John Travolta

Lore & Background

Travolta came to prominence starring in the sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–1979), followed by a supporting performance in Carrie (1976) and then leading roles in Grease (1978), Urban Cowboy (1980), and Blow Out (1981). He earned nominations for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his roles in Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Pulp Fiction (1994). His other notable films include Get Shorty (1995), Broken Arrow (1996), Michael (1996), Face/Off (1997), A Civil Action (1998), Primary Colors (1998), The General's Daughter (1999), The Punisher (2004), Wild Hogs (2007), Hairspray (2007), Bolt (2008), and Savages (2012). Travolta returned to television portraying lawyer Robert Shapiro in the series The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story. He received an Emmy Award as a producer as well as nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie. He was also Emmy-nominated for his role in the action-comedy web series Die Hart (2021). Outside of acting, Travolta has released nine albums, including four singles that have charted on the Billboard Hot 100's Top 40. His albums have typically accompanied films he has starred in, such as Grease: The Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture (1978), which topped the Billboard 200. Travolta is also a private pilot.

Reader's Guide

John Joseph Travolta was born on February 18, 1954, in Englewood, New Jersey. He is the youngest of six children. His father, Salvatore 'Sam' Travolta, was a semiprofessional American football player turned tire salesman and partner in a tire company. His mother, Helen Cecilia (née Burke), was an actress and singer who had appeared in The Sunshine Sisters, a radio vocal group, and acted and directed before becoming a high school drama and English teacher. His siblings Joey, Ellen, Ann, Margaret, and Sam Travolta were all inspired by their mother's love of theater and drama and became actors. His father was a second-generation Italian American with roots in Godrano, Sicily, and his mother was Irish American. He grew up in an Irish-American neighborhood and said that his household was predominantly Irish in culture. He was raised Catholic, but later converted to Scientology in 1975 at age 21. He converted after being given the book Dianetics from former actress Joan Prather. Travolta attended Dwight Morrow High School, but dropped out as a junior at age 17 in 1971.

Did You Know?

• Travolta earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for Saturday Night Fever at age 24, making him one of the youngest performers ever nominated for the Best Actor Oscar.
• Travolta's first screen role in California was as a fall victim in Emergency! in September 1972.
• Travolta had a hit single titled 'Let Her In', peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in July 1976.
• Travolta's performance in Battlefield Earth earned him two Razzie Awards.
• Travolta mispronounced Idina Menzel's name as 'Adele Dazeem' during the 86th Academy Awards live broadcast.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"It's hard to make a cultural phenomenon every time." — John Travolta "Here he comes (back?) again: Travolta's trick was to make us like him. Now we can't stop" Katrina Onstad, with reporting by Elizabeth Levine. National Post. Don Mills, Ont. (June 6, 2001)." — John Travolta "Travolta supports Cruise's silent birth method" The Hindustan Times. (New Delhi: April 5, 2006)." — John Travolta "Stayin' Alive" Rosebud. Vol. 2 Issue 15." — John Travolta