John Travolta 03022014
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00:10 - Source: CNN

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Travolta introduced Idina Menzel as "Adele Dazeem"

"I've been beating myself up all day," Travolta says

Blunder prompted online joking about "Travoltified" names

Los Angeles CNN  — 

John Travolta is speaking out about his flub while introducing Idina Menzel’s singing performance at the Oscars on Sunday night.

Travolta butchered the singer’s name, calling her “the wickedly talented Adele Dazeem.” For the record, the pronunciation should have been closer to “Uh-deen-ah Men-zelle.”

Menzel performed the Academy Award-winning song “Let It Go” from “Frozen,” which also won the best animated feature Oscar.

Travolta’s publicist sent this statement to CNN, requesting that it be shared in its entirety: “I’ve been beating myself up all day. Then I thought…what would Idina Menzel say She’d say, Let it go, let it go! Idina is incredibly talented and I am so happy Frozen took home two Oscars Sunday night!”

Ironically, the initial statement sent to CNN Tuesday was also somewhat distorted, containing sentence fragments and missing key phrases.

The blunder resulted in great fun across social networks, with some help from Slate.com’s “widget to Travoltify your own name.”

“You’re no one until you’ve had your name mangled by a confused, squinting John Travolta,” Slate said. “What’s your Travoltified name? Find out with our handy widget!”

Wolf Blitzer “Travoltified” becomes “Will Butter.” Anderson Cooper is translated into “Alasdair Crarter.” John Travolta is “Jan Thozomas.”

CNN’s Alan Duke, aka “Ashton Draw,” wrote this report and Jane Caffrey, aka “Jude Crawzford,” contributed from Los Angeles.