Sandy may have been too pure to be Pink, but Olivia Newton-John feels too wronged not to speak up.
The British-born singer-actress' ONJ Productions sued Universal Music Group for breach of contract Friday, claiming she's owed more than $1 million in royalties from sales of the Grease soundtrack.
In the lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, Newton-John alleges that while she has received some money over the years, Universal has failed to follow through on a number of contractual payments.
She says Newton-John and Universal hammered out how much money she was supposed to get for each album sold in 1978. The deal was later modified in 1979, 1980 and 2000 to cover tapes and compact discs. Court papers state that a recent audit showed Universal has failed to pay, or explain why it has failed to pay, $1 million.
Newton-John, who played Sandy opposite John Travolta's Danny in the hit film based on the long-running Broadway musical, has also accused Universal of invasion of privacy, because she supposedly wasn't properly compensated for the use of her image on the soundtrack's cover.
"The lawsuit is without merit, and at the appropriate time, we expect the court will dismiss it," Universal said in a statement Tuesday.
Grease was the number one movie at the box office in 1978, spawning two number one songs, "Summer Nights" and "You're the One That I Want," both of which feature Newton-John, who was nominated for a Golden Globe for her role as the good girl quietly lusting after the bad boy. The four-time Grammy winner can also be heard belting out "Hopelessly Devoted to You" and harmonizing in "We Go Together."
And Grease will be the word for a whole new generation if NBC has its way. The network has a reality series called You're the One That I Want on tap for midseason that follows a bunch of wannabe Dannys and Sandys as they audition for a new Broadway production of the beloved classic, which debuted on the Great White Way in 1972.