Thirteen
The Genesis of "Grease 2" - Génesis de Grease 2

Everything in 1981 seemed to be good, to be falling into place, albeit a little too slowly for Pfeiffer. To speed things up she changed agents. And she and Horton martied quietly at the white-walled city courthouse in Santa Monica only a wander away from the city's landmark pier and carousel. It was a good omen. Her new agent disturbed her on her honeymoon. She had landed the female lead role in Grease 2, the follow-up to the most successful film musical in history. The original Grease starring Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta had by then made more than $200 million at the box office.

The film's co-producer was Allan Carr who regarded himself as a graduate from the Cecil B. de Mille School of film-making - every thing had to be spectacular. In 1972 he bought the rights to Grease, which was one of the longest running hits in Broadway history.

And the world did enjoy the original Grease. Carr, because of the profits from the film - for the dollar is the god of Hollywood - was now regarded in some awe; he was looked upon as a ringmaster of his own brand of celuloid circus. As an early influence on Pfeiffer's budding career, he would certainly show her the show side of I showbiz.

Michelle had left John LaRocca and signed on with Gary Lucchesi and Alan Iezman at the William Morris Agency, one of Hollywood's biggest talent companies. LaRocca was left with an autographed photograph of Pfeiffer. The inscription reads: TO JOHN, WHO HAS TAKEN ME FROM CRAYONS TO PERFUME. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HARD WORK, NEVER-ENDING FAITH AND LOVE. I LOVE YOU, MICHELLE. Love or not she was a pragmatist. If she wanted bigger work she needed bigger agents. LaRocca finds it hurtful to talk about Pfeiffer even years after she left him: 'It's a difficult subject to talk about. To have represented her during the most difficult years of her career and then to have her leave and go on ... It wasn't my decision, and it wasn't because of lack of work.'

The William Morris hot shots got her a chance at Grease 2 by persistence. Paramount Studios had entered into the Allan Carr world of hype. The talent search for the leads to star in the film was pushed as hard as they could in the gossip columns and Hollywood trade papers. Hundreds of actresses and would-be actresses were after the role of sex-slut Stephanie Zinone, the leader of the outlaw sorority the Pink Ladies at the fictional all-American Rydell High School in the equally fictional 1961. The new twist - if it could be called that - to the sequel was that the girl was the greaser, the playground cool character and the boy the outsider.

Maxwell Caulfield, a young British actor, was judged to be a beautiful enough person to get the co-starring role as Michael Carrington. He was brash. He thought of himself as 'the new James Dean'. An American magazine found him 'self adoring'. Pfeiffer was stuck with Maxwell Caulfield.

His co-star was Michelle Pfeiffer, chosen as Stephanie Zinone, the gum-popping, hip-swivelling Pink Lady after her second screen test. Patricia Birch who directed Grease 2 and was the choreographer of the original film and the 'stage play said:

'She sort of wandered in late in the day, and she was just kind of delectable. I liked her right away. I remember there was this huge dance audition a few days later, and she was hanging around in the background, very shy, and the only way I was able to pick her out was because she was wearing these purple boots.
She didn't think she could dance, but she moved beautifully. And she could act. I liked something about her right away. She has a quirky quality you don't expect.'

Pfeiffer, along with the hundreds of other ingénues, and after singing three Linda Ronstadt songs, was asked to do a reading for Pat Birch. She never got her hopes up. It seemed too farfetched that she'd even get the role. She thought of Grease 2 as simply more experience in honing her cattle-call technique. But when hope turned to reality she went all out for success. Like Caulfield - but not quite as much - Pfeiffer had the confidence of youth. She didn't give one moment's worry to the fact that she wasn't a professional singer. Sure, she could sing, was her attitude. The thought of her attitude a decade later makes her shake her head in, disbelief.