Dirty Dancing Star Patrick Swayze Dies
;)
;)
US actor died with family at his side from cancer of the pancreas.
80s Hollywood heartthrob Patrick Swayze died last night at the age of 57 after losing a battle to fight pancreatic cancer.
The American actor, much beloved for his iconic roles in Dirty Dancing and Ghost, as well as cult classics Point Break and Donnie Darko, passed away after being diagnosed with cancer almost two years ago.
Publicist Annett Wolf said in a statement quoted by the Associated Press: “Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months.”
Tributes were paid from co-stars who the star had worked with over the years. As a highly accomplished and trained ballet dancer, Swayze’s big break came in 1987 opposite Jennifer Grey in Dirty Dancing. Ms Grey said: “Patrick was a rare and beautiful combination of raw masculinity and amazing grace. Raw and strong, he was a real cowboy with a tender heart.”
Swayze will perhaps be most fondly remembered for his role in 1990 in Ghost, with Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg. Ghost among other things will be remembered for that love scene, and Swayze should be credited as being the first man to make pottery sexy.
Demi Moore paid a fitting tribute on Twitter, echoing the words spoken between their two characters: “And in the word of Sam to Molly. “It’s amazing Molly. The love inside, you take it with you.” I love and will miss you Patrick.”
Swayze battled with bouts of depression and alcoholism after the death of his father and the suicide of his sister but continued his work right up until the day he died, often pushing through severe discomfort and pain in order to continue acting.
