Singer Olivia Newton-John, who soared to the top of the world’s pop music charts in the 1970s and 1980s has died on Monday at age 73 at her home in southern California.
Olivia Newton-John rides in the 85th annual Hollywood Christmas Parade in Los Angeles, California, U.S. November 27, 2016.Olivia Newton-John rides in the 85th annual Hollywood Christmas Parade in Los Angeles, California, U.S. November 27, 2016.
Newton-John, a four-time Grammy winner, had disclosed several years ago that breast cancer had metastasized and spread to her back, forcing her to cancel performances. Twenty-five years earlier Newton-John had undergone a partial mastectomy and gone on to establish a cancer treatment-research facility in Australia.
Newton-John also beat out country stars Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton to win the Country Music Association’s female singer of the year award in 1974. The unlikely success of an Australian in American country music bothered many Nashville purists. In the film, set in the 1950s, Newton-John’s prim Sandy has a summer fling with Danny, the “greaser” portrayed by Travolta, but the relationship falls apart because of their cultural differences. In the end they reconcile as their roles reverse, with Danny cleaning up his act and Sandy making a striking appearance in a tight black leather outfit.
Her next musical film, “Xanadu” in 1980, was a bust but did give Newton-John more hits in the title song and “Magic,” which reached No. 1. She would make another movie with Travolta, “Two of a Kind” in 1983, and they recorded an album of Christmas songs in 2012.
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