Dolly Parton Remembers Late ‘Steel Magnolias’ Co-Star Olympia Dukakis

It was reported over the weekend that actress Olympia Dukakis had died at age 89, and Dolly Parton shared a touching tribute on social media on Monday night in memory of her late co-star. Parton and Dukakas appeared together in the 1989 film Steel Magnolias.

“I was so sorry to hear that Olympia Dukakis had passed away,” Parton wrote. “She has been one of my favorite people that I have ever known or worked with. I really got very close to her and felt like we were good friends. Even though I didn’t get to see her much, I thought of her often and knew that she was such a quality human being. She will be missed by her fans, her family, and those of us that were lucky enough to get to know her personally.”

Dukakis’ brother, Apollo Dukakis, announced his sister’s death on Facebook on Saturday, May 1. “My beloved sister, Olympia Dukakis, passed away this morning in New York City,” he wrote. “After many months of failing health, she is finally at peace and with her Louis.” Dukakis was married to actor Louis Zorich from 1962 until he died in 2018, and she is survived by their three children, Christina, Peter and Stefan.

Dukakis began her career in theater before making way to the screen, where she broke through with her role as matriarch Rose Castorini in 1987’s Moonstruck, for which she won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress and the Golden Globe in the same category. She was also well-known for her role in Steel Magnolias and appeared in several other films, including Mr. Holland’s Opus, Working Girl, Dad and the three Look Who’s Talking films.

She performed in over 130 stage productions, over 60 films and in 50 television series. In 2020, a feature-length documentary about her life, titled Olympia, was released theatrically in the United States, and in 2021, she appeared in the movie Not to Forget.