Patrick Swayze
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| Patrick Swayze | |
 Patrick Swayze, 1989 |
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| Born | August 18, 1952 (age 54) Houston, Texas |
| Notable roles | Johnny Castle in Dirty Dancing, 1987 Sam Wheat in Ghost, 1990 Bodhi in Point Break, 1991 |
Patrick Wayne Swayze (born August 18, 1952) is an American dancer, actor, singer and songwriter. He became known during the 1980s after starring in the box office success Dirty Dancing and Ghost.
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[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Swayze was born in Houston, Texas to Jesse Wayne Swayze, who died in 1982 of alcoholism, and choreographer and ballet school owner Patsy Swayze. His brother, Don Swayze, is also an actor. Swayze attended St Rose of Lima Catholic School, Oak Forest Elementary School, Black Middle School, and Waltrip High School in Houston. There, he also lived in the Oak Forest area most of his life. Swayze formally trained at the Harkness Ballet and Joffrey Ballet Schools in New York City. On his web site he claims to be part Apache.
[edit] Career
Swayze's first professional appearance was as a dancer for Disney on Parade, then in the Broadway production of Grease, before his debut film role as Ace in Skatetown, U.S.A. (1979). He also appeared in the M*A*S*H episode "Blood Brothers" (Episode 9.18, 6 April 1981).
He is probably most memorable for his roles in the popular films Dirty Dancing (1987), Ghost (1990), and Point Break (1991). He also appeared in Red Dawn (1984), Road House (1989), Black Dog (1998), and Donnie Darko (2001). He is also famous for the North and South miniseries. Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004), a quasi-sequel to Dirty Dancing, had Swayze cast as a dance instructor in a cameo.
Swayze received Golden Globe Award nominations for his roles in Dirty Dancing, Ghost and To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995). Additionally he wrote and composed the hit song "She's Like the Wind" for Dirty Dancing.
He made his London stage debut in the musical Guys and Dolls as Nathan Detroit on July 27, 2006 alongside Neil Jerzak, and remained in the role until November 25, 2006. He had appeared on the Broadway stage in productions of Goodtime Charley (1975), and Chicago (2003).
[edit] Personal life
Swayze has been married to Lisa Niemi since 1975. The couple has been together since Lisa, at 15, began dance lessons with Swayze's mother.
His father died of alcoholism, and Swayze attended a clinic to overcome his own alcoholism after his sister Vicky committed suicide in 1994 using painkillers.[1] After initial recovery, he retreated to his ranches in California and New Mexico to breed Arabian horses. His best-known horse was the late Tammen, a chestnut Arabian stallion. He also several spiritual traditions. Brought up a Roman Catholic, he has also studied Bahai, Buddhism, and Scientology. He has also purchased many crystals for their healing power.
A qualified pilot, in 2000 he was flying solo in his twin-engine Cessna from California to Las Vegas when it developed a mechanical problem. Swayze made a precautionary landing on a dirt road near a housing complex in Prescott Valley in northern Arizona had hitched a ride from a passing vehicle to telephoned authorities. Witnesses told police that Swayze appeared to be extremely intoxicated and asked for help in removing evidence (including an open bottle of wine and a 30 pack of beer) from the crash site. [1]
[edit] Patrick Swayze in pop culture
Swayze remains a figure in pop culture two decades beyond the peak of his Hollywood star power. Hip hop songs often use the phrase "...and I'm Swayze," meaning after the speaker has done something he is "like a ghost" meaning he is gone, a reference to the title character of Swayze's 1990 film Ghost. This was first done by EPMD [2] in the early '90s on various songs, and more recently by The Notorious B.I.G. in the song "Runnin' (Dying to Live)" on the Tupac: Resurrection album, he is also mentioned in the Young Jeezy song "and then what" Jeezy says the line in the second verse "these other rappers actors like patrick swayze" and by Aesop Rock on his song "Zodiaccupuncture" on Fast Cars, Danger, Fire and Knives. The expression has become such a hip hop staple that it was even used in the Saturday Night Live hip hop parody, "Lazy Sunday".
The Trailer Park Boys character Julian is sometimes called Patrick Swayze due to the very slight resemblance. In the episode "Conky', Julian resorts to destroying a puppet's head with his gun after "it" made the comment.
Seattle indie rock band Kane Hodder have a song titled "I Think Patrick Swayze is Sexy".
In Mistah FAB's "Ghost Ride It" the word "Crazy" is rhymed with "Patrick Swayze", in reference to his role in Ghost.
[edit] Selected filmography
| Year | Movie | Role | Other notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Uncommon Valor | Kevin Scott | |
| The Outsiders | Darrel "Darry" Curtis | ||
| 1984 | Red Dawn | Jed Eckert | |
| Grandview, U.S.A. | Ernie "Slam" Webster | ||
| 1986 | Youngblood | Derek Sutton | |
| 1987 | Dirty Dancing | Johnny Castle | |
| Steel Dawn | Nomad | ||
| 1988 | Tiger Warsaw | Chuck "Tiger" Warsaw | |
| 1989 | Next of Kin | Truman Gates | Nominated for Razzie Award for Worst Actor |
| Road House | Dalton | Nominated for Razzie Award for Worst Actor | |
| 1990 | Ghost | Sam Wheat | |
| 1991 | Point Break | Bodhi | |
| 1992 | City of Joy | Max Lowe | |
| 1993 | Father Hood | Jack Charles | |
| 1995 | Disney's Tall Tale | Pecos Bill | |
| Three Wishes | Jack McCloud | ||
| To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar | Vida Boheme | ||
| 1998 | Letters from a Killer | Race Darnell | |
| Black Dog | Jack Crews | ||
| 2001 | Donnie Darko | Jim Cunningham | |
| Green Dragon | Gunnery Sergeant Jim Lance | ||
| 2002 | Waking Up In Reno | Roy Kirkendall | |
| 2003 | 11:14 | Frank | |
| 2004 | Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights | Dance class instructor | |
| Dragon Sword | Garth | ||
| King Solomon's Mines | Allan Quatermain | ||
| 2005 | Keeping Mum | Lance | |
| Icon | Jason Monk |
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Middlehurst, Lester. "Drink, suicide and why I turned against Hollywood", Daily Mail, 29 November 2005.
- ^ Strong, Nolan. "Patrick Swayze Working With Rap", AllHipHopNews.com, 27 December 2005.
