Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin have broken their silence on the death of their “9 to 5” co-star Dolly Parton.
Tomlin, 85, took to Instagram on Tuesday to mourn the country music legend, who died at age 80. “No words…💔,” she wrote alongside a joyous photo of the two of them from the premiere of the Colin Higgins-directed film at New York City’s Sutton Theater in 1980.
Fonda, 87, offered a far more expansive tribute on social media. “I am devastated. I just learned that Dolly has moved on,” she wrote alongside a photo of them cracking up on the iconic film’s set.
“I never knew anyone like her,” Fonda continued. “She was simultaneously a naughty, playful southern gal from the hollows of Tennessee and a deep, soulful thinker who could see through people right down to their true selves. She was many things…lyricist, songstress, player of many instruments, writer, prankster, visionary, loyal friend, who’d never go to bed before she and her friends had laughed so hard they’d have to cross their legs.”
The “Klute” actress remembered Parton’s mischievous streak by revealing that she would “stick her butt out the car window and moon Kenny Roger’s (sic) home.”
Fonda also acknowledged Parton’s significance to LGBTQ fans and urged viewers to “watch the final episode of ‘Grace and Frankie’ where she’s an Angel, the head honcho working class angel in Heaven.”
“RIP, beautiful woman. We love you. ❤️,” she concluded.
The trio first met when they starred in the 1980 workplace comedy as three office workers who plot revenge against their sexist boss, played by Dabney Coleman. Coleman died in 2024 at the age of 92.
The film was a massive hit and launched Parton’s movie career.
Patricia Resnick, who wrote the story for “9 to 5” and co-wrote its screenplay alongside Higgins, also lovingly remembered her friend in an exclusive statement. “As everyone knows, she was the most wonderful person in the world, and she would write a song faster than anyone I’ve ever known,” she said.
Resnick recalled how Parton “would work for 12 hours, go back to her trailer and write another song, bake brownies for the cast and crew and then come out and sing, ‘Happy Birthday.'”
The writer said she never heard the famously kind star raise her voice and added, “I never heard her say anything negative about anyone.”
Parton also wrote the movie’s eponymous theme song, which garnered her an Oscar nomination and two Grammys. The song became an anthem for office workers and women’s rights and remains a classic.
The track was later featured in a musical theater adaptation of the film, featuring a book by Resnick and numerous new songs by Parton.
Megan Hilty, who played Parton’s character on Broadway, posted a sweet photo of the two of them following the news. “She made more of an impact on me than I can express in an Instagram post and this deep and profound loss will take quite some time to process,” Hilty wrote. “I am so grateful to have been in her orbit and we are all so lucky this actual angel walked among us. 🦋”
Publicist Wayne Wolfe, who worked on the Broadway show, told reporters the “Jolene” singer was “by far the most lovely soul I’ve ever worked with. Whether you were in the room alone with her or in a room with a thousand people, she was the same Dolly.”
“It’s a terrible loss,” he added. “She was the most professional, smartest, nicest person.”
Parton’s death was announced by her nephew on Tuesday, following a sudden decline in her health.
A public memorial service for Parton is expected to be held in Nashville in the coming weeks.