The Life and Career of Michael J. Fox

 

Television actor, Hollywood star, and philanthropist. The three titles describe Canadian-American Michael Jox. He has captured audiences worldwide with his charm, talent, and perseverance. This is the life and career of Michael J. Fox.

Born and raised in Alberta, Canada, Michael is the son of William and Phyllis Fox. William was a veteran of the Canadian forces and then a police dispatcher while Phyllis was a payroll clerk. Michael described himself as shorter than everybody in school when he was a kid. He joined the Drama club where he took an interest in acting. When he was a teenager, he became more rebellious, like doing drugs, crashing his dad's cars, etc.

One day, Michael's acting teacher throws him a newspaper on a CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) casting call for a sitcom. Michael got his first role in "Leo and Me" which aired from 1978 to 1981. It was about a carefree adventurer who won a yacht in a poker game and had taken his nephew, Jamie (played by Michael) to live with him. Leo and Jamie live on a yacht, and he guides Jamie through tricky but humorous situations.

When Michael turned 18, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. He lived in a crummy studio apartment where he only had a limited amount of furniture, no phone, a few dollars in his pocket, and his only source of food consumption was Mcdonald's. He continued picking up small acting jobs which earned him a minimum wage, his agent taking a 10% paycheck. He also auditioned for the Robert Redford-directed film, Ordinary People. When he was auditioning or acting, he worked for his brother, who was a construction superintendent. 

Paramount Producer and showrunner, Gary David Goldberg, took notice of Michael J. Fox and offers him the role of Alex P. Keaton for a sitcom called Family Ties, one of the most popular shows that aired in the 80s. While Michael did think that he sucked because the casting directors and producers were laughing at him, they were actually impressed and he was signed for the pilot. Pilot episodes are testing sessions for when studio execs, audiences, and viewers to see if they like it so that the show can proceed. When you have an audience reception that's overwhelmingly positive for a sitcom, that's when you know that a sitcom is set for life and will run for many years to come. Family Ties made Michael a television favorite, and Alex P. Keaton a beloved and relatable character.

However, the role that changed Michael's life forever was the iconic role of Marty McFly in Robert Zemeckis' Back to the Future trilogy. He wasn't exactly the first choice for Marty. Eric Stoltz filmed several scenes for the movie, the problems were that Eric was a bit too serious for the role and Michael was still doing Family Ties, which came with the risk of schedule conflicts. His agent, Gary, Robert, and Steven Spielberg came up with a compromise, Michael would do both projects at the same time. Michael would be picked up from his apartment to the Family Ties set and then he would be at Back to the Future in the evenings. A pretty hectic schedule for an actor. Back to the Future ended up making 20,000,000.00 in its opening weekend of June 21st, 1985, and earned 388 million overall. This made Michael the highest-paid actor at the time. When the movie that you star in earns around 400 million at the global box office, you're set for life. Michael's face was plastered in every major magazine, including Rolling Stone, Vogue, People, US, Esquire, TV Guide, GQ, etc. 

Michael also took the time to find romance. On the set of Family Ties, he met fellow actress, Tracy Pollan who played his college love interest, Ellen Reed. They both immediately began to date and they both got married in 1988 and have begin together for 30 years. They have 4 children, a son Sam, twin girls, Annabelle and Schuyler, and another girl, Esmé. 

One morning around June 1991 when he was shooting for a movie called Doc Hollywood, Michael woke up in his hotel room and noticed that his pinkie was twitching. He went to the doctor and was told that he has Parkinson's Disease, an incurable neurological disorder that causes uncontrollable movements such as shaking, stiffness, and difficulty with balance and coordination. Michael wasn't going to let it affect his career as he continued acting until the mid-2000s. Michael starred in another sitcom called Spin City, where plays a deputy NYC mayor in the semi-fictionalized version of the mayor's office. Michael started to drink heavily and grew depressed, but he soon got help. In 1998, he finally went public with his condition. In 2000, Michael had to leave Spin City, and his role was taken over by Charlie Sheen. He continued acting by getting recurring roles in several shows including Scrubs, The Good Wife, Rescue Me, and Designated Survivor. He also voiced Stuart Little in the live-action Stuart Little movies in the early 2000s.

After Michael's Parkinsons' became public, he and Tracy began a trust fund for research into Parkinson's which later grew into The Michael J. Fox Foundation. Michael's contributions led him to earn respectable accolades like an honorary doctorate in medicine from Karolina Institute and a doctorate in laws from the University of British Columbia. 

It also hasn't been easy for Michael, as his condition continues to worsen. He has fallen several times has broken bones and is having trouble with his speech. In an interview with Jane Pauley from CBS This Morning, he said "I'm not gonna lie. It's getting harder. Every day it's tougher."

That is the life and career of Michael J. Fox. From being a struggling young actor to being a Hollywood star to being an advocate for Parkinson's. 

You can also watch the new Apple TV+ documentary, Still: A Michael J. Fox documentary for more.