Thanks Livvy – for everything

I FIRST became aware of the woman my dad calls Olivia Neutron Bomb in the late 1970s when she appeared in the super- hit Grease with hairy hunk John Travolta.

She was 28 but played high- school sweetheart Sandy Olsson. Thanks to the movie’s huge success, the two became so synonymous we referred to them as Olivia Newton- John Travolta.

Everyone I knew wanted to be a nice girl like Olivia and we longed for a spunk like John Travolta ( hummana, hummana, as we’d say back then) and a bad- girl pal like Rizzo.

Who doesn’t remember NewtonJohn’s transition from girl- next- door to va- voom sex kitten in the movie’s final scene? Forty years later the sight of those black pants ( so tight they had to be stitched on and cut off at the end of each shooting day) are seared into our brains. Spandex never looked so good. In fact, Spandex never looked good again. Thanks Livvy. We heard this week that NewtonJohn’s cancer has returned and it’s made me think about the good music, questionable acting and dodgy fashion she’s given us over the years.

Remember Xanadu? NewtonJohn is less well known for the roller skating movie in which she played one of the nine muses of Olympia who comes to earth, falls in love with a guy and inspires him to reach his dream of opening up a roller- skating nightclub.

Obviously, the less said about the film the better. In fact, no one said much about it at the time, much less went to see it.

Newton- John, then known as a “favourite with dads across the world” changed her tune with the massive hit Physical. Its film- clip won a Grammy and triggered puberty for pre- teen boys everywhere.

In the video Newton- John cavorts in a black- tiled gym with a bunch of fat guys who morph into chiselled hunks in a fantasy shower scene. The video ends with two of the muscled men walking off hand- in- hand while Olivia happily heads off for a hit of tennis with one of the fat guys.

It didn’t make any sense, but no one cared. Everyone – or should I say everyman – was too transfixed by Newton- John’s short- haired sweaty look, not to mention her very fetching leotard/ leggings combo. I’m sure she wasn’t the first woman to wear a leotard over her leggings, but she was certainly the most attractive.

Paired with hot pink legwarmers in publicity stills, this look spawned a thousand copycats. Most notably it included Jennifer Beals in Flashdance in 1983 and – with less success – me in 1981. I blame ONJ for the fact that I spent most of that winter in maroon legwarmers paired with stone- wash jeans. Thanks Livvy – I think … By the 1980s, Newton John was a bona fide super star. I remember being given her Greatest Hits 2 album for my 11th birthday. The album had a bonus fold- out cover. The front had a close- up of her face, but inside her eyes were closed, which meant that if you flicked it open and closed it quickly, it looked like she was winking. This, my friends, is what passed as fun in 1982.

I also associate Newton- John around this time with her chain of Koala Blue clothing and gift shops, which capitalised on the Australiana art of Ken Done. I blame her for the fact that my favourite top in the late 1980s was a sleeveless windcheater with a crayon drawing of koalas having a picnic on the front which I used to wear with a white skivvy and corduroy pedal pushers. Thanks Livvy … yeah, sort of. Ten years later Newton- John successfully battled breast cancer, taking her life in a new direction as a charity fundraiser. The Olivia Newton- John Wellness and Research Centre is a testament to her courage and determination to help others. I’ve been to the centre when I was supporting a close friend diagnosed with breast cancer and know what a warm and relaxing place it is.

As Newton John faces a tough few months of treatment, spare a thought for the woman who started performing at age 14 as “Lovely Livvy” and ended up a four- time Grammy winner who has sold more than 100 million records.

She’s changed the way people dress and dance – not always for the better. More importantly, she’s changed the way we think and talk about cancer and many women have her to thank for destigmatising the disease and treatment.

As Newton- John once said, “cancer helped me get over unimportant fears, like getting old”.

Getting old? As far as I can see, she’s just getting started.