Olivia's Private World
Behind a high wall, protected by an array of security devices, Olivia Newton-John has come to terms with a new life. Like Olivia herself, her remodelled home is hard to find. The three-acre property nestles in a canyon at Malibu in California, an area favored by the rich, famous and reclusive. The house, to which Olivia has added a second storey, sits on cliffs overlooking the ocean. There’s a pool and tennis court, a corral for Olivia’s five horses. All is surrounded by a flower-filled garden. It is a world of calm and comfort which Olivia shares not only with husband Matt Lattanzi and their daughter Chloe, now eight months old, but also with a full-time nanny, a live-in secretary and stable hands who care for the horses.
Olivia finally opened up on her private world when she agreed to an interview with Los Angeles-based reporter Ian Hislop, whose exclusive goes to air on Channel 7 this week (on Terry Willesee’s program in Sydney, Mark Day’s in Melbourne). “I was pleasantly surprised what an unaffected person she is,” Hislop told TV WEEK. “She’s incredibly defensive, but she maintains this is because she’s been the victim of misquoting and scandalous barbs, and has obviously been hurt.”
Hislop says Olivia was completely relaxed and very comfortable, adding, “So much so that when Chloe woke up and started to cry, I asked Olivia if we might have Chloe brought out for the camera. She agreed.” Speaking to Hislop, Olivia reveals that she is more than happy to sit at home and be a mother. “I don’t have any great desires to work, which is terrible,” she says. Of her new, low-key lifestyle, Olivia says, “I suppose my life is a lot quieter, but it’s more enjoyable and fulfilling because Chloe has brought a dimension to my life that I didn’t know was there. I think until you have a baby you’re missing out on an awful lot of life. And now all kinds of things have opened up to me that I wasn’t tuned into at all I shouldn’t have waited so long!
“I think now, when I look back on my life, I won’t be thinking about my gold records, but about my family. Chloe is my greatest achievement.” Olivia is concerned, however, about the effect on Chloe of growing up in the glare of public attention. “So much of your life is public. The press will say what they want about you and a lot is misconstrued and made up, so you get very protective about your home life. I don’t want Chloe’s life to be intruded upon. It’s going to be hard for Chloe because I want her to have a good sense of values. But when you have everything it’s very hard to say, ‘You can’t have that because I want you to know what it’s like to go without’. I just hope that by listening to us and watching us she’ll learn about what’s really important and have some humility about herself. And I’ll take her to Australia as often as I can because I was raised there and I think it’s a very healthy environment for a child.”
Olivia makes her first public performance since Chloe was born, in January, at the opening ceremony of the VFL Grand Final on Saturday, September 27, the day after her birthday. Husband Matt Lattanzi won’t be with her he’s busy working on two films. Although Olivia says she had preconceived ideas about marriage “I was terrified, but now I don’t know why I was so frightened” it is clear her personal priorities will override professional ones for some time to come. “I’m very happy being at home, but I don’t know how I’ll feel in six months. Maybe I’ll want to recharge the batteries, because I have a few creative things going on I want to fulfil.”
These include a secret film project (she and friend Nancy Gould have already sold the idea to Paramount Studios and are now working together on the script), her Koala Blue shops, now being franchised around the world, and a new LP.