Fans will forever cherish Didi Conn’s iconic performance of “Beauty School Dropout” in Grease, and even after 47 years, she continues to hold a special place in their hearts. For instance, a recent public appearance by the actress – merely taking out the trash while wearing pink polo and white shorts – was enough to remind everyone that she will always be one of the Pink Ladies.
For those eager for more details about Didi’s current activities, she graced a Grease Sing-A-Long event in June, where she reunited with her former co-star John Travolta (who dressed up as his character Danny Zuko) and paid tribute to their late castmate Olivia Newton-John. On Instagram, Didi shared her feelings about the gathering: “It was incredibly meaningful for us all to come together to honor our dearly missed friend Olivia.
Surely, “Grease” wasn’t just one of Didi’s roles; she had many other acting credits. Following her part in the 1978 musical movie, she acted in the sequel “Grease 2” and the ’80s sitcom “Benson.” Interestingly, it was during her work on this TV series that she started dating composer David Shire. They got married in 1982, making Didi a stepmother to Matthew, David’s son from his previous marriage with actress Talia Shire.
Previously married to actor Frank Conn, Didi subsequently made her mark on Broadway with performances in shows like “Lost in Yonkers”, “The Green Bird”, and “Say Goodnight, Gracie”. She also secured roles in the ’80s animated TV series “The Fonz and the Happy Days Gang”, the ’90s kids’ show “Shining Time Station”, and the 2002 film “Frida” starring Salma Hayek.
Over the past few years, Didi has been shining brightly both on stage and screen. On stage, she’s appeared in plays like “Cinderella” and “Middletown” by Dan Clancy, and on television shows such as “Overcompensating”, “Étoile”, “Harlan Coben’s Shelter”, and “Grease Live!”. At the age of 74, she even makes appearances, or virtual cameos, on the app Cameo.
Didi is a mother to her adopted son Daniel, who was born in 1992, and has been an advocate for Autism Speaks since he was diagnosed with autism at the age of three. She has poured her entire heart, soul, and intellect into raising him, as she shared during an episode of the Purple Roads podcast in 2020. Today, Daniel is 28 years old and living on a farm where he works and accomplishes tasks that Didi never thought he would be able to do.
Even though it’s been more than four decades since Grease was released, Didi remains deeply connected to the film. Every May 19th, her good friend Barry Pearl, who played DOODY in the movie, contacts the entire cast of Grease to celebrate the day they were all cast in the film. In a 2021 Instagram post, Didi expressed her affection for Barry and recalled one of the happiest days of her life-the day she learned she was cast in the iconic movie. If thinking about Grease gives you goosebumps, keep reading to discover some fascinating behind-the-scenes secrets about the making of the film.
The well-known duo of John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John wasn’t necessarily predestined when it came to casting the roles that were initially played on Broadway in 1972 by Barry Bostwick and Carole Demas.
Linda Ronstadt and Marie Osmond were some of the actors considered for the role of Sandy in “Grease,” as John Travolta shared with Entertainment Tonight. He remarked, “They’re fantastic, but every man on Earth wants Olivia Newton-John as their girlfriend.” And I knew that because I felt the same way…And I said, “If you don’t realize this, then you all are crazy.
Carrie Fisher, Ann-Margret from “Bye Bye Birdie”, and Susan Dey of “The Partridge Family” were among the potential candidates for the role of Sandy.
At first, Allan Carr’s proposal involving Newton-John wasn’t met with an immediate affirmation. However, upon agreement, the character of Sandy was subsequently revised to portray her as Australian.
In 2016, the singer of “Physical” reminisced to Vanity Fair that he had been quite apprehensive about making another film, as his music career was thriving at the time. He didn’t want to jeopardize it by starring in another movie that might not have been well-received.
Henry Winkler admitted that he regretted passing up the opportunity to play Danny Zuko, as in the 1970s, he felt that his character as the Fonz on Happy Days was already a slickly styled, leather-jacketed cool guy, and he didn’t want to be confined to that stereotype.
