I remember a babysitter bringing a copy of the âGreaseâ album over to listen to while she was watching over me. That was my first exposure to Olivia Newton John. The babysitter crooning along with âHopelessly Devoted To Youâ. It wasnât my thing. Then again, what was at age 7? Then âXanaduâ came out in 1980. It was on HBO all of the time. Over and over and over. That and the James Bond movie âMoonrakerâ. But an aging Roger Moore wasnât nearly as pretty as Olivia. As terrible as the movie is, it spoke to me. Mostly because there was roller skating. Roller skating was huge with me and my friends at the time. A year later, Olivia hit big when âPhysicalâ became a hit and the video was all over the place. That sealed her place as a celebrity crush for me. And no one else took that placeâŚâŚâŚ until 1989 when Kathy Ireland showed up on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
All humor aside, Olivia Newton John deserves everyoneâs respect for the work she did to help fight breast cancer. She fought it herself for 30 years. She opened a research and wellness center and raised millions of dollars while helping others get better. Olivia was diagnosed 3 times. The third proved too much for her yesterday.
You can help continue her work. Here is a link to donate to the Olivia Newton John Cancer Research Institute.
And this…….. just because, memories.