Patrick Swayze was a man who could do it all—he was an actor, a dancer, a singer, and an excellent gymnast. He even flew planes! His passion for dance is something he shared with his mother, and his father helped him make his dreams a reality by instilling principles and morals in him through his childhood. While he’s best-known for his work in Dirty Dancing, there are plenty of films and TV appearances that he’s made. His pancreatic cancer diagnosis broke the hearts of many, and his death was a sad day. Here, we give a detailed description of Patrick Swayze’s life— from birth to death and everything in between.

Patrick Swayze’s Birth

Patrick Swayze was born on August 18, 1952, to Patsy and Jesse Swayze of the Oak Forest neighborhood in Houston, Texas. He has stayed in Oak Forest until the age of twenty. His father made his earnings as a chemical plant engineering draftsman, while his mother ran a dancing school. Patrick was the second of five kids—his four siblings are Sean Kyle, Bambi, Vickie Lynn and Don Swayze—and was raised in the Catholic faith. Patrick is also a direct descendant of John Swasey, who was an Englishman who arrived to Massachusetts aboard The Recovery during the years of the great migration.

Swayze’s Schooling

Since he lived in Oak Forest, Texas, near Houston, Patrick attended several schools during his education, including St. Rose of Lima Catholic School, Black Middle School, Oak Forest Elementary School, and Waltrip High School. Swayze involved himself in several extra-curricular activities – gymnastics, swimming, dancing, and football. He graduated from Waltrip High to attend San Jacinto in Pasadena, Texas. Throughout his schooling, he continued dancing and practiced with his mother, who instilled in him a deep passion for the arts. Throughout his schooling, Patrick also practiced Wushu, Aikido, Taekwondo, and other martial arts to deal with the “self-deprecating rage”.

 He Became ‘The Tough Guy’

Swayze faced a fair amount of bullying during his schooling. When he was about twelve years old, five boys took at him all at once. His father saw the cuts and bruises and began teaching Patrick hand-to-hand combat, which he became skilled at since he was a Golden Gloves boxer and a onetime rodeo champion. A few months later, Jesse went to school and asked for the five boys saying they could “settle this thing”. They fought Patrick one at a time and he sent each boy with bruises and bloody wounds. Imagine this tough guy, walking around with ballet shoes and a violin case!

A Bad Knee

 

Swayze had a dream of playing football, and that’s what seemed to be in the cards for him, but not for long. Right before going to San Jacinto, he was struck with a bad knee injury that put an end to his sporting dreams. Patrick was determined not to allow that to destroy his other passions. After painful and difficult rehabilitation of his knee, he wound up studying dance at San Jacinto. Then, in 1972, Swayze moved to New York City to study dancing at Joffrey Ballet and Harkness Ballet schools in New York.

He Developed a Passion for Dance and Gymnastics

It was at San Jacinto College where he engaged in training programs in gymnastics. In 1972, after moving to New York City, Patrick furthered his dance training as mentioned at two of the most prestigious institutes -Joffrey Ballet School and Harkness Ballet School. His deep passion for dance combined with the refined skills and talent he inherited from his mother have set him up for greatness in the dancing industry. It was for the Disney on Parade event that Patrick reportedly first delivered a professional performance, as a part of the Disney Theatrical Group.

His Big Dream

Patrick’s dreams of advancing his gymnastics career also grew stronger. He excelled in a spectrum of physical activities throughout his young adult years, ranging from various sports to gymnastics and, of course, dancing. In his heart, he wanted to compete with the U.S. Olympic team and become a champion. He was actually training with an Olympic coach. While he never ended up in the international competition, the intense training never went to waste as it was vital for Patrick’s future. If it weren’t for those intense years training in all these various disciplines, perhaps Dirty Dancing would have never become the hit film it did.

Swayze’s One True Love

Being the handsome hunk that he was, every woman was swooning around him. But Patrick had only one woman in his heart—Lisa Niemi. Patrick was eighteen when he met fourteen-year-old Lisa who was a student in his mother’s dance class. He knew she was different and he pursued her for years, all the while dedicating himself to his gymnastics career and Lisa to her dance. They got married on June 12, 1975, when Patrick was 23 years old and three years officially active as a dancer. Lisa later became a prominent dancer, actress, director, writer, and choreographer.

