“Dirty Dancing,” Back in 1987......Celebrity Gossip
Grey, who played Frances “Baby” Houseman, remembered Swayze,
who died Monday at age 57 after a battle with pancreatic cancer,
by saying, “When I think of him, I think of being in his arms when
we were kids, dancing, practicing the lift in the freezing lake,
having a blast doing this tiny little movie we thought no one
would ever see.”
Miss Grey added that Swayze was a “real cowboy with a tender heart,”
who loved danger and did his own stunts that “it was not surprising
to me that the war he waged on his cancer was so courageous and dignified.”
She added, “Patrick was a rare and beautiful combination of raw masculinity
and amazing grace. My heart goes out to his wife and childhood sweetheart,
Lisa Niemi, to hi mom, Patsy, and the rest of their family.”
Meanwhile, choreographer from the hit Dirty Dancing, Kenny Ortega,
made a statement, saying, “Patrick was a great human being who I
knew as a loving son, husband, brother and friend. He was one of
the most creative, enjoyable and alive people I knew. He did as
much for dancing as any man of our generation.”
Adding on to the devoted star, he says, “Patrick loved life,
and had such an enthusiasm for everything he did. If he could
climb it, he climbed it. If he could write it, he wrote it.
If he could dance it, well, we all know he did. He lived.
Patrick Swayze was a loving and soulful man. The planet has
lost a big heart. And I, a forever friend. My loving thoughts
to Lisa, Patsy and his entire family.”
