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"Grease" debuted in
1978 and grossed more than $340 million at box-offices around the world,
becoming the biggest grossing movie musical in film history, a record that
still stands today. It was based on the Broadway play of the same name,
written by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, which opened in 1972 and ran for
five years.
In 1997, "Grease" was re-released in cinemas to celebrate its 20th
anniversary and it quickly hit the top of the box office again, becoming one
of the highest grossing re-releases behind the Star Wars: Special Editions.
After 20 years, it still ranks as one of the top 10 video titles sold in the
U.S. in 1997. So far, over 20 million double soundtrack albums have been
sold (more than 1.2 million of those sales came in 1996 and 1997). It has
been in the top five on the Billboard pop charts for 244 consecutive weeks
as of February 1, 1998. It is easy to understand why, with great
performances not only from Olivia Newton john and John Travolta, but Sha Na
Na, Frankie Valli, Stockard Channing and Danny and the Juniors.
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Allan Carr, adapter of the Broadway show and producer of the film said
"for me, one of the greatest joys of "Grease" - both the film
and the soundtrack - is that it has captivated a variety of generations for
so many years. Ever since it first opened in 1978, the movie and the music
have played continually on TV and radio, at college screenings and karaoke
bars, on the family video machine and on car stereos, allowing people of all
ages to discover and rediscover the wonderful vibrancy of the actors, the
music, the story.
Baby boomers and post-baby boomers in their 30s and 40s, people who paid
their $3 to see it in 1978, have told me that they can't wait to take their
own children to see "Grease" on the big screen. College students
still pack campus screenings of the film, and teen-agers cruising the video
stores have discovered the film on their own. The young kids, especially
those 5 to 12 years old who have heard about "Grease" from their
older siblings, have made it their own favorite. They hold Danny and Sandy
dress-up parties, and this new audience has their parents and grandparents
buy the video and original CD for them.
I wish I could claim that my colleagues and I knew exactly what we were
unleashing more than two decades ago when we first began planning this film.
I always thought it would be successful when I optioned the rights with a
vision of making it into a movie, but I never dreamed of this phenomenal
success. What we ended up with was a motion picture that has continued to
touch the hearts of people of all ages and backgrounds. "Grease"
is magical, and I am very grateful to have had a part in bringing that magic
to the world*"
For the two people who haven't seen the movie, the plot is a little
different to the Broadway stage version, mainly with the addition/omission
of some songs and the change of American Sandy Dumbrowski to Australian
Sandy Olsen to accommodate the film's leading lady, Olivia Newton John.
During a visit to America, Australian Sandy Olsen meets Danny Zuko at the
beach and falls in love. She is heartbroken when Summer ends and she has to
return home and their last kiss on the beach is a very emotional one. But
fate lends a hand - her parents decide to stay in America and she finds
herself attending the same school as Danny. But Danny at school is different
from Danny at the beach. He is the leader of the T-Birds, a leather clad
gang, and has a reputation to keep up. He can't be seen to fall in love with
just one chick! Sandy is upset and seeks solace with some new friends she
has made - a female gang called The Pink Ladies. But her prim and proper
virginal ways do not fit in and she soon finds herself almost alone. A
change must be made. Does she attempt to get her man by turning him into a
jock? Or must she get rid of her "Sandra Dee" image?
The soundtrack scored no less than 6 hit singles and cemented Olivia Newton
John and John Travolta as the hot singing duo on the charts. Two new songs,
"You're the one that I want" written by the original authors of
the play replaced the stages finale . The title track, sung by Frankie Valli
of the Four Seasons, also topped the charts thanks to the writing skills of
Barry Gibb, one third of the smash hit group the Bee Gees. See the
discography for a complete track listing. The album was number one on the US
charts for a whopping 21 weeks, no small feat given that it was a double
album and over 18 months in the Top 40. In the UK, it spent nearly one year
in the charts with 3 months at number one!
Grease was released in 2002 on
DVD with a digitally remastered soundtrack.
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