Jane Fonda remembers incident with Lily Tomlin that got Dolly Parton ‘very upset’

Jane Fonda is remembering her dear friend and co-star Dolly Parton a few days after her death.

The country music icon and philanthropist passed away on August 25 at the age of 80, with Jane, 88, penning a moving tribute to her soon after.

During an appearance on Democracy Now! just a few days later, the Klute star shared some precious memories of working on 9 to 5 with Dolly and Lily Tomlin, her views of her “hillbilly” style, and why the singer always embodied “love.”

How Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin ‘upset’ Dolly Parton

“She meant love. She really did,” Jane shared, recalling one incident during the promotional tour for 9 to 5 with Dolly and Lily, now 87, which upset the former, but also showcased her deep empathy for others. “She loved everyone.”

“One day, we were on a photo session, me, Dolly and Lily. And for fun, we crossed our eyes, and they took a picture of us with our eyes crossed,” she remembered. “And [Dolly] got very upset. She said, ‘We never can show this to anybody.’ She said, ‘It looks like we’re making fun. I have a relative who’s cross-eyed. I don’t ever want to see this picture.'”

She continued: “I was in [the] deep hollows of Tennessee and Arkansas, where people lived in tar paper shacks with no electricity or running water. And she would come in her full regalia. I never saw her without full regalia.”

“And they loved her so much that they accepted my presence. And it was so clear that she absolutely respected them. That was why there was so much love. She never played down. She always was pulled together. She was always who she was, out of respect for her fans. She taught me the importance of acknowledging and respecting fans.”

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Jane on Dolly’s intellect

Jane also commented on the idea of Dolly as a “dumb blonde,” which the singer had frequently proven wrong. “She wasn’t dumb. She had the ability, like X-ray vision, she could see through people to their essence,” Jane noted.

“Whatever the outside was, she could see, good or bad, to the essence of a person, which is interesting, ’cause what she saw in me was a virgin. She told Lily. She said, ‘Jane’s like a virgin.'”

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When Dolly wrote the song “9 to 5” and gave Jane and Lily “goosebumps”

Jane also fondly remembered the moment she and Lily first heard the 1980 classic’s title track, which eventually earned an Oscar nomination. “Well, first day of work, she shows up, and she’s memorized the entire script. She thought that she was supposed to learn it all.”

“And then one day, about, I don’t know, three or four weeks into the shooting, she called me and Lily over during the lunch break. ‘Come here.'”

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“You know, she had [long nails]. She got in the corner, and she said, ‘I think I’ve written the song.’ And she starts singing ‘9 to 5’, using her nails as percussion instruments. And I just — Lily and I looked at each other. We both had the biggest goosebumps we’d ever had. And it was like, ‘Oh my god.'”