Olivia Newton-John Invades Vegas For Flamingo Residency!

Following in the footsteps of Celine Dion's mega-success as an A-level entertainer setting up residency in Las Vegas, fave Olivia Newton-John is the latest (and indeed greatest) act to set up shop in town, launching a 45-date set at the Flamingo Hotel & Casino.

Press has been nuts over her April 2 arrival into town, complete with a welcoming parade befitting of a Presidential inauguration. Congrats to my buddy Michael Caprio, Livi's longtime publicist, for engineering the whole damn thing. Now, let's see, when shall I plan on a Vegas sojourn to revisit Olivia? *

The Best New Song Of 1Q 2014: Roxanna's 'Close Your Eyes'

Over the past couple years, I've had the opportunity to write two bios for Canadian vocalist Roxanna, including several phoners. Not only is her heart as big as the sky, but her favorite

entertainers are Olivia Newton-John and Celine Dion. How could I resist such perfect taste?

Rox has just released single "Close Your Eyes," the kind of cloud-bursting power ballad I live for. It takes all of one listen to recognize that this is a wholly hit-worthy song... and what mainstream radio is sorely lacking anymore. At least we're past so much angry hip-hop, only to be supplanted by screechy generic dance beats. Sigh... Nice to know there are still lush, velvet-lined female vocals with messages of hope & inspiration.

And it's right here! To absorb, embrace... and SEE. Wait until you have a look at Roxanna. Beautiful inside and out. Bravo!

The One That I Want: ONJ & John Travolta Reunite For Christmas CD!

Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta's duet from "Grease," "You're the One That I Want," remains the best-selling pop duet in history. Take that "Endless Love"! This week, the gay-friendly pair—Livi as a forever friend to the community and Johnny perpetually living behind that uncomfortable closet door—reunited for the release of seasonal album "This Christmas," which came out Tuesday. It's going to be fascinating to see next week's Billboard chart: This has potential to return ONJ to the top 10 for the first time in almost two decades.

Guests on the project include Cliff Richard, Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett and James Taylor. The emphasis single, unfortunately, is an odd country hoedown, "I Think You Might Like It," which I honestly could have done without. All the same, it comes complete with a music video. Great to see Olivia looking radiant as ever... while John, ever aging out of living a miserable life of lies, seems to have his scalp painted with... uh... hair. See it right here! *

Hurricane Sannnndy Is Coming! Countdown: 5 Hours

Sandy, my darlin', you hurt me real bad... you know it's true... *

Olivia Newton-John & Sheena Easton Share Chi-Town Queer Event

I think I just passed out... For the first time ever, Olivia Newton-John and Sheena Easton will be performing at the same event, the same night, albeit on slightly different stages.

Livi is the headlining act Saturday night for the Chicago Northalsted Market Days, the largest two-day gay street fair in the Midwest. The 31st-annual event, which spans six city blocks, takes place August 11-12. Sheena, meanwhile, performs on a separate stage earlier in the evening. In addition, our longtime fave Matt Zarley is on the roster, as are The Pointer Sisters.

"Northalsted Market Days has a long tradition of bringing in music acts that complement the spirit of the event. This year's entertainment reaches new heights for us," says Jeff Durbin, Market Days chairman.

It also features 400 food and arts & crafts vendors, not to mention thousands of hot Midwestern gays. I better start hitchhiking now if I expect to make it in time for the festivities (if only).

And to celebrate the news, here's a video clip I've never seen: Sheena performing 1989 No. 1 Dance hit "101" on "Sick Sack," a Swedish TV show. Includes interview footage at the end. She looks fucking amazing. (Thanks to Mike Easton!) *

Happiness Is: Realizing That 'Oldies' Radio Now Means The '80s

Every morn when I shower, my Hello Kitty radio in the bathroom (gimme a break, I found it in my building's trashroom, and it works!) is tuned to all-news 1010 WINS-AM, which gives me weather/headlines "in 22 minutes."

But somehow, no matter when I seem to click on, I've timed entry to :15 and :45 minutes after the hour... just when the endless, boring sports report comes on. With the New York Giants entering the Super Bowl in a week, it's all the more relentless.

Enough, already... I finally decided to change the dial Saturday morning, and landed on a station playing '80s Foreigner, followed by Olivia Newton-John. Stop right there... Five minutes later, I was admittedly horrified to discover that the outlet was "Oldies" WCBS-FM (101.1), which I always knew as the station that pounded Motown and dusty '70s hits.

