At 10:29 AM 2000/05/09 -0500, Terry Kempf <[log in to unmask]> wrote, in part:
>... on the Internet, go to tvguide.com, and click on TV GUIDE MAGAZINE.
>There is a fairly long interview with Michael Fox. ...


A GRACEFUL GOODBYE


Spin City star Michael J. Fox talks about how it feels to walk away from series TV and how he plans to wage war against Parkinson’s disease.

Michael J. Fox has always been someone you want to root for - whether as smart-aleck Alex P. Keaton in 'Family Ties', slacker Marty McFly in the 'Back to the Future' trilogy or deputy mayor Michael Flaherty in 'Spin City'.

In each of these roles and in his performances in such films as 'Casualties of War' and 'The American President', he has captured the bright young man whose endearing self-confidence helps him succeed despite overwhelming odds.

So, in 1998, when Fox publicly revealed that he had had Parkinson’s disease for the past seven years - a progressive neurological disorder that as yet has no cure - his fans rallied round him, deluging him with cards and letters of support. In January, Fox, 38, announced that he would leave Spin City (except for occasional appearances next season) and redirect his time and energy. (Charlie Sheen, whom Fox calls "a great actor and a great guy," will be the series’s new star.)

Since then, Fox has devoted himself to his family (he and his wife, actress Tracy Pollan, 39, have three kids, Sam, 10, and 5-year-old twin daughters Aquinnah and Schuyler) and to the fight for a cure for Parkinson’s.

He has lobbied Congress for research funding, set up the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research and is developing a Web site so that fans can contribute to his cause.

As upbeat and animated as always, Fox recently sat down in New York City with TV Guide editor-in-chief Steven Reddicliffe to talk about how he feels - both physically and emotionally - about leaving TV and about what lies ahead.


TV Guide: How are you doing now that you’ve filmed the final show?

Michael J. Fox: There’s a feeling of accomplishment and pride. There are obviously bittersweet feelings about friendships... But once I gathered the cast in my dressing room and talked to them about [my decision to leave] - it was certainly emotional and a big shock to them. And trust me, you don’t want to be the person who gets all these people together and says, "Guess what? You may be out of work." But once I told them, I didn’t regret it for a second.

TVG: Did you think about it a long time?

MJF: I did. What I couldn’t anticipate was how good it would feel to be able to represent my whole self. It was a big change not having to go through the motions that were required in keeping this to myself. And it became very liberating. I started to think, "If I can do 100 episodes, that will be terrific." And I kind of had a wait-and-see attitude. As I went into the beginning of last year, we were energized by the presence of Heather [Locklear]. It was a real coup for us, and for me personally, because she took so much of the load off.

[But] as we got toward Christmas, I started to think, "I want to be with my family." And I’d done some things in Washington, and I really started to feel a part of the Parkinson’s community and to be energized by the potential for breakthroughs. My daughters are 5 and going into school. That’s a special time. My father was in the military and he didn’t have that kind of time. If I [do] and I can afford it, I should take it.

So I thought, "I’ll go on vacation." Because my memories were that over the summer I felt so much better. So we went to the Caribbean [during the Christmas break from the show]. And sure enough, I get down there and I feel better. And I’m cutting back on medication and relaxing and just having a great time. One day I go out snorkeling and I’m following this sea turtle around, just floating above it. And I got out of the water and walked up to Tracy on the beach and said, "I’m done." I came back and started to tell people.

TVG: Do you wish you had done it earlier?

MJF: No. I came in [to do] 100 episodes. I’m stubborn. And I do believe that what has kept me fundamentally happy and optimistic is that I accept things. I take things as they come and put one foot in front of the other. But at the same time I am competitive and willful. I like to win. Sometimes I can let things go, but they have scratch marks on them.

TVG: Have you talked to Muhammad Ali, or Janet Reno, who also have Parkinson’s?

