Didi Conn, who played Pink Lady Frenchy in the original Grease film, has said that “nobody” working on the movie had any idea it would become a massive hit. The 1978 film, based on the stage musical, was nominated for an Oscar and became the highest-grossing musical film at the time.
Sequel idea came during filming
Conn said it was the cast who “loved working together so much” that they proposed the idea of a sequel to producer Allan Carr. Speaking to the Press Association, she explained: “This all happened like the last week we were shooting, which was when we were doing the carnival scene. They added a scene where the boys are throwing pies at Sid Caesar, who played the coach, and they had lousy aim and he told them, ‘I’ll see you in summer school’ to set up a sequel.”
“Then Allan went to the powers that be at Paramount and said, ‘hey, we did this, we set it up, let’s have the money and get a sequel going’, and they said, ‘this is just going to be a little summer movie’, and they passed.”
Cast ages and sequel challenges
During filming, many cast members were older than the teenagers they played. John Travolta was 23, Olivia Newton-John was 29, and Conn was 26. Conn said the age differences did not faze many actors: “So many of the main characters had played these roles on Broadway or the national company, so they knew how to be. They knew these characters. It didn’t matter how old they were. They could still rock and roll, you know.”
She added: “But what we did, which I loved doing, was that we stayed in character all the time, at lunch, in the makeup trailer or whatever. So it was a constant improvisation, and you forget your life, and you go back in time, and that’s what we did, and it really helped I think.”
By the time the film was released, the production company tried to bring back Travolta and Newton-John for a sequel, but their schedules were already booked. “So, they did that (the 1982 sequel) without them. Paramount didn’t know, and we didn’t know that it was going to be such a success. We just wanted it to continue.”
Legacy and future plans
Decades after playing Frenchy – a role she reprised in Grease 2 – Conn surprised fans at Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical in London on Thursday. Before appearing in the show, which she called an “interactive explosion of fun”, Conn said: “When I make appearances it’s really fun.”
On the legacy of the film, which will mark its 50th anniversary in two years, Conn said she was proud to have played a part. She added: “I just feel very, very grateful. People relate to that movie, and families watch it together and pass it down. My heart is filled with how much joy that it’s brought to people, and then I get the satisfaction of seeing people happy. It’s a movie with so much heart, and I was lucky to play a character who just wants everybody to be the best they could be.”
She also described plans to mark the occasion: “My plan is to have the cast do a sing-along at the Hollywood Bowl in LA and any money we raise can go to charities including the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund and The Jett Travolta Foundation. So that’s my plan, and I’m working on it, and I’m getting closer.”
Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical is running at Evolution London in Battersea Park until September 13. Tickets start at £29.
