The American Film Institute named this immortal Swayze line from 1987's Dirty Dancing one of the top 100 most famous movie quotes of all time: "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." The native Houstonian was the son of a choreographer and a trained dancer, a skill he readily flaunted in this romantic-comedy classic.
Swayze's hilarious (and, we admit, kinda sexy) Saturday Night Live Chippendale dance-off with Chris Farley is one of the variety show's most memorable skits.
The crushing final scene of 1990's Ghost─one that feels all too eerie now.
Swayze and Wesley Snipes get in touch with their feminine sides in 1995's To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar. Swayze was nominated for a Golden Globe the following year for his (her?) performance, one of three Globe nominations he received.
The theatrical trailer for 1991's Point Break, in which Swayze starred as a bleached-blonde, bank-robbing surfer dude opposite Keanu Reeves and Gary Busey.
A thinner, more gaunt Swayze toiled on the crime serial The Beast even as he struggled with terminal pancreatic cancer. He said in interviews that he refused pain medication during filming, as it would take the edge off his performance.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
