Cynthia Rhodes began her career as a dancer. However, fate wanted her to become famous as an actress. For most viewers, this charming woman was remembered for her role as Penny Johnson in Dirty Dancing. Flash Dance, Lost, are other successful films featuring Cynthia. Rhodes left her career to devote herself to raising three sons, so she can not boast of a lot of bright roles. What is her story?
Cynthia Rhodes: the beginning of the road
The star of "Dirty Dancing" was born in Tennessee, it happened in November 1956. The actress's childhood passed in Nashville. Cynthia Rhodes was born into a Baptist family, brought up in severity. The lessons learned from her parents had a great influence on her future life.
As a child, Rhodes was seriously fond of dancing, achieved significant success in this area. It is not surprising that she began her path to fame as a dancer. For several years, Cynthia worked in the amusement park Opryland USA, which is located in her native Nashville.
First roles
On the set, Cynthia Rhodes first got in 1983. A talented girl was offered a small role in the melodrama "Flash Dance". The picture tells the story of Alex, who dreams of a ballerina career. During the day she works at the factory and is engaged in choreography, and in the evenings she works as a dancer in a nightclub. Alex's life changes when she has a beautiful and rich boyfriend.
In the same year, the musical drama "Lost" was presented to the audience. Cynthia Rhodes played the main female role in this film, and John Travolta became her colleague on the set . The film tells about the adventures of dancers who dream to conquer Broadway.
Cynthia played the main female role in the fantastic action movie "Robot Hunt", which was released in 1984. The events of the picture unfold in the near future. Policeman Jack Ramsey specializes in neutralizing crazy or broken robots. He is faced with a mysterious incident, which killed several people. As soon as a policeman attacks the trail of an attacker, his ten-year-old son is kidnapped. The boy’s life depends on whether his father makes the right decision.
"Dirty Dancing"
The first films with Cynthia Rhodes were successful with the audience. However, the famous actress woke up thanks to the role of Penny Johnson in the musical melodrama Dirty Dancing. The film tells the love story of a young innocent beauty from a wealthy family and a professional dancer, sophisticated in matters of love. Johnny not only stirs up passion in Baby’s heart, but also introduces her to the magical world of rhythm and blues dancing.
In Dirty Dancing, Rhodes is assigned the role of Penny, Johnny's partner. The girl is pregnant by the waiter Robbie, who is in love with another. The guy’s betrayal makes her decide on an underground abortion, which almost costs her life.
Screen image
As already mentioned, Cynthia Rhodes, whose photo can be seen in the article, was born in a religious family. The upbringing received from the Baptist parents affected her career. Cynthia invariably made sure that her on-screen image remained clean. She refused many interesting roles, which implied her participation in scenes with nudity. She also rejected the offer to star in the cover of Playboy magazine.
Actor Sylvester Stallone once joked that Cynthia would rather leave work on the set forever than commit an act that her father and mother would not like.
Marriage, family
Cynthia Rhodes and Richard Marx got married in 1989. Soon after, the actress left a successful career to devote herself to the family. The last film with her participation was presented to the audience in 1991. We are talking about the film “The Curse of the Crystal Eye”, in which Cynthia embodied the image of Vicki Philips.
Married to Marx, Rhodes gave birth to three sons. Their first-born Brandon Caleb was born in 1990. In 1992, Lucas Connor was born, and in 1994, Jesse Taylor. Over the years, Richard and Cynthia have made the impression of a perfect match. The musician did not get tired of repeating about how lucky he was with his life partner, dedicated his songs to his wife. In 2014, Rhodes and Marx shocked the public with their divorce. The reasons for the separation of the spouses remained behind the scenes, as the actress and musician did not want to make dirty linen in public.