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Kelly Preston

 
Who2 Biography: Kelly Preston, Actor
Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Who2 Biographies

  • Born: 13 October 1962
  • Birthplace: Honolulu, Hawaii
  • Best Known As: The actress who's John Travolta's wife

Name at birth: Kelly Palzis

Kelly Preston is a television and film actor whose body of work is often overshadowed by her famous marriage to actor John Travolta. Preston was born and raised in Hawaii, and also lived in Iraq and Australia while growing up. After beginning a modelling career, she moved to Los Angeles and studied acting. After small roles in Christine (1983) and 52 Pick-Up (1986), her first notable performance was in the 1988 comedy Twins (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger). In 1991 she married Travolta and then slowed her career to raise their two children: Jett (b. 1992) and Ella Bleu (b. 2000). In the late '90s she returned to the screen as a foxy character actor in films including Jerry Maguire (1996, starring Tom Cruise), Addicted to Love (1997, with Matthew Broderick) and For the Love of the Game (1999, with Kevin Costner). More recently, she has appeared in the 2003 movie version of Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat, played Amanda Byne's mom in What a Girl Wants (2003) and Hank Azaria's sister in Eulogy (2004).

Jett Travolta died on 2 January 2009 after having a seizure while on a family vacation in the Bahamas.

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Actor: Kelly Preston
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Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Actors
  • Born: Oct 13, 1962 in Honolulu, Hawaii
  • Occupation: Actor
  • Active: '80s-2000s
  • Major Genres: Comedy, Drama
  • Career Highlights: Jerry Maguire, Citizen Ruth, Twins
  • First Major Screen Credit: Metalstorm - the Destruction of Jared-Syn (1983)

Biography

Actress Kelly Preston was first seen on a national basis in the last-billed role of a general's daughter on the weekly 1983 TV drama For Love and Honor. She established herself as an agreeable comedienne in such films as Mischief (1985) and Secret Admirer (1985), then became lost in the turgid melodramatics of 52 Pick-Up (1986). Her big movie break was supposed to have been her co-starring stint with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny De Vito in Twins (1988), but the role was too nondescript to engender any enthusiasm. Nonetheless, Preston persevered, delivering great performances in such offbeat fare as the 1993 made-for-cable movie Arthur Miller's The American Clock. In the latter half of the 1990s, Preston's perseverance began to pay off, first with a substantial role in Cameron Crowe's widely acclaimed Jerry Maguire. She continued to do comedy, appearing in Nothing to Lose (1997), Addicted to Love (1997), and Holy Man (1998), before switching back to drama in 1999 as Kevin Costner's girlfriend in For Love of the Game. On April 3, 2000, Preston gave birth to a daughter, her second child while married to Travolta. Her career onscreen barely missing a beat after the bith, Preston appeared opposite husband Travolta in the notorious 2000 bomb Battlefield Earth before taking a turn back to comedy with roles in View from the Top and The Cat in the Hat. Though it had been quite some time since Preston had appeared on television with any frequency, a return to the small screen with roles in both Joey and Fat Actress provided semi-regular work in 2004 and 2005. In 2005 Preston could also be seen as a superpowered mother in the family oriented adventure comedy Sky High, with a role as a grieving sister who returns home to mourn the death of her brother in Broken Bridges serving well to remind audiences of her dramatic abilities after a series of more lighthearted roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Wikipedia: Kelly Preston
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Kelly Preston

Preston talks with Navy family members at the USO holiday party at Rockwell Hall Gym on Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia, December 3, 2005.
Born Kelly Kamalelehua Smith
October 13, 1962 (1962-10-13) (age 47)
Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Occupation Model (1976–1983)
Actress (1983–present)
Spouse(s) Kevin Gage (1987-1989)
John Travolta (m. 1991-present, 2 children)

Kelly Preston Travolta (born October 13, 1962) is an American actress and former model.

Contents

Early years

Preston was born as Kelly Kamalelehua Smith[1] in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her mother, Linda,[2] was an administrator of a mental health center, and her father, who worked for an agricultural firm, drowned when Preston was three years old.[3] Her adoptive father was Peter Palzis, a personnel director, with whose name she began her acting career, and her stepfather was Lee Carlson.[1][4] As a child, she spent time living in Iraq and Australia as a result of her biological father's work. While living in Australia, she attended Pembroke School in Adelaide, South Australia. She later attended Punahou School and studied drama and theater at the University of Southern California.[5]

Career

Wiki letter w.svg This section requires expansion.

At 16 years old, while living in Australia, Preston was discovered by a fashion photographer who helped her get work in commercials and other small parts,[1] which eventually developed into a successful movie career. Her first prominent role in a film came as the "popular girl" in 1985's Secret Admirer opposite C. Thomas Howell.

She is a spokesperson for Neutrogena and appears in print and television ads. She played the girlfriend of her husband's character "Terl" in the 2000 film Battlefield Earth,[6] and received "Worst Supporting Actress" at the 21st Golden Raspberry Awards for her role in the film.[7]

Preston was featured in the chart-topping Maroon 5 music video, "She Will Be Loved" in 2004. The video features a love triangle and romantic scenes between Preston and Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine. In 2008 she was cast in a television pilot for a potential show called Suburban Shootout.[8] She had a short term recurring role on Medium.[8] In 2008, Preston starred in the Lifetime Original Movie "The Tenth Circle", directed by Peter Markle. The film was shot in Nova Scotia and featured Ron Eldard, Brittany Robertson, Michael Riley, Jamie Johnston, and Geordie Brown.

