Dolly Parton backs #MeToo but insists: ‘We can’t let it make us think ALL men are bad’

SHE’S known for her distinctive curves and extravagant, if artificial, appearance – but Dolly Parton has also long been hailed as a feminist icon.

Today, however, she tells of her deep-seated concerns over the #MeToo movement that has exposed countless stories of sexual abuse.

In an exclusive interview with The Mail on Sunday’s Event magazine, the country music superstar says: ‘I am very supportive of those women who are speaking out – no woman should be abused – but we can’t turn it into saying all men are bad. I don’t like that.’ She also speaks of how she learned to avoid potential danger in her youth. ‘It was my daddy who taught me how to handle myself with men, to take responsibility for making sure I never got into a situation I couldn’t handle,’ she says. ‘If you’re a woman, you’ve got to be aware of yourself.’

Her father even gave her a gun to protect herself – and she reveals that she once fired it into the street to scare off a man who harassed her in New York – echoing a scene in her 1980 film 9 To 5. The movie is often called a feminist classic for the way she, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin overthrow their sexist boss – and a musical version of the story will hit the West End next year.

Ms Parton – pictured right for Event – admits she’s exploited her looks to make her estimated £400 million fortune, playing up to the ‘dumb blonde’ image.

She adds: ‘I always understood guys would want to look at my boobs. I would say in a business meeting, “I’ll give you a minute to look at these but then I want you to listen to what I have to say because I’m here to make money for all of us.”’

The singer also speaks of how she fought to keep the rights to all the songs she wrote – even though that meant turning down Elvis Presley. In 1975, the star wanted to record I Will Always Love You – long before Whitney Houston would cover it – but his manager, Colonel Parker, insisted Elvis have the rights.

‘I couldn’t let that happen,’ she says. ‘It broke my heart but I had to turn him down.’

She adds: ‘I’ve built my own business and never had to do anything I didn’t want to do. So much of that is down to what my daddy taught me. I’m a woman who has had success because of what she got from a man.’

‘I’M NOT DUMB OR BLONDE’ Read Dolly’s full interview in