Patrick Swayze's Widow Says She Will 'Always Love Him' Even Though She Remarried

Nov 08, 2022

American actor, dancer, singer, and songwriter Patrick Swayze is remembered for his leading roles in films such as "Road House," "Point Break," and many more. Swayze was known for his handsome features and was considered a heartthrob. He was named People's "Sexiest Man Alive" in 1991. 

In 1952, Swayze was born in Houston, Texas, and lived there until he was 20 years old. His mother was Patsy Swayze, a choreographer and dance instructor. The talented actor studied classical ballet as well as martial arts while in high school. He also played football until he suffered a knee injury that forced him to stop. 

The star began his entertainment career as a dancer and went on to perform on Broadway before gracing the silver screen. He received many accolades for his acting, including three Golden Globe nominations for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical. In 1997, Swayze was honored with his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

It's hard to believe that this legendary actor passed away more than a decade ago. A star even before "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost," Swayze will forever be in our hearts. Unfortunately, Swayze died on Sept. 14, 2009, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. His loving wife of 34 years, Lisa Niemi, was by his side the entire time.

The couple met when they were teenagers and got married in 1975. This was four years before Swayze made his film debut in a roller disco film known as "Skatetown, USA." The lovebirds were together until Swayze passed away. Keep reading to learn more about their relationship and how Niemi is keeping Swayze's memory alive, even after she remarried in 2014.

Niemi talked to Entertainment Tonight about how awful it was to watch her husband fight cancer.

"It's the worst thing in the world to go through, you spend every day fighting for that person's life," she said. "I know that he spent every day fighting for his own ... He survived 22 months, which was miraculous with the diagnosis that he received."

Under two years after the initial diagnosis, Swayze succumbed to pancreatic cancer on Sept. 14, 2009. The documentary "I Am Patrick Swayze" came out on Aug. 18, 2019.

The documentary isn't just about his triumphs. It also takes a close look at his struggles with alcohol use. Niemi said that he would be fun and bubbly until he was by himself. He would then crash, making their relationship strained and difficult. However, even though there were many challenges to overcome in their marriage, Niemi still loved him.

According to Niemi, Swayze took on a role working on the show "The Beast" while he was fighting pancreatic cancer. She said Swayze was transformed during the role. While he had been spending a lot of time in bed, being in Chicago gave him an amazing burst of energy.

"His enormous burst of energy floored me. He was like his old take-charge self, going non-stop. I got Patrick back. He even showed occasional flashes of 'star' behavior, the stuff that would always drive me crazy, like making last-minute, arbitrary demands and suddenly being the unquestionable authority on ... just everything in the universe," Niemi wrote in her memoir.

She also mentioned that Swayze never wanted his job to be easier just because he was diagnosed with cancer. Even when his character was supposed to jump over a wall, he insisted on doing it instead of the stuntman that was hired. 

Swayze's legacy lives on not only in his movies that are beloved by many but also in the memory of people who were lucky enough to have crossed paths with him. This includes his wife, Niemi, but also his co-stars.

After his death in September 2009, the outpouring of love from his famous friends only confirmed just how wonderful a person he was. Jennifer Grey, Swayze's co-star in “Dirty Dancing,” said, as reported by Entertainment Weekly:

"Patrick was a rare and beautiful combination of raw masculinity and amazing grace," she said. "Gorgeous and strong, he was a real cowboy with a tender heart."

Meanwhile, Whoopi Goldberg said of her “Ghost” co-star: "Patrick was a really good man, a funny man and one to whom I owe much that I can’t ever repay. I believe in ‘Ghost‘s’ message, so he’ll always be near.”

Like “Dirty Dancing,” “Ghost” was an incredibly successful film and will forever be important to the late actor’s legacy. In fact, the award-winning actor himself admitted that he was proud of the movie.

“I needed to do something that will affect the audience in a positive way, make them feel better about their lives and appreciate what they have,” Swayze said of the movie in an interview with The San Francisco Chronicle in 1990, as reported by The New York Times.

And affect the audience it did!

“Watching it again now, you might feel the yuppie-skulduggery theme is a bit dated – and ghostly Sam (or anyone else) should have been telling Molly to change the locks at her apartment,” Peter Bradshaw wrote in his 2020 review of the film for The Guardian.

Niemi also still celebrates Swayze regularly, frequently posting to Instagram to keep his memory alive. Although she remarried in 2014 to jeweler Albert DePrisco, her love of Swayze will likely never cease. She told People Magazine in 2014 how her love for both men was never in conflict until DePrisco asked her to marry him. She flipped and flopped on whether to go ahead with the wedding, but ultimately she took a "leap of faith" and decided to do so, telling the magazine:

"Albert knew I still loved Patrick and would always love him, and told me, 'and I know you love me, and I love you.' How could I not marry this man? As I had time to process the change my life was going to take, my doubts became less and less, and I became more and more sure."

Nonetheless, Niemi's love and dedication to Swayze are still there. She frequently posts about him on her social media, and on Sept. 14, 2020, 11 years after his death, she shared a touching post on Instagram that said:

"Celebrating a wonderfully strong, sensitive & special man on the 11th anniversary of his passing. So missed. Can't help but feel a dark cloud today (and all last week!) 😥, but grateful for what we had together. 🌈 What a journey! Blessed, even with the tears."

Daily Mail cited Niemi's story, where she talks about Swayze's last words before he slipped into a coma from her memoir. She wrote: "My last words to Patrick? 'I love you,' and those were his last words to me."

Are you a fan of Patrick Swayze? What is your favorite movie of his? Let us know, then pass this on to your friends and family so they can honor him too.