When I was twelve, there were some odd transitions happening at home so I spent a lot of time at my best friend Melanie’s house. On one such weekend I remember laying on the floor of her tv room watching Dirty Dancing over and over and over again. I wanted to be Baby. I was swept up in the music, in the magic of it, in the Knight in Shining Armor that was Johnny. Before that weekend, I hadn’t known a movie could swoop in and capture the heart of a girl…
of me…
Last week I was really sick. Wanting to entertain Gen, one evening, but not do anything but lay around in my virally infested misery, I decided to start cleaning off the Tivo and whatever gems of PG Rated goodness it had waiting for us. Apparently at some point over the past few weeks, ABC Family had aired an edited Dirty Dancing and my smart little Tivo had picked it up. Not being A) a fan of ABC Family, or B) one with any faith in what they call “family appropriate” programming- I was cautious. My mind replayed all of the reasons why I would not want my very impressionable and emotionally immature daughter to see this movie… And then a voice in the back of my head said “you saw this when you were twelve, at an impressionable and difficult time in your life…” And so, snuggled there on the couch, I introduced Genny to Baby and Johnny…
All specialness aside, she loved this movie way more than I thought she would.
One major thing I learned was that Genny’s knowledge of the word “dirty” exclusively means dirty… like DIRT-y. She had no clue that it meant anything else. She finally asked where the mess would come in, and I had to explain. Which led to my second realization: that movie’s “dirty” dancing, is pretty tame compared to a lot of todays typical dancing…
Anyway. As the beginning credits started, and Patrick Swayze’s name appeared, Gen gasped and said “oh my gosh, Patrick Swayze is in this?” I confirmed and she got even more excited. I silently wondered how she even knew who he was, but didn’t say anything. About half an hour into the movie she finally asked “When will Patrick Swayze be in the movie?”
That is him, Gen.
“Who? Johnny? Oh. Ohhh…”
Apparently when her Girl Scout troop was working on their Dancing badge, the leaders had talked about him. she had no idea what he looked like, but now she does. She knows EXACTLY what he looked like. EXACTLY what he sounded like.
She is head over heals in love with him, in fact.
She listens to the soundtrack, which was “boring” before, religiously. She’s Like the Wind, (which he of course sang) is her absolute favorite song. She sits at her vanity, fake microphone in hand, singing it every spare moment she has.
The other day we went out to lunch and to the museum for a girl’s day. Over salads, at the Cheesecake Factory, Gen looked at me seriously and said “I think for Christmas I’d like a poster of Patrick Swayze for my room.”
hmmm…
Rainy Day in May... 
Too cute.I loved Dirty Dancing, and I used to put on this long white skirt and dance (albeit awfully) all over my room pretending to be Baby.
Ohhh, I wish I still had my Patrick Swayze poster to send to her! Dirty Dancing… I don't even need to put my special edition DVD into the player, because I can watch the whole thing in my brain :)
you and me both..I SO wanted to be baby. I wonder if it is because he said, " nobody puts baby in a corner."…lolI can still watch that movie…sad but true. are you feeling better..I hope so. Our whole family caught some nasty thing two weeks ago. those spring viruses. I'm sipping hot tea now:) thinking of you…xo
Maggie, I am absolutely going to find one for her… :) She would DIE of happiness… like you, I can play the entire thing in my head and it opened up the opportunity for us to have some really great discussions too, which is ALWAYS good!
Yes, Patrick Swayze was on my wall! And Dirty Dancing was a FAVORITE movie! I had to watch it in secret at a friend's house when it came out in vhs(yes, I'm that old!). There was no way that my parents were going to let me watch it. Same with Flashdance! LOL
Lol. I remember having that same response to that movie, but Sixteen Candles was my first "I want love like that" type movie. My girls have watched Ghost and Dirty Dancing with me, and like yours, they now LOVE the soundtrack and Patrick Swayze:)
Cute!! I, too, wanted to be Baby once upon a time…Have you seen "Heartbreaker?" Vanessa Paradis' character shared the same dream as well. They do a parody of the "Time of Your Life" dance and it's awesome.
I agree with you about ABC Family."Dirty Dancing" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" were on my "not allowed to watch" list during that time, but somehow I watched and loved them both!
bwahahaha. i don't think i saw the movie for the first time until i was 14 or 15, and i, too, got totally obsessed. THEN my high school did "footloose" for our annual musical… it was 1980s galore that year. does gen know that swayze has passed on?
Emily, She does know… I guess they discussed that at Girl Scouts too…