Local Olivia Fan Also Qualifies As Lookalike

thanks to Kay

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By Galen Oliver, Sunday Editor

Cheryl Gardner may not be Olivia Newton-John's greatest fan- but she's probably the Australian singer's biggest fan in Zanesville.

Ms. Gardner had perhaps the treat of her life over the holidays when she was invited to Minneapolis, Minn. by a fellow Newton-John fan club member where she met the singer-film star and appeared with her on television

She was invited to the opening of a Koala Blue, a Newton-John franchise shop in Minneapolis.

Cheryl and friends also attended a TV talk show on which the singer was a guest.

We caught Olivia's eye and the host invited the girls on stage to present her with flowers, Gardner said.

The occasion is now among Ms. Gardner's many hours of video taped Newton-John TV appearances and music videos.

Gardner has acquired many pen pals via her interest in the singer's career and writes to virtually hundreds of them around the world.

Adding to her interest as a fan is the fact that she won a contest as a Newton-John look-a-like with the Ron Smith Co. in Hollywood about four years ago.

Though not pursuing a show business career herself, Gardner says she might be interested in a career in the background - perhaps as a recording engineer. Who knows. I might record an album for Olivia some day, she says hopefully.

What contributed to Cheryl's enthusiasm for Newton-John? I guess it was her voice. Her style, Ms. Gardner said.

Whatever the attraction, Cheryl has pursued her interest with fervor since she first heard the singer's records, saw her in the movie, Grease; as well as Xanadu and Two of a Kind over the two decades since Newton-John became a star.

At 39, Newton-John has taken a less prominent place in stardom. Though still quite active, she is now a wife, mother and businesswoman.

Koala Blue, mentioned earlier, is her women's clothing and accessories franchise specializing in somewhat expensive imports from Australia.

I would like to start a Koala Blue either in Zanesville or Columbus if I could find some backing, Ms. Gardner says.

In the meantime, she hopes to make another trip to California to visit the original Koala Blue again and perhaps meet her idol for the second time.

Though she had traveled to Lexington, KY and Cleveland for concerts and California to visit the store, she had never met Newton-John before her trip to Minneapolis.

Besides her appearance on TV, Gardner also attended a fashion show at Koala Blue and a celebrities' party.

With her lookalike status, Gardner might conceivably be called some day to double for the star. That was the purpose of the search, she said.

But for now she is content with her many fan club friends, 1,000 photographs and hundreds of records of Newton-John, many of foreign origin made before she became internationally known.

Photo caption: Cheryl Gardner (right) of Zanesville, is officially registered with a Hollywood company as a lookalike for singer-actress Olivia Newton-John (left). Gardner is a long-time fan of the star and recently met her for the first time during a visit to Minneapolis.