Barry shared with CNN’s Chris Wallace in November 2022 that after he leaves, he drinks a Diet Coke at home. Similarly, John Travolta, having worked on the film, returns home and purchases an airplane.
Before landing the role of Danny, Travolta had already starred in ‘Saturday Night Fever’, but this movie wasn’t premiered until December 1977.
In the summer of 1977, he hadn’t become a major movie star yet when they filmed “Grease”, but by its release on June 16, 1978, he had already achieved that status and even received an Oscar nomination.
However, Travolta found solace in his life-altering projects as they served a dual purpose: They provided him with professional growth, but more importantly, kept him occupied amidst the tragic loss of his girlfriend Diana Hyland, who passed away from cancer on March 27, 1977.
As a devoted admirer, let me rephrase it for you: “Being in back-to-back films turned out to be a massive diversion for me. To put it simply, it might just have been the best thing I could’ve done under the circumstances, as I was feeling quite low.
As a lifestyle connoisseur, let me share an interesting tidbit: while Frankie Valli lent his voice to the iconic title track, it was actually penned by none other than Barry Gibb – a fellow master of falsetto tunes. Incidentally, during that time, the Bee Gees’ disco-infused soundtrack for “Saturday Night Fever” was reigning supreme on the album charts, holding the top spot for a remarkable 24 weeks.
In the two movies, it was the same person, Robert Stigwood, who served as producer. Interestingly, he was not only associated with these films but was also the manager of the Bee Gees band. At the eleventh hour, when a song had already been penned, he unexpectedly brought in Gibb to replace it.
Randal Kleiser, the director, initially had apprehensions about launching the entire film with a tune that didn’t embody a 1950s feel. However, “Grease” and “You’re the One That I Want,” both from the movie, ended up spending two weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and were even nominated for a Golden Globe award. Unfortunately, they lost to Donna Summer’s “Last Dance” from the film “Thank God It’s Friday.
The hit song “Hopelessly Devoted to You,” composed by John Farrar, was the sole tune from the movie “Grease” that received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song (although it didn’t win against “Last Dance”). Interestingly, this was the only award recognition that the film received.
Although Travolta and Newton-John were as inseparable as rama-lama-lama-ka-dinga-da-dinga-dong, the original “Grease” musical featured a diverse array of actors who briefly shone before moving on.
Initially, the actor portraying Kenickie in the movie, Jeff Conaway, previously starred on Broadway as Danny, while John Travolta played the role of Doody, a T-Bird member, in a traveling stage production.
In the 1970s, other actors who played Danny on Broadway were Peter Gallagher, Patrick Swayze, and Treat Williams, whereas Richard Gere starred in the initial West End production in 1973.
Actors playing Danny on Broadway during the 1970s included Peter Gallagher, Patrick Swayze, and Treat Williams, while Richard Gere was the lead in the original West End production of 1973.
Or even more casually: The likes of Peter Gallagher, Patrick Swayze, and Treat Williams took on the role of Danny on Broadway in the 1970s, with Richard Gere headlining the first production on London’s West End stage in 1973.
Initially, the stage production of “Grease” was penned by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey in Chicago, yet the film adaptation transposed the action to Los Angeles.
Venice High School, John Marshall High from Los Feliz, and Huntington Park High served as stand-ins for Rydell High. The famous drag race scene was filmed along the L.A. River Basin between the 1st Street Bridge and the 6th Street Viaduct. In simpler terms, different real schools were used to portray Rydell High in the movie, while the iconic car race was shot near bridges on the LA River.
These bridges have appeared in numerous films such as The Naked Gun, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and Furious 7.
Stockard Channing, who secured the role of Rizzo over Lucille Ball’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, at the age of 33, was actually part of the group often referred to as the teen cast despite her being an adult.
Kleiser, who had worked with Travolta before in the 1976 TV movie “The Boy in the Plastic Bubble” and was his preferred choice for “Grease”, mentioned to Vanity Fair in 2016 that he would check how close they were to an age we had set as suitable, by examining if they had wrinkles around their eyes resembling crow’s feet. He explained that high-school students typically do not have such lines on their faces.
