British-Australian singer and actress Olivia Newton-John died Monday at the age of 73. That writes her husband John Easterling in a message on her Instagram account. „She passed away peacefully this morning on her ranch in Southern California, surrounded by family and friends,” the message read. Newton-John died of breast cancer, a disease she was first diagnosed with thirty years ago. The actress became known worldwide for her role as Sandy in the film musical Grease (1978).
Newton-John was born in Cambridge, UK and moved to Australia at a young age. She started her musical career in 1970 at the age of 21 and had her first hit a year later with the song “If not for you”. In 1974 she represented the UK at the Eurovision songfestival and finished in fourth place.
She moved to the United States, where her music career took off quickly. She scored five #1 hits and won four Grammys, including Best Song and Best Female Pop Artist. In the Netherlands she scored one number 1 hit, with the song “Xanadu” from 1980. As an actress she became widely known for her role in the American musical film Grease (1978), in which she played the lead role of high school student Sandy alongside John Travolta.
In 1992, the actress was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time. She recovered from that, but the disease returned in 2013 and 2017. In 2019, Newton-John was knighted by the British Queen Elizabeth II, among other things for her commitment to charities and research into cancer.