From Jack Frost to The Last Song, actress Kelly Preston became one of the silver screen's
most devoted on-screen parents in recent years.
Preston's decades-long romance with husband John Travolta also captured fans' affections.
While this "adored wife and mother" will always be in our hearts, Preston passed away on July
12, 2020 after her two-year battle with breast cancer.
Although actress Kelly Preston had her fair share of high-profile romances, the star somehow
knew she'd end up with her true love, actor John Travolta.
She apparently once said:
"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.
I just knew.
I was about 16 years old.
I really knew it and it turned into, 'I'm going to marry that man.'"
When the pair finally did meet on the set of The Experts, both felt what Preston described
as "immediate chemistry,"
"Does anybody here know how to dance?
I know how to dance."
Preston opened up on Live with Kelly and Ryan about the first time she met Travolta:
"You know, I saw him across the room.
I was in the lobby, and I see this, like, shwooh, shwooh, walking across the lobby,
so you know, that was it."
Talking to Us Weekly Travolta added that a friend predicted he and Preston would, quote,
"fall in love" and "get married."
The prediction was spot on, and the two walked down the aisle in 1991.
While Hollywood marriages often end in divorce, Kelly Preston and John Travolta discovered
that to keep their relationship exciting, they needed to establish a solid foundation.
Travolta told Closer Weekly.
"We really care deeply about each other and we protect each other, and we keep [our relationship]
up to date...If you take a little bit of energy to take inventory of 'What are you interested
in lately?' then you can keep it fresh."
Preston agreed, noting that couples should, quote, "keep doing things, just the two of
you."
She also said on Live with Kelly and Ryan that she and Travolta always danced together,
which was just one of the reasons these two kept each other so happy throughout their
28-year marriage.
During an interview on Good Morning America, she went even deeper, explaining:
"I think it's communication, keeping it fresh, checking in with each other and evolving.
You change so you want to change together.
Keep it fun, it doesn't just happen on its own.
You've gotta work on it."
Before her illness, Preston and Travolta teamed up for 2018's Gotti, in which he played the
eponymous mob boss and she played his wife Victoria.
Travolta told Entertainment Tonight that he and Preston, quote, "live for" that "creative
experience together."
In January 2009, Kelly Preston and John Travolta endured the greatest pain any parent could
ever face — the loss of their 16-year-old son Jett.
Diagnosed with autism, Jett also suffered from seizures and one such episode ended the
young man's life while he and his family were vacationing in the Bahamas.
Preston told Health that her family, friends, and faith helped pull the entire family back
from the brink of sadness.
She said:
"Johnny is definitely my rock.
Kirstie [Alley] is one of my absolute best friends.
My mom, my brother.
And to be honest, the Scientology center.
I don't know if I would have made it through without it.
We've been able to navigate through it and to come to a place that is a lot better."
Travolta echoed the sentiment.
"I got through a time that I didn't think I was gonna make it.
And I really didn't, uh, several times, but they pulled me through."
After years of trying to conceive, Kelly Preston and John Travolta welcomed their son Benjamin
on November 23, 2010, nearly two years after Jett passed away at age 16.
The couple told People that they were, quote, "completely blown away" by this "miracle,"
because their newborn son gave their home "a renewed spirit and purpose."
Travolta added:
"For us it's been uplifting.
He's brought us a new beginning, and his presence has brought joy to all the people who have
wanted the best for us."
Preston, who was 48 at the time of his birth, told People that Benjamin was born via C-section.
"We had a silent birth, with no spoken words as much as possible that was performed in
a calm and caring environment."
"But of course you're gonna groan and yell and curse...it hurts.
Absolutely.
But just keeping it to a minimum."
But, as Travolta noted, although they're incredibly grateful for the birth of Benjamin, Jett will
never be forgotten.
The actor explained:
"I don't think there is any time that we don't think about him.
All our memories are connected to Jett over the last 18 years, our photos, our homes,
our travel.
It's not something that will ever leave us."
And now, as the family mourns the loss of their matriarch, hopefully they'll find comfort
in knowing that Preston wanted nothing but the best for those she loved most in this
world.
Before actress Kelly Preston became a mother, she lived rather recklessly.
As the former fiancée of actor Charlie Sheen, Preston drank and experimented with drugs,
as she told Lifetime's The Conversation with Amanda de Cadenet.
"I don't smoke anymore, I don't drink anymore.
And all of those come with an 'any more.'
You know, I used to do everything, and a lot of everything."
But after welcoming her kids into the world, Preston came to learn who she was and what
she needed to do to ensure her children had the greatest life possible.
