James Patterson, Dolly Parton, welcome to The Daily Show.
-(chuckles) Thank you. -Well, hello, Trevor. How are you?
-(chuckles) -I'm-I'm... I-I could not be in a better place,
because, you realize, I am talking
to two of the most successful people
in the fields that they do anything in.
I mean, James Patterson,
you've written books that have gone around the world.
I mean, hundreds of millions of people have consumed them.
Dolly Parton, we're familiar with your music.
I grew up listening to it with my mom.
Like, we'd be driving around in our, like, Volkswagen Beetle
singing to your songs with Kenny Rogers,
and I would, like, sing your part.
My mom would do Kenny Rogers.
-It's-it's, um... -Let's hear you
do her part now, Trevor.
-(laughs) -(laughs) I... You can't sing Dolly Parton
to Dolly Parton, James. Don't put me on the spot.
Um, Run, Rose, Run.
It's not dark, but it's thrilling.
I mean, it's-it's a really different side
to the music industry than I think
what a lot of people would have expected.
You know, James, I-I maybe would have expected
something like this from you, but, Dolly Parton,
what made you think, "You know what? I'm gonna...
"I'm gonna show you guys maybe another world in music
that you might not be familiar with"?
And, yes, it's fiction, but at the same time,
it touches on some of the themes
that people have encountered in music.
Well, it does. And I...
Like I say, I knew all about the business.
And I've never written a novel before.
I've written books, written children's books and that,
so I know what it's like to kind of write.
But I-I had often thought
I'd like to write a novel when I was older.
And, so, uh, when James presented me with this,
I thought, "Yes."
Why would James Patterson even be searching me out?
And I thought, "Why?" He don't need me.
Look at what all he's done. But it made complete sense
when he told me what the book was gonna be about,
-and I knew I really could contribute to it. -Because,
you know, I mean, Dolly came out of the hills of Tennessee,
and I came out of sort of a similar situation
in Upstate New York.
And the character in the book, also...
I mean, we were both kind of million-to-one shots,
and the character in the book is a million-to-one shot.
-Right. -She's very talented, AnnieLee Keyes,
uh, but that doesn't mean you're gonna make it.
-Yeah. -But, also, her story,
everybody has a story when they come to town.
Everybody's got a past,
their childhood and how they grew up.
And everybody's story is, uh, is, you know, different.
Everybody's life is a soap opera.
And, so, it's really about her-her story.
She was running to something. She loved the music.
But she was running from something.
And, so, I knew that I could write great songs
about, uh, all the bad people in town
like snakes in the grass, about the bad managers
and things, the guys that we...
'Cause I've experienced a lot of that myself, so...
You know, when we met... So, I go back home,
and-and two days later...
I had some notes for-for Dolly to react to.
She sent me notes on the outline,
and she... and she sent me the lyrics for seven songs.
-Well, I got right on it. -This is two days.
-(laughs) -I had said to him...
I said, "Now, look, if I... I'm not the kind of person
"that if we're gonna work together,
"I'm not gonna just put my name on a book,
-you know, you put my name if I don't really work." -Right.
And I thought, "How am I gonna contribute the most to it?"
And then, one day, I thought, "Well,
"I write songs, and-and I know these stories.
-Yeah. -"And I would love to write a book--
"I mean, a-an album about these, um,
situations and the characters in the movie."
So it just seemed to fall so natural,
-and it just really helped us both, I think. -Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
-Yeah. -So I-- It was just such a magical thing...
It worked very quickly. It was kind of like a TV show
where, every week, we would have another episode
or another two or three chapters
-to-to mess around with. -I love that.
And I really enjoyed it, 'cause it just seemed to work
-so well together. -There was-- I mean, I'll tell you
what the best thing of all-- We-we really become
-really good friends. -Yeah, we did.
You know, for my birthday, she sang "Happy Birthday" to me
over the telephone.
I mean, that's-that's all of it.
-Yeah, well, why wouldn't I? -It was. It was great.
-That's everything. -You're my buddy!
-And it was your birthday. -The book is-- the book
is already a success in your world just because of that.
Um, actually, James, from your side,
you-you worked with President Bill Clinton,
writing a book together. Now...
-Yeah. -You-You're a successful author on your own.