Oops... Obviously the outlet is moving forward with its demographic... and I am now among its intended audience of 34-49. Wise thinking on the part of CBS Radio to recognize that its listeners are a constantly moving target. I'm well aware that top 40 typically makes my ears bleed (read: Black Eyed Peas) and NYC AC remains too sleepy and way too narrow for my tastes.

So it appears I've found a new favorite FM on the dial... and to add to the coup, WCBS offers online streaming specifically for the '60s, '70s and '80s. While writing this post, I've heard Duran Duran, Madonna, a-ha, Joan Jett and Bonnie Tyler. Nirvana, indeed.

Now if only the radio industry could convince anyone under 20 that the console built into their vehicle's dashboard offers free entertainment 24/7... Sadly, a decade ago, the biz replaced music with as much as 16 minutes of commercials an hour (thanks, Clear Channel) and replaced local DJs with syndicated programming, just as internet "radio" gained traction, eradicating new generations from bothering with radio. Perhaps there's no turning back... but for old-timers like me, radio is born again. *

Born To Hand Jive: Cha Cha From 'Grease' Dies At 63

Annette Charles, who tore up the dance competition during "Born To Hand Jive" as Cha Cha DiGrigorio—"the best dancer at St. Bernadette’s"—in 1978's classic Grease, has died from cancer, TMZ reports. She was 63 and man, did she age well, huh? After retiring from acting, Charles became a speech professor at California State University Northridge.

Of course, at the end of May, we also lost Jeff Conaway, who starred as Kenickie in the film, starring starring Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta. R.I.P.

Olivia Newton-John: Back In the Spotlight Where She Belongs

At 62, Olivia Newton-John continues to entertain her many minions with the gusto of a woman half her age. She delivered the goods at last month's Bondi Beach Pride extravaganza in NYC, and has released Portraits: A Tribute to Great Women of Song, a covers album recorded in 2004 and just released in the States. In addition, Livi recorded a new dance mix of the classic "Physical," with proceeds going to her Wellness and Cancer Center.

Included on the Portraits collection are delicious songs made famous by Dionne Warwick, Doris Day, Minnie Riperton, Judy Collins... and the immortal Karen Carpenter. She is featured in the upcoming Advocate, talking about the album...

On Karen Carpenter: She was a very good friend... a lovely girl and a lot of fun. Most people don’t know how much she loved Mickey Mouse and Disneyland. She lived [nearby] and loved to go there. She was a kid. She had the most amazing voice. I was such a fan. I do miss her. 

On the risk of releasing "Physical" as a single: It’s funny. I had a delayed reaction. I recorded it and then had a panic attack. I called my manager and said, “You’ve got to stop it. It’s too naughty.” He told me it was too late. By that time it had gone to radio and was on its way to No. 1. So I quickly adjusted.

The video features men holding hands. Was there controversy? Oh, I’m sure there was. Brian Grant was the director and I think it was his idea. I’m actually seeing him soon for the first time in 30 years and I’m going to ask him, because I don’t remember how it came about and it was such a funny twist. It’s not so radical now, but it was then.

On upcoming movie role in A Few Best Men: I play the mother of the bride, which is interesting because my daughter is engaged to be married, so it’s art imitating life. It’s good practice, but I hope Chloe’s wedding doesn’t go like this one. [Laughs] It’s a very funny movie. It’s written by the man who wrote Death at a Funeral and directed by Stephan Elliott, who made Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. The combination of those two is pretty wild.

On marriage equality: I sang at gay pride in New York the night after that was announced, so it was an incredible night to experience. The air was electric. I think love is love. You find it when you can. It’s wonderful that it can be recognized. People who have had long relationships and care about each and take care of each other should have the right to be married.

Meanwhile, Livi is featured on the cover of the Summer 2011 Living Well magazine. Read the interview here.

Olivia Newton-John Gets 'Physical' At Hot NYC Pride Bondi Beach Bash

Along with the joyously colorful Gay Pride March on Sunday and glorious passage of Marriage Equality Thursday, this year's queer weekend included the spectacular Bondi Beach Aussie-themed Bash on Governor's Island, sponsored by FV Events and Josh Wood Productions.

Yup, it sure was truly magic, with VIP entrance, thousands of hot boyz, booze, access to shoot photos during the performance and the post meet & greet. I'm rolling footage backward, from Livi's performance to the beginning of the night...The meet and greet with my beloved Olivia...

And now... on to the party on Governor's Island man-made beach!Above: What the party looked like. Below, what it felt like...And now, the boyz of Bondi!
Olivia on the red carpet...Livi and her uber-publicist Michael Caprio...And below the jump, the beautiful boat ride from Battery Park to Governor's Island, which took all of 5 minutes.