Eugene Naughton has been given a mighty task: to put wings on Dolly Parton’s dreams. Although it’s sooner than he wanted, the Dollywood Parks and Resorts president is ready to continue the mission even without the park’s Dreamer-in-Chief.
“We're going to carry her light forward. We're going to not change,” Naughton told Knox News at Dollywood on Aug. 26, the day after Parton died. “We are going to be forever Dollywood Parks and Resorts, and she's always going to be here every day.”
“I always loved how she would inspire me and others to be the very best that you could be and not to be afraid to dream big,” Naughton added. “She never would tell me what to do. It really wasn't her style, but she sure would inspire me to be the very best that we could be here.”
One of Naughton’s favorite Dollywood projects since becoming the company’s president in 2020 is the Dolly Parton Experience. The expansive interactive museum celebrates Parton’s “lasting legacy,” Naughton said.
“One of the biggest honors that I can do for her is to make sure that people all over the world get a chance to see the Dolly Parton Experience,” he said. “It's all in her words, which is really, really important to me because I want people to not hear other people. I want people to hear her.”
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Each of the three exhibits that make up the “experience” is housed in its own building, and they can be updated with additional memorabilia and interactive elements.
“It was something that she really was emotional with me when I had the pleasure of walking her through arm-in-arm together and as we showed her the completion, and I could see her life flash before her eyes,” Naughton recalled.
How will Dollywood honor Dolly Parton’s life
Naughton has another permanent fixture in the works to honor Parton’s spirit. A stream near Robert F. Thomas Chapel will be added to the property as a touching tribute to the park’s namesake.
“Water represents life, and I never want people to forget her life. And the chapel's a perfect place because she wore her faith on her sleeve. So, it made perfect sense to me to make that a permanent tribute area,” Naughton said.
Naughton hopes to have the stream added by the opening of Dollywood’s 2027 season.
How did Dolly Parton want Dollywood to continue without her?
During Dollywood’s 40th celebration in 2025, Parton said she hoped she “may still be around” for the park’s next 40 years. But she had full faith in the park’s future.
“Even after I'm gone, we'll still grow. We'll still be going,” she told Knox News at the time.
Crucial to keeping the park thriving, she said, is listening to the needs and wants of guests, monitoring the pulse of theme park industry trends and being innovative.
“As long as we grow with the public and keep our ears open and our eyes (open), we're going to find out what they want and we will grow accordingly,” she added.
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Parton praised Naughton’s “great vision” and Dollywood’s forward-thinking team.
“We have a lot of dreamers, a lot of doers,” Parton said. “We just dream and think, what do we want? We don't want things that’s just going to last a season or two … we want things to be lasting.”
What’s the future of Dollywood?
Parton had wanted to attend the opening of Dollywood’s newest and most expensive attraction, NightFlight Expedition, on Aug. 14. Her health prevented her from attending in person, however, so she sent a video instead.
“Right to the very day before, she still had intentions of trying to be on stage with me,” Naughton said. “That’s her perseverance. That's her never-give-up attitude that she showed me until the very last minute.”
Even though NightFlight opened to all guests just over a week ago, Naughton revealed he is already strategizing for the next big thing to open in 2029 or 2030.
Back 2021, he and Parton announced a rolling 10-year strategic plan that wouldinvest $500 million into Dollywood Parks and Resorts. The plan, which evolves and refreshes every few years, includes three new resorts - for an eventual total of five - plus one unique experience.
Dollywood sits on 1,142 acres, surrounded by the beauty of the Great Smoky Mountains. Only about 300 acres are developed, leaving around 840 acres of possible growth.
How will the Dollywood president miss Dolly Parton?
Parton was not just Naughton’s boss. She was his friend. They laughed and dreamed together, and you never knew what to expect when the two of them were together onstage.
“I'll miss being onstage with her because she'd always call ourselves the comedy routine. And she'd never follow a teleprompter to save her life, but I was really good with wherever she was going to take us, and we were just going to have fun,” Naughton said.
“Honestly, it was like talking to one of my older sisters. I have five of them, and that's what our relationship represented,” he added.
It’s a big loss for the Dollywood president and the entire Dollywood company, but Naughton is holding onto the good times to lead the company forward.
“I'll miss that smile. I'll miss those eyes looking back," he said. "But know that every day forward, we're working to honor her and to live up to being a lasting legacy for her right here in her hometown.”
Devarrick Turner is a trending news reporter. Email devarrick.turner@knoxnews.com.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Even without Dolly Parton, Dollywood has plans to continue her vision
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