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Fame, and Turning Fifty
RD: You and Kelly are very open about your involvement with Scientology. Were you ever afraid to speak out about your religion?Travolta: Never. But in order to speak up safely, I usually waited until someone asked me. I'm proud of us. We really do make a difference in the world.
RD: What did you think about the criticism Tom Cruise got when he spoke out about Scientology's views on psychiatric medications?
Travolta: Freedom of speech is our nation's motto, and no one should be punished for speaking their opinion. It's a strong subject matter he feels passionately about.
RD: You've been famous since you were 20. Has that been a challenge?
Travolta: I was suited for fame, and I mean that in the most nonegocentric way. I don't mind gearing my life toward privacy. It's my nature.
RD: Do you have any regrets?
Travolta: I wouldn't trade my career with anybody's. I'd trade a few movies with Tom Hanks -- Apollo 13 and Forrest Gump -- but other than that, I love my career. I've done 45 movies, and 30 of them you're going to know of.
RD: Forty-five films in 30 years -- that is prolific.
Travolta: I'd like to think it is, but Jimmy Cagney did about 80 films in his career. The point is that 30 of the movies I've done are iconic on some level, whether they're from a book or changed society or were the biggest of their day. Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Urban Cowboy, Look Who's Talking, Pulp Fiction, Get Shorty ... .
RD: Was turning 50 hard for you?
Travolta: A little. I'm the eternal optimist, but for about a year I started to count my summers and Christmases, and to ask, How many more will I have while I'm healthy? I started questioning, and I had never questioned. Then I said to myself, You're wasting your time, because you've already lived more than a lot of people, and if you get any more time when you're healthy and vibrant, this is a wonderful thing. You're wasting time worrying about something that you have no control over. I dropped it. I also stopped looking at the bad examples of people getting older, and started looking at the good examples.
RD: Such as?
Travolta: Sean Connery, that's the kind of 76 I want to be. Clint Eastwood, that's the kind of 77 I want to be.
RD: What else would you like to do personally and professionally?
Travolta: Doing a movie with my daughter and my wife was a dream, so I'm very happy that's happening. I want to keep stimulated. I want to keep my interests going and keep my passion. I've put all my energies into my career, my family and my passion for aviation, so now maybe shift a little and try some other things. Maybe take up fishing, become more committed to an athletic team, be out there a little more participating in activities. And it's good timing, because the body needs it.
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