John Travolta was born on 18 February 1954 in Englewood, New Jersey.He joined an actor’s workshop at the age of 12, starring in musicals and theatre and took tap lessons from Gene Kelly’s brother, Fred. He left high school at 16 and moved to New York to break into acting, landing himself several small TV roles in the early 70s.
His breakthrough came in 1975 with the role of Vinnie Barbarino in hit TV series Welocome Back, Kotter. Several movies followed, including The Boy In The Plastic Bubble, but Travolta’s real big screen triumph was Saturday Night Fever in 1977.The iconic film saw him playing king of the disco dancefloorTony Manero and earned him an Oscar nomination.
Travolta’s next role as Danny Zuko opposite Olivia Newton-John in Grease saw his profile skyrocket.The 1978 film also highlighted his musical talent with the release of hit single You’re The One That I Want. A string of rather less successful films followed, including Saturday Night Fever sequel Staying Alive. Despite a trio of Look Who’s Talking hits, Travolta saw his big-screen appeal diminish considerably.That all changed in 1994 with Quentin Tarantino’s cult classic Pulp Fiction.The film brought him back to the big-time, earning him another Oscar nomination as the quirky Vincent Vega opposite Samuel L Jackson.
Critical acclaim follwed with a Golden Globe for his role as Chili Palmer in gangster flick Get Shorty, opposite Gene Hackman and Danny De Vito. The 90s saw Travolta in a host of successful films including Broken Arrow, Face/Off, Phenomenon, The Thin Red Line and Primary Colors, proving his power as the comeback kid. His only misjudgement came with sci-fi flop Battlefield Earth in 2000.Travolta is currently starring in firefighter thriller Ladder 49.