Shortly before his tragic Sept. 14 death from pancreatic cancer at the age of 57, actor Patrick Swayze completed work on what would be his final performance: the abridged audiobook version of The Time of My Life, the memoir he wrote with his wife, Lisa Niemi, which was published Sept. 29. (According to Jennifer Smith at Simon & Schuster Audioworks, the three-time Golden Globe nominee completed his work in the recording studio on Aug. 23.) Thanks to the good folks at Simon & Schuster Audioworks, we’re able to share three short clips of the late actor reading from his sadly now-posthumous work.
In the first audio clip from The Time of My Life, Swayze talks about shooting the memorable love scene in 1990’s Ghost with costar Demi Moore. “The best love scenes don’t require what I call ‘humpage,’” he notes.
In the second clip, the actor discusses recovering from the death of a loved one, and finding “a positive way to keep their spirit alive in the world, by keeping it alive in yourself.”
In the third clip, he shares how he responded to his pancreatic cancer diagnosis in January 2008. “Show me where the enemy is and I’ll fight ‘em,” he recalls telling his doctor. “Facing your own mortality is the quickest way possible to find out what you’re made of.”
Photo Credit: Andy Bradshaw/Photoshot/Landov
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Not even being a huge Patrick Swayze fan, I only have one thing to say:
Good God, I want to listen to the whole thing now!
wise and real words from a man, not the actor but the man himself….truly uplifting but at the same time heartbreaking. I would like to read the book, but hearing it in his words seems more appealing to me, his voice is calming and draws you into his horrible reality as he tells you his incredible story of strength and integrity, thanks for posting this, these short excerpts were nice to hear.
Dear Lisa,
God love that precious man!
“To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord”.
II Corinthians 5-8.
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints”.
Psalm 116-15.
We love Patrick dearly and are praying for you. God loves you and so do we.
Blessings,
Phyllis and Paul Gooden
Liberty, Tennessee.
God Bless his Soul. He was one of a kind, a man filled with love and kindness. Thank you Lisa for sharing these postings with us.
All my love and prayers to you and the family.
Blessings and Love,
Belkiss Obadia
Silver Spring, MD
realizing that he must have been in pain as he read this, makes it double the joy of listening to it. what a humble Patrick Swayze. I’m sure that God has a special plan for him in the afterlife. God bless his surviving family and give them some sort of peace.
How wonderful that his words are captured in this audiobook! There really is nothing that compares to listening to an autobiography read by the author for giving you the feeling of a private conversation.
I have always been a huge (and I mean huge) Patrick Swayze fan. I never thought I could think more of him than I did…until now. He was and should still be an inspiration to all. Despite his success (which I feel should have been much much bigger) he had always remained grounded and just a normal guy with a wonderful wife. I have fallen in love with Patrick Swayze all over again, and he won’t be soon forgotten, that’s for sure! R.I.P. Patrick, and my condolences to his wife Lisa Niemi as well.
dear lisa- patrick will be missed, but not forgotten! your husband died as a man of honor for giving his fans the truth about his health problem. i too lost a good friend to the same cancer! it was a very hard thing to see as the situation worsened before my eyes. the consolation i have is in knowing that she had a belief in jesus christ! in less than 2 months after her demise, her boyfriend also died while in the hospital awaiting heart surgery from a heart attack. these 2 loved ones i miss very much, but there is nothing i or anyone else can do about it! be strong lisa, remember all the good times that you & patrick shared together! time will heal your loss! let god heal your soul! love you sister! vance brown said this from a broken heart like the one you are dealing with!
i have to of my familey members who has cancer one is my sister the other is my mother my sister has the worst kind of cancer melanoma no its not as bad as what your husband had but i know it must be hard to deal with i told my sister if patrick didnt give up neather should she the docotos gave her 3 months to live thay sad keymo wouldnt work so she hasent gave up shes still going strong but patrick has been a role model for her/ and god has a good man with him my god bless you and your familey
I’ve always admired Patrick Swayze — only one of two “movie stars” that I ever had a crush on in my 59 years! (The other was Paul Newman, also now lost to us.) When a young man, he could have let himself be typecast, he always pushed his limits, and fought against it. It doesn’t surprise me to hear his words about fighting back against his cancer…he has always fought back: first against injuries, then against the prejudice of being a male dancer, against type casting, and then to keep himself grounded and refuse to become one of the “party pretty people” of Hollywood. His strong marriage, his talent, and his strength is an inspiration.
I normally do not like audio books, but this is one I will buy and put close where I can listen when I need the inspiration.
Rest in peace Patrick; and Lisa, know that thousands upon thousands will be praying for you.
Je toho perfektního Kluka škoda. Mel jsem ho moc rád. (Jako perfekního herce) k @ in
Je toho perfektního kluka škoda. Měl jsem ho moc rád.(Jako perfekního herce)k@in.
Thank you for sharing this. What a great tribute to this man and to his marriage.
Oh, Patrick. As if I wasn’t in love with you enough, now this. What a sweet, wonderful man. You deserve those wings, Patrick. xoxo
God rest his soul….
A beautiful man in every way… Strong, kind, handsome, talented….
He’ll be greatly missed…
I am glad Patrick has don this for us all and I can’t find the wright words to say what I want to say because its a feeling and there are now words for. Patrick and Lisa I will thank each of you. Be strong Lisa with the blessing and love of God.We shall see each other, there where all souls are together.Sorry for my bad Englisch.