Michael J. Fox Quick Info | |
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Height | 5 ft 4¼ in |
Weight | 66 kg |
Date of Birth | June 9, 1961 |
Zodiac Sign | Gemini |
Spouse | Tracy Pollan |
Michael J. Fox is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, author, and film producer along with being a socialist and an activist. He started his career at an early age of 14 where he portrayed the role of a 10-year-old boy in Leo and Me (1978). Since then, he has acted in over 37 movies and more than 35 TV series along with producing and directing few movies. His acting has earned him many nominations and has awarded him with multiple Primetime Emmy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards and the most prestigious Grammy Award.
Given the nature of his father’s job, Michael traveled to different cities of Canada, finally settling in Burnaby, a large suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia after his father’s retirement. Though he did move to Los Angeles pertaining to his movie career at the age of 18, however later, after his marriage, he moved back to Vancouver. It was while auditioning in Vancouver, for Leo and Me (1978), that he discovered his love and desire for acting which later turned into his passion.
Michael has done many movies and acted in a number of TV series. He has lent his voice in movies such as Stuart Little and Atlantis: The Lost Empire. He rose to fame with the movie Back To The Future franchise, where he played the character of Marty McFly. This earned him his fan’s love and recognition. The first movie of the franchise was released in 1985 with the sequels getting released in the later years. They stated that Marty was synonymous with Michael J. Fox and that they cannot imagine any sequel without him and thus, they ensured that they have all the final rights of the franchise so that nobody else can attempt to make a remake film. Such was his aura and effect!
Fox received a setback in 1992 when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He was just 31 at that time. He made his disease public 6 years later, i.e in 1998 and decided to partly retire from the movies in 2000 since his condition was worsening. Though this disease came at an early age, Michael did not give up and rather decided to fight his condition. He went on to research work, in the zest of finding a cure for this disease, and founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation, for which, Sweden’s Karolinska Institute gave him an honoris causa doctorate on March 5, 2010. He also decided to share his experience with people and his fans and thus wrote the 3 books on his memories related to Parkinson’s disease and other things, he had to deal with in his life. They were –
Lucky Man: A Memoir (2002)
Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist (2009) and
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future: Twists and Turns and Lessons Learned (2010)
Fox never allowed his disease to take over him, it rather made him stronger and determined to speed up his research on the disease. He is highly optimistic which can be sensed in how he responds to people’s questions [on being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease]. This is what he has to say on his disease “If 2 + 2 = 4 every time, what good is it? That’s no fun.”
Fox had a positive approach towards life, once when he shared his thought he would drop out of high school to pursue an acting career. His teacher told him, “Fox, you’re not going to be cute forever”, to which Fox responded, “Maybe just long enough, sir”. When he retold the story on David Letterman’s show in 2011, Fox added, “It turns out we were both right”.
Born Name
Michael Andrew Fox
Nick Name
Mike
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Sun Sign
Gemini
Born Place
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Residence
Nationality
Canadian-American
Education
He has attended Burnaby Central Secondary School and later Burnaby South Secondary School.
He also received an honorary degree (Doctor of Laws) from the University of British Columbia on May 22, 2008.
Occupation
Actor, comedian, voice-over artist, author, producer & director
Family
- Father – William Fox (Police Officer)
- Mother – Phyllis (née Piper) (Actress /Payroll Clerk) (Died in 2022)
- Siblings – Kelli Fox (Younger Sister) (Stage & Television Actress), Karen Fox (Sister), Jacki Fox (Sister), Steven Fox (Brother)
- Others – Michael Pollan (Brother-in-law) (Producer), Gary David Goldberg (Acting Mentor)
Manager
Michael is represented by United Talent Agency.
Build
Slim
Height
5 ft 4¼ in or 163 cm
Weight
66 kg or 145.5 pounds
Girlfriend / Spouse
Michael has dated –
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Race / Ethnicity
White
He is of Irish, English, and Scottish descent.
Hair Color
Dark Brown
Eye Color
Light Blue
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Has a distinctive youthful voice
- Short stature
Shoe Size
Nothing specific has been said about the shoe size Michael wore, however, Nike Inc. made a shoe, Nike Mag (limited edition), donned by the character Marty McFly (played by Michael J. Fox) in the movie Back To The Future Part 2. The shoe was specifically designed for this movie to meet the requirement of the character, a lot of research and creativity went into the making of the shoe by Tinker Hatfield. The shoes were made in different sizes because of different shoe sizes of Michael and the stunt doubles.
No shoe has ever gathered such popularity or stardom as this one. The Nike Mag worn by Michael was put on sale and all the money received was diverted to Michael J. Fox Foundation for conducting research on Parkinson’s Disease. Around $6.75 million was raised with the help of Nike via two auctions, one in Hong Kong and the other in London.
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Brand Endorsements
Indirectly, he has endorsed Nike Mags.
He has campaigned for the nonprofitable purpose of promoting research on stem cells, thus advocating for the American politician Claire McCaskill (United States Senator; 2009 to 2019).
Religion
Judaism
Best Known For
- His role as Marty McFly in the movie Back to the Future franchise (1985, 1989 & 1990)
- Playing Alex P. Keaton on the sitcom Family Ties (1982–1989)
- Playing the role as Mike Flaherty on the ABC sitcom Spin City (1996–2000, 2001)
- Setting up the “Michael J. Fox Foundation”, a research institute to find a cure for Parkinson’s Disease
First Film
In 1980, Michael made his theatrical film debut with the comedy film Midnight Madness where he played the role as Scott Larson.
First TV Show
In 1973, Michael made his debut TV show appearance on the adventure comedy series The Beachcombers.
Personal Trainer
Not much is known about his workout and diet, but, Michael J. Fox strongly believes that exercise has therapeutic benefits for people with PD.
His food habit is categorized as flexitarian, mostly plant, but at times, he indulges in non-vegetarian dishes.
Michael J. Fox Favorite Things
- Color – Blue
- Movie – Back to the Future (1985)
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Michael J. Fox Facts
Featured Image by Paul Hudson / Flickr / CC BY 2.0
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