Early life
Travolta, the youngest of six children, was born in Englewood, New Jersey to Salvatore Travolta, a second-generation Italian American semi-professional football player turned tire salesman, and Helen Cecilia Burke, an Irish American actress and singer who had appeared in The Sunshine Sisters, a radio vocal group, and acted and directed before becoming a high school drama teacher. She was 42 when Travolta was born. Travolta grew up in an Irish-American neighborhood and has said that his household was predominantly Irish in culture. His family was Catholic.
Career
After dropping out of Dwight Morrow High School after his junior year, Travolta moved to New York City to get a job as a performer. He landed roles in the touring company of Grease and on Broadway in Over Here! singing the Sherman Brothers' song "Dream Drummin'". Travolta also cut singles for a local record company, but the songs were quickly forgotten. But eventually, he moved to Los Angeles, California to further his career in show business.
Travolta gained his first major movie role as Billy Nolan, a sadistic bully who taunted Sissy Spacek's Carrie White in the horror film Carrie (1976). Around the same time he landed his star-making role as Vinnie Barbarino in the TV sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–1979) in which his sister, Ellen, also occasionally appeared (as Arnold Horshack's mother).
Around this time he also had a hit single entitled "Let Her In" peaking at number ten on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In the next few years, he appeared in some of his most memorable screen roles: Tony Manero in Saturday Night Fever (1977) and as Danny Zuko in Grease (1978). His mother and his sister Ann appeared as extras in Saturday Night Fever and his sister Ellen appeared as a waitress in Grease. Travolta performed several of the songs on the Grease soundtrack album, that eventually went on to sell more than 10 million copies. In 1980, Travolta inspired a nationwide country music craze that followed on the heels of his hit film, Urban Cowboy, in which he starred with Debra Winger.
After Urban Cowboy came a string of flops that sidelined his acting career. Some suggest that he was typecast as a disco stud or 1970s icon, which could be the reason his agent intervened on several occasions to turn down acting roles. During that time he was offered, but turned down, lead roles in what would become box office hits, including American Gigolo, An Officer and A Gentleman, and Splash. The first two films ultimately starred Richard Gere in the lead role and went to become box office successes. This was also the case with the movie Chicago - the role of lawyer Billy Flynn was offered to Travolta, but ultimately was played by Gere; the film went on to become a highly commercial and critical success. His only hit film during this period was alongside Kirstie Alley and a baby voiced by Bruce Willis in Look Who's Talking. However, it wasn't until he played Vincent Vega in Quentin Tarantino's hit Pulp Fiction (1994), for which he received an Academy Award nomination, that his career was revived. The movie shifted him back onto the A-list, and he was inundated with offers. Coincidentally, before Travolta took the role he visited Tarantino, who was living in the same ramshackle apartment in Los Angeles that Travolta had inhabited when he got his start. Notable roles following Pulp Fiction include a movie-buff loan shark in Get Shorty (1995), an FBI agent in Face/Off (1997), a desperate attorney in A Civil Action (1998) and a military detective in The General's Daughter (1999).
Travolta also starred in Battlefield Earth (2000) based on a work of science fiction by L. Ron Hubbard, in which he played the leader of a group of aliens that enslaves humanity on a bleak future Earth. The film received almost universally negative reviews and did very poorly at the box office. Travolta, who converted to Scientology in 1975 and endorses Hubbard's teachings, had hoped that the film would be well received and be the first in a series of Hubbard film adaptations. In fact, the film won a Razzie Award for Worst Film of the Year at the 2000 awards.
Travola is currently starring as a workaholic turned biker in Wild Hogs (2007).
Travolta will play Edna Turnblad in the 2007 adaptation of Hairspray.
Personal life
Travolta married actress Kelly Preston in 1991. They have a son named Jett, and a daughter named Ella Blue. On April 10, 2006, Mark Ebner of Hollywood, Interrupted made a public plea to Travolta and Preston to have their son treated for autism, alleging five reliable sources—including representatives from Cure Autism Now and The Autism Perspective—who claim that Jett suffers from autism, and not from Kawasaki syndrome as stated by the parents. His brother Joey Travolta recently produced a documentary about autism.
