Heart, hope and a steely determination: Dolly Parton's musical legacy - BBC News

BBC music correspondent Mark Savage looks back on the legacy of the "irreplaceable" late singer.

Image source, Getty ImagesPublished26 August 2026ByMark SavageMusic correspondentIn 1980, Dolly Parton was filming her first Hollywood movie, 9 To 5, and between scenes she had an idea for the tune that would become the movie's theme song.

But her guitar was banned from the set - so she made the beat by strumming her acrylic nails together.

The sound, she realised, was just like the typewriter used by her character, a married secretary who is constantly belittled and sexually harassed by her boss.

Excited, she ran over and sang the song to her co-stars Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda, who was also the film's producer.

"Lily and I looked at each other and we had goosebumps," Fonda said. "And we knew, this is not just a movie song, this is an anthem."