It’s no secret that Reba McEntire has always loved the American West. And for the Grammy-winning entertainer, there’s something special about taking in its magnificent scenery from a train window. When the country music legend isn’t recording music or filming her hit NBC sitcom Happy’s Place, she enjoys riding the rails.

“I love trains! They will take you where you can’t drive,” Reba tells Woman’s World. “It’s smooth and you don’t stop. You’ve got everything you need.”

Reba recently partnered with Canyon Spirit, a daylight-only train experience that showcases the dramatic landscapes of the American Southwest. She and her fiancé and Happy’s Place costar Rex Linn took a three-day journey along the Rockies to Red Rocks route, traveling from Denver, Colorado, through the Rocky Mountains to Moab, Utah, with two overnight hotel stays along the way.

Reba McEntire and Rex Linn Relationship Timeline

“The scenery in between each place was beautiful. You get on the train in Denver and you start early in the morning and ride until about sunset. You get off and go to the hotel. You have dinner,” she recalls of the first night in Glenwood Springs.

“The next morning you get back on the train and wind up in Utah,” she describes. “We spent the night there and toured all around Moab and went to the State Park, which was absolutely gorgeous.”

The journey gave Reba a chance to experience the American West from a different perspective. Canyon Spirit’s oversized windows offer sweeping views of rugged mountains, winding river canyons and striking red-rock landscapes, while the daylight schedule allows travelers to take in the scenery throughout the ride.

Why Reba McEntire loves traveling by train

Beyond the beautiful views, another highlight of the Canyon Spirit experience for Reba was feeling pampered.

“The thing I loved about the train was the hospitality,” she says with a smile. “The food was amazing. The train was so clean and it’s got that big dome glass top that you can stand and take great pictures. Also there was one girl that would tell us the history of every little town we came through. So it was a history lesson.”

For anyone who loves documenting their adventures with photos, the route offers plenty of opportunities to capture the spectacular scenery.

“The pictures we got to take are like masterpieces,” Reba gushes. “They are just absolutely gorgeous.”

Reba shares her favorite parts of the experience

The Oklahoma-born entertainer also loved sharing the trip with friends who appreciate travel as much as she does.

“Rex and I went with some friends from Tennessee and Texas,” she says. “Melissa Peterman [her co-star on NBC’s Happy’s Place] went with us. It was a group of people who love to travel.”

She continued, “A lot of people don’t want to be in an enclosed space like that for three days. You’ve got to pick people who are versatile, who like each other, who want to meet new people. So it was a combination of Californians, Texans, Tennesseans and we all meshed together and have remained really close friends. It’s a lot of fun when you get to travel with a different group and see it through their eyes.”

For Reba, the trip offered a chance to slow down, connect with friends and appreciate the journey as much as the destinations. She was especially enthralled by the railroad’s history and the engineering behind its route through the mountains.

“We went through so many tunnels. It was just really fascinating to see the architecture that people had to do in blasting out the sides of the mountains to make sure these tracks could go through in these tunnels,” she says.

“It was just so much fun to me. I love the history, but I think I’m attracted to it more than anything because I love trains.” The experience only strengthened Reba’s love of rail travel, and she already has a few more adventures in mind.

Reba McEntire reveals other train trips on her bucket list

“I want to go to other countries,” she says. “I’ve always been fascinated with the Orient Express and there’s a train that goes from Cape Town, South Africa up to—I think—Victoria Falls. I’d love to do that!”

Reba has enjoyed her partnership with Canyon Spirit and looks forward to more journeys on the rails. “It’s a great group and a great organization to team up with,” she smiles. “They are very professional and it’s a top of the notch organization. And there’s just something romantic and nostalgic about trains that I really love!”

Reba’s Canyon Spirit Rockies to Red Rock trip at a glance

• Train experience: Canyon Spirit, a daylight-only 2-day or 3-day scenic train journey through the American West
• Route featured: Denver, Colorado, to Moab, Utah
• Overnight stop: Glenwood Springs, Colorado
• Scenery: The Colorado Rockies, dramatic canyons, winding rivers and the rugged landscapes of the American Southwest
• Onboard highlights: Panoramic dome windows, dining, hospitality and historical narration
• Reba’s favorite part: The beautiful scenery, welcoming hospitality, delicious food and fascinating railroad history

Family, friendship and the power of songwriting took center stage at the 56th Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame  annual gala on October 26. Held at Nashville’s Music City Center, the ceremony honored six songwriters and artists whose work has left a lasting mark on music.

J.I. Allison, Shawn Camp, Bruce Channel, Lyle Lovett, Lee Thomas Miller and Taylor Swift were inducted into the Hall of Fame. Country Music Hall of Famer George Strait received the organization’s Career Maker Award.

While the evening celebrated remarkable musical achievements, many of the honorees turned their attention to the people who supported them along the way.

Entertainment

Wynonna Judd Digs Deep on Her New Album 'The Hard Truth' (Excl)

The most powerful art is often born out of pain and struggle. Wynonna Judd’s new album, The Hard Truth, releasing October 2, is the Country Music Hall of Famer’s first new solo album in a decade and the songs ache with loss and regret yet reveal the soul of a survivor.  “This album is so […]

Lyle Lovett credits his parents for supporting his dreams

Lovett was inducted in the veteran songwriter/artist category. After Pat Alger introduced him and Kathy Mattea performed his song “If I Had a Boat,” Lovett spoke about the importance of family.

“I just think of family,” Lovett said. “To see Taylor Swift with her parents, to see Bubba Strait [George Strait’s son] and his family with his parents, to see Larry Gatlin and to meet his son who’s here with his dad, reminds me of how my parents supported me.

“I don’t think there was ever a point in their lives when they made decisions based on what they wanted to do,” he continued. “They made decisions in their lives based on what they had to do. When I came along, they didn’t hold that against me and gave me every opportunity they could. They sent me to piano lessons, to guitar lessons. They didn’t take very well with me, but I’m still practicing. But they gave me every opportunity they never had, and they gave me the chance to make choices in my life based on what I wanted to do.”

Shawn Camp thanks his parents and songwriting collaborators

Camp, inducted in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame songwriter category, also paid tribute to his parents after legendary songwriter Jim Lauderdale welcomed him to the stage.

“I owe everything to momma and daddy,” said Camp, whose credits include George Strait’s “River of Love” and Garth Brooks’ “Two Piña Coladas.”

“They’re here with me tonight, Betty and Darryl Camp, sitting at my table. They have been married 71 years.”

Camp also made sure to recognize the fellow writers who helped him along the way.

“To all my co-writers, I appreciate y’all. Thank you so much. If you’ve ever written a song with me, you’re as much a part of this thing as I am. I sure appreciate you.”

Bruce Channel celebrates 55 years of marriage

Channel, inducted in the veteran songwriter category, is known for enduring hits including “Hey! Baby,” “Party Time” and “Don’t Worry ’Bout Me Baby.”

Kix Brooks of Brooks & Dunn welcomed Channel to the stage. During his speech, Channel thanked his wife of 55 years, Christina, and shared that he was looking forward to the next 55 years.

J.I. Allison is honored at Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame

The late Allison, who co-wrote Buddy Holly classics including “That’ll Be the Day” and “Peggy Sue,” was honored in the legacy category.

