Skip to main contentSkip to footer

John tells how sizzling dance with Princess Di saved his career

Share this:

Dancing with Princess Diana must count as one of life's unforgettable moments for anyone, but John Travolta has revealed that his famous groove with the late royal also resurrected his languishing career, boosting him back to the top of the Hollywood ladder. The twinkle-toed actor has revealed that his phone started ringing off the hook with job offers after he whirled the Princess around the White House dance floor.

"I was reborn," recounts the screen star. "I was like: 'Wow I matter to someone again'." At the glittering 1985 gala then First Lady Nancy Reagan took John aside to tell him that the Princess had specifically put in a request for a dance with him.

"I looked her in the eye and said: 'We're good. I can do this'." As he took one of the world's most beautiful women in his arms, the actor confessed he felt like "a frog who had been turned into a prince".

In reality he had been transformed into something even more highly regarded in these movie-obsessed times - box-office gold. His screen outings since then have included cult classic Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty and Face/Off. And he'll be back on cinema screens next year playing JR Ewing in the movie version of Dallas.

Photo: © Alphapress.com
The screen idol says his Saturday Night Fever moment with the late Princess put him back on the Hollywood mapPhoto: © Getty Images