Dolly Parton pays tribute to '9 to 5' co-star Dabney Coleman: 'He taught me so much'

Dolly Parton is mourning the death of actor Dabney Coleman.

The Emmy-winning actor, who died May 16 at the age of 92, starred alongside Parton in the hit 1980 movie "9 to 5," playing the sexist boss of a trio of fed-up employees, played by Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, who decide to get their revenge on him.

“Dabney was a great actor and became a dear friend. He taught me so much when I was doing my first movie, 9 to 5,” Parton wrote May 20 on Instagram.

“He was funny, deep and smart. We remained friends through the years and I will miss him greatly as many people will. Love, Dolly.”

“9 to 5” received mixed reviews from critics but earned more than $100 million at the box office. Parton was already a big music star when the comedy came out, but the movie — which was indeed her first — certainly boosted her profile.

“She is, on the basis of this one film, a natural-born movie star, a performer who holds our attention so easily that it’s hard to believe it’s her first film,” acclaimed movie critic Roger Ebert wrote in his review.

“I think that she is a big movie star and, really, it’s exciting to see a new movie star,” Gene Siskel said about her performance.

Parton picked up Golden Globe nominations for best performance by an actress in a motion picture — musical or comedy and new star of the year — actress.

In addition, she sang the theme song to the film, also called “9 to 5,” which earned an Academy Award nomination for best original song. The song also won a pair of Grammys, for best country song and best country vocal performance, female.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com