Kelly Preston | |
|---|---|
 Preston at the2018 Cannes Film Festival | |
| Born | Kelly Kamalelehua Smith (1962-10-13)October 13, 1962 Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
| Died | July 12, 2020(2020-07-12) (aged 57) Clearwater, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Southern California |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1980–2020 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | kellypreston |
Kelly Kamalelehua Smith (October 13, 1962 – July 12, 2020), known professionally asKelly Preston, was an American actress. She appeared in more than 60 television and film productions, includingMischief (1985),Twins (1988),Jerry Maguire (1996), andFor Love of the Game (1999). She marriedJohn Travolta in 1991, and collaborated with him on the comedy filmThe Experts (1989) and the biographical filmGotti (2018). She also starred in the filmsSpaceCamp (1986),The Cat in the Hat (2003),What a Girl Wants (2003),Sky High (2005), andOld Dogs (2009).
Kelly Kamalelehua Smith[1][2] ("Kelly" is a name ofCeltic origin, and the middle name "Kamalelehua" means "garden oflehuas" inHawaiian)[3][4] was born inHonolulu, Hawaii. Her mother, Linda, was an administrator of a mental health center. Her father, who worked for an agricultural firm, drowned when she was four years old.[5][6][7] Her mother subsequently married Peter Palzis, a personnel director. He adopted her, and she used his name at the start of her acting career.[8] She also had a younger half-brother, Chris Palzis.[8]
As a child, she lived inIraq,[9] and also Australia,[10] where she attendedPembroke School, Adelaide. She then attendedPunahou School in Honolulu, graduating in 1980,[11] and studied drama and theater at theUniversity of Southern California.[12]
While living in Australia, she was discovered at age 16 by a fashion photographer who helped her get work in commercials and other small parts.[8] He arranged her first film audition for the role of Emmeline inThe Blue Lagoon (1980), which she lost to the youngerBrooke Shields.[13] At that time she changed her last name to Preston.[14]
Her first prominent film roles came in 1985—first as Marilyn McCauley in the romanticteen flick comedyMischief; then as the beautiful but shallow Deborah Ann Fimple in another teen romantic comedy,Secret Admirer. Her other roles includedSpaceCamp (1986),Twins[15] (1988) withArnold Schwarzenegger andDanny DeVito, Avery Bishop inJerry Maguire (1996) withTom Cruise, Jane Aubrey inFor Love of the Game withKevin Costner and Kate Newell, and inHoly Man (1998) withEddie Murphy andJeff Goldblum. In 1997, she starred inNothing to Lose, which co-starredTim Robbins andMartin Lawrence. She also starred in the movieJack Frost (1998).
She played the girlfriend of her husbandJohn Travolta's character Terl in the filmBattlefield Earth,[16] for which she received "Worst Supporting Actress" at the21st Golden Raspberry Awards.[17] She appeared as the protagonist's flying, superhero mother in the filmSky High (2005).[18]
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In 2004, she was in theMaroon 5 music video "She Will Be Loved", which featured a love triangle and romantic scenes between her and Maroon 5 front manAdam Levine. She appeared in the crime thrillerDeath Sentence (2007), in which she played Helen Hume, the wife ofKevin Bacon's character Nick. In 2008, she was cast in a television pilot calledSuburban Shootout,[19] and had a short term recurring role inMedium.[19]
She starred in theLifetime television filmThe Tenth Circle (2008), directed byPeter Markle. It was shot inNova Scotia and featuredRon Eldard,Britt Robertson,Michael Riley,Jamie Johnston and Geordie Brown.[20]
She was a spokeswoman forNeutrogena, appearing in its print and television ads.[21][22]
Her final red carpet appearance came at the New York City premiere of her husband's motion pictureGotti in 2018.[23]
Her final film role was in the comedy-dramaOff the Rails, which was released in late July 2021 in the UK.
