Olivia Newton-John succumbs to cancer

Singer and actress Olivia Newton-John, star of grease and performer of the tube Physical died on Monday, her husband announced. She was 73 years old.

Alexandre Vigneault
The Press

“Dame Olivia Newton-John passed away peacefully this morning at her ranch in Southern California, surrounded by family and friends. We ask everyone to respect the privacy of the family during this very difficult time,” her husband, John Easterling, wrote on the singer’s verified Instagram account.

“Olivia has been a beacon of triumphs and hope for over 30 years, sharing her journey with breast cancer,” he added. Diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, the singer and actress announced in 2013 and 2018 to fight the consequences of this disease which had spread to one of her shoulders and then her spine.

Olivia Newton-John was born in England in 1948, but her family emigrated six years later to Melbourne, Australia. She formed her first band as a teenager and by 15 was appearing regularly on Australian television.

She stands out from her first album, on which she covers in particular If Not For Youa song by Bob Dylan which became her first hit in 1971. Two years later, she published let me Be There, which earned him a Grammy for best country performance. On this same disc also appears the song I Honestly Love Youwhich earned him two other Grammys, including that of the recording of the year.

It is, however, the film adaptation of the musical grease which will propel her to the top in 1978. The couple she forms on screen with John Travolta will become iconic and her voice will therefore be inseparable from the emblematic pieces of the film such as You’re The One That I Want, Summer Nights and the ballad Hopelessly Devoted To You.

He paid tribute to him on Instagram. “My dearest Olivia, you have made our lives so much better. Your impact has been incredible. I love you so much. We’ll meet you on the road and we’ll all be together again. Yours from the first moment I saw you and forever! Your Danny, your John! ” (free translation).

Olivia Newton-John will continue her film career in another musical film, Xanaduand will find John Travolta for the comedy Two Of A Kind. twist of fatethe song she recorded for this film, will climb into the top 10 of Billboard.

In the meantime, she also released the album Physical, which spent 10 weeks at the top of the sales charts. In addition to the title song, we find another of his great hits, Make A Move On Me. Two more of his signature songs, Magic and Xanaduare associated with the movie Xanadu.

Olivia Newton-John has won four Grammy trophies and sold around 100 million albums.

Barbra Streisand and Dionne Warwick are among the celebrities who have commemorated the singer’s passing. “Another angelic voice has been added to the celestial choir. Not only was Olivia a dear friend, but one of the nicest people I’ve had the pleasure of recording and performing with. I will definitely miss her, ”wrote the latter on Twitter.