His Beer Commercial

In 1979, Patrick Swayze landed an alcohol commercial for Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. In the ad, he was pictured out in town with a girl plus a bit of fancy footwork followed by a crisp refreshing beer. The handsome hunk sure promoted the drink really well! It was said that the commercial gave off John Travolta vibes—not necessarily a bad thing for Swayze! All this was at the height of the Saturday Night Fever, which was released 2 years prior, and Travolta’s rise to fame. That movie is credited for wildly popularizing disco music and dancing, of course.

His Film Debut

Patrick’s feature film debut was in Skatetown in 1979. Patrick played the character Ace, a leather-clad roller-disco gang leader, but it was not the role he was actually after. Patrick wanted to play John Travolta’s character in Urban Cowboy, which was choreographed by his mother and his wife in Houston. Swayze later said that he ended up hanging out with Travolta one night and he was teaching him a few steps. According to Patrick, it frustrated him even more since country dancing is in his DNA. He liked John but he hated giving someone else tips on how to take on a role he was born to play.

Swayze in The Outsiders

Patrick Swayze seems to have had a unique experience while filming The Outsiders. Swayze revealed that the director of the film, Francis Ford Coppola, had his own way of motivating the actors to deliver a believable performance. He brought out realistic emotions from his actors on screen by cleverly drawing out each actor’s deepest darkest secrets. He would then announce them on the loudspeaker to make their blood boil so they would be able to produce a strong performance on set. Or, Francis would orchestrate actual rifts between the actors and making them live on a $5 daily paycheck.

Swayze in Red Dawn

There was also plenty of fun on set during the filming of Red Dawn. The film’s director, John Milius, placed the actors through a game of ‘Capture the Flag with National Guard Troops’, much like a training camp. Swayze pulled a prank on Milius to lighten the mood, which consisted of a toilet in Milius’ trailer rigged with M60 dynamite sticks. Swayze detonated the sticks when Milius went in to sit on the ‘throne’. As he ran out in panic, Swayze detonated another round hidden in garbage cans, practically giving Milius a heart attack!

Increasing in Popularity

Patrick Swayze sure did deliver great performances and worked hard on his film appearances during the ’80s. His fame increased not only because of his impressive acting and dancing talents but also because of his chiseled and charming features, signature smile, and good nature. He became popular for taking on ‘tough guy’ characters in movies and also the romantic leads, which gained him a greater female fan base. He was well on his way of earning the status of teen idol and a masculine symbol, where his martial arts training in youth again came helpful.

Swayze’s TV Success

Swayze first got a taste of success with the 1985 TV mini-series, North and South. It was based on the North and South novel trilogy, written by John Jakes. The story is set right after the American Civil War and the show’s credentials added significant weight to Swayze’s growing portfolio. The mini-series was a great success! It was produced by David Wolper, who also has the success of The Thorn Birds and Roots under his belt. Swayze had to be persuaded to leave other projects for a TV show, but it sure worked to his advantage in the end!

Swayze’s Big Break

Patrick Swayze came across his big break with the role of sultry dance teacher Johnny Castle in Dirty Dancing in 1987. He performed alongside Jennifer Grey, his co-star from Red Dawn previously. This coming-of-age film was financially modest and was not intended or anticipated to be the success that it was! The huge worldwide critical and commercial acclaim it achieved was a welcomed surprise especially considering the movie’s low budget as it was actually only intended to be shown in theatres as a one-weekend screening and immediately go to the video release.

Swayze’s Biggest Role

Of course, with the immense success Dirty Dancing achieved, it was only natural for Swayze to find himself in high demand in the acting world. He appeared in a number of films including the 1989 movie called Roadhouse. However, his most famous role yet was when he played the lead character in Ghost alongside Demi Moore and the famous Whoopi Goldberg in 1990. Greatness sure was in store for this talented hunk and his bank account was about to feel it, too! Ghost grossed over $505.7M with only a $22M budget and was the highest-grossing movie of the ‘90s.