His wife, Joanie, accepted the award on his behalf following a rousing performance of “That’ll Be the Day” by Chuck Mead.

The tribute was one of several memorable musical moments throughout the evening. Lainey Wilson performed Taylor Swift’s “Love Story,” while Lee Roy Parnell delivered a rendition of Channel’s “Hey! Baby.” Verlon Thompson, Tim Couch and Emmylou Harris performed Camp’s “Magnolia Wind.”

Jamey Johnson also took the stage to sing “In Color,” which he co-wrote with Miller and James Otto.

Lee Thomas Miller thanks his wife with a funny speech

Miller, inducted in the songwriter category, has penned hits including Trace Adkins’ “You’re Gonna Miss This” and Joe Nichols’ “The Impossible.”

After Alabama’s Randy Owen welcomed him to the stage, Miller began by acknowledging his wife, Jana, with a story that had the audience laughing.

“At my first number one party, I forgot to thank my wife. We’re still talking about it, so let’s start there,” he said.

“35 years ago, she walked into a dive bar in Kentucky. I sang that old classic romantic sonnet, ‘Walk Softly on This Heart of Mine,’ Lee’s version. And she said, ‘Oh yes, take me away from all of this and make me poor.’ Five months later she married me. She has known me lost, broken, rejected, disappointed, disillusioned and irrelevant. I warned her the road would be hard and music will come first. And for some reason she signed up for all of that.”

Miller continued with an affectionate description of the many roles his wife plays in his life.

“Jana is the muse, the counselor, the antagonizer, the girlfriend, the accountant, the voice of reason, the voice of irrational lunacy, the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other,” he continued. “She’s incredibly wise, incredibly expensive, patient and consistently unpredictable. Without her, none of this happened.”

Miller also shared a story about his late mother and her decidedly unimpressed attitude toward famous people.

“Daddy would enjoy it. Mama was more complicated,” he said. “20 years ago, when I told her I was having dinner with the sitting President of the United States, Mama said after a disgusted pause, ‘Lee Thomas, you’re too impressed with people.’ So I apologize to all of the famous people here tonight. My mother would have simply not cared. I can only imagine how unimpressed she would have been with you, Taylor Swift, the most famous person in the world. I don’t think you would have Taylor Swifted her enough to move that needle. However, she would have probably liked your husband. She wouldn’t know who he is.”

The evening offered a reminder that behind the songs that become part of our lives are the writers who create them, the collaborators who help bring them to life and the families who stand beside them.

Creativity and compassion have long been anchors in Jewel’s often tumultuous life. And they continue to be driving forces this fall as the acclaimed singer/songwriter launches the fifth annual #NotAloneChallenge in recognition of World Mental Health Day and prepares for the second annual Not Alone Summit & Awards, scheduled for Nov. 2-4 at the Wynn Las Vegas.

As if that weren’t enough to keep her busy, Jewel is working on a new album, due next spring, and has also indulged her passion for art with Matriclysm: An Archeology of Connections Lost, an exhibition running concurrently with the 2026 Venice Biennale.

“For them to have invited me to the Venice Biennale to do Matriclysm was really incredible,” Jewel tells Woman’s World of the exhibit, which runs through November 22 in Venice, Italy. “For Matriclysm I got to create an entire new body of work which was really fun to get to do more than 30 new pieces. I did everything within a year and a lot of my work is very technically difficult…a lot of oil painting and a lot of traditional sculpture and then a lot of data sculptures, instruments that nature plays.”

Entertainment

Debbie Gibson on Her Best Life at 55: 'I'm in a True Second Act' (EXCL)

Debbie Gibson became a teen icon thanks to her impressive songwriting skills and adorably perky stage presence, and when her song “Foolish Beat” topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988, she earned the title of the youngest female artist to write, produce and perform her own No. 1 hit—a record she holds to this day. […]

Jewel’s art explores feminine identity and human connection

The theme of Matriclysm really resonated with Jewel.

“It explores feminine identity and how attitudes towards femininity have changed historically from reverence to less than reverent states over time, and really how I felt about myself as a woman, my relationship with myself over the course of my life, the relationship to the women in my life, my mother or me as a mother,” she says.

“It explores feminine memory, feminine nature, feminine empowerment,” Jewel continues. “To me the feminine principle I define as the ability to nurture and to connect and so if we have a difficult ability to nurture ourselves and connect to ourselves, I think we suffer. We see that by how many of our choices are nourishing in our lives. Are we able to make nourishing decisions? Are we able to connect with ourselves or are we disconnected? So it explores that as well.”

One of the most intriguing pieces in the exhibit is The Heart of the Ocean. The 2.5-meter sculpture features color-changing light-emitting diodes that translate real-time oceanographic data into an original soundscape and light, modeled and voiced by Jewel. She created the sculpture in collaboration with scientists from NASA, NOAA, Stanford and UC Berkeley.

“I wanted to see if I could build an instrument that nature plays and if I was really loyal to the data, would it affect your nervous system or your brainwave states similar to being outside,” she says. “So I worked with NASA and used a lot of open source data from them as well as NOAA to create this digital narrative of going from the surface of the ocean all the way down to the midnight zone and then back up.”

“It’s completely live so basically it really is an instrument,” she adds. “I created a sound library and a light library that the data plays live in real time and it was a lot of scientific rigor. I don’t think anything like this actually has ever been built before and I was able to debut it at the National Academy of Sciences, which was really rewarding.”

Jewel says there are plans for some of the pieces to be exhibited stateside at the Toledo Museum and at the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, Arkansas, where she has previously exhibited her work.

“We’re looking for a home,” she smiles. “We’d love for another museum to take the whole show.”

How her life experiences shaped her perspective

Jewel’s art and activism reflect her life experiences, including growing up in rural Alaska without indoor plumbing and later experiencing homelessness as a teen in California.

“Our lives really shape our experience and I don’t think it’s really just the things we live through, but it’s the stories we tell ourselves about what we live through. That’s the difference of being able to heal from trauma,” she shares.

“A lot of my work is really about perspectives and as you heal, learning. You’re not going to change the experiences of your life, but you really can change your perspective on them and with the perspective you have, what that meant about your value as a human.”

Why Jewel walked away from fame

Jewel admits success was a double-edged sword, and she actively tried to avoid falling victim to the darker side of fame.

“When I got discovered, I almost didn’t sign my record contract because I didn’t think it would make me happy,” she admits. “I really wanted to sing and I really wanted to be a singer, but it was kind of like being given a drug, like heroin and saying, ‘Good luck! This is going to turn out better for you than anyone else. You’ll be the one person who gets through this without it ruining your life.’”

“Fame is pretty toxic and that’s why we see a lot of celebrities who have become addicts historically and so for me it was about how do I engage with a career that is potentially really dangerous? It’s dangerous to your ego. It’s dangerous to everything. It’s like being given a beautiful gift that’s also potentially very toxic. How would I react in a way that I wouldn’t succumb to being a statistic or the worst of what the industry can sometimes be?”

How Jewel protects her mental health

Even at a young age, Jewel became intentional about protecting her mental health.

“I made myself a promise that my #1 job was to learn how to be a happy whole human and not a human full of holes and that my #2 job was to be an artist more than famous and with that and applying my stubbornness in a good way, I really was loyal to those decisions in my life, those guiding principles,” she says.

