Kathy Griffin Reveals Dolly Parton Secretly Loved Her Outrageous Comedy

Comedian Kathy Griffin revealed Dolly Parton was a secret fan of hers, even sending her letters of praise and encouragement over the years.

Griffin, 65, recalled her unlikely friendship with the country icon in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly while promoting her upcoming stand-up tour.

The comedian said Parton once sent her a heartfelt letter after Griffin asked her to appear on her reality series My Life on the D-List.

“She couldn’t do it because I’m a little outrageous for her fans. But, she wrote me the nicest letter saying, ‘I wish I could do it. I watch it all the time. Keep doing your thing. You’re so good at what you do.’ It was above and beyond,” she explained. “I appreciated her honesty, which was… I love the show, but I live in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.”

Griffin said Parton also encouraged her privately when the two spoke.

Following Parton’s death on August 25, Griffin shared a tribute on social media recalling the singer once telling her to “GIVE IT to all these phonies” when she poked fun at celebrities onstage.

“Twice, she told me that! It was funny because both times she wanted to be alone, because she didn’t want somebody to hear Dolly Parton say, ‘Go for it, [expletive]!'” Griffin told Entertainment Weekly.

“She’d be like, ‘You’re just a funny [expletive]. You say the stuff I’m afraid to say, but I want to hear you say it,'” Griffin continued.

“Wow, that is the perfect human right there. People talk about her being the beacon of everything, and I saw it with my own eyes, having the opportunity to even talk with her about anything.”

Parton had a private family funeral in Nashville on Friday, August 28, following her death. She was buried next to her late husband, Carl Dean, at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville, Tennessee.