years.
"Like Gail, her friend, Judy, my friend, they just think that you just can't be that close to somebody," Parton said. "Judy and I have been best friends since we were like in the third and fourth grade... We still just have a great friendship and relationship and I love her as much as I love anybody in the whole world, but we're not romantically involved."
Although Dolly Parton is not gay, she is a strong supporter of gay rights. In her theme park, Dollywood, she hosts a "Gay Day" which brought unwanted attention and even threats from the Ku Klux Klan.
"When it first started there were people giving us threats, I still get threats," Parton said. "But like I said, I'm in business. I just don't feel like I have to explain myself. I love everybody."
Dolly Parton is currently promoting her motivational memoir, "Dream More," available in stores nationwide in which she opens up more about the incessant homosexual rumors and about how she entered into a Dolly Parton drag queen competition and lost.