“It caused me to make pretty radical decisions in my career,” Jewel says, adding that she also pulled back from her music career at the height of her early success.

“After my second album I really quit. It didn’t make me happy being as famous as I was,” she confesses. “I felt very lucky to have achieved the height that I did, and to be honest, I didn’t like being that level of famous where you have bodyguards and stalkers. You can’t grocery shop for yourself and you can’t go out in public. It was awful. I hated it and so I had to take responsibility for that and say, ‘I need to be less famous,’ and it was a very powerful choice for me.”

Jewel decided to take years between albums and even switch genres—choices she knew could hurt her momentum.

“I decided to kill my momentum between albums, kill my level of fame, switch genres which would also further hurt my momentum, but it creatively made me very happy.”

Jewel encourages other artists to take responsibility for their lives, too.

“If you are not happy and you start doing drugs or drinking, just to sleep on a tour bus or get too depressed to tour, maybe it isn’t working for you,” she says. “Maybe you need to change how often you work, how you make your money because that’s empowering. I know there was press written like, ‘What happened to Jewel?’ But for me it was like, ‘I’m taking care of myself. This is power.’ It wasn’t how the industry perceived power, but I did.”

What is Jewel’s #NotAloneChallenge?

Taking charge of her life and making her mental health a priority have long been central to Jewel’s decisions. That commitment also fuels her passion for helping others, particularly underserved youth, get the tools they need for better mental health.

Now in its fifth year, the #NotAloneChallenge has grown into a global mental health movement. More than $3 million has been raised for Jewel’s Inspiring Children Foundation, which has drawn support over the years from Billie Eilish, Lionel Richie, David Foster, Josh Groban, Kelly Clarkson, Jake Shane, Paris Hilton and many others dedicated to breaking the stigma around mental health.

Contributor Content

The Missing Piece in Women’s Wellbeing May Be The Presence of Community

A woman may often keep going long after she has stopped feeling whole. She often raises children, maintains a career, supports a family and meets every expectation placed before her while carrying experiences that may never have been given room to surface. Tamika Davis, founder of Project WOW, believes this disparity between functioning and healing […]

What to know about Jewel’s Not Alone Summit & Awards

Hosted by comedian Loni Love, the second annual Not Alone Awards will be livestreamed via iHeartRadio’s official YouTube channel.

This year’s honorees, presenters and performers include Mike Posner, Anthony Ramos, Ray Lewis, NAMI CEO Daniel H. Gillison Jr., Mike Majlak, Lexi Hensler and Caroline Jones, along with Mike Tyson, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Kevin Hines, David Eagleman and others.

“Mental health is intense work,” Jewel says. “It’s one on one. It’s dealing with people’s heartaches and problems. There’s a lot of burnout in that industry and there’s people that have for a long time been involved in contributing and participating in a difficult field and they deserve to be recognized.”

On Nov. 3-4, Jewel will join Summit co-chairs Steve Wozniak, ICF alum Cherrial Odell and Jason Kennedy for two days of “conversations, programming and experiences centered around mental health, connection and actionable solutions.”

“Mental health for me has been a fascination since I’ve moved out at 15 and when I did finally look in the mirror and say my #1 thing I care about is my level of peace, my level of satisfaction and my ability to live in the world and not feel anxious,” she says. “That was ahead of my career. That was ahead of songwriting. When I made that my #1 job, my life really changed.”

Through the Inspiring Children Foundation and initiatives like the #NotAloneChallenge, Jewel is helping change other lives, too.

“Happiness is such a silly word,” she muses. “It’s not like you can just be happy all the time, but when we are willing to put our peace ahead of everything—and I think the trick of that is it doesn’t mean you get to be more precious. It doesn’t mean you get to say everybody else has to be really careful with me so I protect my peace—I think our spirituality and our self-health practices should make us grittier, more capable and also more clear about our boundaries.”

“Healing is hard work. It’s hard and painful, but being dysfunctional is also really hard work. It’s exhausting being dysfunctional, so at least if you are going to go through the hard work of healing, at least there is a light at the end of that tunnel whereas the hard work of being dysfunctional, it’s going to be Groundhog Day every day. If you are happy with that, that’s fine, but if not, then you should change.”

Before Courtney Cook rose to social media stardom, she was simply curious about what everyone was eating for lunch.

“I’m a nosy girl!” Courtney tells Woman’s World as our cover girl this week (get your copy here). In May 2025, the Georgia-based high school English teacher and mom of four decided to post her own school lunches on her TikTok (@CourtneyLCook), figuring perhaps a dozen or so people would watch—“seven of whom were my family.”

Instead, millions did. Her followers were rapt with curiosity over her unique meals—from raw sweet-onion “cups” to ramen piled high with scallions and, most famously, a warm sweet potato with a hunk of buttery German Butterkäse cheese stuffed inside. The simple potato lunch went viral, with people across the country hunting for the cheese and posting their own versions.

Courtney’s palate is creative yet effortless, but she doesn’t come from a foodie family. “I mostly grew up eating Stouffer’s lasagna and Hamburger Helper,” she says fondly. Courtney began experimenting with food after getting her own kitchen in college. She recalls roommates seeing her ham-and-apricot-jelly sandwiches and asking, “Courtney, what is that?” “In my head, it wasn’t strange,” she laughs.

Now, that same joyful curiosity inspires her vast following—and she thinks she understands why. “People are craving simplicity,” she says. “Lunch at your desk doesn’t need to cost $19 or have 10 ingredients. It’s more about asking what tastes good.” Here, Courtney shares her easy secrets to making everyday meals fun and flavorful!

Entertainment

‘LORAfied Cookbook’ Drops "Fancy Yet Frugal” Food Hacks & Recipes

Lora McLaughlin Peterson is on a mission to help women breathe easier, save money and enjoy their best lives. The hard-won wisdom she shares on her platform LORAfied has earned her a social media following of more than two million since launching the digital media company in 2021. Now, she’s bringing that same practical, empowering […]

Elevate pantry staples

Want to be more adventurous in the kitchen without blowing your grocery budget? Start at home, Courtney Cook suggests. “Shop what you have first. If you have pasta and cans of tuna at home but see a beautiful eggplant at the grocery store, you can put those ingredients together.”

One pantry staple that Courtney is known for elevating in unique ways: onions! “I’ve always loved sweet onions. But when I shared onion cups, I had no idea they would take off,” she says. “I was simply showing what I was eating. They are crunchy and sweet and add a filling element to whatever you’re eating.” She uses the onions as a vessel for a wide array of foods, from microwavable soup dumplings to macaroni salad and tuna salad. “It’s all about curiosity and just having fun.”

Think outside the box

Courtney Cook taught British literature for nearly 10 years, inspiring her love of Weetabix cereal, British roast dinners and the wonderfully simple ploughman’s lunch, which is a traditional cold meal typically served in an English pub.

“It’s usually a chunk of bread, a chunk of cheese, something pickled and perhaps a piece of fruit, such as a green apple,” she explains. “The little pieces together are satisfying. Simple things put together in unexpected ways can make you really happy.”

Courtney also spent a few years living in Japan as a military spouse, where she fell hard for ramen. Today, she makes hers with long scallions, mushrooms and chili crunch. “Make it and don’t apologize just because it’s different or not aesthetically pleasing. We are not stressing!”

