John Travolta & Olivia Newton John- Interview- Grease (Merv Griffin Show 1981)

a salute to Olivia newton-john would not be complete without a visit from this charming and gifted young man who co-starred with her as Danny Zuko and grease shy still even with all of his incredible success one of the nicest I guess human beings in our business yes so make him welcome here is John Travolta I feel nice yeah do me your first meeting with a living Oh bad my heart pounded well first of all uh let's see what happened huh you can't do that I came to the house but before that I had put in heavy pitching for Olivia I wanted this girl bad in Greece because I had done the show on Broadway and I'm on a national tour so I said the perfect sandy the ultimate sandy would be Olivia newton-john and uh what no no they said well let's you know let's talk about it so I went to meet Olivia and I hadn't achieved it the success that I have today so I was sort of in awe of Olivia and her surroundings everything I went to her house and was doing what were your impression I'm moving inside to me ah you've got a pool there's a dolphin in your pool call because it was it was really nice and then like a year later he's got the house let's open a plane in the back guy said Armond I remember you yeah time to talk doing the end number you know you talk good what yes talk her into doing the one that I want you're the one that I want which became a big hit well I reckon that's the big turn for her character in the movie again and I said believe me it'll be fantastic I said he get into that black getup and real sexy nursing the audience will love it I was terrible with my Olivia mr. she'd be sure I'm doing the right thing and all that kind of thing and said I know you're doing the right thing I did the right thing was it your job that day to convince her to do the movie a little bit there was my job personal job because I want her so badly to do it and the movie said well I'll do it but I have to see myself in a screen test first that's right and really I said I'll do a screen test if I don't like myself then I won't do so he was nice enough to do it with me and lucky it was okay see no I've never heard that before you see everybody is so anxious to do a motion picture that they wouldn't care about a screen test or anything just get me in the picture right well I think I very conscious of my limitations so I didn't want to a microphone itself so I wanted to check it out first but also Olivia was quite established already right as a big star so it was sort of a reverse not yet as an actress No so was an extent it was a big step but it was ideal kind of thing right will there be a son of a grease or a grease jr. grease - we are the three strikes back we had talked to me at one point so I think that's still in discussion but there's no affirmative reaction yet front leave all these pilot yes that is correct affirmative affirmative Roger over over and out what do you in most pictures John have have visalia over your leading lady yes because in your urban cowboy you took our receptionist from out front here she was is that true yes everyone who was your says she was our research used to give out tickets on the front doors Joanie lasted one day and they swiped her for the movies isn't it good yeah that is good you have to have to call her on that one and I told John backstage if it weren't for John Travolta and Saturday Night Fever there would be no dance fever produced by Griffin productions and the son of a gun asked me for money and we really owe it to him curious though everything you've done John has started a kind of wild trend worldwide the first started really the disco craze were the whole country went wild even I bought a white suit and stood around like this it's big for white suits urban cowboy I mean you see every accountant electrician a plumber sitting around bars at night with a cowboy hats on it's true you're aware of that aren't you I'm sorry just a transit now I'm very proud of that I mean I like the idea that people can go to a movie and take it home with them I was very proud of that right do you member light funny moments the two of you have had together or was it all serious moviemaking light for me no no I think that film the whole experience of making the film and the whole aftermaths well for me it's probably the most important thing I ever did and the making of the film's would be most fun it was incredible cuz it was like it seemed we it was like we're all back at school and it was it was fine with me okay yes ma'am pressures are more though in the motion picture business than they really are in television after one success then you have to worry about the next one John and the next one and the next one after that I put that to rest a bit I think you know after you've been in in a while you start to say well they'll be the next film and the next job and so on so forth so it gets the more experience you get I think them a little more relaxed you got it man right that's true I think it's very hard to to worry about topping yourself I think you really have to be concerned just doing the best job that you can with the best material that you can find and not try and worry about are you gonna do better than the last one because you can drive yourself crazy that all right so you just have to move on and do what's best for you now see you both came from relatively simple family kind of small-town backgrounds you Australia and England John you New Jersey is all of this Fame and the clamor that surround you everything you thought it was going to be your first love I think I'm it's incredible but I think when you're dreaming of Fame or if you're gonna have Fame it seems like it's gonna be a lot bigger than it is I mean I think you expect guns to go off when you wake up or I don't know balloons and it's like you see in the films I think it's very diluting I mean I there is no obvious change oh yes of course the the obvious changes I you know my life is fantastic and I wouldn't change it for anything but I think while you're getting there you think it's going to be much more of a change than it really does it make sense sure you come to time though I found a bit different but it is a bit different no I didn't expect it so therefore I sort of was in awe of all of it I mean I didn't in one way but didn't anticipate any read any of the this type of things that go with it I think yeah I still feel I think what I mean is it I thought I was going to feel different or that my life was going to feel different why did I feel like the same person and I've grown and I've become accustomed to you know nice way of living but right everything didn't change as drastically as I thought it you find you to lock yourselves a certain amount of time for your privacy your private thoughts recharging your batteries thinking it all out because of all the pressures that are on you constantly trying I try and lead my life as normally as I can and being at home my home is my recharging place and my animals and my environment and I don't I don't have very much trouble coping with it other than I would any other job except I mean obviously there are a lot of pressures but I don't feel I have to get away from it too much can you have a good time and go out anytime you feel like it to have a good time all the time do you I really don't make a lot of public appearances though not really but that doesn't mean you can't have a good time I I really do I mean I'm I'm being perfectly honest I I have enjoyed the last five six years of my life more than than anything I just have had a ball with all the success I mean it changed my life every night I just oh maybe I didn't explain it very well how does it changes your life but it doesn't change you what changed me you're happy I'm happy we always read that there was a romance here Oh Murr please it wasn't there's all sorts of romances Merv I swear remember this no weird John was very live he's not going to explain no I'm saying he was so supportive to me in the film that he gave me so much confidence that I met in forever indebted to him for what he how he helped me in that ah so it's very special I love you that's why he's here that's why we're all here today we'll come back Olivia Newton John John Szabo you

Channel: Merv GriffinShow

Views: 1,874,160

Rating: 4.8844028 out of 5

Keywords: John Travolta (Actor), Grease (musical), Olivia Newton John, Interview, Urban Cowboy, Saturday Night Fever

Id: -35juCueVNE

Length: 10min 13sec (613 seconds)

Published: Thu Oct 11 2012