MJF: I’d love to speak to Ali. I haven’t. I’m going to call him and set something up soon. Before I had Parkinson’s, this man was a hero of mine. I have a photograph of him in my dressing room. He’s one of the first people I spoke to [my son about] at length, when he was old enough to understand the idea of heroes and role models. I showed him 'When We Were Kings'. I idolized Ali’s principles, his strength - I even admired his stubbornness and his foolishness in allowing himself to be hurt the way that he was. I would love to find a way to be involved with him on something.

TVG: Would you say fighting this disease is now your mission?

MJF: It’s my mission inasmuch as it’s something that I’m extremely committed to. At the risk of sounding like I’m bucking for papal recognition or something, it very quickly became not about me. It’s about the whole thing. It’s not a mission to save myself. Because I’m very optimistic.

TVG: How involved are you in your own care?

MJF: [I’m involved] to the extent I know what the drugs are and what they do. And I’ve also had [brain surgery] that helped me tremendously. But anybody who has Parkinson’s is only the expert on their Parkinson’s. Because it’s a very idiosyncratic, anomalous condition.

TVG: So you’re not intimidated by that. You want to know it all?

MJF: Oh, absolutely. The reason I have a sunny disposition is that I’m equal parts optimistic and realistic.

TVG: How did you tell your children about this?

MJF: There’d be little tiny things, like they’ll say, "Can you read a story?" And if I’m between doses of medication, there’s a transition period where it’s sometimes difficult to have some dexterity. And I’ll say, "Yeah, I can read to you. You’ve got to hold the book." And they’ll say, "Why?" And I’ll say, "Because I’ll have a hard time holding it right now." And that’s about all you can do with my 5-year-olds.

With my son, who has always been scientifically oriented, he has a book - that big brain book. And I take the thing out and go, "This makes this stop, and it doesn’t make it [stop] for me." When I had my surgery, I talked to him about it. [I] could be very matter-of-fact.

TVG: Was he worried?

MJF: No, he hasn’t said so. But a little while ago I was having a conversation with him, and my right hand was tremoring a bit, and he was listening to me. And he was right in my eyes. He didn’t break. He just put his hand on my hand and kept listening to me. And it was this great moment. I finished the conversation and walked away. I said [to Tracy], "I had no idea that anyone could be that empathetic." He was just kind of saying, "You know, it’s fine. Don’t be distracted by that because it has nothing to do with us."

In a way I’m grateful for [having the disease]. Because there wasn’t this balance. When you’re 29 years old, which is the age I was when I was diagnosed, and you’ve had a winning streak like I had - [it feels] right that I would get a bag of hammers. Not to get too mawkish about it, but I didn’t become a man until I had this. And it has given me kind of a serenity and a clarity that I wouldn’t have had otherwise. But all said and done, I’m not going to run out of money. There’s steaks in the fridge and life is good.

TVG: Do you need to produce or direct or act to feel fulfilled at this point?

MJF: Not from the point of view of there being an outside reaction to it. I’m a creative person, and so I’ll always do that. I’d like to write a book. I have a title: How to Lose Your Brain Without Losing Your Mind.

TVG: Are you still playing hockey?

MJF: I played hockey this winter, which was great. I got out on the ice and I was flying. I went skiing this winter. But there are losses.

TVG: Like what?

MJF: I’m slower than I was. I’m not as dexterous. I’m as strong as I was, but not as agile. People ask, "What does it feel like?" - and it’s a great question, as opposed to "How are you doing?"

Because it feels interesting. It feels like all kinds of things. There’s weird things. There’s this freezing element to it, which is strange. One day [Spin City co-star] Michael [Boatman]...was coming out of the makeup room and Michael - I just love him to death - he’s coming out of the makeup door and I’m walking in. We met in the doorway. He stopped and I stopped. And I said to him, "You have to move." He said, "Why?" And I’m thinking, "Oh, my God, this is terrible. He’s thinking that I’m saying, ‘I’m the big shot here and you have to move." I’m not - literally, he had to move or my body would not recognize that it was now OK for me to move. Is that a loss? Is that weird? I don’t know.

TVG: What about Tracy? Has this made you closer?

MJF: It’s hard to say, because we were always so tight. When was I diagnosed, 1991? We were married in 1988. So we’d been married for three years. We’ve now been married for 12 years. Seventy-five percent of our marriage has been dealing with this reality. It’s touching to me as I think about it now, but it is amazing. It is a tremendously close friendship. And I have a huge amount of respect and love and feeling of pride [for] Tracy.

Also, you know, I get to go to the beach with this woman. She’s unbelievable. I mean, there are 21-year-old girls walking by today that I wouldn’t waste my time taking my eyes off my wife to look at. I mean she’s just - she’s stunning and she’s funny.

That’s the other thing about her, she’s just funny. I’ll say, "Honey, can you cut this bagel?" And I’m waiting for my pill to kick in and she’ll go, "OK, brain disease, right?" So yeah, it’s good.

TVG: In a previous TV Guide story, you talked about drinking, another challenge in your life at one point.

MJF: Well, yeah. I couldn’t be partying when I was trying to deal with this. I wasn’t this maniac, but I needed to completely change my lifestyle to take care of my body. And so I said, "I can’t drink." I was never an out-of-control, you know, maniac. But I couldn’t even afford to be a not-out-of-control maniac. I couldn’t afford to be your Uncle Larry who has too many on the weekend at the barbecue. I wanted to deal with this and be present for this. So I haven’t had a drink in, like, eight years.

TVG: Was that hard?

MJF: It wasn’t. Actually, it was fairly easy. Cigarettes are hard.

TVG: You’ve had two hugely successful shows. Do you think about your comedy legacy?

MJF: I don’t know about legacy. I love doing that for a living. I look forward to having another chance to do it. And I think about - I don’t know if teaching is the word - but there are crafts and customs and techniques and philosophies [of comedy]. What people call the Komedy Kollege, with two ks. I’d love to see that stay alive.

TVG: You like making people laugh.

MJF: I love making people laugh. But I don’t think of myself as a particularly funny person. Sure, I can be witty - but I’m not a laugh riot. If you’ve got good writing, there’s just a rhythm you get into. And I can’t explain the rhythm, but it’s just a joy. And when I started to have this physical situation and then I started to do Spin City and I’m [thinking], "I’d like to do that, but [if] my pill’s not working the next time I do it, am I boxing myself into a corner?" So what the legacy is, I don’t know. I hope people watch the show in reruns and laugh. I know that I worked real hard at it and I never took it for granted.

TVG: Do you worry about your kids in all of this?

MJF: Oh, no, it can be a drama for everybody else. It’s not a drama for me. I don’t know whether it’s a proverb or Confucius or the Bible - but there’s this story about God or some deity getting a group of people together and saying, "Everybody take their worst problem and put it in the middle of the circle. Step back. Now step forward and take a problem out." And everybody takes their own back. And I would take this one back because I know it.

And I’m completely confident that in my fifties this will be gone. Which means I’m going to take a little bit of an ass kicking for a few years. You’re 5-foot-4 and you played hockey all your life - I’m used to ass kickings.

What’s a unique privilege and a unique gift - it may be with full acknowledgement of the fact that researchers and scientists and doctors and other people are going to do the work here - but maybe my being in this position can, in a small way, influence the outcome of [the battle against Parkinson’s]. I mean, God, who wouldn’t give the world for that?


BY MICHAEL LOGAN

TV Guide Online - [Feature Story]
<A HREF="http://www.tvguide.com/magazine/issues/000508/magftr1.asp">
http://www.tvguide.com/magazine/issues/000508/magftr1.asp</A>

janet paterson
53 now / 41 dx / 37 onset
613 256 8340 / PO Box 171 Almonte Ontario K0A 1A0 Canada
come visit my website "a new voice" at:
http://www.geocities.com/janet313/