How He Landed the Role of ‘Sam Wheat’

You never really know which of the things you do could come in handy later some day. For Patrick Swayze, an interview he once did showed him shedding tears over a question about his father. This interview happened to draw far more attention to him than anticipated. Bruce Joel Rubin, the writer of Ghost, saw the interview and identified with Swayze’s vulnerability, a quality he felt was crucial for the character in his film. This is how Patrick Swayze landed the role of Sam Wheat. Of course, his charming smile surely helped!

The Hunk of the Year

With his immensely increasing fame and net worth, Swayze received three nominations for the Golden Globe Award and he was also named ‘Hottest Man Alive’ by People magazine in 1991. Furthermore, he was posthumously awarded the Rolex Dance Award back in 2009. Patrick Swayze found a great deal more attention after his role in Ghost, which catapulted him from ‘bad boy dancer’ to a leading man in Hollywood. He was surely reaping the benefits of his hard work by this time and all his training and different talents he delved into while growing up paid off exponentially.

He Tried Playing the ‘Bad Guy’

While taking on ‘bad guy’ roles was not something Patrick Swayze was known to do, he adopted the charismatic role of Bhodi in the 1991 film, Point Break. He starred alongside another actor whose career benefitted greatly from the role—Keanu Reeves. Patrick Swayze initially auditioned for the role of Johnny Utah, as did Charlie Sheen and Johnny Depp. He received surfing training for the film and refused to use stunt doubles, which ended up costing him four broken ribs. However, the dedication was well worth it as it made the whole movie that much more believable.

Swayze’s Star on the Boulevard

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a 15-block sidewalk spanning across Hollywood Boulevard, with over 2,600 stars embedded on the walkways so far. They are all bearing the respective names of the most acclaimed directors, actors, producers, fictional characters, musicians, musical and theatrical groups and others. Swayze was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his incredible contributions to the film industry. Here, we see him flashing his stellar smile while clutching a plaque of his star on August 18, 1997. Swayze was also nominated for 3 Golden Globes and got many other awards and nominations.

His Passion for Arabian Horses

Swayze came to a point where he felt it was time to take a much-needed break from the life of show business and retreat to California to do something else he loved and had a passion for—breeding Arabian horses. It was when he was a young boy in Texas that he first fell in love with the Arabian breed. His wife, Lisa Niemi, was a horse fanatic too. Together, they bought their first Arabian horse in 1986. It was so unlike most celebrities who would probably just spend time on a private yacht and call it a day!

Close Call

It was in 2000 that Patrick Swayze was piloting a private plane in the company of two of his dogs. They found themselves in a dangerous situation when the plane lost cabin pressure and an emergency landing was required. Swayze caught sight of what he thought was a landing strip but was actually a construction site for an upcoming housing development. In spite of the circumstances, he and his dogs landed safely. Although, the plane did cause damage on a streetlamp.

Swayze in Waking Up in Reno

It was in 2002 that Swayze landed a role as Roy Kirkendall in Waking Up in Reno. The film focused on two redneck couples on a road trip to Reno from Little Rock, on their way to see a monster truck rally. Swayze acted alongside great names in the film industry—Charlize Theron and Billy Bob Thornton. As usual, he delivered an impressive and engaging performance with a natural flair you couldn’t get from the best acting school.

Swayze in One Last Dance

In 2003, Swayze was involved in a production that perhaps was the most engaging of all his works—for the simple reason that he footed a lot of work in the film. He acted in One Last Dance, co-produced it, and even composed some of the music in the film. He starred with his real-life wife, Lisa Niemi, who also composed the music with him. Featuring a talented cast, the story revolves around the dance production Without a Word which was choreographed by Alonzo King.  This sure was an impactful addition to his acting portfolio.

Lisa’s Role In His Life

Lisa truly loved Patrick for who he was and with the kind of love and devotion they had for each other, it didn’t really matter whether he was a famous Hollywood actor with great personal finances or otherwise. What Patrick loved about his life was the fact that she was always honest with him no matter what. If there was something wrong with what he was doing, she would always make sure to tell him off. Patrick even used to be insecure and self-destructive but Lisa helped him get through all of that.