Travolta is a licensed pilot and owns five airplanes, including an ex-Australian airliner, the Qantas 707-138. The plane bears the name Jett Clipper Ella in honor of his son Jett and his daughter Ella. Pan Am was a large operator of the 707 and used Clipper in their names. His US$4.9 million estate in the Jumbolair subdivision in Anthony, Florida is situated on Greystone Airport with its own runway and taxiway right to the door.
In 1992, he wrote and illustrated a short children's book entitled Propeller One-Way Night Coach about the fictional journey of an 8-year-old boy named Jeff across the USA in the 1950s. He celebrated with the Australian national football team in their dressing room following their qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
Questions have also been raised regarding what kind of agreements were made between Travolta and then-President Bill Clinton, regarding how Travolta would portray Jack Stanton, a character based on Clinton, in the movie Primary Colors and whether Clinton would pressure the German government to remove its ban on Scientology. Travolta was quoted about the issue in May 1998 issue of George magazine:
The next day, I met with Clinton. He told me: "Your program sounds great. More than that, I'd really love to help you with your issue over in Germany with Scientology." I was waiting for the seduction that I had heard so much about. I thought, "Well, how could he ever seduce me?" And after we talked, I thought, "Bingo!" He did it. Scientology is the one issue that really matters to me.
In another interview, Travolta admitted that his portrayal of Stanton was much more kind than that in the book Primary Colors. The next year, in November 1998, Clinton sent Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to urge German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel to grant Scientology the status of a registered religion—without success.
Other
Travolta's affiliation with Scientology is frequently mentioned in the press. In 1998 he was named in a lawsuit involving a former member who claimed that he was promised that his homosexuality could be cured. The lawsuit alleged that the organization frequently cited Travolta as proof that the organization could in fact change a person's sexual orientation. A lawyer for Travolta replied, "This looks like complete hogwash. Travolta is a happily married man, which proves he isn't gay". Paul Barresi claimed to have had a homosexual relationship with Travolta in 1982, but later recanted the statement. In 2006, Travolta was photographed in what looks like the exchange of a kiss with an unidentified male in Hamilton, Ontario. However, Travolta's attorney, Martin Singer, stated that Travolta's wife Preston was on board the plane and claimed the kiss to be a nonromantic gesture Travolta makes with all close friends of both genders, entirely nonsexual in nature, and that "people who are close to Mr. Travolta are aware of his customary, non-romantic gesture."
Faith No More's Mike Patton wrote and recorded a song called "Travolta" with his band Mr. Bungle. The name of the song was changed to "Quote Unquote" due to legal reasons. The song came out 1991, which was a time at which John Travolta was considered a "has-been" actor. This was before Pulp Fiction came out, and Travolta's career took off again. "Quote Unquote" is also the name of a book John Travolta published around this time. In an episode of South Park, Travolta was one of the characters shown trying to get Tom Cruise out of Stan's closet. The other trying to get him out (Tom Cruise) was R. Kelly, threatening both Tom and John the count of three before he shoots both of them.
