Olivia Newton-John is feeling Physical these days.
Physical, her inescapable 1981 smash -- a song she says she originally balked at releasing -- muscles its way back onto the pop culture radar thanks to the Fox series Glee.
The 61-year-old singer/actress, who now lives with her second husband, John Easterling, says she had a blast filming scenes with Glee villain Jane Lynch. The two sang a new arrangement of the pop tune on a set painstakingly recreated to resemble the original campy Physical videoclip. The episode airs May 4.
Stepping onto the set, ``It was like going back in time. What is it, 30 years? It was spooky. So much fun. I've never laughed so much,'' Newton-John said from her Jupiter home. She will also appear as a celebrity judge on Glee's first season finale on June 8.
The Grease star's also to appear with singer Jon Secada at the Pink and Blue for Two cancer charity event at Miami Beach's Raleigh Hotel on Thursday.
Tell us about the benefit at The Raleigh.
``We are going to raise awareness and money for breast and prostate cancer research and show the similarities between the two and encourage couples to screen together. Men are less informed. There is a correlation between breast and prostate cancer. The family that stays together stays healthy.''
How did the Glee casting come about?
``When my agent called and asked, I'd heard of it but had never seen it. I was sent the DVDs and loved it. I spent a couple days with Jane and we had a blast.''
You tried to quash Physical. Were you afraid its risque nature would hurt your career?
``I didn't want to do it! I told my manager, `Let's not put it out' but he said it was too late, it had already gone to radio and was 10 weeks at No. 1. I wasn't sure about doing Grease, either. Funny how things turn out.''
We hear you tried to tone down the video by setting it in a gym -- but that only made it more about sex!
``Yes, I said, `Let's make it about a workout,' I don't want it to go the other way and yet it worked more in its favor. Everything I did against it seemed to help it. I insisted on wearing my clothes in the shower and then they said, `It was so sexy when you showered with your clothes on.' In retrospect, it's hilarious.''
-- HOWARD COHEN
Olivia Newton-John and Jon Secada appear at Pink and Blue for Two at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Raleigh Hotel,
Comments
Post a Comment
Please leave me a comment.