I mean, this is what you do.
You're one of the most beloved authors a-around the world.
But, now, when you're writing with somebody
who has their own point of view, who has their own fan base,
who has their own style, I'd love to know
how you find a way to meld those two worlds, you know?
And-and the second part of that question is,
what were the biggest differences
between writing with Dolly Parton and Bill Clinton?
Well, the-the biggest difference between Dolly--
Dolly's a much better singer and Bill's a better sax player,
-I think. Do you play... -(laughs) Oh, that's right.
-Do you play the sax? -He does play sax. No.
-Unless she plays the sax. -Not like Bill Clinton. (chuckles)
Uh, you know, th-they're both great to work with,
and they're both friends.
I mean, it's-it's really--
That's the most precious thing to me
about both of the relationships.
Um, but the authenticity that Bill--
the president brought and then the authenticity,
uh, that-that we worked on, in terms of-of Run, Rose, Run,
um, and-and no egos.
There was never any bumps in the road, ever.
-Not one. No bumps. -No.
-But I think people are... -That's...
Except that she says I can't sing. I didn't like--
-That hurt my feelings. -Well, you can't sing,
-and let's just move on from there. -(laughing)
But... (chuckles) I know that for a fact.
But he can write.
But I really think people are enjoying this book
or gonna enjoy it, 'cause I think, like you said earlier,
they love to see the inside and the stories of these people,
you know, the-- some of the stories behind the scenes
-and what Nashville is kind of like. -Mm-hmm.
Kind of gives them an insight into the business end of it,
not just the entertain-entertainment side.
You know, James, last we spoke,
we talked about your-your family foundation
and how, you know, you have scholarships
and how you get books out to kids
and to just people who want to read,
and it's-it's really important to you.
Dolly, I didn't know why you got into it.
I've always known you as a philanthropist.
I've always known you as somebody who loves giving back
and, you know, loves getting kids reading
and loves donating books, but I didn't know why you got--
I-Is it true that your father couldn't read
and so you said, "You know what, not only is this important to me
"but I think it should be important to everybody,
to-to be literate"?
I absolutely started the Imagination Library
because of my father, who I loved to death.
And he seemed to always be embarrassed
and kind of almost crippled, you know, that he couldn't read
and he thought he couldn't read after he was grown.
But my daddy was so smart, and so good,
and I just... I... It just...
One day, I just thought,
"You know, I'm going to start something,
"where children can learn to read
when they're in their young days."
-That's when they're most impressionable. -Right.
And I wanted to get my daddy involved with me in it.
So my daddy-- I took him with me.
He helped with, you know, with all the little things,
and he just loved to hear the kids call me "The Book Lady."
And I'd say, "This is my dad."
Of course I didn't say anything about that,
that he couldn't read and write at the time.
But anyhow, I was... He got to live long enough
to see the Imagination Library doing so good,
and he was so proud. And so, I have to honestly say,
that's one of the most proud things that I have ever--
I'm proudest of that, I mean--
as anything I have ever done in my whole career.
-That is... that is so... yeah. -Because of my daddy
-and because of the kids. -That is so beautiful.
I mean, I'm sure he's proud of you, I'm sure...
You know, and I'm glad that he got to see it,
-as you say, in-in his lifetime. -Yeah.
People have been eternally grateful
to your organization for this. You know, I remember, as a kid,
you know, one of the biggest things that changed my life
was my mom spent the little money that she had
to get me books, which changed my life forever.
I was actually surprised to see that, um, you know,
in, I think it was a Kentucky state legislator who said,
they don't want some of the books that you were offering
because they didn't think it was appropriate for young kids.
What do you think some people miss in and around,
you know, what kids can or cannot read
or how we process what we are reading?
Well, I would never in a million years begin
to think that I would choose those books. I don't choose...
We have a whole committee of people that choose the books
that are made up of parents and all different people.
So I would never be so bold as to think
I knew what other people's kids should read.
But it goes through a whole committee and, uh,
so we do the best we can.
And I'll let people, you know, fight that out.
So, I just want to be there for the kids.
I mean, they're little. They're from birth to five.
Yeah, somebody's always gonna be complaining about something.
-Yup. -I mean, how hard can it be?
