YouTube/Movieclips Jennifer Grey in "Dirty Dancing."
FOX’s new celebrity dance competition, “The Real Dirty Dancing,” is based on the classic 1987 movie starring Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze.
By then the actress who played Baby was already a burgeoning star, having already appeared in hit films like “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Red Dawn.”
However, as People reported, her career would be derailed by rhinoplasty surgeries in the early 90s. Though, a 1999 Newsweek article would call the “radical restructuring of her nose” an accident after she only intended “a minor touch-up.”
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At a 2012 anniversary event for “Dirty Dancing,” Grey commented on her nose job. “I went into the operating room a celebrity and came out anonymous,” the Mirror quoted the star. She added, “It was the nose job from hell. I’ll always be this once-famous actress nobody recognises because of a nose job.”
Grey has continued to act, with People reporting in November 2020 that she will star in an upcoming “Dirty Dancing” sequel.
She has also appeared in television series such as “It’s Like, You Know…” and guest-starred in shows like “Friends.” Her IMDb filmography includes feature films such as “Bounce” and made-for-television movies like Lifetime’s “The Bling Ring.”
The 61-year-old married Marvel actor Clark Gregg in 2001, but the pair announced their split on Instagram in 2020. They share a daughter, Stella.
Patrick Swayze Died in 2009
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Johnny to her Baby, Grey’s co-star Patrick Swayze died in 2009 of pancreatic cancer at the age of 57.
“Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months,” his publicist Annett Wolf said in a statement to BBC.
In the upcoming sequel, his role will not be replaced. As Grey told People, “All I can say is there is no replacing anyone who’s passed—you never try to repeat anything that’s magic like that. You just go for something different.”
8 Celebrities Are Competing in ‘The Real Dirty Dancing’
Antony Platt/FOX
“The Real Dirty Dancing” is a four-week special event, which will see eight celebrities compete to be named “Johnny” and “Baby.”
“Set at Virginia’s Mountain Lake Lodge, which was the real location for the film’s fictional Kellerman’s Lodge, the stars will partner up and learn iconic dance routines from the Jennifer Grey-and Patrick Swayze-led movie and recreate classic scenes — including the legendary lift that cemented the film’s spot in cinematic history,” according to a press release. “Throughout the event special, ‘Dirty Dancing’s’ memorable music and unforgettable fashion will transport viewers right back to that magical summer in 1963. The competition will also feature special guest judges who will help decide which celebrity couples will make it through and which couple will be ‘put in a corner.’”
Stephen “tWitch” Boss hosts the competition, which stars “The Bachelorette” alum Tyler Cameron, “High School Musical” actor Corbin Bleu, Backstreet Boys’ Howie Dorough, former NFL player Antonio Gates, “Total Bellas” star Brie Bella, chef Cat Cora, comedian Anjelah Johnson-Reyes and “The Real” host Loni Love.
“The Real Dirty Dancing” premieres on Fox this Tuesday, February 1, at 9 p.m. Eastern time.
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