"I also didn't like not being myself with my kids, or just with my life 100% of the
time."
Not only did Preston go on to work with Narconon Hawaii in an effort to curb drug use in her
home state, but she also taught her kids how drugs can impact your life.
She told Health:
"I've already started on education: what drugs do to your body and how they are addictive.
There was this fallacy in Hawaii, where I grew up, that pot's not addictive, and that
it's natural, and all this other B.S.
I went from that to...bam!"
Before marrying actor John Travolta, actress Kelly Preston was engaged to Hollywood's bad
boy Charlie Sheen.
Yet while most have forgotten about their brief relationship, it's hard to disregard
the events that might've led to their breakup.
Shortly before Preston and Sheen split, the Mischief star received stitches after a supposed
gunshot wound left her injured.
While both stars remained mum about the details at first, Sheen finally opened up while on
the Vancouver stop of his My Violent Torpedo of Truth tour in 2011.
Sheen told the crowd
"I was downstairs early in the morning making coffee and I thought she was still asleep
upstairs.
And I heard a f---ing gunshot go off."
Sheen explained that a revolver he carried had fallen out of a pair of his pants and
accidentally gone off.
According to Sheen, the gun shot the toilet, which sprayed shrapnel over Preston and cut
her.
Although Kelly Preston and John Travolta were open about their struggles to conceive son
Benjamin, the mother-of-three always knew she wanted a home filled with children.
She told Health in 2013:
"I've always wanted to be a mother, ever since I was 11.
I was an expert babysitter.
I was doing commercials for thousands of dollars, but I'd still babysit for $3 an hour just
because I loved it.
I'm just in a good place, and am able to really be with my kids."
And, when she discovered she was pregnant with Benjamin, she couldn't contain her excitement.
"When I found out I was pregnant, I was floored.
I'd snuck out of bed and then came back and woke Johnny up in bed.
We both started crying.
It was wonderful."
Having been crushed by the sudden loss of their eldest son Jett the year before, both
Preston and Travolta endured great heartbreak, but as she told Health, even when life seems
hopeless, "things always get better."
John Travolta took to Instagram to honor his late wife, writing:
"She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many.
Kelly's love and life will always be remembered.
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."
Just as it's difficult to lose a wife, it's also hard to lose your parent at any age.
But Ella Travolta, the 20-year-old daughter of Kelly Preston and John Travolta, continues
to handle her mother's passing with grace and compassion.
As she wrote on Instagram, Ella had, quote, "never met anyone as courageous, strong, beautiful
and loving" as her mother.
She added,
"Anyone who is lucky enough to have known you or to have ever been in your presence
will agree that you have a glow and a light that never ceases to shine and that makes
anyone around you feel instantly happy.
Thank you for being there for me no matter what.
Thank you for your love.
Thank you for your help and thank you for making this world a better place.
You have made life so beautiful and I know you will continue to do so always."
While she's relatively new to Hollywood, Ella told People in 2019 that she has always loved,
quote, "performing, singing, dancing and putting on shows at home for my family and friends,"
"That's, it's the best thing ever.
I couldn't ask for anything more."
And in recent years, she decided to follow in both her parents' famous footsteps.
She added:
"Whatever I would have chosen to do, they would have supported me.
But they're really proud of me for [acting]...and that makes me proud, too!"
Preston has truly left behind an incredible legacy.
As news of actress Kelly Preston's death spread throughout the industry, Hollywood's biggest
stars took to social media to share their shock and grief.
Actress Rita Wilson wrote on Instagram:
"Such a beautiful soul, sparkling eyes exuding kindness and strength.
She found the joy in life.
She loved fiercely...She was a blast to work with, made everything more fun.
She always supported others.
Please keep Kelly, John, Jett, Ella and Ben in your prayers.
She will be so missed."
Her Twins co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger also took to social media to honor Preston, writing:
"Kelly Preston was extraordinary.
I was lucky enough to star with her and direct her, and her talent was off the charts.
She had such a big heart, she was a wonderful wife and mother, and my thoughts are with
John and the whole family."
Schwarzenegger's ex-wife Maria Shriver tweeted:
"Shocked by this sad news.
Kelly was such a bright loving soul, a talented actress, and a loving mom and wife.
My heart breaks for her family who have already known such sadness and grief.
Join me in sending them love and strength."
Country music star Shania Twain also tweeted her grief alongside a photo of her and the
Travolta family.
"I'm unbelievably saddened by the news that Kelly Preston has passed and at such a young
age.
A beautiful and kind person I was fortunate enough to have known."
We're all lucky to have had Preston's immeasurable talent in our lives.