Preston was married to actorKevin Gage from 1985 until their divorce in 1987.[24] She also had a relationship withGeorge Clooney in the late 1980s.[24][8]
Preston was briefly engaged toCharlie Sheen in 1990,[8][25] but ended the relationship shortly after an accidental gun discharge left shrapnel in her body.[25][26] In a 2011 interview withTMZ, Preston said that Sheen did not shoot her.[27][28]
Preston metJohn Travolta in 1987 while filmingThe Experts.[29] They married in 1991, traveling to Paris on anAir FranceConcorde for a wedding ceremony at theHotel de Crillon (on thePlace de la Concorde) on September 5, 1991. However, a second ceremony was required because the first, performed by a FrenchScientologyminister (both Preston and Travolta were Scientologists), was considered invalid. The second ceremony took place on September 12, 1991, inDaytona Beach, Florida.[30] Preston and Travolta had three children: son Jett, daughter Ella Bleu,[31] and a second son, Benjamin.[32] Preston remained a Scientologist until her death.[33]
Preston's son Jett Travolta was described as suffering fromKawasaki disease as an infant and had a history of seizures.[34][35] In 2003, Preston appeared onThe Montel Williams Show to promoteL. Ron Hubbard'sPurification Rundown, which she credited with helping her son.[36]
On January 2, 2009, Jett Travolta died at the age of 16 while the family was vacationing inthe Bahamas.[37][38] His death was attributed to aseizure.[39]
On January 23, 2009, three people were arrested in the Bahamas in connection with a multimillion-dollar extortion plot against Travolta and Preston concerning the circumstances of their son's death.[40] One of the men,Obie Wilchcombe, a member of theBahamian Parliament and former Bahamian Minister of Tourism, was described as a "close friend" of Travolta and Preston.[40] Two others allegedly involved were anEMT named Tarino Lightbourne and a Bahamian senator namedPleasant Bridgewater. Bridgewater was charged withabetment to extort and conspiracy to extort and resigned from theSenate as a result of the allegations.[40][41] Travolta and Preston confirmed longstanding speculations when they testified that their son hadautism and suffered regular seizures.[42] The first trial ended in a mistrial.
After a second jury had been selected, the Travoltas elected to drop the case and all charges against the defendants were dismissed.[43]
On July 12, 2020, Preston died at the age of 57 at her home inClearwater, Florida,[44] two years after she had been diagnosed withbreast cancer.[45][46][47][48] Her diagnosis was not widely publicized.[45] Preston had been receiving treatment at theMD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and had also been treated at other medical centers.[49][50] Travolta announced her death on hisInstagram account.[51]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Hawaii Five-O | Wendy | Episode: "For Old Times Sake" | [56] |
| 1982 | Capitol | Gillian McCandless | Episode: "Pilot" | |
| 1983 | Quincy M.E. | Ginger Reeves | Episode: "On Dying High" | |
| The Renegades | Lisa Primus | Episode: "Back to School" | ||
| CHiPs | Anna | Episode: "Things That Go Creep in the Night" | [56] | |
| 1983–1984 | For Love and Honor | Mary Lee | Regular role (12 episodes) | [18] |
| 1984 | Riptide | Sherry Meyers | Episode: "The Hardcase" | |
| Blue Thunder | Amy Braddock | Episode: "The Long Flight" | [18] | |
| 1990 | Tales from the Crypt | Linda | Episode: "The Switch" | [54] |
| 1991 | The Perfect Bride | Laura | Television film | |
| 1993 | The American Clock | Diana Marley | Television film | |
| 1994 | Cheyenne Warrior | Rebecca Carver | Television film | |
| 1996 | Little Surprises | Ginger | Short | |
| 2000 | Bar Hopping | Bebe | Television film | |
| 2001 | Fear Factor | Herself | Episode: "First Celebrity Fear Factor" | [18] |
| 2004 | Joey | Donna Di Gregorio | Episodes: "Joey and the Dream Girl: Parts 1 & 2" | [18] |
| 2005 | Fat Actress | Quinn Taylor Scott | Recurring role (4 episodes) | [18] |
| 2006 | Legends Ball | Herself | Television documentary film | |
| 2008 | Medium | Meghan Doyle | Recurring role (4 episodes) | [18] |
| The Tenth Circle | Laura Stone | Television film | [18] | |
| 2010 | Kirstie Alley's Big Life | Herself | Episode: "Oh Rats! It's My Birthday!" | |
| 2013 | Adopted | Karey | Television film | |
| 2016 | CSI: Cyber | Greer Latimore | Recurring role (3 episodes) | [18] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | The Stafford Project | Tabitha | Episode: "White Secret" | [57] |
| Year | Title | Artist | Role | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | "She Will Be Loved" | Maroon 5 | Socialite / Mother | [58][59] |
| 2006 | "Broken" | Lindsey Haun | Angela Delton |
| Year | Award | Category | Production | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Golden Raspberry Award | Worst Supporting Actress | Battlefield Earth | Won | [60] |
| 2004 | The Cat in the Hat | Nominated | [61] | ||
| 2010 | Old Dogs | Nominated | [62] | ||
| 2019 | Gotti | Nominated | [63] | ||
| Worst Screen Combo | Nominated | [63] |