For one of Courtney’s most outside the box recipes, Spaghetti Grilled Cheese, click here!

Entertainment

Feel Good Foodie’s Yumna Jawad's Easiest, Healthiest Pantry Meals (EXCL)

Cooking shouldn’t be complicated, says Yumna Jawad, who creates mouthwatering meals in her home kitchen and shares them with nearly 10 million followers on social media as Feel Good Foodie.  “I’m all about keeping things simple, flexible and flavorful,” she says as our Woman’s World cover girl (get your copy here!). “At the end of […]

Let meals connect you

Now Courtney is working on her first cookbook! It will include recipes inspired by British cuisine, comfort-food favorites and dishes passed down in her family. “I’ll include a lot of heirloom recipes from my grandmother, my ‘Meemaw;’ my mom, Lolly; and my aunt Laura. They all inspire me,” she says.

“My mom and I talk about how my grandmother made creamed corn and the veggies she grew, like okra, tomatoes and corn. The cookbook has given my family new special moments as we ask those questions. I’m so thankful for it.”

Get more of Courtney Cook’s interview below!

Watch fantastic moments here!

A version of this article originally appeared in the November 2, 2026 print issue of Woman’s World. 

Ready for more? Subscribe to our YouTube channel for video podcasts, health tips and uplifting stories designed for women 40, 50, 60 and beyond.

In Coven Academy’s world of magical spells, supernatural creatures and witches, Cecilia Deacon’s character, Mary, is a ghost—formerly a witch. 

Deacon stars as the mother of the young and powerful witch Briar, who goes on a mission to find out what really happened to her mother. Once in New Orleans at Crescent Veil Academy, an elite magical boarding school, Briar discovers her own powers and the ones her mother possessed before her death.

Throughout the first season of Coven Academy, Briar encounters other witches, warlocks, vampires and more as the secrets of her mother’s life begin to unravel. Meanwhile, she finds herself in a forbidden romance and surrounded by more deadly secrets than she can handle. 

Woman’s World recently spoke with Cecilia Deacon about Coven Academy, her character’s mysterious past and which type of powers she would choose to have. 

Entertainment

Tia and Tamera Mowry Share Their HomeGoods Holiday Must-Haves (EXCL)

It may only be October, but HomeGoods and Tia and Tamera Mowry are already counting down the days until Christmas. Along the way, the actresses are partnering with the home décor store for their third annual Deck the Everything Day, which gives all holiday lovers the chance to start celebrating early. Woman’s World got to […]

Woman’s World: You star in the new series Coven Academy. Can you share a bit about the series?

Cecilia Deacon: Coven Academy is about a group of young witches in a magical academy in New Orleans, their adventures and their misadventures, both personal and the broad supernatural adventures that they have while navigating both new and old rivalries within their world. My character, Mary, is Briar’s mom, who’s played by Malina Pauli Weissman, who’s lovely and gorgeous and absolutely hardworking. Mary is very mysterious. There are a lot of question marks about her, and part of what sets Briar on her journey is her mother’s mysterious death. As she learns more about her mom, she starts to learn more about herself, which I think is a very special comment on self-discovery and family dynamics. 

WW: Coven Academy is all about magic and secrets—what drew you to this darker, more mysterious project?

Cecilia Deacon: One thing that I particularly enjoy about the world that Tim [Federle, show creator] built is the magic and folklore elements. That is something that I’ve always really loved. They brought together a lot of very interesting pieces for that. From a spooky perspective, I’m okay with spooky, but this is about as scary as I like, being a part of a world that pushes the bounds of what we’re capable of exploring in real life. I can’t do any of the cool teleporting things or lightning bolts from the fingertips in real life. These worlds set up a big opportunity to explore the emotional inner lives of people because they’re very extreme situations.

WW: Mary plays an important role in Briar’s story, even through the flashbacks. What was it like to approach playing a character whose past is essential to the mystery?

Cecilia Deacon: It’s sort of the same as it always is. You ground your character with the roots of what it is to be human. People come with the same set of emotional hardware. Some people lead with anger. Some people lead with love. Mary certainly leads with love, even though we don’t see her in the present tense. All of the flashbacks, and even when she’s summoned, are about the love for her daughter and her sisters in her coven. Sometimes people don’t always make understandable decisions, even when they’re coming from a place of love, and that’s where I’d say some of her mystery comes from. But certainly, I grounded her through her love of Briar.

WW: What was your favorite part of playing Mary?

Cecilia Deacon: My favorite part of playing Mary was meeting the people that I got to work with. I feel very lucky for the people that I got to meet on this project. Mary was a joy to embody because of how much love she possesses, and lots of fabulous things involved in the supernatural. But the thing that comes to mind immediately is what an absolute joy it was to work with Malina, with Jordan [Leftwich], with Ora [Duplass], Tiffany [Thiessen] and Keegan [Connor]. 

WW: The series is all about magic and there’s a bit of romance, but a major part of the show is the sisterhood and friendship aspect. Why do you feel like that was important to include in the series?

Cecilia Deacon: It’s a remark on found family. It’s a special thing to meet people who become family to you. The word that we use in the show for a coven is sisters because they’re family and that’s a pretty magical thing to encounter and it can be incredibly powerful. The other component is that it speaks to what we’re encountering in the world these days. We all do best when we lead with love. Sometimes we don’t always agree and it can be a very big challenge, but it is important to lead with as much of that as we can. Women, throughout time and space, have been very powerful, but not always given the respect or space in the broad social or cultural narratives. I hope a reminder to everyone who watches the show is that women are very powerful.

WW: Your character is in a coven with Emma (Tiffani Thiessen) and Tamora (Keegan Connor Tracy). What was it like to bring that sisterhood to life on the screen with these actors?

Cecilia Deacon: I feel very lucky because, just as it was with Malina, it was so simple. This is where the skill of casting comes into play. I know Tim [Federle] has spoken about how tricky it can be with casting, bringing lots of people together and thinking ahead long term. But there’s also the chemistry component because it was really simple to sit down with Keegan and Tiffani and feel like we’ve been having dinners and chatting for ages. 

WW: The show has supernatural elements, but it’s also a family drama. What was it like to balance those emotional moments with the supernatural of it all?

Cecilia Deacon: A lot of the special effects components aren’t happening at the moment. Some things are, and then it can be a little trickier because you’re waiting for the fog to roll in or the lightning to flash before you start. The special effects can be a bit of a mystery to us as well. We read them on the page and we try to embody them in the scenes, but then it’s all up to post-production to work their magic and really bring it all in. It can feel a little self-conscious trying to embody a magical component that doesn’t have an immediate sensory or visual cue, but that’s where you have to trust your team… It’s all a grand experiment.

WW: What about Coven Academy do you think makes it stand out from other supernatural series?

Cecilia Deacon: It comes down to structure because it’s masterful storytelling. Tim and Todd [Slavkin] and Darren [Swimmer] and so many of the writers and directors developed so many facets to these characters that allow them to do very fast-paced storytelling in a really unique way. My writer’s brain was very intrigued by how they structured each episode, so I personally enjoy that. I think that’s a very big part of why it’s as fabulous as it is and why people are enjoying it.

WW: The series ends on a major cliffhanger, which is that your character isn’t actually Briar’s mother. What about a potential Season 2 are you most excited for fans to see when it comes to Mary’s story?

