Fans of Olivia Newton-John have lodged bids seven times over the estimate for items from the British-born Grease star’s home, which go under the hammer at a glitzy LA auction tomorrow.
It’s been seven years since the leather jacket and skin-tight trousers she wore to dance with John Travolta as Sandy in the 1978 coming-of-age musical achieved £314,000 at auction.
Now the late star’s husband, John Easterling, has sold The Indian Way estate on the Santa Ynez River in California, where she spent her final days, for £6 million, and is putting 209 items - ranging from signed photos to her clothes - under the hammer.
Star Lot: OBE Certificate Signed by Queen Elizabeth II
At the sale, hosted by Julien's Auctions, the star lot is a formal certificate Olivia, who was born in Cambridge, received when she was awarded an honorary OBE by Queen Elizabeth II in 1978, signed ‘Elizabeth R.’ Expected to fetch up to £1,500, auction spokeswoman Mozell Miley-Bailey says: "Normally a certificate of this kind would mention the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland first. But this document does not say that. Great Britain and Northern Ireland have gone and Australia stands in their place.
"Olivia was awarded her OBE for services to the performing arts in Australia and overseas. Her address, as recorded by The Crown, is Los Angeles."
Olivia, a woman born in England, claimed by Australia, living in California, was honoured by the British monarch on the recommendation of a government in Canberra, and the paperwork was posted to an American address.
Proceeds to Fund Cancer Research
Olivia died from breast cancer on August 8 2022 and some of the sale proceeds will go to the Olivia Newton-John Foundation, which sponsors global research into plant medicine for cancer.
Film producer John, who married Olivia following a whirlwind romance in 2008, said: "Olivia and I made many wonderful memories at our home in Florida and the ranch in California, I can see a new family having great nature adventures and relishing the life experience.”
Olivia's OBE in 1978 celebrated a phenomenal year, when Grease - which grossed £250 million worldwide - opened in cinemas and resulted in two hit singles, You're The One That I Want and Summer Nights, topping British charts for 16 weeks.
Personal Items and Memorabilia Attract High Bids
Collecting her OBE at Buckingham Palace the following year, Mozell continues: "This honour turned out to be the first entry in a long ledger. Australia made her an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2006 and elevated her to Companion, the order's highest grade, in the 2019 Australia Day Honours.
"And in the 2020 New Year Honours she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to charity, cancer research and entertainment."
As well as celebrating the star’s achievements, the auction pays homage to Olivia away from the cameras. It includes various kimonos, including one by her favourite Australian designer Camilla Franks, worn a year before her death, which is expected to fetch £450.
Her wooden sewing box has an estimate of £200, a green vintage bathroom bin is valued at £150 and a sterling silver heart shaped perfume travel flask by Tiffany & Co is listed at £450.
A collection of 14 photos, capturing Olivia as a child in the 1950s, have already received bids of £1,100, against an estimate of £400. Two Grease movie posters, signed by Olivia and John Travolta, had a guide price of £500, but bids have reached £2,500 so far. And a group of collectors’ cards, depicting various Grease stars, has attracted a bid of £750 - 20 times the early estimate of just £35.
A Fascinating Back Story
Mozell explains that, even before becoming a star, Olivia had a fascinating back story. She says: "Olivia's father, Brinley Newton-John, was a Welsh academic who had served as an MI5 officer, attached to the Enigma project at Bletchley Park and who, bound by the Official Secrets Act, kept that from his children for decades.
"Her mother, Irene, had come to Britain from Germany in 1933 with a family fleeing the Nazi regime. Irene's father was the physicist whose work on quantum mechanics won a Nobel Prize.
"In early 1954, when Olivia was five, the family sailed for Melbourne aboard the SS Strathaird. Her father had been appointed Master of Ormond College at the University of Melbourne.
"Olivia grew up in an academic house in Victoria, left school early, won a talent contest, and collected the prize: a trip to London. She sailed back to England in 1964, still in her teens and went on to become one of the most famous women in the world."
To bid on the Olivia Newton-John auction, visit www.juliensauctions.com.
