After Patrick Swayze, My Favorite Movie Memories Live On

The world lost a talented, charismatic actor in Patrick Swayze on Monday, when he died at 57 from pancreatic cancer complications.

I've seen a lot of movies, but some of my most treasured memories are enhanced by some of Swayze's performances, although mine aren't your typical Swayze fan's favorites. Unlike many Patrick Swayze fans I know, I don't endear him for his roles in Dirty Dancing or Ghost. While he certainly made most of his fame and fortune from these two films, they're not the ones that stick out in my mind when I hear of Patrick Swayze.

One of Patrick's movie roles that did make an indelible impression on me, however, was his character Jed in Red Dawn. I can remember curling up on a recliner and watching Red Dawn when I was about 15 years old. Ever since I saw the jacket of the DVD, I'd had my heart set on seeing it one way or another. I remember my dad explaining parts of the Cold War to me, detailing some of the terrors going on at the time and even more excitingly, specifying the weapons and aircraft used in the film. I wasn't sure what to expect, actually, but I was in for a movie like none I'd ever seen previously and none I've ever seen since.

Red Dawn was one of a kind, and Patrick Swayze's character made it simply victorious in my book. The way he led the Wolverines through the woods to survival, dealt with faction rivalry in his group during tough times, and yet eventually suffered the ultimate sacrifice so that a few could remain free instilled a spirit of liberty and freedom fighting only to be surmounted by V for Vendetta.

Another film I remember vividly starred Swayze and Keanu Reeves as surfer boys with a penchant for bank robbery, called Point Break. Not one of Swayze's best necessarily, but I saw a side of his acting that seemed to marry his heartthrob Dirty Dancing side with his somewhat more active Red Dawn side.

Perhaps one of Swayze's most fond roles was his part in Christmas in Wonderland. On a chilly evening right before Christmas, ABC Family aired Christmas in Wonderland (with boatloads of commercials), and after seeing it show up in the channel guide for several times, my family and I finally decided to watch it. I admit, when we began the first few scenes, we were kind of thinking it had a Mall Cop sort of feel and almost turned it off, but the chemistry between Patrick Swayze, his children, and the desire to pick a gift and return to a new home right before Christmas kept us from switching the channel. Patrick Swayze helped launch Christmas in Wonderland onto my list of favorite Christmas movies.

Every tabloid photograph of Swayze during his last few months saddened me. I felt that of all the actors in the world, Swayze was one of the least deserving of this kind of suffering. It's a shame he won't be able to make any more movie memories, but the ones he made in his too short life are unforgettable.