Dolly Parton warned rumormongers against presuming her close friendship with a woman means she's a lesbian.
The singer-actress discussed a variety of personal topics for a Nov. 27 article in TV Guide.Parton, 47, dismissed rumors that she and Judy Ogle are anything more than best friends.
"We have done everything together, but not that," Parton said. She said she's closer to Ogle than to her husband, but insisted she's not a lesbian.
"But what would be the big deal if the rumors were true? There are a lot of gay people in the world," she said. "I'm just not one of 'em. Why is it that they have to dirty every beautiful thing?"
She refused to say whether she'd ever been unfaithful to husband Carl Dean, but said she'd had wonderful relationships with people of both sexes.
"I mean, sex and love are two different things," she said.
Parton also said she briefly considered suicide after her early film successes - a time when she was ill and felt betrayed by show business associates.