How John Travolta pulled some strings to get his sister a role in iconic musical Grease

13 May 2024, 17:04

It was the film that put his name on the map.

When John Travolta starred in 1978 musical Grease as the rebel with a conscience in Danny Zuko, he swiftly became a household name.

Everyone knew who they were referring to when anyone mentioned "Travolta", even though the young actor was just twenty-three years old.

Though John wasn't the only Travolta to star in Grease - he managed to pull some strings to get his sister a role too.

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Songs like 'Summer Nights' and 'Hopeless Devoted To You' propelled the Grease cast into the hearts of musical lovers worldwide, with the film becoming the highest-grossing musical of all time after its 1978 release.

John Travolta went on to perform in pop cultural phenomenon feature films such as Saturday Night Fever that same year, transforming into a Hollywood superstar.

But before his enormous fame, he wangled an opportunity for his sister Ellen to share a slice of the fame.

One of John Travolta's six siblings, Ellen appeared in Grease as a waitress at Frosty Palace.

It's a small role, given her character doesn't even have a name, though she appears in a few scenes in the film, and even delivers a line of dialogue.

When the Frosty Palace waiting staff are watching Rydell High host the National Dance-Off on the television set in the restaurant, it's Ellen's character points out: "Oh, there's Danny and Sandy!"

Ellen - who is fourteen years John's senior - was an actress before then, having nabbed supporting roles in Happy Days, CHiPs, and All In The Family.

She then went on to secure further roles in series like The Love Boat, Diff'rent Strokes, Quincy, M.E., and Murder, She Wrote, but certainly didn't achieve the same kind of success as her younger brother.

Recalling her experience of starring in Grease, Ellen explained to The Spokesman Review in 2018 about how it came about.

"I was on the lot at Paramount, I was guesting on a sitcom or something, and I came by the set. And (John) said, 'Do you want to be in the movie? Can my sister be in the movie?' Literally."

"So the next day they wrote me in a part. That's how loose it was, and never knowing the success it would become."

I don't think anybody could've envisaged what a blockbuster success Grease turned into, and it's one that Ellen is still reaping the rewards.

"I get residuals every thirteen weeks for 40 years. And I only worked two days, maybe one day, with Joan Blondell and that group, and I had a lot of fun," she said.

It's taken over forty years for fans of the iconic musical to realise there was another Travolta relation that featured in the film, albeit only briefly.

Fans on online forum Reddit noticed the likeness between John and Ellen, and it suddenly clicked.

"Now it’s been pointed out, she does look and sound like him…" one person commented, whilst another wrote: "We all know that was just John in a wig."

One savvy fan put two-and-two together, commenting: "Made sure she got a line so she has to get full SAG scale. Good move John."