Olivia's Lost Lover
Olivia Newton-John is distraught to learn that her long-time lover has mysteriously disappeared.
Could it be foul play?
Olivia Newton-John has hit rock bottom again - as her long-time lover Patrick McDermott has disappeared in mysterious circumstances. The FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department are sifting through clues, and Olivia has called in private security expert Gavin de Becker.
Patrick went missing off the coast of California seven weeks ago.
Patrick’s disappearance was originally investigated as a possible boating accident, but it is now labelled either a ‘mystery’ or ‘foul play’.
Olivia, Patrick’s partner for nearly eight years, is believed to be in shock, feeling helpless as she awaits any news.
Authorities say the cameraman left his modest home in Van Nuys, California, 20 minutes from Olivia’s Malibu mansion on June 30, telling pals he was going on an overnight fishing trip out of San Pedro and would be back on July 1. He has not been heard from since. Five days later, when he failed to show up at a family event, his relatives became concerned and notified law enforcement agencies.
Patrick’s car was towed away by police on July 13. His belongings including his wallet with his driver’s licence and credit cards, which had been left on board the fishing vessel, had been confiscated by investigators days before.
LA police issued a press release asking for public assistance in locating Patrick on August 10, making no reference to his relationship to the famous singer.
Olivia has reportedly kept her distance from the investigation, other than bringing in her trusted security advisor. While she has kept her relationship with Patrick fairly private, there have been no rumours the couple weren’t blissfully happy.
The investigating officer for the US Coast Guard, Dennis Nebrich, told New Idea: “I’d like to try to be able to help you, but I have been advised by Mr Gavin de Becker to refer all inquiries to him.”
Famous for his protective services to Goldie Hawn, Jane Fonda, Victoria Principal and Elizabeth Taylor, Gavin is believed to have been hired by Olivia before. The 57-year-old star was thought to have been protected by Gavin when threatened by a stalker. Confirmation of this is near to impossible as Gavin is rumoured to take his celeb files with him wherever he goes in case he is robbed.
Gavin’s own office, where he has a hi-tech military-like operation, is as much a secret as how he manages to track down stalkers, fend off paparazzi, fans and other annoying persons to stars. He is so knowledgeable about terrorism that his book Fear Less: Real Truth About Risk, Safety and Security in a Time of Terrorism is used by top-level government officials.
Federal authorities cooperating with Gavin have clamped down on all crew including the captain of luxury fishing vessel The Freedom, strongly ‘suggesting’ they speak to no one but investigators as they question witnesses who may have clues to 48-year-old Patrick’s whereabouts.
A local at the industrial seaport, insisting on anonymity, told New Idea: ‘This wasn’t Patrick’s first time out to sea. I’ve never known of anyone having just fallen off the ship in the decades of its operation. There are four heads [bathrooms), two showers, a spacious galley, computers and TVs. It’s not just a dinky fishing boat. It’s well maintained and the crew is top of the line.
‘This McDermott guy never got much attention as he kept to himself with his kid. He never talked about Olivia, but he did talk about his ex-wife. When he went out this last time, there were 23 passengers total. He didn’t bring his son. All of the other passengers are accounted for.
‘The procedure for the overnight trips is for the crew to notify the passengers when the ship is two to three miles away from the landing dock in San Pedro. I’m told Patrick came into the galley, paid his bill and went back to his stateroom. His wallet with his driver’s licence and all other personal belongings were found inside later. Why would a guy pay his bill and then go back to his room and put his wallet back and then walk off the ship, leaving all his stuff behind?’
‘From guys I’ve talked to on the boat, Patrick was unusually talkative this time around. I’m told he appeared depressed, saying he was having some kind of alimony trouble with the mother of his kid.”
Another source reveals an ‘attractive woman’ claiming to be Patrick’s ex-wife came into the landing office on July 12 to pick up his things, but everything had already been turned over to the police.
‘She was a looker,’ a source says, ‘like an actress, but she was no Olivia Newton-John. In fact, this is the first I’ve heard of Olivia anywhere near this thing.”
Other sources say that The Freedom’s owners have attorneys protecting their interests so as not to be blamed unduly for the disappearance of Patrick.
By Cathy Griffin
Olivia's Roller-Coaster
HIGH 1978 Stars in the hit movie Grease-the soundtrack is No 1 for a period of 12 weeks.
LOW 1978 Olivia sues her US record label MCA for ‘failing to adequately promote and advertise’ her records.
HIGH 1979 Olivia receives an OBE her contribution to Australian music
HIGH 1980 Meets Matt Lattanzi on the set of the film Xanadu.
HIGH 1984 Olivia opens a store selling Australian memorabilia and clothes in Los Angeles called Koala Blue and marries Matt in December.
A HIGH 1986 Her daughter Chloe Rose Lattanzi is born on January 17, 1986.
A HIGH 1989 Voted Celebrity Businesswoman of the Year for Koala Blue.
LOW 1991 The Koala Blue chain of boutique which had been set up as a franchise, begins to lose money due to management problem: and the recession.
LOW 1992 Koala Blue files for bankruptcy in the US. Olivia loses her father to cancer and on July 2 she learns that she has breast cancer and needs surgery.
LOW 1995 Olivia and Matt divorce after 11 years together.
HIGH 1998 Olivia is seen in public with her new man Patrick McDermmott
HIGH 2002 Olivia starts to build a cancer support centre in her home town of Melbourne.
LOW 2003 Her mum Irene dies aged 89.
HIGH 2005 Olivia opens her Gaia Retreat in Byron Bay.
LAPD and US Coast Guard official press release
Los Angeles: Coast Guard Investigative Service is asking for the public’s assistance in locating 48-year-old Patrick Kim McDermott, of Van Nuys, who has been missing since July 1, 2005.
According to investigators, Patrick told his friends that he was going on an overnight fishing trip out of the city of San Pedro and would be returning on the evening of July 1, 2005. On July 6, Patrick failed to show up at a family event and his family became concerned.
On July 11, his family began a search and discovered his car in the parking lot of the 22nd Street Marina in San Pedro. His personal items were also found located inside the fishing boat. Patrick’s family contacted the Coast Guard immediately after this discovery.
The investigation revealed that Patrick was last seen aboard a sport fishing vessel which departed out of the San Pedro Harbor on June 30, 2005. The Los Angeles Police Department’s Missing Persons Unit is assisting Coast Guard Investigators.
Anyone with information is asked to call Coast Guard Investigator Dennis Nebrich at 310-732-7344. On weekends and during off-hours, call the 24-hour toll free number at the Detective Information Desk at: 1-877-LAWFULL (1-877-529-3855).