Olivia Making Atlanta Home During Tour
By Bill King
It's only temporary, but as of right now, Australian singer Olivia Newton-John is a resident of Atlanta.
Of course, that's probably stretching the meaning of the word resident, but she is living at a local hotel while she is on a concert tour of this part of the country, she revealed this week.
The news that Atlanta is being used as Miss Newton-John's base of operations for the first segment of her current tour came out at a reception held in her honor after her two shows at the Fox Theater Monday night.
A member of her entourage said that the popular country-pop singer decided to stay in a central location-Atlanta and commute every day by a private Lear jet to concerts in cities in the South to avoid the hassles of traveling by commercial airlines. Atlanta is the base for the first 10 stops on the tour.
Miss Newton-John said she has been in Atlanta since last Wednesday and will be staying here until the end of this week, flying out to concerts in Asheville and Raleigh, N.C.
It's really a lovely city,
she said, but unfortunately I haven't had the chance to see e much much of of it other than the airport and the hotel, because we don't get back here until around 2 (a.m.) and then don't get to bed until about 5.
I bet the houses are fantastic,
she said, adding that she was disappointed she missed the dogwoods.
And, while she may not be a permanent resident of Atlanta, she sounded just as concerned as a native when talking about the plight of the Fox Theater. Like most performers who appear there, she was amazed that such a facility might be razed.
They are going to save it, aren't they?
she asked after remarking on the beauty and great acoustics of the old theater. She said that she hoped the money could be raised to buy the building.
They ought to declare it a national monument or something.... They can't let it be torn down,
she added.
Editor's note -The Fox Theater in Atlanta, that Olivia refers to in this article was happily saved from demolition and continues to this day (2023).