Dolly Parton says that being in a wheelchair won't stop her wearing high heels every day
- Dolly Parton said that if she ever needs a wheelchair, she'll still wear her towering high heels.
- She said that her style icon, 1930s Hollywood star Mae West, did just that at the end of her life.
It's well documented that Dolly Parton modeled her signature look of peroxide blonde hair, high heels, and red lips and nails on the "town tramp" in her Tennessee town.
But according to the country music legend, there's another woman who has inspired her personal style — and it's one that Parton will continue to try to emulate as she nears her 80s.
The 77-year-old country star writes in her new book, "Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones," published on Tuesday, that she has long admired 1930s film star and sex symbol Mae West.
"Ever since I was a young girl, looking up to that 'town tramp,' I've related to Mae West more than any other star," Parton writes.
"I totally relate to her in every respect, not just the way she looked. She was a very smart businesswoman. A lot of people don't realize that she owned half of Hollywood, and she had her own production company."
However, Parton adds that she also looked up to West because of her glamorous look and her unapologetic love for high-heeled shoes.
"We're both little and we're both outrageous and we both like our high-heeled shoes," she writes.
"I've even heard that when she was older and in a wheelchair, she still wore her high heels. I'm sure I'll do the same thing."
Like Parton, West was 5 feet tall and liked to use heels to make herself seem taller. One pair of the Hollywood star's platform heels, now on display in the George Washington University Museum, are a staggering 8 inches in height.
Even though Parton plans to maintain her look, speaking to Insider in February, she said she isn't afraid of aging.
"Honestly, and I mean this from the bottom of my heart, when I see young people today and I see what they're going to have to go through, especially in this day and time, I would honestly rather be this age than that age," the "Jolene" singer said.
"They say wisdom comes with age, and you can't stop the aging process, nor the numbers," she added.
"But I can't get caught in that trap of thinking, 'I've got to do this or that.' The way I live, the way I work, the way I feel, I'm going to make every moment count. I may live to be 100 or I may die tomorrow, but whenever that is, I will know I died trying, and I will know I've done everything I could to make the most of everything," said Parton.