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16YO Kelly Preston Saw John Travolta on 'Grease' Poster & Knew She Was "Going to Marry That Man" | They Were Married 29 Years
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16YO Kelly Preston Saw John Travolta on 'Grease' Poster & Knew She Was "Going to Marry That Man" | They Were Married 29 Years

Kelly Preston and John Travolta parted only by death when she died in July 2020.

Source: Getty Images | Photo by (L) Central Press, (R) Kevin Winter

There are only a few people whose teenage wishes about marrying their crush come true and Kelly Preston was one of those people. She knew she wanted to be with John Travolta when she was 16, and that's how it ended up being.

Preston first saw Travolta, 66, on the poster of Grease, which released in 1978. She had been in love with him since the age of 16, reported Her Moments. She saw the Face Off actor in a movie theater as a teen. "I did have sort of a flash. I came out of a film, saw the poster for Grease and I knew I'd be with him," she recalled. Her premonition turned out completely correct. "I just knew. I was about 16 years old. I really knew it and it turned into, 'I'm going to marry that man,' and so he likes to tease me that I walked out and said, 'I'm going to marry that man,' and then did, ultimately," as per Pop Sugar.

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The Jerry Maguire actress, who passed away in 2020, almost fell in love at first sight with him. They met in 1989 during a screen test for their comedy film The Experts. She was married to actor Kevin Gage back then, but the Pulp Fiction actor fell for her right then.


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"I was not that happily married...I was really with the wrong person," she had told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, as per People. She fell in love with Travolta while being married to someone else, and as taboo as that is sometimes it takes meeting the right person to know that we are unhappy. However, being together then was just not fated for the two of them.

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She briefly lived with George Clooney and was engaged to Charlie Sheen too before the Saturday Night Fever actor swept her off her feet. They were at the Palace Hotel restaurant in Gstaad, Switzerland, when he got down on one knee on New Year's Eve in 1991. He gave her a six-carat yellow-and-white diamond ring.


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Preston was not expecting the proposal, according to Look Who's Talking Too producer Jonathan Krane. Krane told People that when Travolta proposed, she screamed. She was ecstatic and surprised to be proposed to in one of the most romantic locations. Soon after the engagement, she said that the two "plan to have some babies."

"We're practicing right now," she said in 1991. "This could be barefoot and pregnant for the next 10 years," she added.

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It is no surprise that their marriage lasted so long. They were together for 29 years until her death in 2020. The 66-year-old actor and his kids, daughter, Ella, 20, and son Benjamin, 10, celebrated their first Christmas without their matriarch, according to Today. Preston died in July after battling breast cancer for two years.

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"Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered," Travolta had written after her death. "I will be taking some time to be there for my children who have lost their mother, so forgive me in advance if you don’t hear from us for a while. But please know that I will feel your outpouring of love in the weeks and months ahead as we heal..." When the Gotti actor wished everyone on Thanksgiving, he thanked those who supported him "in such an incredible way this year."

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Before she died, Preston was his rock and his strength. He was reportedly "terrified" of losing her, as per The Daily Beast. The couple is also one of the high-profile Scientology followers. "Kelly is a much more dedicated Scientologist than John," said Mike Rinder, the former top spokesman for the Church of Scientology and previously one of its main "enforcers."



 

There was some speculation that Travolta will be leaving Scientology after Preston's death, according to The Blast. He has been a follower for 45 years but his praise for the hospital, where she was treated, was an indirect indictment of the church. The church's founder L. Ron Hubbard was reportedly "really opposed to chemotherapy and radiation." However, there is no confirmation about his membership to the church, of which Tom Cruise is also a member.

References:

https://hermoments.com/s/kelly-preston-last?as=799&asv=1&bdk=0

https://www.popsugar.com/celebrity/photo-gallery/43341558/image/43341679/John-Travolta-Kelly-Preston

https://people.com/movies/john-travolta-kelly-preston-marriage-in-photos/?slide=7270683#7270683

https://www.today.com/popculture/john-travolta-kids-celebrate-1st-christmas-kelly-preston-s-death-t204737

https://www.thedailybeast.com/john-travoltas-former-scientology-pals-hes-got-a-dark-side-and-hes-reckless

https://theblast.com/137649/is-john-travolta-breaking-from-scientology-following-wife-kelly-