Michael J. Fox

By Tom Kirvan

The title of his memoir, “No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality,” says plenty about Michael J. Fox’s acting career and, more importantly, his outlook on life.

Born June 9, 1961, in Edmonton, Canada, Fox rose to fame on the NBC sitcom “Family Ties” (1982-89) and the “Back to the Future” film trilogy (1985-90) in which he portrayed Marty McFly.

In writing the book, Fox reflected on his life and his ongoing battle with Parkinson’s disease. He used the title to highlight how he looks ahead with optimism rather than dwelling on the past or lamenting the future he did not originally envision.

An award-winning film and TV actor, Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991 but chose not to reveal his condition until 1998 when his health began to noticeably decline. Suddenly, he became a face of the disease and a powerful advocate for finding a cure. In 2000, he founded The Michael J. Fox Foundation to help fund research efforts, as worsening symptoms forced him to curtail his acting career.

“For everything that’s taken away, something of greater value has been given,” Fox said in the wake of his health challenges.

Michael J. Fox*

“It was one of the great ironies of my life that only when it became virtually impossible for me to keep my body from moving would I find the peace, security, and spiritual strength to stand in one place,” he reflected.

The fifth of six children, Fox began his acting career at the age of 16, starring in the Canadian television series “Leo and Me.” He moved to Los Angeles in 1979 as his acting career continued to gain traction.

As Parkinson’s began to rule his life in 2020, Fox announced that he would retire from acting, saying that “not being able to speak reliably is a game-breaker for an actor” and that he was experiencing memory loss. Yet, he continues to make periodic TV appearances, many of which cast him in roles related to his own health challenges.

In 2024, Time magazine honored him as among the most influential people in the field of health, principally due to helping raise more than $1 billion for Parkinson’s research efforts.

“When the cure for Parkinson’s is found – and it will be – it will be because of all of us, working together,” Fox declared.

*Paul Hudson (original)Supernino (derivative work), CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons