Actor Patrick Swayze arrives for the World Premiere of the film, 'Mona Lisa Smile,' in New York, in this December 10, 2003 file photo. Swayze, who went from Broadway dancer to Hollywood star in box-office hits like "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost," died on September 14, 2009, after battling pancreatic cancer for almost two years, U.S. media reports said. [Agencies]

Actor Patrick Swayze, who went from Broadway dancer to Hollywood star in box-office hits like "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost," died on Monday, U.S. media reports said. He was 57.

Swayze, whose spokesman announced in March 2008 that the actor had pancreatic cancer, died at home with his family at his side, ABC News reported, citing his spokeswoman Annett Wolf.

The Texas native began his career as a dancer and made dozens of stage, film and TV appearances over four decades. Pop culture immortality came with 1987's "Dirty Dancing," which defied Hollywood expectations to become one of the most-watched movies of all time.

Swayze played the swaggering Castle in the film opposite Jennifer Grey's sheltered teenager, Frances "Baby" Houseman, who becomes smitten with Castle while on vacation at a New York resort during the 1960s.

An unlikely romance builds between the pair as Castle trains the gawky teen to stand in for his partner at a dance-off in the film's climactic scene and confronts her father with the often-quoted line from the film: "Nobody puts Baby in the corner."

"Dirty Dancing," which was made for a modest budget and almost scrapped by its studio, became a massive box-office hit, earning Golden Globe nominations for both stars and spawning the Oscar-winning hit single "(I've Had) The Time of My Life."

(China Daily/Agencies September 15, 2009)