G’Day USA Arts Gala

‘I’ll Always Be an Aussie’: G’Day USA Arts Gala Hails Sam Worthington, The Kid Laroi, Miranda Kerr and Pays Tribute to Olivia Newton-John !

The evening  featured an emotional tribute to Olivia Newton-John, the Australian singer-actor who died in August at age 73 after a battle with breast cancer.

“Every day with Olivia was supernatural,” said Paul Hogan, the veteran Australian comedian and performer, recounting his first meeting with Newton-John at a TV taping at the Sydney Opera House in the 1980s. He also remembered his last time working with when her, when he asked her to shoot a cameo for him as a favor. He couldn’t help but notice how much she struggled to move. But as he helped her around, she made a point of telling him to think about adjusting the scene to allow a group of extras to work inside rather than outside in the Australian winter chill.

“The kid was in pain but she was worried about the extras getting cold,” Hogan said. “She was the nicest person you’d ever want to meet.” Newton-John’s husband, John Easterling, and daughter, Chloe Lattanzi, were on hand for a musical tribute featuring a medley of the “Grease” and “Xanadu” star’s biggest hits, performed by Aussie musician Delta Goodrem.

Sam Worthington, Katy Perry, Baz Luhrmann Turn Out for G'Day USA Gala - Variety