John Travolta is an American actor, dancer, and musician who starred in some of Hollywood’s most unforgettable films, including Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Pulp Fiction, and Face/Off. A two-time Academy Award nominee, Travolta won a Golden Globe Award for his performance in Get Shorty. His career is often cited as one of the most remarkable examples of reinvention in modern cinema.

John Joseph Travolta was born on February 18, 1954, in Englewood, New Jersey, as the youngest of six children. His father, Salvatore Travolta, was a semi-professional football player, while his mother, Helen Cecilia Travolta, was a local actress and voice performer. Of Italian descent on his father’s side and Irish on his mother’s, Travolta grew up in a predominantly Irish-American neighborhood.

After graduating from Dwight Morrow High School, Travolta moved to New York City, where he made his stage debut in the Broadway musical Over Here!. His earliest screen appearance came in 1972 as an extra in the film Emergency!. He began gaining recognition with his role in the horror film Carrie (1976) and through his starring role in the television series Welcome Back, Kotter, which aired from 1975 to 1979.

Travolta also pursued a music career alongside acting. In 1969, he released three singles—You Set My Dreams to Music, Goodnight Mr. Moon, and Rainbows. He later contributed to the soundtrack of Over Here!. His 1976 album John Travolta entered the U.S. music charts at number 39. Between 1974 and 2007, he appeared on a total of ten albums, four of which reached the U.S. Top 200.

His global breakthrough came in 1977 with Saturday Night Fever, followed by Grease in 1978. These musical films made Travolta an international superstar. His performance in Saturday Night Fever earned him an Academy Award nomination, making him the fourth-youngest nominee in Oscar history at the time. He also performed several songs on the Grease soundtrack. In 1980, he starred in Urban Cowboy, once again lending his voice to much of the film’s music.

Following Urban Cowboy, Travolta appeared in a series of commercially unsuccessful films such as Blow Out, Staying Alive, and Perfect. Between 1980 and 1993, his career entered a significant downturn. This period ended dramatically with his comeback in Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 cult classic Pulp Fiction. The film earned Travolta renewed critical acclaim, along with Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations.

In 1995, Travolta won a Golden Globe Award for his role in Get Shorty, directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. He went on to star in numerous successful films throughout the late 1990s and 2000s, including Face/Off, The Thin Red Line, Swordfish, and Be Cool. In 2007, he returned to the musical genre with Hairspray, earning another Golden Globe nomination. He later appeared in From Paris with Love (2010).

Travolta married fellow actress Kelly Preston in 1991. The couple had two children, Jett Travolta and Ella Bleu Travolta. In 2009, their son Jett passed away due to complications related to Kawasaki disease, a loss that deeply affected the family.

Filmography and Selected Works
Actor:
2010 – From Paris with Love (Feature Film)
2007 – Hairspray (Feature Film)
2005 – Be Cool (Feature Film)
2003 – Basic (Feature Film)
2001 – Swordfish (Feature Film)
1999 – The General’s Daughter (Feature Film)
1998 – The Thin Red Line (Feature Film)
1997 – Face/Off (Feature Film)
1996 – Michael (Feature Film)
1995 – Get Shorty (Feature Film)
1994 – Pulp Fiction (Feature Film)
1990 – Look Who’s Talking Too (Feature Film)
1989 – Look Who’s Talking (Feature Film)
1983 – Staying Alive (Feature Film)
1981 – Blow Out (Feature Film)
1980 – Urban Cowboy (Feature Film)
1978 – Grease (Feature Film)
1977 – Saturday Night Fever (Feature Film)
1976 – Carrie (Feature Film)
1975–1979 – Welcome Back, Kotter (TV Series)

Music:
1969 – You Set My Dreams to Music (Single)
1969 – Goodnight Mr. Moon (Single)
1969 – Rainbows (Single)
1976 – John Travolta (Album)

Source: Biyografiler.com