The secret problem which nearly scuppered the filming of Dirty Dancing’s most famous scene
Jennifer Grey, who brought the role of "Baby" to life, has revealed how the film's most iconic scene tested co-star Patrick Swayze to his limits
ONE of the stars of Dirty Dancing has revealed how the film's most famous scene was nearly ruined - by a knee injury.
Jennifer Grey, who brought the role of "Baby" to life, has revealed how the film's most iconic scene tested co-star Patrick Swayze to his limits.
Speaking to the Sunday People, Jennifer told how Patrick Swayze, who played dance instructor Jonny Castle in the 1987 film, struggled with the 'Time of my Life' scene because of a dodgy knee.
The actress, now 56, recalled how her co-star's knee nearly gave out as he lifted her high above his head at the end of the scene.
And the star also revealed how she had overcome issues of her own to film the lake scene, which represented another challenge for her co-star's knee.
Jennifer said: "I remember swimming in the lake was very, very, very cold.
"You have to be really young and hungry to get in water that cold for that long. It was not good.
"I remember thinking: ‘Can you die if your nipples explode?’ It just didn’t feel healthy to be in that water.”
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Swayze's knee problem had been a nagging concern for years, forcing him to shun dance roles to protect himself from sustaining too much damage.
But the star, who died of pancreatic cancer in September 2009, battled his way through his ailment to pull off Dirty Dancing's tricky choreography.
Jennifer said: "I remember doing the big dance finale and they had just painted the stage and it was sticky.
"The paint would stick to my feet so I couldn’t turn. All the extras were sitting around, just hundreds of people, watching you about to fall on your face."
However, despite the co-stars' on-screen chemistry, the pair had a strained relationship on set.
Swayze would often get agitated at the number of takes they would have to go through until they finally got a shot where Jennifer wasn't laughing at her lines.