Summer Nights
John Travolta Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Summer lovin' happened so fast
I met a girl crazy for me
Met a boy cute as can be
Summer days drifting away to uh oh the summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well-a, huh
Tell me more, tell me more
Tell me more, tell me more
Like does he have a car
Uh huh, uh huh, uh huh
She swam by me she got a cramp
He ran by me got my suit damp
I saved her life she nearly drowned
He showed off splashing around
Summer sun somethings begun but uh oh the summer nights
Oh well, oh well, oh well-a, huh
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first sight?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Dum do be do, do be do, do be, do be, do be dum
Do be do, do be do, do be, do be, do be dum
Took her bowling in the arcade
We went strolling drank lemonade
We made out under the dock
We stayed out 'til 10 o'clock
Summer fling don't mean a thing but uh oh the summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta brag
Tell me more, tell me more
'Cause he sounds like a drag
Shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop
Shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, yeah
He got friendly holding my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
He was sweet just turned eighteen
Well she was good you know what I mean
Summer heat boy and girl meet but uh oh the summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much dough did he spend?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
It turned colder that's where it ends
So I told her we'd still be friends
Then we made our true love vow
Wonder what she's doing now
Summer dreams ripped at the seams but oh those summer nights
The lyrics of John Travolta's "Summer Nights" tell a story of young love during the summer. The song is characterized by the contrast of the male and female perspectives. The first verse shows the male character talking about how he met a girl who was crazy about him, while the female character sings about how the boy she met was cute. The chorus asks for more details about their experiences, with the male character wanting to know if the girl got very far, and if the other boy has a car. The female character asks if the attraction was love at first sight, and if he had to work for it.
The second verse details the different ways they interacted, such as swimming, running, and showing off. They went bowling, took a stroll, drank lemonade, and made out under the dock. The final verse acknowledges that the summer is over and the fling is coming to an end. The male character wants to know how much money the other guy spent, while the female character wonders if she could get a friend. The song ends on a bittersweet note, with the characters making a true love vow but not knowing what the future holds.
"Summer Nights" was an integral part of the 1978 movie "Grease," which starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. The song was written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey and was intended to showcase the different attitudes and priorities of the male and female characters. It quickly became one of the most popular songs from the film and an iconic representation of 1950s teen culture.
Line by Line Meaning
Summer lovin' had me a blast
I had a really fun time during the summer
Summer lovin' happened so fast
The summer went by really quickly
I met a girl crazy for me
I met a girl who really liked me
Met a boy cute as can be
I met a boy who was very attractive
Summer days drifting away to uh oh the summer nights
The summer days are coming to an end and turning into nights
Tell me more, tell me more
Did ya get very far
Please share more details about what happened
Like does he have a car
Uh huh, uh huh, uh huh
Is he a cool guy with his own car?
She swam by me she got a cramp
While swimming, she had a muscle cramp
He ran by me got my suit damp
He ran past me and made my swimsuit wet
I saved her life she nearly drowned
I rescued her from drowning
He showed off splashing around
He was showing off by splashing around in the water
Tell me more, tell me more
Was it love at first sight?
Did you fall in love with each other immediately?
Tell me more, tell me more
Did she put up a fight?
Did she resist your advances?
Took her bowling in the arcade
I took her bowling and played games with her
We went strolling drank lemonade
We walked around and drank lemonade
We made out under the dock
We kissed under the dock
We stayed out 'til 10 o'clock
We stayed out late until 10 pm
Summer fling don't mean a thing but uh oh the summer nights
Summer romances are often fleeting, but the summer nights are unforgettable
Tell me more, tell me more
But you don't gotta brag
Please don't exaggerate
'Cause he sounds like a drag
Shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop
Shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, shooda bop bop, yeah
He doesn't sound very fun or interesting
He got friendly holding my hand
He was being affectionate by holding my hand
Well, she got friendly down in the sand
She was being affectionate with me while we were sitting in the sand
He was sweet just turned eighteen
He was kind and had recently turned eighteen years old
Well she was good you know what I mean
She was skilled in a certain area, if you catch my drift
Summer heat boy and girl meet but uh oh the summer nights
The heat of the summer brings boys and girls together, which makes for unforgettable summer nights
Tell me more, tell me more
How much dough did he spend?
How much money did he spend on you?
Tell me more, tell me more
Could she get me a friend?
Could she set me up with one of her friends?
It turned colder that's where it ends
When the weather got colder, the romance ended
So I told her we'd still be friends
I promised to remain friends with her
Then we made our true love vow
We made a promise to love each other
Wonder what she's doing now
I wonder what she's doing these days
Summer dreams ripped at the seams but oh those summer nights
Although my dreams of summer love fell apart, the summer nights were still memorable
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Warren Casey, Jim Jacobs
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind