Nobody Puts Baby in a Corner.

Today an American legend died. I remember when I first discovered Patrick Swayze. He was in a movie called "Three Wishes," a movie about an angel (Swayze), who visits a family with a woman whose husband has disappeared in the war and her two sons. His performance was warm and funny and sexy and genuine, and, though I was only about twelve years old, I was in love.
From then on I was a huge fan. Though perhaps not the most talented actor, I admired Swayze for his ability to portray real emotion in whatever he did. One of his best performances, in my opinion, was when he portrayed Vida Boheme in "To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar," the role for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor. He's usually such a manly man but he played a drag queen with grace and true elegance. It takes a real man to do justice to a role of that nature. Patrick Swayze has always seemed like one of the good guys. That's why I like him so much. That, and he's always been sexy as hell. He also had other talents, including songwriting, singing, and dancing.

So, to celebrate the life of one of my very favorite actors, here are my favorite quotes from some of his films:


"Nobody puts baby in a corner."
-Johnny Castle, Dirty Dancing.

This one is a classic. Famous not only for the movie it was in, but for the feeling behind it. Johnny comes and rescues Baby (Jennifer Grey) from spending the final night at the club sitting at a table with her parents. He then takes her by the hand and leads her onstage, where they share a memorable and now legendary dance.


"Adios, amigo!"
-Bodhi, Point Break.

Yes, it was Patrick Swayze who coined this immortal phrase. It's now used almost as much as "Hasta la vista, baby."

"Some men need to be hit back."
-Vida Boheme, To Wong Foo

Vida confronts the husband of the woman he and the other queens are staying with because he continues to abuse and belittle her. He delivers the line with power and then kicks the crap out of the guy. It's awesome.

"Ditto."
-Sam, Ghost.

It means "I love you too." Beautiful.

"You know, pumpkins--sometimes it just takes a fairy."
-Vida Boheme, To Wong Foo.

Vida and the other queens help the other women in the small town to discover their femininity and the men to appreciate it.

"It's amazing, Molly. The love inside--you take it with you."
-Sam, Ghost

One of the most powerful moments of the film. Sam's soul can finally leave its earthly plane and go to heaven, but before he leaves he takes one last look at the love of his life, comforting her and telling her he loves her while she stands in breathless awe, tears running down her face.

Goodbye, Patrick. You will be missed.