Cecilia Deacon: I would love more time with everyone and I hope that we get a chance to unravel a little bit more of [Mary’s] mystery.

WW: Now a couple of quick-fire questions. Coven Academy has all of the supernatural creatures—witches, warlocks, vampires, werewolves—If you could choose, would you rather be a witch, vampire or werewolf?

Cecilia Deacon: Absolutely a witch. 

WW: There are also a lot of powers used in the show—time bending, shape shifting and more—if you could choose one power, which would you want?

Cecilia Deacon: Teleportation. I feel that I spend so much time in traffic or waiting in airport lines. It would be so handy for maximizing your day-to-day schedule. I would never have to worry about parking ever again. 

WW: There are a lot of secrets at Crescent Veil Academy. If you had to share a secret with one character, which would you trust?

Cecilia Deacon: I’d say Miss Graves [Tiffani Thiessen]. She keeps things very on the down low.

WW: If you can describe Coven Academy in three words, how would you describe the show to someone who is looking to watch it?

Cecilia Deacon: Magical certainly comes up, love and sisterhood.

WW: As a witch, would you rather be casting spells or brewing potions?

Cecilia Deacon: I’d say make potions because I like to do at-home spa concoctions. But I’m also in the middle of being utterly sick of my own cooking, so because of that, I’m gonna go with casting spells because I can’t imagine using the stove right now.

She’s been the unapologetically confident Donna Paulsen on Suits and the warmhearted, resilient Katherine Walter on My Life with the Walter Boys. Now, Sarah Rafferty is taking on a new role: she’s raising awareness for early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease. 

With over 25 years of roles under her belt, Rafferty is an instantly recognizable star, thanks to credits including Law & Order (1999), Walker, Texas Ranger (2001), The Practice (2003) and Charmed (2004). In 2011, Rafferty booked her biggest roles yet with Suits and then My Life with the Walter Boys in 2023. 

After watching her grandmother and father receive an Alzheimer’s diagnosis in real life, Rafferty has partnered with Eli Lilly and Company to encourage adults experiencing memory and thinking issues to talk with a doctor. Woman’s World recently spoke with Rafferty about her partnership, as well as her most popular television roles. 

Entertainment

‘My Life with the Walter Boys’ Star Ashby Gentry Talks Season 2 (EXCL)

In a world of coming-of-age teen dramas, messy love triangles and figuring out how to get the girl, the name Ashby Gentry is one you’re bound to recognize. The actor is undoubtedly on his way to superstardom thanks to his portrayal of the sweet but nerdy Alex Walter in the Netflix smash hit, My Life […]

WW: You’ve partnered with Eli Lilly to raise awareness about early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease. Can you share a bit about why you decided to partner with them and why it felt like the right fit for you?

Sarah Rafferty: I’m really excited to partner with Kisunla. I’ve been talking about Alzheimer’s for over a decade because both my grandmother and my father had Alzheimer’s, so this is really, really personal. I’ve been talking a lot about the stigma around Alzheimer’s disease, about raising funds for research and about caregivers. When my grandmother and my father were struggling with the disease, there weren’t really a lot of treatment options available to them—it was a different time. And now times have changed, and there are options. So, I was really excited to partner with Kisunla to talk about the fact that people have options now, especially when they act early.

WW: Can you share a bit about your family’s personal journey with Alzheimer’s Disease?

Sarah Rafferty: My dad and my grandmother are just 20 years apart, and my dad was my grandmother’s primary caregiver. I watched him take care of her and have very few options for her care. Then it was shortly after we lost her that he was diagnosed, so it felt like a double whammy in many ways. When we were talking to his doctors, there weren’t a lot of options for his treatment. It’s been a little over a decade since then and I’m really happy to report that there are options.

We’re also having so many more conversations around brain health in general and preventative therapies, lifestyle choices. It’s not as awkward to talk about your brain health as it was back when my dad was dealing with it. It’s a normal thing to bring up with your doctor. I really want to encourage people to talk to their doctor about their brain health and ask what options might be available to them if they do have memory and thinking issues. I also think it’s so important if people are noticing memory or thinking issues in themselves that they check out Kisunla.com, because there are great resources there for them to see what their options are.

WW: How have your grandmother’s and your father’s diagnoses impacted your own health journey?

Sarah Rafferty: I’ve got to be honest, watching it happen to my grandmother and then my father does scare me a little bit, but that has made me incredibly proactive. There are a lot of things that we can do to take care of our brain health. In terms of exercise, in terms of eating right, but we also need to sleep well and learn new things and keep our brains active and stay involved in our communities. Those are all really important things to do and I think about them every day, and I talk about it every day. I’m also one of four daughters; I have daughters and nieces, and two out of three brains with Alzheimer’s are female brains. So this is a woman’s issue and women are also disproportionately affected by caretaking. So it really is personal on a lot of levels.

WW: Were there any specific signs you noticed in your family members that you didn’t realize were signs of Alzheimer’s that maybe people should take note of?

Sarah Rafferty: A very smart person recently helped me understand that it’s not so much forgetting where you put your keys as it is forgetting what your keys are for. I have lots of memories with my grandmother and my father, and it was very hard the first time I realized that my grandmother didn’t recognize who I was, and she was mistaking me for somebody else. I think an escalation that occurred with my dad was that we were in a very familiar place, and we were taking two separate cars from one location to our home and he got lost, even though he was following us. That was hard. Many times, you sense that your loved one isn’t themselves anymore. 

WW: You starred as Donna on Suits. Was there a moment when you knew Donna was going to be much more than just Harvey’s assistant and become a fan favorite?

Sarah Rafferty: I don’t think I was thinking about her in that way. When I was playing her, I was thinking about the superhero version of being the most indispensable assistant in the world who appears to make a ton of money because her dresses are so beautiful and expensive.

No, but I’m so thrilled that Suits got to have a resurgence [on Netflix], and it means so much to be a part of people’s lives. So many people come up to me and say, ‘I watch it with my son, and it’s our shared thing.’ The fact that the show brought people together in that way means so much to me. I’m really happy to be a part of two shows that provide an escape for people. When I think about it in terms of this Alzheimer’s space, which has been a huge part of my life, people need breaks. Caregivers need breaks. If they’re watching Suits to get away for 42 minutes and relax and escape, or with Walter Boys right now, just escaping our crazy world, I feel really honored to be a little part of that.

WW: Donna was incredibly confident and seemed to know everything about everything. What did playing Donna teach you about yourself as a person or an actor or what did you take from the experience?

Sarah Rafferty: I definitely learned how much people appreciate confidence. She really had a lot of confidence. In some ways it was ridiculous and really funny, and in others, she had a clear understanding of her worth and what she brought to a situation. She wasn’t a lawyer, but she brought a different kind of intelligence. She was a people person who had real emotional intelligence and understood what made people tick. If you look at Louis (Rick Hoffman) and you look at Donna, who were best friends, they’re opposites in terms of their emotional intelligence, but they both brought something really important [to the table]. Most of us can relate to Donna because most of us aren’t CEOs, but in our lives, we want to be the best versions of ourselves.

WW: You now star on My Life with the Walter Boys as Katherine Walter. What about this character drew you in?

