LOS ANGELES — Actor Patrick Swayze died Monday after a nearly two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 57.

The Hollywood favorite was surrounding by friends and family at the time of his death, his publicist told the Associated Press.

Swayze first rose to fame in the 1987 feature film "Dirty Dancing. His career would catapult even further three years later when he starred alongside Demi Moore in "Ghost."

The Texas native most recently starred in the A&E series "The Beast," a project that he took on despite being diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer in January 2008. A&E President Bob DeBitetto later called Swayze's acting performance "an inspiration to us all."

"I think everybody thought I was out of my mind, you know, thinking I'm gonna pull off a TV show," Swayze told Barbara Walters in a televised interview last year.

During his in-depth chat with Walters, Swayze opened up about his cancer fight.

"There's a lot of fear here," he said. "There's a lot of stuff going on. Yeah, I'm scared. Yeah, I'm angry. Yeah, I'm [asking] why me. Yeah, I'm all this stuff."

Swayze also praised his wife of 34 years, Lisa, for giving him the strength to fight on.

"I have no greater respect for any other human being on this earth like I have for her," he said. "Part of me says I couldn't have made it through without her, but, of course, the other part of me says I could have, but not nearly as elegantly as I have."

Swayze also told Walters that his illness had made him think more about the afterlife.

"I don't know what's on the other side," he said. "It tests everything I believe in … that here is something unique in all of us that does not, does not die."

Swayze said he didn't feel alone in his fight to survive, confessing that it felt like he had the help of several guardian angels – including his late father – watching over him.

Said Swayze: "I'm trying to shut up and let my angels speak to me and, and tell me what I'm supposed to do."