Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin paid tribute to their “9 to 5” co-star and longtime friend Dolly Parton, who died Tuesday at 80 after a brief battle with cancer.
Tomlin kept her message brief, posting a black-and-white photo of the two of them together with the caption “No words…” alongside a broken heart emoji, and shared additional images from their decades of friendship to her Instagram Story.
Fonda wrote a longer tribute on Instagram, saying she was devastated to learn Parton had died and calling her presence, power and generosity a force that leaves her woven into people’s lives permanently. Fonda described Parton as playful and mischievous but also deeply perceptive, adding that she never knew anyone quite like her.
The trio starred together in the 1980 comedy “9 to 5,” playing three office workers who turn the tables on their overbearing, sexist boss. Directed by Colin Higgins from a script he co-wrote with Patricia Resnick, the film also featured Dabney Coleman, Elizabeth Wilson and Sterling Hayden, and went on to gross over $100 million.
Parton, making her film debut, wrote the movie’s theme song, which earned her an Oscar nomination and two Grammy wins and became an anthem tied to workplace equity and women’s rights. The film’s popularity led to a television spinoff that ran five seasons on ABC and a Broadway musical adaptation featuring new songs from Parton, which opened in 2009.
The three actresses maintained a public friendship long after the film’s release, appearing together at award shows and repeatedly discussing a potential sequel that would reflect the #MeToo movement, though the project never came to fruition. Fonda confirmed in past interviews that all three had agreed to return if the script came together, while Tomlin joked more recently that the timeline made her doubt she would live to see it happen.
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Parton’s death drew tributes from across the entertainment and political spheres, with her family confirming she passed at Nashville’s Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones. Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced the news in a video statement shared to her social media accounts.