Sarah Rafferty: It’s not unrelated to what drew me to Donna, which is that they both lead with their heart, and they’re extreme empaths for better or worse. I wanted to play Katherine because she’s a mom and I’m a mom. In some ways, I feel like being able to play some of these moments with these pretend kids is like a love letter to my own kids. I was excited by that. I was also really interested in the fact that she’s adopted and she adopted a lot of children and has a lot of children, and that she’s driven by this sense of wanting everybody to feel like they belong. That was a really beautiful piece of her,  like her mothering is also an act of healing for herself.

It would be an understatement to say Kelly Senyei, the professionally trained chef behind JustATaste.com, loves Halloween. Kelly, a mom of four kids ages 4 to 10, is known as the internet’s “queen of Halloween,” a title she embraces with glee. “There’s no better holiday in terms of creating recipes, and nothing is too weird,” says Kelly, who is sharing her fun, spooky creations and traditions with Woman’s World.

It all started with a spider. A few years ago, Kelly thought she ordered an 8-inch faux spider to display. What arrived? “An 8-foot, 64.2-pound atrocity.” (See photo below) Kelly’s Instagram followers voted to name him Steven, and a tradition was born. Now, she adds to her yard display each year, and her followers vote on the name (follow along on Instagram to help name this year’s addition). “I have become obsessed with Halloween.”

But Kelly isn’t only known for her Halloween antics—her blog is filled with mouth-watering everyday recipes and fun holiday appetizers, desserts and more. She describes her cooking style as “easy but impressive.” As for the name? “My great-grandmother, Momoo, always reminded me to have ‘just a taste’ of dessert after meals. Now I’m the fourth generation carrying on the name.”

Read on for Kelly’s tricks to save time and money, then pick up a copy of Woman’s World for her recipes for fun, festive treats!

Opt for easy shortcuts

With four kids and a full-time job, Kelly is all about making life easier. “If I can’t do it and save time, I can’t do it,” she says. Her secret? Semi-homemade cooking. “I like to think of myself as a millennial Sandra Lee,” she laughs. “I’ll buy a rotisserie chicken, tortillas and hoisin sauce and wrap it up like Peking duck—in a quarter of the time. I probably have 227 ways to use a rotisserie chicken: I make insane green chile chicken enchiladas, chicken salad, stir-fries… Name the cuisine, and I will work a rotisserie chicken into it.” Her advice to other busy women? “Don’t be so turned off by these store-bought shortcuts. When you find the right brand, the right product, it saves an infinite amount of time.”

Be flexible with recipes

“My biggest tip when it comes to saving money is to shop your own fridge and pantry first. It may sound like a very basic, straightforward tip,” she admits, “but so many times you forget about that can of garbanzo beans stuck behind something. And there are so many ways to use what you already have,” she says. “And if you understand some basic principles of cooking, you can make the most of leftover odds and ends by shopping your own fridge and pantry, and not feeling like you always have to go out and buy every single ingredient that a recipe lists. Recipes are really just recommendations. Yes, baking is a science, but when it comes to savory, you really can get creative and be versatile based on what you have in your fridge and pantry.” (Speaking of baking, click here for this week’s cover recipe: Kelly’s Skeleton Cake!)

Have fun

“I love Halloween,” says Kelly. “It allows me to be as creative as I want.” In addition to holiday treats, she turns everyday eating into an adventure, finding creative ways to serve foods her kids might not embrace. So they don’t eat sautéed zucchini—she cuts the veggie into noodles and serves it as ‘worms.’ “We’re like the grossest, coolest people ever,” she laughs.

Make leftovers taste new

Her secret? An air fryer. “I can air fry anything so it tastes like it was made on day one,” says Kelly, who also uses leftovers for lunches, transforming a pot of Bolognese into chili or Sloppy Joes or rice into fried rice. “I love the ‘cook once, eat twice’ mentality.” Not only do the meals taste better on day two, when the flavors deepen, but Kelly raves,It’s such a great way to save time, save money, and eliminate a lot of stress when it comes to packing lunches or just trying to figure out what’s going to be on the table that night.

Entertainment

Food Network’s Duff Goldman Talks Weight Loss Plus Halloween Joys

As the star of The Food Network’s Kids Baking Championship, Holiday Baking Championship and Spring Baking Championship, fans across the country have been mesmerized by Chef Duff Goldman’s creativity, joyful attitude and innovative accomplishments. From his first Charm City Cakes bakery in Baltimore, Maryland to his expansion in Los Angeles and outreach to millions through […]

More Halloween joy

We’re sharing the Queen of Halloween’s dessert recipes here, but the chef has also developed savory snacks and a festive sip for Williams Sonoma. The popular retailer’s new The Nightmare Before Christmas line includes dishes, cooking essentials (oven mitts, potholders), foods (cookies, marshmallows, cake pops) and more, and Kelly has created some festive recipes, like Jack Skellington’s Breadstick Bones, Sally’s Spooky Snack Mix and Oogie Boogie Brew.

Fun & Fast Facts with Kelly!

Q: Favorite Halloween candy?

Kelly: “Milk Duds.”

Q: Most memorable Halloween costume?

Kelly: “I don’t know how I’m going to beat my costume from last year. I dressed up as [Kansas City Chiefs] football coach Andy Reid, and I stay up at night wondering what I’m going to do this year. It’s going to take a lot to beat that. I walked through the streets in San Diego, and I was calling out plays on my headset. I laminated a play sheet… When I commit to it, just look out.”

Entertainment

Angela Kinsey’s Pumpkin Snickerdoodles Are Pure Fall Joy (EXCLUSIVE)

Remember Angela Martin from The Office—the uptight, closed-off accountant who made us laugh for nine seasons? Well, actress Angela Kinsey couldn’t be more different from her character, and she’s proving it by inviting fans to try some of her family’s most cherished recipes. She and husband Joshua Snyder just released their first cookbook, You Can […]

Q: If _____ isn’t happiness, I don’t know what is:

Kelly: “If eating a meal with your family is not happiness, I don’t know what is.”

Q: Which social media follower made your jaw drop?

Kelly: “Nick Carter and Howie Dorough. If you had told 16-year-old Kelly two of the Backstreet Boys would be following her on Instagram, I would have been like, why? For what? What did you do?”

Q: What’s the most used or most loved item in your kitchen?

Kelly: “My most used would be my KitchenAid stand mixer. Most loved would be my great-grandmother’s 160-year-old cookbooks. They’re falling apart and they are epic.”

Q: A meal your mom, Noni, made when you were a kid?

Kelly:  “Noni’s famous fried spaghetti. It’s made with her iconic Bolognese sauce. It’s salty, it’s chewy, it’s delicious.”

Ready for more? Subscribe to our YouTube channel for video podcasts, health tips and uplifting stories designed for women 40, 50, 60 and beyond.

Over the course of her career, Jill Wagner has worn many hats. Early on, she lent her charm and charisma to the hit game show Wipeout, and later came her role as the villainous Kate Argent in Teen Wolf. Eventually, Jill grew her fanbase when she began appearing in heartwarming Hallmark films, and just a few years ago, she teamed up with Taylor Sheridan on the hit action-drama Lioness, where she brings the tough-as-nails Bobby to life. Now, she’ll once again show her softer side in A Very Arctic Christmas, streaming on Great American Pure Flix on October 29 and debuting on Great American Family on October 31 at 8/7c. In an exclusive chat with Woman’s World, Wagner opened up about jumping between genres and bringing this new story to life alongside Cameron Mathison. 

