Olivia Newton-John

Acting

Born: 1948-09-26
Died: 2022-08-08
From: Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK
Gender: Female
Popularity: 1.5

Also Known As

Olivia Newton-John Easterling

Biography

Dame Olivia Newton-John AC, DBE (September 26, 1948 – August 8, 2022) was an English-born, Australian-raised singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles (including two platinum) and 14 of her albums (including two platinum and four double platinum) have been certified gold by the RIAA. She has sold an estimated over 100 million albums worldwide. In 1978, she co-starred with John Travolta in the film adaptation of the Broadway musical, Grease, which became one of the most successful films and movie soundtracks in Hollywood history. It features two major hit duets with co-star John Travolta: "You're the One That I Want"—which is one of the best-selling singles of all time—and "Summer Nights". She became the second woman (after Linda Ronstadt in 1977) to have two singles – "Hopelessly Devoted to You" and "Summer Nights" – in the Billboard top 5 simultaneously. Her performance earned her a People's Choice Award for Favorite Film Actress. She was nominated for a Golden Globe as Best Actress in a Musical and performed the Oscar-nominated "Hopelessly Devoted to You" at the 1979 Academy Awards. In 1980, she starred with Gene Kelly and Michael Beck in the musical fantasy film Xanadu. Although it was a critical failure, its soundtrack was certified double platinum and scored five top 20 singles on the Billboard Hot 100. She charted with "Magic", "Suddenly" with Cliff Richard, and the title song "Xanadu" with the Electric Light Orchestra. "Magic" was Newton-John's biggest pop hit to that point and still ranks as the biggest AC hit of her career. The film has since become a cult classic and the basis for a Broadway show that ran for more than 500 performances beginning in 2007 and was nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical. She helped pioneer the music video industry by recording a video album for Physical, featuring videos of all the album's tracks and three of her older hits. The video album earned her a fourth Grammy and was aired as an ABC prime-time special, Let's Get Physical, becoming a top-10 Nielsen hit. She teamed up with Travolta again in 1983 for the critically and commercially unsuccessful movie Two of a Kind, redeemed by its platinum soundtrack featuring "Twist of Fate", and a new duet with Travolta, "Take a Chance"Iowa.  In 2002, she was inducted into Australia's ARIA Hall of Fame and, in 2015, she was inducted into the Music Victoria Hall of Fame. In recognition for "her work as an entertainer and philanthropist", she was bestowed Australia's highest honor, the Companion of the Order of Australia, in June 2019. In 2008, she raised funds to help build the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre in Melbourne, Australia. She led a three-week, 228 km walk along the Great Wall of China, joined by various celebrities and cancer survivors throughout her trek. The walk symbolised the steps cancer patients must take on their road to recovery. She was a a long-time activist for environmental and animal rights issues. She battled breast cancer three times and was an advocate for breast cancer research and health awareness. Her business ventures included launching several product lines for Koala Blue and co-owning the Gaia Retreat & Spa in Australia.

Photos6

Awards & Nominations21 won · 10 nominated

🏆 Won

Australian Women in Music Awards

Honour Roll

2021
🏆 Won

Companion of the Order of Australia

Ms Olivia NEWTON-JOHN AO OBE

2019
🏆 Won

National Trust of Australia

2012
🏆 Won

Australian National Living Treasure

2012
🏆 Won

Officer of the Order of Australia

Ms Olivia NEWTON-JOHN

2006
🏆 Won

Australian Recording Industry Association

2002
🏆 Won

Daytime Emmy Award

1999
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Music Video

Twist of Fate

1985
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Music Film

Olivia in Concert

1984
Nominated

Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress

Two of a Kind

1984
🏆 Won

Grammy Award for Video of the Year

Physical

1983
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Heart Attack

1983
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Physical

1982
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Magic

1981
Nominated

Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress

Xanadu

1981
Nominated

Grammy Award for Album of the Year

Grease – The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture

1979
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Hopelessly Devoted to You

1979
🏆 Won

Officer of the Order of the British Empire

1978
Nominated

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Have You Never Been Mellow

1976
🏆 Won

American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Album

Have You Never Been Mellow

1975
🏆 Won

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

I Honestly Love You

1975
🏆 Won

Grammy Award for Record of the Year

I Honestly Love You

1975
🏆 Won

Country Music Association Award for Female Vocalist of the Year

1974
🏆 Won

American Music Award for Favorite Country Album

Let Me Be There

1974
🏆 Won

Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

Let Me Be There

1974
🏆 Won

American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Song

I Honestly Love You

1974
🏆 Won

Doctor of Letters

🏆 Won

American Music Award for Favorite Country Female Artist

🏆 Won

star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

🏆 Won

Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire

🏆 Won

Music Victoria Awards of 2015

Acting109 titles

Production1 title

Sound1 title