They're not gonna be reading Gone with the Wind.
-You know, and so, anyway... -(Noah laughs)
We'll let people figure that one out.
But we do have other people that choose...
They choose the books, not me.
Uh, James, are you going to try your hand at songwriting?
Is this bug gonna rub off on your side now?
-No! -You know what? The answer is "no."
But when I was down here at Vanderbilt,
you can't help yourself.
So I did when I was down here.
I did try to write some songs. It wasn't a good idea.
What do you think's actually harder, honestly?
Do you think it's harder to write a novel, or do you think
it's harder to write a song, for you, specifically?
Well, for me, no. For me, I can't, no,
'cause I can't write country songs
-or any other kinds of songs. -But I bet you could.
-I mean, you're a writer. -Ah... Yeah, maybe.
-I don't think so. -He could.
The novel thing I've kind of have a groove on it now and...
-Yeah, I believe so. -Yeah.
And all kinds of novels, 'cause I do the kids' stuff
and then, nonfiction, and, you know.
So we're, you know...
I know what I can do and what I can't do.
Let's put it that way.
Dolly, on your side, you've said, and you know,
it's crazy that you have wishes
that haven't been fulfilled in life yet.
But I know one of your wishes is you've said
that you wish that Beyoncé would cover "Jolene."
There are over 400 renditions of "Jolene,"
multiple different languages, people have done it,
and you said you specifically want Beyoncé to do that.
Are there any updates?
Is there-- Like, do you know of this happening, you know,
-and-and why Beyoncé? Maybe that's even more important. -No.
I don't know if she's even got the message.
But wouldn't that be killer? I think she's fantastic
and beautiful and I love her music.
I would just love to hear "Jolene" done
in just a big way, kind of like how Whitney did
my "I Will Always Love You" to someone that can
take my little songs and make 'em like powerhouses,
so that would be a marvelous day in my life
if she ever does do "Jolene."
Um, Dolly, one last thing. You famously donated
a million dollars for, um, the research
that went into helping us get the vaccine for COVID-19.
How is that you've always been on the right side of history?
You know, you've said amazing things
during the civil rights movement, you know, when
many people were far behind, you said amazing things like,
you know, about equality, about women's rights.
You've said amazing things now in and around the vaccines.
Like, what is the magic of Dolly Parton that you're always
-on the right side of history? -Well...
I just love people. I think we're all God's children.
I make no difference in that. I always try to
find the God light in everybody, always keep
my ear and eye trained on what's going on, and I saw right away
that the pandemic was gonna be awful.
I just sensed it. And I thought,
"Well, what can I do, uh, to maybe help a little bit?"
So I donated the money, uh, to the research.
And I'm happy I did. I got a lot more credit
than I deserved, but I am very proud
of whatever affect that I had on that, uh, going on,
because it's still go on.
But I just kind of be aware and want to help when I can.
I think when you get in a position to help, you should.
And the other thing is, um, you know,
Dolly does what Dolly does, but having been around her now
for a year and a half, she is the smartest person I've ever
-dealt with. -Oh, please. (laughter)
-That a piece of it. -(both laughing)
-Well, -Well, thank you both for the compliments.
James Patterson, Dolly Parton,
thank you for your partnership, and thank you so much for
much for taking the time and joining us on The Daily Show.
-Thank you. This is very nice. -And we just love you.
You have a lot of fans, too.
You've just got that God glow and I love it,
so keep up what are you doing.
Thank you very much.
There are few moments in life that I think my mom would
actually, like, consider as me making it.
Interviewing Dolly Parton is one of them.
-(laughter) - Aw...
Like, of all the things in life, that is it.
I'm gonna, I'm gonna go back to her and be like,
"Huh? This, now?" And she'll be like,
"Oh, you did one thing. Well done."
(All laughing)
James, really wonderful seeing you again.
Congratulations, it's a fantastic book, well done.
-Thank you. -Thank you so much. That was very precious, honey.
Thank you so much, Dolly. Great meeting you.
Say hi to your mom for me!
I-I will do! I will do. Definitely.
Personally. Sending it right to her. (laughter)
Okay, I-I'm gonna clip this and send it to her. (laughs)
-All right. -Both the novel and the album
Run Rose Run are available right now.