Entertainment

Is ‘Lioness’ Getting a Season 4? Here's What the Cast Says

Season 3 of Taylor Sheridan’s hit show Lioness: Special Ops is officially underway, and it’s been explosive to say the least. But is that explosiveness going to continue for a fourth season? Below we share everything we know so far about Lioness Season 4, including why one cast member says that fans aren’t going to […]

Jill Wagner shines in ‘A Very Arctic Christmas’

On October 31, Jill Wagner stars alongside Cameron Mathison in a heartwarming holiday flick. Mathison takes the lead as Jim, a broadcaster who, with his daughter, embarks on an Arctic cruise ahead of the holidays with the promise that he’ll make it back in time for his annual Christmas Eve show. However, when a mix-up leaves them stranded far from home, they form an unexpected bond with a wildlife conservationist (played by Wagner), making for a season full of experiences—and connections—they’ll never forget. 

“I actually love this movie and this character—the movie for so many different reasons, but the character specifically, because I feel like Jill in real life could have gone down that path very easily and been very, very happy,” Jill Wagner explains of her character’s outdoorsy side. “People will always ask you, ‘What would you do if you weren’t an actor?’ And there’s so many different loves that I have, but nature is up there in the top five.”

Jill can do intense action and sweet romance

When Jill isn’t shining on Great American Family, she’s showing her stuff on Taylor Sheridan’s Lioness as Bobby, a CIA operative known for her fierce approach to the job—and when it comes to switching gears between Lioness and Great American Family, there are parts of both genres she loves. 

“I think as human beings, not just me, we all have so many different layers and facets of our life and who we are,” Jill shares. “That’s like when people say, ‘Well, what’s your style?,’ It depends on what kind of mood I’m in and what day and everything. So, I think I have so many different loves and I’m very curious about life as a whole. And the military, I’ve always had a strong love for because my father was a Marine and I married an Army man, so there’s that, and then my faith-based or my family-friendly side is something that I can share with my children. It’s also something that’s very personal to me, and Christmas being my favorite holiday, the fact that I get to be a part of people’s traditions is so incredibly special to me.”

Don’t miss Jill’s new holiday film

Each year, the holiday season feels busier and busier—but A Very Arctic Christmas is a reminder to slow down and cherish the special moments with the ones you love. 

“I think this film is special because it’s not just a love story. Oddly enough, I’m kind of the third man down on the call sheet. I think it’s more of a story about just really remembering what Christmas is about, especially when you have kids. You need to stop in those moments where you can and spend time and really be connected while they’re still young, while they still want to hang out with you.”

She continued, “We all lead very, very busy lives, but it’s just a reminder that at some point you need to slow down and smell the roses, so to speak.”

Catch Jill shine in A Very Arctic Christmas, streaming on Great American Pure Flix on October 29 and airing on Great American Family and GFAM+ on October 31. 

Dolly Parton and Carl Dean were married on May 20, 1966. After the wedding, Dolly changed clothes, headed into the recording studio and never saw the dress again—until her niece, Rebecca Seaver, discovered it nearly 60 years later.

Last week, another longtime dream of Dolly’s came true with the opening of Dolly’s SongTeller Hotel in the heart of downtown Nashville. The hotel is also home to Dolly’s Life of Many Colors Museum. During a panel discussion at the opening event, Steve Summers, Dolly’s longtime friend and creative director, revealed the sweet story behind the wedding dress. 

Woman’s World was there for the opening ceremony, which concluded with a magical, meandering walk through the museum, where, along the way, we received not one but many messages from Dolly herself. Yes, you read that right! Both the hotel and museum were years in the making, and Dolly was deeply involved every step of the way. She even prerecorded a series of fun videos to guide visitors through select exhibits.

If you’re curious to hear exactly what Summers had to say about the dress (which was hidden in a paper bag!) or want to hear adorable new details from Dolly about the day she met Carl, we have you covered! Keep reading for all the special details. 

Dolly’s wedding dress was in a paper bag for decades

Dolly’s niece Rebecca Seaver, 40, is the director of the Dolly Parton Archive, which serves as the official fashion and memorabilia collection dedicated to preserving the music icon’s legacy. Over the past few years, Rebecca began sorting through her Aunt Dolly’s closets and among the treasures, she discovered a military trunk belonging to Carl. 

At first, Rebecca didn’t think too into the trunk…until the day her archive manager let out a shriek from the other room. “I was sitting at my desk, and I thought it must be a mouse or a bug, but when I ran back there to see what was going on, she had a dress laid out on her lap,” Rebecca told Vogue.

Rebecca recalled sharing the exciting find with Aunt Dolly. “I went over and put a garment box up on the kitchen counter, and she just immediately grabbed it by the little straps, put it right up to her body and just squealed her sweet little Dolly squeal,” she continued. “She hadn’t seen it since that day.”

At the hotel opening, Summers reiterated this story and said it was meant to be.  “Dolly had said for years and years that it didn’t exist anymore and that it was long gone,” he said at the panel. “Then Rebecca found it in one of Carl’s trunks inside a paper bag from literally the day they got married. That’s one of those stories that’s a God wink. That’s God saying, I want the dress in the museum and here it is.” Now on display inside the museum, this A-line dress, like Dolly herself, was always destined for the spotlight.

Entertainment

Inside Dolly Parton’s SongTeller Hotel: 'It Was Her Dream'

The day after graduating from Sevier County High School in 1964, Dolly Parton packed her bags and followed her dreams to Nashville. Before long, she skyrocketed to country music superstardom. But despite an incredible career that took her all around the globe, Dolly always still considered Music City home.  And last week, her longtime plan […]

How Dolly met Carl Dean—in her own words!

In the heart of the SongTeller Hotel lies Dolly’s Life of Many Colors Museum, which takes visitors through the milestones, memories and moments behind the Queen of Country. And few exhibits inside the museum are sweeter than the one that tells the story of how Dolly and Carl met. 

In 1964, Dolly followed her dreams to Nashville, where she met Carl the first day she arrived in town—outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat to be exact! The museum includes a replica of the laundromat, and it’s a playful and charming ode to the couple. “It even smells like soap in here,” one museum visitor said, looking around in awe. Filled with nostalgic, never-before-seen photos of Carl and Dolly, the most moving moment of all is a video message from Dolly herself. 

“I heard a rumble outside, and a handsome man yelled out, ‘you’re going to get a sunburn!’ Carl Dean was looking like a tall drink of iced tea that day, as he did every day, and I could tell that he was interested in me,” Dolly recalls in a prerecorded video that plays in the exhibit. 

“So he pulled a U-turn just to talk to me. Knowing what I know now, he was always kind of bashful, and it’s not like him to pull over and start talking to a girl. We always joked how that was just meant to be.” 

Entertainment

We Saw Dolly's Symphony Show—Inside the Spectacular Experience (Excl)

On a summer night in 1959, a 13-year-old Dolly Parton made her live debut at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Introduced by Johnny Cash, she walked onto the legendary stage, sang George Jones’ “You Gotta Be My Baby,” earned three encores—and has been dazzling audiences ever since. For nearly six decades, Dolly has filled […]

Their ‘secret’ wedding was one to remember

In 1966, Monument Records, Dolly’s record label at the time, suggested she postpone any wedding plans for a year. They wanted her to focus on launching her music career without the news appearing in Tennessee papers. 

