INTERVIEW / HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

The actress, singer and philanthropist discusses medical marijuana, career-long rumors about her personal life and what she hopes readers will take away from her first autobiography: "I just wanted to tell stories and tell things about me that people may not know."
"I'm a very public person living a private life," Olivia Newton-John writes in the author's note of her first memoir, Don't Stop Believin, hitting bookshelves today.

Though her personal life has already been subject to intense press attention given her roles in 1978's Grease and 1980's Xandu, her successful music career and philanthropic efforts, the 70-year-old star shows no sign of coyness in revealing more about her life in the autobiography: Throughout, Newton-John details personal accounts from her early years, rise to fame and stories that offer her fans — or as she likes to call them, her "admirers" — the opportunity to learn more about who she is. Apart from chronicling her journey to stardom, Newton-John addresses a myriad of rumors and inquiries that she wants to explain in her own words, including whether her and her Grease co-star John Travolta ever dated, her fears over releasing "Physical," suing Universal Music Group for Grease royalties and even the mysterious disappearance of her former lover Patrick McDermott.

But don't expect Newton-John's memoir to be a juicy tell-all: Instead, the actress/singer says she wants to convey a "positive story," even as she writes about difficult moments such as the passing of her loved ones and chronicling her battles with cancer. "I wanted to share things that people didn’t know about," she tells The Hollywood Reporter.

Newton-John was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, was secretly diagnosed again in 2013 and most recently in 2017. The third recurrence has metastasized to her back, ultimately causing a fracture that left her on bed rest for her 70th birthday. To alleviate the pain, Newton-John is relying on both medications prescribed by her doctor and holistic treatments including medical cannabis. As she currently faces her third round of breast cancer, she assures that she's "doing well."

In an interview with THR, Newton-John was in good spirits about her anticipated memoir hitting bookshelves, and spoke about what inspired her to write her story for the first time, her cancer battle and determination to spread positivity.

Don't Stop Believin marks your first memoir. Why was now the right time to tell your story?

I heard that they were going to do a TV movie about me in Australia [Hopelessly Devoted to You] and I wasn’t thrilled about it. I didn’t really want to get involved, but I didn’t know what they were going to say. So I thought, well, maybe I better write my own version. This is a good opportunity to write my version in case they write things that are totally false. That’s what got me going. The movie came out and it wasn’t that bad and the lovely girl [Delta Goodmen] who’s a dear friend of mine played me and she did a lovely job, even though I hadn’t watched it. I was happy she was doing it. Meanwhile, I wrote the book by the time they made it and the movie came out which coincided with the release of my book. It all kind of worked out in Australia. But it wasn’t like I woke up one day going, "Oh I better write a book." That’s what instigated it and it turned out to be a good thing.

When writing the book, was there something you couldn’t wait to address or anything you were hesitant to put in the book and why?

The things I was hesitant about, I left out. Things I knew people knew about and wanted answers [to], I addressed them just as much as I wanted to. That’s the beauty of writing your own book. I knew I didn’t want to write a gossip book or a kiss-and-tell book. I have lots of stories and that’s in a book under my bed. I’m kidding! I’m kidding! I just wanted it to be a positive story of my life. I feel so blessed to have such an incredible life and an amazing career and I just wanted to tell stories and tell things about me that people may not know.

In the book, you celebrate beautiful moments in your life, but you also chronicle some painful and personal details such as having a few miscarriages, the passing of loved ones and even the disappearance of Patrick McDermott. Why was it important for you to share these stories?

The Patrick story has been talked about so much that I wanted to put it to bed, really. The miscarriages are part of my life and so many women have gone through that experience so I just wanted to share that because it happens to many many women and I’m not any different... My sister’s passing was so dramatic but so beautiful. I just wanted to share that with people because it was so special. She would’ve wanted that. She wouldn’t have minded that. I know that about her… It was a beautiful moving experience for me and very personal and I wanted to share things that people didn’t know about.

You also detail your journey with your third round of cancer. How are you doing?

I’m doing well, thank you. I’m doing well!

Read more at https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/olivia-newton-john-talks-first-memoir-cancer-battle-1193525

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Music Almanac - March 12

Number Ones - U.S. Adult Contemporary Singles
1977 - Sam - Olivia Newton-John (2 weeks)

Le 12 mars 1977, Olivia Newton-John fut en tête du classement Adult Contemporary (Billboard US) avec son 45t SAM ! Elle y restera 2 semaines.



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HERALD SUN SNIPET

I’m 70 and I’ve had the most amazing life, and I have extra time

OLIVIA NEWTONJOHN IS GRATEFUL TO STILL BE ‘DOING GREAT’ AFTER FIGHTING CANCER