Dialogue - Live

There was a time in the mid-'70s and early '80s when, with 15 Top-10 hits, Olivia Newton-John was as the title of her 1978 album claimed totally hot.

That same year, she turned up the heat even higher by appearing alongside John Travolta in Grease, the most profitable movie musical ever made. Twenty years later, with the re-release of Grease and the launch of her latest country album, Back With a Heart, Newton-John is warming up again.

I see it as a new start, says the 49-year-old who, several years ago, triumphed over a bout with breast cancer. It's such a different time in my life. I'm a mother first now, she says, referring to her 12-year-old daughter, Chloe, by her ex-husband, actor Matt Lattanzi.

Boy, did I lust after you! Is there anyone 25 to 49 who didn't lust after you?
(Laughs) Well, they're not usually as blunt as that!

The account of your childhood with your parents' divorce seems really sad.
Well, I think it is a very sad thing because when I was a kid, it wasn't as common. I felt a bit rejected by my friends because my parents were the only ones divorced. Now it's really common, and sadly it has happened to me. It's not something I planned on or wanted.

You started working at age 15. Were you totally focused on your career and making it big?
When I first started out, I wanted the picket fence and the kids and the dogs, and my career wasn't my main focus. Then as things started to happen, I decided to really go for it.

You were so big for such a long time. Was that off-putting to the friends you had?
The people who were really my friends were my friends. I still have friends from when I was 14, 15 years old. I think growing up in Australia was a very grounding thing.

Do you have any dark secrets from your past?
Not really. I mean, I was once the "other woman" in a divorce when I was young, but I don't feel good about that.

I get a sense that if I knock on your door in the middle of the night, it's Martha Stewart time. You'll be making flower arrangements, weaving on a loom...
I fancy doing stuff like that, but I don't have the ability. I like to paint; I'm not very good, but there was a time when I liked to do macram é for people.

Is there a special guy?
(Gently) I don't want to talk about it.

Obviously, that's a yes. I'll bet he's an outdoorsy guy who rides horses...tall, big shoulders, likes sitting around and is down-to-earth. He loves you for you.
(Laughs) There you go!

I saw TV coverage of the Grease premiere, and you looked exactly the same as when you were in your 20s. Are you getting sheep injections?
No! I think I'm lucky genetically, and I've always eaten well and taken care of myself. I think it's because I'm happy.

Do you work out?
I run on the beach.

Other hobbies?
Hiking. Tennis.

You know, you're too good for this guy. He can't possibly live up to this. I hope he appreciates what he has! So what's your daughter like?
She's extremely bright and funny, affectionate, strong-willed. She's 12 going on 30. She's really a joy-incredibly insightful and spiritual.

Did you become closer to her when you got cancer?
She was pretty young, and I shielded her from it because her best friend, Colette, had just died of cancer at the age of 5. When I was going through chemo, I didn't tell her. It wasn't until a year later, when we were in Australia, that another little girl told her about what I'd been through. She was very angry with me for a while because she felt I'd kept something very important from her. But I know I did the right thing.

So what kind of food do you eat? All health foods?
I'm on a no-wheat-and-dairy diet, but today I was totally starving and had a burger at the airport. If I'm hungry or really want something, I'll eat it.

Were you nervous about releasing this new album?
Not...nervous. I think I've done a good album. I feel really good about it. I think the criterion for this album was good songs that sounded like me. I didn't try to follow any trends or be anything else. I did this because I'd written, I think, 7 of the 11 songs, and I think they do sound like me.

You still have the chops?
I think better in some ways. I think my voice has more depth to it.

Are you amazed at how, over the years, people projected an image onto you clean-cut, wholesome, almost too good to be true?
I'm certainly, definitely not perfect. I wasn't all that comfortable with the overtly sexual marketing of myself in the early days. I enjoyed it when I did Grease and I had the opportunity to grow up a little bit, but some of it went too far. Like, I did a Helmut Newton cover on one of my albums, and it wasn't really comfortable for me. Looking back on it now, it wasn't really worth it. I think people are more sexy when it's not so obvious.

Do you get any TV pitches?
Lately I've been offered a lot of sitcoms. Recently I thought it'd be a good idea, but now I'm not sure, because I like a day off once in a while.

Well, now we know you invested well if you don't have to do a sitcom...
(Laughs) I also want to be around for my daughter as much as possible.

You live pretty much in the present.
I try to live in the present because it's one thing I've learned since going through what I did the present is all you really have. You can't be wishing what you want and what will be. In my daily life, I know there's a calendar laid out, but I don't look at it beforehand for tomorrow because I just want to get through today.

by Peter Tilden