Olivia Newton-John had been battling breast cancer for 30 years. The British-Australian actress, world famous for her duet with John Travolta in the musical greasereleased in 1978, died “peacefully on his ranch in southern California (USA) surrounded by his family and friends”, announced on Monday August 8 her husband, John Easterling, on the account Instagram of Olivia Newton-John. The star was 73 years old.
She had been battling breast cancer for many years and had to undergo a mastectomy in 1992 and then two recurrences in 2013 and 2017. She put all her energy and notoriety at the service of the fight against the disease. “Olivia has been a beacon of triumph and hope for 30 years by sharing her experience of breast cancer”wrote her husband, specifying that a fund in his name had been created to finance research on medicinal plants and cancer, the “Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund”.
His partner in greaseJohn Travolta, reacted to his disappearance on his Instagram account: “My dearest Olivia, you have made our lives so much better (…) I love you so much. We will see you on the road again and we will all be together again. I’ve been yours since the first moment I saw you and forever”he wrote on social networks, signing “Your Danny, your John”.
From England to Australia, then California
Born September 26, 1948 in Cambridge, the actress was titled “Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire” by Queen Elizabeth II.
It must be said that the music enthusiast very quickly made a career. First singles, first successes. In 1974, she represented Great Britain at Eurovision and finished 4th, losing behind… Abba. Then head for California, where she made a name for herself on the country and western scene. The Anglo-Australian is even consecrated twice “America’s Most Popular Singer” and won a Grammy award.
John Travolta, crowned with his success in Saturday night feverbreathes his name for grease. Released in 1978, the film was immediately a huge worldwide success. In France, it made 6 million admissions… That is more than The Demoiselles de Rochefort or West Side Story. Despite this global success, Olivia Newton-John did not continue her momentum in the cinema for long. After a few films, she devoted herself to singing and to her Californian ranch, where she lived surrounded by animals.