Youngblood: Great Role, Bad Reviews

The 1980s was truly the time Patrick Swayze was working hard to get his name out there. He was very passionate about his acting profession and this showed in his performance on screen. Back in 1986, he starred in a movie titled Youngblood alongside actors like Rob Lowe and Keanu Reeves. Though the movie got some mediocre reviews, it was still an opportunity for Swayze to better his craft. The money the movie made at the box office was around $15.4 million.

Not The First Choice

The role of Johnny Castle on Dirty Dancing was such a highlight in Patrick Swayze’s career. Watching reruns of the full movie makes you fall in love with him all over again. Interestingly, Swayze was not really the first choice for the role. Billy Zane was at the top of the list but his dancing skills just didn’t make the cut. Lead star Jennifer Grey also didn’t like Swayze at first because of her experience with him in Red Dawn. Fortunately, their chemistry and friendship just blossomed as time passed.

Walking The Red Carpet

Patrick Swayze attending the Dirty Dancing movie premiere with Jennifer Grey back in 1987 was a much-talked-about celebrity news during that year. They seemed very close to each other that they could already pass as a couple in real life. Although they looked cute together, there were still people who thought the two didn’t get along on set. At the end of the day, celebrities don’t really need to exert so much effort to prove bashers wrong.

Lisa Is Like the Wind

Patrick Swayze actually had a lot of contributions to Dirty Dancing. The song She’s Like The Wind from the movie’s soundtrack was written and sung by Swayze. His passionate love for his wife Lisa had inspired him a lot in writing the song. In the photo above taken at a party in 1987, the couple posed for the camera and you can just see how genuinely happy he was with his wife. Lisa had been so supportive that she even helped him rehearse all his dances for the movie.

Appearing In A Flop Together

Patrick Swayze and his wife Lisa were very fortunate to be able to appear on screen together. Around the same time Dirty Dancing was released, Swayze starred with his wife in the movie entitled Steel Dawn. Sadly, the film did not do so good in the box office for it only made $562K versus its original budget of a whopping $3.5 million. Maybe you should watch the full movie so you can see for yourself why it didn’t do so well.

Giving The People What They Want

People just loved when Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey were seen together in real life because of how cute they were as a couple. Back when they attended the 1988 Academy Awards, they teased their fans with couple-like photos just like the one above. Them being cute together in public was somehow good brand management for the movie since it helped attract more people to go and see Dirty Dancing – and see they did!

Being A Bouncer In Road House

Patrick Swayze’s performance in Dirty Dancing just made him such an in-demand name in the industry. Road House was another movie that was released in 1989 where Swayze also starred in. Other actors in the film were Sam Elliott, Kelly Lynch, and Ben Gazzara. Swayze played a bouncer who protects a town from a certain businessman who is corrupt. The amount of money the movie reportedly made at the box office was twice its original budget and Rotten Tomatoes even gave the movie a 38% rating.

Genuine Love

By working with Patrick Swayze on Road House, Kelly Lynch was able to see how Swayze was as a husband. She was one of the people who confirmed that Patrick and Lisa were just soulmates. They apparently were like a “single organism” that got through anything that was thrown their way. It was always obvious that these two shared an undying love and a getting a divorce would never be in their vocabulary.

Meeting The Songbird Supreme

Mariah Carey rose to fame in the 1990s ever since she released her very first self-titled album. She was a rising star during that decade so it was inevitable for her and Swayze to cross paths. The photo above was taken when they both appeared in an episode of the popular comedy show, Saturday Night Live. Carey has come a long way since then and today, she reportedly has a net worth of $300 million.

Getting Busy With Gary Busey

Patrick Swayze had a box office hit in 1991 through the movie, Point Break. This was the second time he got to work with actor Keanu Reeves. He also worked with Gary Busey in the film. Actor Busey was once involved in a serious motorcycle accident and the doctors who were attending to him were scared that he obtained a serious case of brain damage. Thankfully, he got the right help and has been doing fine in his seventy-something age.