The success of “Dirty Dancing” launched Patrick Swayze to stardom. But gradually Jennifer Gray disappeared from the spotlight and from the public eye.
More than three decades after its launch, Dirty dance it is considered a classic of the 80s and one of the most successful films of all time.
Set in 1963, it tells the story of Frances “Baby” Houseman (played by Jennifer Gray), who is in a relationship with dance instructor Johnny Castle, played by Patrick Swayze.
Dirty dance grossed over $ 214 million worldwide and won an Oscar for the song (I had) The time of my life.
The audience fell in love with the characters, the music and the iconic dance routines, including the famous “lift”.
The success of the film launched Swayze to stardom, the actor who died of cancer in 2009 at the age of 57.
Jennifer Gray, on the other hand, has disappeared from the spotlight in a few years.
In 2022, Gray released her memoir, in which she presents one of the reasons her film career didn’t take off: a nose operation made her unrecognizable to viewers and prevented major film studios from offering roles. .
The dilemma of the operation
In Out of the corner (Out of the Corner, in free translation), Gray – now 62 – recounts how early in her career, as she struggled for roles, her mother, also actress Jo Wilder, suggested to her that the lack of work might have something to do with his “Jewish” nose.
The actress also thought it might be true, but she always refused to undergo a rhinoplasty.
“I was nearly 30 and spent most of my adult life trying to love and accept myself for who I was,” says the actress. “So going through the hands of a surgeon seemed dangerously close to admitting defeat.”
After the enormous success of Dirty danceshe decided to take a risk and told the famous plastic surgeon that he would operate her to “thin” her nose, but leave the characteristic “bulge” in the septum.
The procedure was a success, and Gray began earning more roles and money for the first time in his life.
In 1992, while filming Wind – The strength of the windsthe film’s cinematographer noticed a piece of cartilage protruding from the tip of his nose.
The actress spoke to her surgeon and a repair operation was scheduled. But the result of this second surgery would change her life forever.
As soon as she managed to remove the bandages, Gray was shocked by what she saw in the mirror. “I couldn’t understand what I was seeing. I knew something bad had happened.”
The procedure changed its appearance so much that the general public no longer recognized it.
“It felt like I had committed an unforgivable crime: deliberately taking away the one thing that made me special,” says Gray. She knew that her nose was originally a physical connection with his Jewish identity of hers.
‘The bottom’
In an interview with reporter Katie Couric last May, Gray reflected on what had happened.
He said his parents’ families were made up of Eastern European Jews and when they arrived in the United States they changed their surnames. And for Jews who have worked in show business (her father is actor Joel Gray, Oscar winner for cabaret), changing the nose “was normal and considered intelligent”.
“My mom knew how the entertainment industry worked and thought it would be easier to get roles because there weren’t many roles for girls who looked like me and were Jewish. There weren’t many opportunities and she wanted me to have more opportunities. he wanted me to have the career he didn’t have. “
According to the actress, after the first operation “she didn’t stop working” and realized that her mother “was right”.
When she had to undergo the second operation, she explicitly told the surgeon that she liked her nose and “wanted a strong nose”.
“After the second operation [o cirurgião] I took off the bandages and something was wrong. She looked at me and said, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a drastic change.’ “
“I don’t know what it did, but it changed the proportion of my face … it looked different in a way that didn’t make sense,” the actress said in an interview with Katie Couric.
“It was the most difficult, lonely and confusing time of my life. It was very devastating. And being so misunderstood around the world for decades … The lack of generosity and humanity hurt me so much.”
According to Gray, after the operation he “couldn’t find a job” or survive.
“I’ve decided to throw in the towel. I’ve never asked anyone to give me their approval or like me again.”
From then on, he had to figure out who he was “without that character, without ‘Dirty Dancing'”.
“And in that solitude I hit rock bottom. And I realized who I was and what I was worth in a way that no one could ever take him away from me again.”
According to Gray, it has been “very difficult” for those close to him who have witnessed this difficult time.
The actress – who is now working on the production of a sequel to Dirty dance – she spent years trying to understand why the audience turned their backs on her after her change of appearance.
“At one point I thought maybe they identified a lot with [a personagem] Baby, they’ve seen themselves in her, because there are few movies where the protagonist looks like them, isn’t perfect or is more human. And he hurt them that (with the operation) I said something, which was not enough “.
“I spent many years thinking about it and I couldn’t find an answer. I just realized that no one was going to save me (…) It was a drama and I realized that I am a very strong person,” Gray said.
“All the difficult things that have happened to me have changed me and I would not want to be someone else (…) Now I am happier than ever and I feel so grateful that I survived. And I don’t think about myself or my nose. that I have contributed in this life, as a mother, as a friend … “
– This text was published in https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/geral-62514028
Source: Terra
Emily Jhon is a product and service reviewer at Gossipify, known for her honest evaluations and thorough analysis. With a background in marketing and consumer research, she offers valuable insights to readers. She has been writing for Gossipify for several years and has a degree in Marketing and Consumer Research from the University of Oxford.
