Olivia Newton-John and Jane Seymour had been friends for around 40 years.
On TODAY Tuesday, Seymour, 71, remembered one of the last times she saw Newton-John before the death of the Grease star.
I knew that she was really ill for a very long time, and I have the privilege of seeing her not that long ago and talking to her, Seymour said. She was an amazing person. The fact that she always cared about other people brings tears to my eyes. She d always asked about me, she d asked about my family about people we knew who were going through cancer, and she was just this positive light and an amazing person, Seymour continued.
The Somewhere in Time actor said she saw Newton-John when she and her sisters traveled far to visit her. By the time they arrived, Newton-John forgot that they were coming over.
Seymour said she got the day wrong. She knew we had to travel like two or three hours to get there. She got out of bed, got dressed and came out in a walker. She shouldn't have gotten out of bed at all. She just sat down with us for quite awhile and asked about us: How are we? And then she looked around and she said, Isn't it beautiful here? I said, Yes, it is. She said, I sit out here and I just look at the world. How beautiful! Look at the sky, look at the hummingbirds, look at that dog, look at this life that we have and look at us together after all these years. Seymour said that Newton-John's perspective on life reminded her that life is a journey. It has its ups and its downs and she just had such strength and fortitude and as much as she was suffering, she never spoke about it, Seymour said. She just put a smile on her face and said, You know what? On Monday, Newton-John's husband, John Easterling, announced that she had died peacefully at her ranch in Southern California, surrounded by family and friends. He said that everyone should respect the family's privacy during this very difficult time.
Newton-John died of breast cancer after she was treated multiple times for breast cancer. Seymour said if there is anything you can learn from Newton-John, it's that she always did her best and gave back, like the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Centre she built in Australia.
I had the privilege of going to her hospital. She built the one in Melbourne and it was extraordinary, Seymour said.
She said there was an atmosphere when you went there. Olivia has built the dream place for people who are going through the cycle of cancer. Newton-John's achievements were among the many things Seymour loved about the singer. She liked that she and Newton-John had a lot in common and could relate to the challenges they faced in being superstars.
We had a lot of ups and downs with careers, and husbands, and children and life. Seymour said that we had a very special bond and it was pretty unique for me. I don't think I have ever had a friend that really could understand or wanted to understand what life was like, and I really miss her.