Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi: The Time of My Life; Autobiography
Book Review
I started to invest more of my reading time on autobiographies and memoirs in the hope of developing skills and tips on perfecting my own. My usual genre in books, particularly my Kindle and night time reading is fiction, easy reading. As I’ve mentioned in other blogs I am always on the lookout for second hand novels, there is nothing better than holding a well-loved book, the edges curled with the eager hands of a reader, hungry for the story to unfold in their grip.
I take chances with books, there is no other way, when you are browsing charity shop shelves, because you get what is on offer, you hope for a bargain, some days leaving empty handed. On a particularly fruitful retail trip, I picked up the autobiography of the late Patrick Swayze and I was not disappointed. Written and published the year before his death the story of his life is both heart wrenching and inspiring.
I knew that I would draw few parallels with my own life; I can’t do a roundhouse kick, I don’t have a mullet (although I’m booked in at the hairdressers later, so watch this space) and none of my children were conceived as a result of my husband and I moulding clay together. Nevertheless, as with a lesson I have learned increasingly as I get older, the story of this actor was far more than a chronology of his films. The memoir showed me that you never know what battles someone is fighting as an outsider looking in.
Patrick Swayze had the world at his feet, so his fame would indicate. Starring in North and South, which was the series that set his career soaring, he went on to star in the famous Dirty Dancing with Jennifer Grey, who he had previously co-starred with in Red Dawn. He went on to star in Ghost, Road House, Point Break, to name but a few.
His early life was surrounded with theatrical talent, his mother a dance teacher who helped him carve his dancing skills which would serve well later in his career. His family came from a Texan background, his father a onetime rodeo champion, his mother a choreographer and teacher. Swayze grew up with a dream of acting and dancing, as well as owning his own ranch where he could enjoy his love of horse riding.
He met his wife, Lisa Niemi, at a junior high school dance and instantly felt a connection; the rest as they say, is history. Their lives together remained strong throughout the fame and stress this can bring. Patrick suffered with deep bouts of depression, which he medicated with alcohol. There were some close calls, within their marriage, where Lisa once moved out for a year, unable to bear the depths of his despair.
Swayze also suffered physical ill health, constantly nursing an injured knee, which would blow up like a balloon, oftentimes requiring drainage. The scene in Dirty Dancing where he and Jennifer Grey dance on the log above the stream, soon after, he had to seek medical attention for the knee. On another set, Road House, in one fight he sustained actual broken ribs after a particularly gruelling fight and he also broke both legs after a serious horse riding injury.
However, the man always seemed to come back fighting. The battles with depression and alcohol resonated very much with my story, familiar with the temptation to self-medicate the incessant voices of demons and ruminations. He and his wife also suffered an early miscarriage, which was particularly emotional to read, as I too, suffered this, more than once. They never did go on to have children and but the biggest battle Patrick would face, was the fight against pancreatic cancer.
It started one evening when he experienced reflux after some champagne, and before he knew it, the consultant at the hospital was describing stage four pancreatic cancer. He described being devastated, that he had so many dreams to realise, he had so much to do! He battled this disease while starring in a TV show called The Beast where he played an FBI Agent named Charles Barker. He continued in character, attending all the rehearsals, fighting through his pain. Taking pain relief dulled his performance, so he used the experienced to sharpen his focus, giving all his energy into the work.
This book opened my eyes up to the reality of fame, and the lengths people will go to in order to achieve their dreams. It also reinforced to me that material gains and notoriety do not always bring the happiness and true acceptance that people often crave. This is an internal process, one which requires self-love and compassion, and the ability to stand in one’s own truth, no matter if the world does or doesn’t accept you. Patrick Swayze was always a favourite of mine to watch on the screen and he was certainly taken too early. His memory will remain forever imprinted on the Hollywood Halls of Fame.