Dolly’s answer to that? She drove right out of Tennessee and married Carl Dean on Memorial Day that same year at Ringgold First Baptist Church in Ringgold, Georgia. The only attendees besides the couple were Dolly’s mother Avie Lee Parton (who baked a small cake for the occasion!), the preacher and the preacher’s wife. 

“Two years later [after first meeting], we got married. If you can believe it. That’s the dress I was wearin’ there at the real old chapel that day all those years ago,” Dolly continued in the museum’s video message. “Carl Dean was one of the greatest gifts God ever gave me, and it was a special type of love, the kind that lasts forever.”

For museum information, visit dollyslifeofmanycolors.com!

Back in 1999, Holland Taylor stood in the press room at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles clutching a brand-new Emmy, and she used her moment in the spotlight to say something America needed to hear: Women in their 40s, 50s and 60s are vibrant, powerful and very much alive, including in love.

More than two decades later, Holland is living proof of her own words. At 83, she’s deep in a loving partnership with actress Sarah Paulson, 51, and the two have been together for a decade.

If you grew up watching Holland on The Practice—where she won that Emmy for playing the sharp, confident and unapologetically sexual Judge Roberta Kittleson—or chuckling along to her scene-stealing turn on Two and a Half Men, this love story feels like the happy ending she always deserved.

Entertainment

10 Actresses Who Found Love With Younger People—Age Is Just a Number!

Several famous female celebrities prove that age really is just a number when it comes to falling in love.

The speech that still hits home

Standing in that press room on September 12, 1999, Holland spoke about her character and her friends with equal fire.

“It says a lot about women of a certain age being viable, alive people who probably do a lot of things better than some young girls,” she said. “And so, I mean, this woman is all my friends. Most of my friends are in their 40s or late 30s or 50s or early 60s, and they’re all doing it. And they’re alive, and they have—they’re professional women, and they’re enormously powerful, and have husbands, and lovers, and children—children at a late age. Come on!”

Then she turned her attention to Europe, where she said older actresses were adored rather than overlooked. “The greatest women actresses in Europe who are loved are all like in their 50s. Look at Sophia, look at Simone Signoret, look at Melina Mercouri, look at any of them. We don’t really have a lot of that here. We’ve got to grow up.”

A meet-cute decades in the making

Holland’s own love story reads like a wholesome romance novel. She first crossed paths with Sarah in 2005 at a dinner party, according to Us Weekly’s relationship timeline. Both women were in committed relationships at the time, so nothing happened—but the spark was unmistakable.

“The most exquisitely beautiful woman” Sarah had ever met is how she later described Holland to the New York Times in 2016.

It would take a full decade—and a little social-media nudging—for the two to find their way back to each other.

Wellness

Keltie Knight’s LadyGang ‘Pillow Talk’ Gets Candid About Low Desire

If perimenopause has stolen your sex drive and you’ve (sing it with me) “lost that loving feeling,” help is here. The popular LadyGang podcast recently hosted a candid “pillow talk” conversation about women’s sexual health, including news about Addyi—the FDA-approved treatment for low desire—from two leading experts in the field. And their insights may change […]

When Twitter did the work

How did they finally connect? Sarah spilled the delicious details on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in January 2019. The two had “sort of breezed by one another, and then started following each other on Twitter,” she said. When fellow guest Billy Eichner asked, “Did Holland Taylor slide into your DMs?” Sarah grinned: “Yeah, she actually did! It’s pretty great!”

In November 2015, Holland confirmed on radio station WNYC that she was dating a younger woman. “There’s a very big age difference between us which I’m sure shocks a lot of people, and it startles me,” she said. “But as they say, ‘If she dies, she dies.’” Later that month, she posted a photo of Sarah in a ballgown on Twitter with the caption, “When captions fail …”

Sarah made it official in March 2016 in a New York Times interview. “I can say absolutely that I am in love, and that person happens to be Holland Taylor,” she said.

The award-show love notes

Six months later, Sarah won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series at the 2016 Primetime Emmy Awards for The People vs. OJ Simpson—and she used her moment to shout out her sweetheart.

“Hi, Holland—Holland Taylor, if you’re watching, I love you.”

Holland fired back on Twitter: “If I’m watching…?? If I’m WATCHING??? YES, I’m watching–!!! good LORD! … I LOVE you!!!”

In January 2017, Holland told SiriusXM’s Sandra Bernhard, “I’m the luckiest person in the world. I can’t talk about my life today and not mention this wonderful love… The whole embrace of this wonderful relationship, which makes everything else makes sense.”

Birthday tributes to melt your heart

Instagram has become the couple’s shared love letter. For Sarah’s 46th birthday in December 2020, Holland posted: “Yes, but listen—y’all have no idea. Happy Birthday to my one and only. I’m grateful you were born, @mssarahcatharinepaulson.”

Sarah returned the favor for Holland’s 78th birthday a few weeks later. “All roads lead me to this face, those eyes, that soul,” she wrote alongside a black-and-white photo. “You are, quite simply—everything to me. Here’s looking at you, kid. Today. Tomorrow. Always.”

In January 2022, for Holland’s next birthday, Sarah wrote: “Love of my life. The one. The only one. January 14th is my favorite day of the year… Happy Birthday, my poetic magical darling.”

When Holland wrapped her off-Broadway run of ANN at the Pasadena Theatre in April 2022, Sarah posted: “I have loved her for 7 years and counting… She is an artist to the marrow… I happen to love a genius. That’s really the truth.”

Red carpet royalty

The couple has become a fixture of Hollywood’s biggest nights. At the September 2022 Emmys, Sarah stunned in a custom deep-purple Louis Vuitton two-piece set with a bejeweled belt, while Holland wore a gold-and-black tweed jacket with a black top and pants.

Two years later, at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2024, Sarah went with a custom blue Prada gown finished with a black train and white bow, while Holland chose a cream suit with matching clutch and pumps.

In December 2025, Sarah brought Holland as her date to her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony, where the two beamed holding hands over Sarah’s new star. And at the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscars Party this March, Sarah wore a white long-sleeved dress with a full tulle skirt while Holland opted for an all-black ensemble featuring a shimmery coat.

Sarah also took home her first Tony Award on June 19, 2024, for her performance in Appropriate. In her acceptance speech, she said simply: “Holland, thank you for loving me.”

‘On paper, it’s unconventional’

The 32-year age gap has always drawn attention, but Sarah has never flinched. “I didn’t choose to fall in love with the person I fell in love with,” she told Elle in 2018. “But I think why it’s interesting to people is that on paper, it’s unconventional… maybe they could see me living my life in a way that is authentic to me — just trying to be as real as possible. If that inspires anybody else, that can’t be a bad thing.”

Holland, for her part, told Us Weekly in January 2020 that Sarah is “the center of her life”—and that she’s still a little amazed by the whole thing. “That she would make a commitment like this and that she would share her life with me is a constant surprise every day really… I basically am following her lead and I’m blessed.”

More than 25 years after Holland told America to “grow up” about older women and love, she’s showing us exactly what she meant.