John Travolta
John Travolta is an acclaimed American actor, producer, and director known for his extensive career in film and television that spans over three decades. He first gained fame in the 1970s as a teenage heartthrob on the TV series "Welcome Back, Kotter," and solidified his status with iconic roles in blockbuster films such as "Saturday Night Fever" and "Grease." Despite experiencing a downturn in his career during the 1980s, Travolta made a remarkable comeback with his role in Quentin Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction," which earned him critical acclaim and an Academy Award nomination. Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, he showcased his versatility across various genres, portraying characters ranging from a confused parent to an FBI agent and a suave loan shark, while also earning a Golden Globe Award for his performance in "Get Shorty."
Travolta continued to work actively in film and television throughout the 2010s and into 2023, appearing in roles that highlight his adaptability as an actor. He is also known for his personal interests, including aviation, and has been a dedicated member of the Church of Scientology. Travolta's career is notable not only for his individual roles but also for highlighting the importance of independent film in Hollywood, particularly in how it can serve as a platform for professional reinvention. His enduring influence in American cinema makes him a significant figure in pop culture history.
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John Travolta
- Born: February 18, 1954
- Place of Birth: Englewood, New Jersey
Over a lengthy career extending into the third decade of the twenty-first century, Travolta has demonstrated a successful transition from adolescent roles to mature parts across a wide range of American film genres.
John Travolta began his performing career as a teenager, first appearing in stage musicals and then becoming a teen heartthrob as the swaggering Vinnie Barbarino in the popular television series Welcome Back, Kotter (1975–1979). He starred in two of the most financially successful and influential films of the 1970s—Saturday Night Fever (1977) and Grease (1978)—but his career floundered in the 1980s. It was revived by his transformative performance as a disheveled but endearing hitman in Quentin Tarantino’s startling crime film Pulp Fiction (1994), which won the Palme d’Or (Golden Palm) at the Cannes Film Festival and took the American Independent Spirit Awards by storm. The complex, darkly comic thriller boosted Tarantino’s international status and earned Travolta an Academy Award nomination and new respect as an actor.
In the 1990s, Travolta became a frequent—perhaps too frequent—screen presence, featured in eighteen theatrical films under the direction of some of the best talent in international filmmaking (including Costa-Gavras, Terrence Malick, Mike Nichols, and John Woo). Moving into early middle age, Travolta convincingly played an impressive range of characters, among them a confused parent in the 1989 hit comedy Look Who’s Talking and its two sequels; a suave loan shark in the crime comedy Get Shorty (1995), for which he won a Golden Globe Award; a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent in the action film Face/Off (1997); a crusading attorney in the docudrama A Civil Action (1998); and an army general in the World War II film The Thin Red Line (1998). In the political satire Primary Colors (1998), as a southern governor running for president (clearly based on Bill Clinton), Travolta delivered a witty performance, exploiting his genial charm and natural screen warmth for its tendency toward sentimentality and superficiality.
Travolta continued to land a variety of roles in the first two decades of the twenty-first century. In the 2000s, he appeared in crime-centered thrillers and dramas like Swordfish (2001), Basic (2003), Lonely Hearts (2006), and The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009) as well as more comedic features such as Be Cool (2005) and Wild Hogs (2007). Further displaying his versatility, he played a crime lord in 2004's The Punisher, memorably portrayed Edna Turnblad in the 2007 film adaptation of the musical Hairspray, and voiced the lead character in the animated feature Bolt (2008). The 2010s saw the continuation of his career, as he maintained a presence on the big screen in films such as Killing Season (2013), Criminal Activities (2015), Gotti (2018), and The Poison Rose (2019). At the same time, he also appeared on television, with a role as O. J. Simpson's lawyer in American Crime Story: The People v. O. J. Simpson (2016) and a starring role alongside Kevin Hart in the new series Die Hart, which premiered its first season in 2020 and its second in 2023. He also starred in Paradise City in 2022. In 2023, Travolta starred in Mob Land, a crime thriller, and The Shepard with Ben Radcliffe. In 2024, he starred in the action film Cash Out.
Although a dedicated member of the Church of Scientology since the mid-1970s, Travolta has largely avoided proselytizing on behalf of the church, a practice common among other Hollywood members. An accomplished pilot, he illustrated and wrote a book for children, Propeller One-Way Night Coach (1992), to celebrate his cherished avocation and the birth of his son, Jett. He married Kelly Preston in 1991. She died of breast cancer in 2020.
Impact
Travolta’s comeback in the 1990s, propelled by his striking performance in the indie sensation Pulp Fiction, underscored the potential of independent film as the site of professional reinvention, in addition to its crucial role in showcasing new talent. In the following decades, he remained a well-known figure in American cinema.
Bibliography
Clarkson, Wensley. John Travolta: Back in Character. Overlook Press, 1997.
Frost, Caroline. "John Travolta Reveals Film Inspired By Near-Death Experience While Flying Plane With Family." Deadline, 15 Nov. 2023, deadline.com/2023/11/john-travolta-the-shepherd-film-inspired-by-near-death-flying-experience-1235637525/. Accessed 22 May 2024.
Hoberman, J. The Magic Hour: Film at Fin de Siècle. Temple UP, 2003.
"John Travolta." IMDb, 2023, www.imdb.com/name/nm0000237. Accessed 22 May 2024.
Kennedy, Dana. "John Travolta Conquers Cannes Film Fest: 'Reinvention Is What I Love.'" AARP, 15 June 2018, www.aarp.org/entertainment/movies-for-grownups/info-2018/john-travolta-on-career-and-gotti.html. Accessed 22 May 2024.