John Travolta bio: movies, age, height, is he gay?
John Travolta is an American actor, producer, and dancer. He is probably best known for his role as Vincent Vega in the critically acclaimed 1994 movie Pulp Fiction. The actor has appeared in numerous films over his career that spans more than forty years. He has had his share of career highs, lows, awards, and controversies. How much do you know about this film veteran beyond his on-screen life?
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John Travolta was born in New Jersey on 18th February 1954 to parents Helen and Salvatore. John Travolta age is currently 65 years. His mum was an actress of Irish descent while his father was a semi-professional footballer. Later his father became a tire salesman and a partner in a tire manufacturing firm. John grew up alongside five siblings, namely: Joe, Margaret, Sam, Ellen, and Ann. The actor attended Dwight Morrow High School but dropped out at the age of 17.
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John Travolta profile summary
- Date of birth: 18th February 1954
- Place of birth: Englewood, New Jersey
- Age: 65 years
- Parents: Salvatore Travolta and Helen Burke
- Spouse: Kelly Preston
- Nationality: American
- Profession: Actor
- Net worth: $170 million
- Weight: 97 kilos
- Height: 6 feet 2 inches
John Travolta movies
The actor got his big-screen break in 1975 when he appeared in the movie The Devil’s Rain and later in Carrie (1976). The actor then got his break into the international arena when he was cast as Tony Manero in the 1977 film Saturday Night Fever. The movie followed Tony, a paint store clerk who joins a dancing competition and convinces the beautiful Stephanie (Karen Lynn) to be his dance partner. As the pair trains for the competition, they begin to fall for each other. Travolta was nominated for various awards for his role in the movie.
After the box office success of Saturday Night Fever, John was named in the cast for the 1978 movie musical Grease. The film followed two teenagers, Danny and Sandy who fall in love during summer vacation. Travolta played the role of Danny. The film was very successful due to its massive audience. The movie raked in around $400 million and had a $6 million production budget. With those figures, Grease became one of the highest-grossing action movie musicals.
After his run of successful projects, Travolta’s acting career began to decline with a series of unpopular films. Top among the poor-performing was the Saturday Night Fever 1983 sequel Staying Alive. This was followed by the equally poor Two of a Kind (1983) and Perfect (1985). The actor enjoyed brief success with the Look Who’s Talking series alongside Kirstie Alley. However, by the end of the 1980s, Travolta was in the ‘has-been’ category of actors.
After a significant decline in his acting career, John made an epic comeback in 1994 when he starred in the film Pulp Fiction. The movie was directed by Quentin Tarantino and followed two hit men, Jules Winnfield (Samuel L Jackson) and Vincent Vega (Travolta). The film earned Travolta an Academy Award nomination. A scene where he dances with Uma Thurman is also on the list of the favourite film scenes of all time. After Pulp Fiction, John was back on the acting limelight.
In 1995, the actor played the character Chill in the comedy Get Shorty. His performance in the novel-based movie won him a Golden Globe award. A sequel to Get Shorty was released in 2005 titled Be Cool but was not as successful as the first movie.
Within the 90s decade, the actor appeared in films such as Primary Colors (1998), Phenomenon (1996) and Arrow (1996). John’s final film in the 90s was The General’s Daughter (1999). The beginning of the following decade was not very kind to the actor. His first movie of the decade Battlefield Earth (2000) was a massive miss. The film was based on a novel by Ron Hubbard, the Scientology founder. Despite the flop, the actor was back again, this time in the movie Swordfish (2001) alongside Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry. Other notable Travolta movies within that period included Wild Hogs, Ladder 49 and Love Song for Bobby Long.
In 2007, the actor went back to his musical background in the movie adaptation of the Broadway hit Hairspray. The film tells the story of a plump young girl who wishes to perform in a local dance show. Travolta played the role of the girl’s mother (Edna). This was accomplished with the use of makeup, costumes, and wigs. The transformation of John into a large bubbly woman allowed him to showcase his vocal prowess in the film. Travolta’s performance in Hairspray earned him another Golden Globe nomination.
In 2008, the actor was the voice of the lead role in Disney’s animated film Bolt. The movie revolves around a lost dog who believes that he has superpowers. He is accidentally shipped away into the mean streets of New York armed only with his superpower delusion and sets out to find his owner. John also performed the film’s ending credits duet with Miley Cyrus titled I Thought I Lost You. In 2009, John appeared in the comedy Old Dogs alongside Bernie Mac and Robin Williams. In 2010, the actor played Charlie in the action film From Paris with Love.