Relationships

Preston was married to actor Kevin Gage from 1985 to 1987.[9] She also had relationships with George Clooney and Charlie Sheen.[1] Clooney's pet pig, Max, was a gift for Preston that Clooney kept after the couple split up.[10] Sheen presented Preston with a 2.5 carat pink diamond engagement ring when he proposed to her in 1989, although they never married.[1] After living with Sheen for one year, she ended the relationship in 1990, shortly after an incident in which Sheen accidentally shot her in the arm.[1]

John Travolta

Preston first met John Travolta in 1987 while filming The Experts.[11] The pair married in 1991. Two ceremonies had to be conducted because the first, performed in Paris on September 5, 1991 by a French Scientologist minister (both Preston and Travolta are Scientologists), was legally invalid. The second ceremony took place a week later, on September 12, in Daytona Beach, Florida.[12]

Their son, Jett, who was born on April 13, 1992, died on January 2, 2009 while the family was on vacation in The Bahamas.[13][14] The cause of death was attributed to a seizure.[15] Jett, who had a history of seizures,[16] reportedly suffered from Kawasaki disease in early childhood.[17] Long a source of speculation,[18] in September 2009, Travolta testified that their son had autism and suffered regular seizures, as part of his testimony in a trial which resulted after an extortion attempt following Jett Travolta's death.[19] The couple also have a daughter, Ella Bleu, born on April 3, 2000.

On January 23, 2009, three people were arrested in the Bahamas in connection with a multi-million dollar extortion plot against the Travolta family around the circumstances of Jett's death.[20] One of the men, Obie Wilchcombe, a member of the Bahamian Parliament and former Bahamian Minister of Tourism, was described as a "close friend" of the Travolta family.[20] The other two people allegedly involved are EMT Tarino Lightbourne and former senator Pleasant Bridgewater, who was charged with abetment to extort and conspiracy to extort.[20] She resigned from the Senate as a result of the allegations.[21]

Filmography

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Kelly Preston Biography." Yahoo! Movies.
  2. ^ Donnelly, Dave. "Hawaii." Honolulu Star-Bulletin. May 17, 1999.
  3. ^ "Kelly Preston Profile." E Online.
  4. ^ "Kelly Preston Biography (1962-)." Film Reference.com.
  5. ^ "About Kelly". Kelly Preston.com. http://www.kellypreston.com/. Retrieved 2008-02-26. 
  6. ^ Graham, Bob (2001-01-19). "Travolta's Demolition Derby: Comic-book nuttiness lifts 'Battlefield Earth'". San Francisco Chronicle (Hearst Communications). http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2001/01/19/DD162654.DTL. Retrieved 2008-06-12. 
  7. ^ Grant, John (2006). Sci-Fi Movies: Facts, Figures & Fun. Sterling Publishing Company. pp. 87. ISBN 1904332358. 
  8. ^ a b Trechak, Brad (2008-05-16). "Kelly Preston in new HBO series". TV Squad. http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/05/16/kelly-preston-in-new-hbo-series/. Retrieved 2008-06-12. 
  9. ^ "For Kelly Preston, life is more than 'Sky High'", Chicago Tribune, 2005-07-30
  10. ^ "Grunt in peace, the pig that won George's heart". Mail Online. 2006-12-04. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-420499/Grunt-peace-pig-won-Georges-heart.html. Retrieved 2009-01-04. 
  11. ^ Bob and Sheri Stritof. "Kelly Preston and John Travolta Marriage Profile." about.com. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
  12. ^ "John Travolta Biography". Enewsreference.com. http://www.enewsreference.com/actors/john_travolta.html. Retrieved 2009-08-04. 
  13. ^ "Jett Travolta, son of actors, dies at 16". CNN. 2009-01-02. http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Movies/01/02/obit.jett.travolta/. Retrieved 2009-01-02. 
  14. ^ "John Travolta's teenage son dies". BBC News Online (BBC). 2009-01-02. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7809172.stm. Retrieved 2009-01-02. 
  15. ^ "Death Certificate: John Travolta's Son Died of a Seizure". ABC News. 2009-01-05. http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/MindMoodNews/story?id=6576215&page=1. Retrieved 2009-01-05. 
  16. ^ "John Travolta's 16-Year-Old Son Dies". People. 2009-01-02. http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20249865,00.html. Retrieved 2009-01-04. 
  17. ^ Errico, Marcus (2009-01-02). "John Travolta's Son Jett Dead at 16". E! Online. http://uk.eonline.com/uberblog/b77259_john_travoltas_son_jett_dead_16.html. Retrieved 2009-01-02. 
  18. ^ Heureux, Steve L. (2009-09-24). "Travolta finally admits that son had Autism". The Examiner. http://www.examiner.com/x-17410-Toledo-Autism--Parenting-Examiner~y2009m9d24-Travolta-finally-admits-that-son-had-Autism. Retrieved 2009-09-24. 
  19. ^ Abraham, Mary Rose (2009-09-23). "From John Travolta: I Ran Down the Stairs To Help My Son". ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/john-travolta-bahamas-testify-extortion-case/story?id=8649816. Retrieved 2009-09-23. 
  20. ^ a b c Harlow, John (2009-01-25). "Senator ‘tried to extort cash’ from Travolta over son’s death". The Sunday Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article5581456.ece. Retrieved 2009-01-25. 
  21. ^ "Travolta Suspect Resigns". TMZ.com. 2009-01-24. http://www.tmz.com/2009/01/24/travolta-suspect-resigns/. Retrieved 2009-01-25. 

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