Sandra Bullock has paid tribute to country music superstar Dolly Parton, saying “all the people in the world will never amount to what Dolly Parton is”. Parton died aged 80 following a “brief battle with cancer”.
A long-time fan and film cameo
Bullock, 62, is a long-time fan of Parton and famously wrote her a letter asking her to make a cameo appearance in the 2005 comedy film Miss Congeniality 2: Armed And Fabulous. The actress has previously discussed her surprise when Parton agreed, and featured in a scene where she was tackled to the ground by Bullock’s character, FBI agent Gracie Hart, who mistook her for an impersonator.
Speaking at a premiere for Practical Magic 2, Bullock recounted “one of my favourite memories working with Dolly” as she paid tribute to the late singer.
Memories of sleeping on tour buses
She said: “I hated flying for the longest time, and I used to just take a tour bus everywhere and I would sleep in the tour bus.
“(Dolly) came to Vegas, and she pulled her tour bus up next to mine. I think it was pink – of course.
“And I said, ‘OK, so Miss Parton, we’ve got a hotel in the room for you’. She goes, ‘No, I’ll stay in the bus’.
“I went ‘oh, OK, so where do you want to do your hair and makeup?’ and she goes, ‘I want to do it on the bus’.
“I went, ‘well, where do you want to sleep?’, and she goes, ‘oh, I’ll sleep on the bus’ – and I went, ‘I’m sleeping on the bus!'”
“So she and I slept side by side on buses.”
An enduring legacy
The actress added: “All the people here and in the world will never amount to what Dolly Parton is.
“She’s here. She sprinkles everywhere. She’s not going anywhere.”
Bullock has often discussed working with Parton, and in an interview with the BBC in 2005, she acknowledged how surreal their stunt together was and said: “It was extraordinary to straddle Dolly Parton.
“I was literally lying on top of her, and I didn’t feel comfortable with this but she looked at me and said: ‘We’re going to put the Madonna-Britney kiss to shame!’
“And I thought ‘Wow, you rock. You just rock!’.
“Really, she was everything you’d want her to be and more.”
The actress, who won an Oscar for her role in The Blind Side, also famously interrupted an interview with Parton and Friends star Jennifer Aniston while they were promoting their 2018 film Dumplin’. Bullock walked into their press junket holding a bottle of tequila, lime juice, and shots to toast and the women shared a toast together.
