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Dolly Parton, Deanna Durbin, James Morrison

We recently visited Dollywood, and there was so much information about Dolly Parton’s career and her family, but virtually nothing about her husband. Does she have children? I do not recall ever seeing even a picture of her with her spouse.
—Jill B., Indiana

Country superstar Dolly Rebecca Parton met her future husband in 1964 on her first afternoon in Nashville, Tenn. Parton describes her husband, Carl Dean, as moral, unselfish, and witty. She also says he’s a homebody, which is why you don’t often see him out with her at awards shows and

such. He maintains a distinct separation between the different worlds in which he and his wife of 36 years move and rarely appears with her at public functions. Parton, an East Tennessee native, got her first big break when she started appearing on Porter Wagoner’s syndicated television show. Eight Country Music Association awards, seven Grammy Awards, several number one singles, and dozens of other awards tell the story of Parton’s extraordinary career, which has evolved to include starring roles in movies and television shows as well. She is touring to promote her new album on Sugar Hill Records titled Halos and Horns, which was released last month. She and Dean have no children.

My favorite actress when I was in my teens was Deanna Durbin. She got married and moved to France. I haven’t heard anything concerning her in all these years. Is she still in France? Did she have a family?
—Rita S., Arizona

The Canadian-born actress and singer was a huge star in her teen years, but she never much liked the spotlight. When she married her third husband, French film director Charles Henri David, she said that she wanted to live the life of a “nobody.” They moved to France, and she mostly got her wish. She stopped doing movies and refused to give interviews. In the last few years, with the advent of the Internet, fans found Durbin. Though flattered by the interest, she found herself spending a great deal of time answering the letters and requests from fans. When her husband died in 1999, Durbin sent word to a fan club in England, called the Deanna Durbin Society, that she had “re-retired.” Now 80 years old, she is happily a “nobody” again, still living in France. She has a daughter and one stepson.

What can you tell me about James Morrison of Space: Above and Beyond. I’ve seen him guest-starring on a few shows.
—Debra H., Pennsylvania

Born in Bountiful, Utah, and raised in Alaska, the 48-year-old actor began his career as a clown and wire walker, going on to learn his craft as an actor with the Alaska Repertory Theater from 1977 to 1979. He moved to Los Angeles in 1982 and has worked regularly on stage, film, and television. In addition to Space: Above and Beyond, he’s guest-starred on Nash Bridges, The X-Files, Frasier, and Six Feet Under, among other television shows. His first movie role was as the “Man at Construction Site with Stop Sign” in the Michael Douglas film, Falling Down. Morrison is also a writer, director, and filmmaker, most recently collaborating with his wife, Riad Galayani, on Nude Descending. He is also a dedicated yoga practitioner and has become a certified teacher. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and their 3-year-old son, Seamus.

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