It was sad news indeed to find out that actor Patrick Swayze, suffering from pancreatic cancer, has been given a grim prognosis. Though faded from the limelight for a time, he's remained a mostly beloved actor, as liked for his rough-and-tumble fighting in Road House as his dancin' and romancin' in Dirty Dancing. A supremely talented physical performer, at the height of his career Swayze perfectly embodied, and perhaps helped create, a certain type of sensitive, maybe even thoughtful, machismo that could be seen as a direct precursor to today's better rounded, more casually masculine movie stars (Matthew McConaughey owes him a debt of gratitude.) He's had a lasting effect on cinema, and that's about as much as any actor can hope for. However he's done it, he's brought people joy. And for that, we're grateful. Clips of some of his notable work after the jump. Update: Reps for the actor say his status is better than some are reporting.

Dirty Dancing, 1987

Road House, 1989

Ghost, 1990

Saturday Night Live (host), 1990


Patrick Swayze - Chippendale
by tressage

Point Break, 1991

Donnie Darko, 2001