As an ardent admirer, I can’t help but share a fascinating behind-the-scenes insight from “Grease: The Director’s Notebook.” In this captivating account, Kleiser elucidates the masterful technique employed by our cinematographer extraordinaire, Bill Butler. He subtly softened the lighting on the radiant 29-year-old Olivia Newton-John, effectively erasing even the slightest wrinkle on her visage – a testament to the fact that she barely had any lines to begin with!
Due to intense heat inside the gym, where they filmed the school dance for five days without air conditioning, and due to the strong odor from the nearby meatpacking plant that prevented them from opening the windows, Michael Tucci (a member of the T-Birds and the self-proclaimed “mooner” Sonny) collapsed and was taken to the emergency room.
As a die-hard fan, I’ve always wondered if it’s true that Elvis Presley turned down the role of Teen Angel, which ended up being played by Frankie Avalon. It’s said that Frankie was so terrified of heights, they had to place mattresses on both sides of the staircase for him while singing “Beauty School Dropout.” Can you imagine The King backing away from such a legendary part? That’s one what-if that keeps me awake at night!
Presley died Aug. 16, 1977, at Graceland while they were still filming Grease in L.A.
In the stage production, “Grease Lightning” is originally sung by Kenickie, but John Travolta managed to take over the vocals for that particular song in the movie version.
In a conversation with Vanity Fair, the actor admitted, “I needed that phone number genuinely, and since I held some influence, I managed to obtain it.
In 2011, when Conaway passed away due to complications from long-term drug use leading to pneumonia, both he and choreographer Patricia Birch found this turn of events highly unwelcome.
She told the magazine, “It was supposed to be Kenickie’s part! I was frustrated because I believed Jeff was given that role instead of Kenickie, who owned the car.
Steven Ford, the third-born son and youngest child of ex-President Gerald Ford, initially took on the role of Tom, the jock, but eventually got cold feet and withdrew – despite the fact that this character required nothing more than a good appearance and to simply say “Hello” and ask “How are you?” as lines.
The 19-year-old actor, Lorenzo Lamas, was swiftly chosen for the role of Sandy’s fleeting love interest, whose intelligence was said to reside in his muscles rather than his mind. To make him stand out visually against Danny, he dyed his dark hair blond. However, as Lamas reminisced to Vanity Fair, “I would have dyed it purple if it meant being part of that movie.
Ellen Travolta, famously recognized as Scott Baio’s mother on “Charles in Charge,” is 15 years older than her brother John, who is the youngest among the five siblings.
In the crowd of waitstaff huddled near the TV at The Frosty Palace, a revamped diner popularized by the Paramount+ prequel series Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, you can spot her.
In a striking transformation, Olivia Newton-John was barely recognizable as she strutted out with her “goodbye to Sandra Dee” tousled curls, form-fitting leggings, and leather jacket. Remarkably, the actress, who sadly passed away in 2022, persisted in donning this signature outfit at Grease press events for years following its initial release.
In a chat with ET, Didi Conn, known for her role as Frenchie, the beauty school dropout, reminisced about her Australian co-star adopting the bad-girl persona during filming of the drive-in scene. Surprisingly, it was not until later that people recognized who she truly was.
In an interview with ET, Travolta expressed it was a spontaneous response when he saw Danny knocked to his knees upon seeing Sandy’s transformation. He found the whole scene of her dressed in that attire incredibly amusing.
1982’s follow-up film “Grease 2” featuring Michelle Pfeiffer and Maxwell Caulfield has a dedicated group of supporters, yet it is not generally considered a fan favorite or widely adored.
Unfortunately, the concept Carr initially proposed for a sequel titled “Summer School,” where the T-Birds and Pink Ladies would gather for Rizzo and Kenickie’s wedding, was not the one ultimately produced.
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2025-08-05 22:51