Dolly Parton, Friend of Miss Piggy, Is Remembered by the Muppets

They were two brassy blondes, outspoken and no-nonsense; trailblazing women in a world where men often pull the strings. Fond of flashy outfits and supported by quieter men, they both wore their hearts on their spangled sleeves, and sang about it, although — in truth — one was usually more in tune than the other.

Dolly Parton, the country music legend who died on Tuesday, and Miss Piggy had as warm a friendship as any possible between a human and a puppet, complete with heartfelt talks, a shared fashion sense, peppy duets, and, as with many close friends, the occasional feud.

Perhaps more than many other entertainers who appeared alongside the Muppets, Parton seemed to have a natural ease with her inanimate sidekicks, chatting and laughing with them with the same seriousness, charm and verve that marked her music and career. And no relationship seemed more authentic than hers with Piggy, combining equal parts sibling rivalry, star-to-star respect, and — more than anything, it seemed — genuinely deep affection.

While Parton never appeared on “The Muppet Show,” which ran from 1976 to 1981, the two divas regularly performed and bantered together on “Dolly,” the singer’s short-lived ABC variety show, in the late 1980s. Piggy wasn’t the only Muppet to be close to the icon: Kermit, Piggy’s long-suffering boyfriend, was actually the first to appear in a “Dolly” episode in November 1987, performing a cover of Sly and the Family Stone’s “Everyday People,” despite Parton saying she had “a frog in her throat.”

Not to be outdone, the always vain and occasionally bratty Miss Piggy effectively tried to take over Parton’s show in an appearance about a month later, appearing in the singer’s bathtub — yes, that was a recurring bit on “Dolly” — and taking over her planned solo, according to archival entries of Jim Henson, the Muppets creator. But the two eventually reconciled and sang Cole Porter’s “Friendship” together, after the mercurial Piggy begged to be forgiven and allowed to perform.

Months later, Piggy would pop up on another episode — and on Parton’s tour bus, having done some redecorating, including using Willie Nelson’s headbands as drapes and announcing that “Miss Piggy’s gone country.”

Ever patient, Parton explained to Piggy — in a cowboy hat and satin-and-sequins shirt — that there was more to being a country star than just looking the part, noting that her porcine pal was “about as country as a pair of silk overalls.”

Still, her advice to Piggy was both gentle and brutally honest, a big sister telling a littler one just how the world, and the art it inspires, works.

“You got to get that little heart broken. You got to lose a great love. You got to suffer some,” Parton explained. “Hard work and heartbreak is what country music is all about.”

The two entertainers also played off one another when Piggy filmed a tribute to Parton after she won “Favorite Female Performer in a New Television Program” at the 1988 People’s Choice Awards.

“It is moi, the other blonde bombshell,” Piggy said, using her trademark bad French and adding a bad bosom joke. “I am so proud of your victory and just delighted to be considered one of your closest friends. Your triumph is my triumph. Your reward is my reward. So I’ll be over to pick it up in the morning.”

Parton would also partner with Kermit again in 2012 on “Good Morning America,” singing an a cappella version of “Islands in the Stream,” alongside a chorus of clucking chickens. (Parton giggled a bit as the flock suddenly landed alongside her.)

Other puppets would pay homage to Parton over the years, including on Sesame Street, where a character named Polly Darton sang country songs from under a blonde bouffant.

After the singer’s death, the show posted an old snippet of Polly singing: “And now even though I am deeply grieving/ I’m waving goodbye to you with my heart.”

The Muppets, including Piggy and Kermit, called Parton “the ultimate singer, songwriter, actress, performer and philanthropist,” and suggested an uncommonly real relationship between the singer and her foam rubber co-stars.

“There will never be another quite like Dolly Parton,” the puppets said in a statement, adding, “We are so grateful for every second we got to spend with her onstage and off.”