In 2011, Travolta was played to play John Gotti, a mob boss in the film Gotti. The movie was faced with numerous production-related challenges and was eventually released seven years later. In 2015, Travolta was cast to play Robert Shapiro, the defence attorney in the 1995 O.J Simpson trial, in the FX miniseries American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson. The mini-series debuted on February 2016 and earned Travolta a Golden Globe nomination for the best supporting role.
How tall is John Travolta?
The talented actor is relatively tall, standing at 6 feet 2 inches (183 centimetres). He weighs 97 kilos and has brown hair and blue eyes. There is barely any further information regarding the actor’s body size, shoe size or other measurements.
Who are John Travolta kids?
Travolta met his wife Kelly Preston in 1987 while on set for the movie The Experts. However, the two did not start dating until 1990 after Kelly broke up with her husband. The couple dated for one and a half years and got married in 1990 in Paris. The Paris wedding ceremony was deemed unofficial since it was presided over by a Scientology minister. A week after the first wedding, the couple got married in Florida, this time in an official ceremony.
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In 1992, the couple was blessed with a baby boy (Jett) who unfortunately passed away at age sixteen. In 2000, John Travolta daughter, Ella Bleu, was born. Ten years later, the couple welcomed a baby boy named Benjamin. Before their marriage, Travolta had been linked with various women throughout his career. These included:
- Diana Hyland: Towards the end of 1976, Travolta began dating Diana after the two met while working on The Boy in the Plastic Bubble. Hyland was diagnosed with cancer and later passed away in the actor’s arms.
- Anita Gillette: The actor met Anita in 1978 while working on the play Bus Stop and the two got close.
- Catherine Deneuve: In 1980, John began dating Catherine, who was eleven years his senior. The two were alleged to have fallen for each other while working on the film Blowout.
- Marilu Henner: The two met in 1978 while working on the highly successful film Grease. They did not date for about a year after meeting since Travolta was allegedly involved with someone else. In 1983, the two dated again and even got matching Jaguar vehicle to celebrate their reunion. The couple would later separate in 1989.
- Brooke Shields: John and actress Brooke Shields had a short-lived relationship in the 1980s. The actress later revealed that the union did not progress very far.
John Travolta gay rumours
What is perhaps the most significant controversy surrounding the actor concerns allegations of being gay. In 2006, the actor was alleged to have kissed a male colleague before boarding his private plane in Canada. In 2012, two men intended to sue the actor for emotional distress and sexual battery. Travolta’s former pilot (Douglas Gotterba) also claimed that he and the actor were involved in a relationship in the 1980s.
However, Travolta dismissed all these allegations in 2014 and claimed them to be made up by people who wanted money from him. He termed the gay rumours as ‘every actor’s Achilles heel’. Travolta’s attorney (Marty Singer) also dismissed the claims. He claimed that his client’s accusers were looking for their fifteen minutes of fame by fabricating stories about things that supposedly took place.
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John Travolta net worth
The actor’s current net worth is estimated to be $170 million. Much of this has been from his acting career. By the mid-90s, the actor averaged $10 million for each movie. He has appeared in films that have cumulatively grossed more than $4 billion. The actor was named as one of the most valuable actors of all time.
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John Travolta house
The main John Travolta house is situated in Ocala, Florida. Besides this residence, the actor has various other homes to his name. These include:
Maine, Islesboro
One of the actor’s favourite holiday properties is located off the coast of Maine. The 12,000 square foot residence has huge rooms and an inbuilt swimming pool. One of the actor’s former work colleagues, Kirstie Alley convinced the Travolta family to purchase the property. Since then, Maine has been the family’s Christmas destination every year. The six-bedroom property is surrounded by picturesque blueberry fields on one side and a forest on the other.
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New Jersey
The John Travolta house in New Jersey was his first home purchase. He bought it for a paltry $140,000 and resided in it for five years. Later, he gave it to his sister when his career life began to rise. The home is now valued at $290,000.
Santa Barbara
The Travolta family owns homes on the country’s East and West coasts. They purchased the Santa Barbara house for about $7 million back in 1997. The home is equipped with six fireplaces, a swimming pool, and a tennis court. According to the family, they rarely spend time in California, but when they do, it is always at their Santa Barbara home.
Ocala, Florida
The Ocala residence is the family’s primary home. The actor purchased it from Frank Sinatra for $3.5 million. He then renovated the estate to accommodate his family as well as his collection of private planes. The home is part of an exclusive area for the aviation community known as Jumbolair Estates. There are roadways leading to the front of each home and plane taxiways leading to the back.
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This John Travolta bio describes a resilient actor who has gone through the ups and downs of a decorated acting career. The actor has lived through controversies and continues to enjoy life with his family off-screen. Lately, Travolta has been involved in lesser films than he did during his early years. However, his legacy will live on among his fans, and his name will most certainly not be forgotten any time soon in the entertainment industry.
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