Biography

The son of a Canadian military career officer, actor Michael J. Fox made his TV debut in Vancouver at the age of 15. Three years later, he moved to the U.S., living in spartan conditions until he was able to get his green card. Things started breaking for Fox in 1980, when he made his simultaneous American TV and movie bow, winning a regular role on the weekly series Palmerstown USA and a supporting part in the theatrical film Midnight Madness. Previously billed as Michael Fox, the actor was compelled by the Screen Actors Guild to add the "J" to his name to avoid confusion with an older character actor also named Michael Fox. At 5' 4", the baby-faced Fox was able to play adolescents and teenagers well into his 20s; during the early stages of his career, however, his height lost him as many roles as he won.

Fox had sold all his furniture and was subsisting on macaroni and cheese at the time he won his star-making role as junior conservative Alex P. Keaton on the long-running (1982-1989) sitcom Family Ties. Before the series ran its course, Fox won three Emmys, one of them for an unforgettable "one-man show" in which his character soliloquized over the suicide of a close friend. Fox's movie career caught fire after he replaced Eric Stoltz in the role of time-travelling teen Marty McFly in Back to the Future (1985), an enormous hit which spawned two sequels. Not all of Fox's subsequent movie projects have been so successful (though several, notably The Secret of My Success (1987) and Casualties of War (1989), have been commendable efforts to expand Fox's range). Though in more recent years the actor seemed to be having difficulty finding the vehicle that would put him back on top, Fox continues to keep busy. In the fall of 1996 he returned to television in the ABC sitcom Spin City wherein he starred as Michael Flaherty, the Deputy Mayor of New York City. That same year, he could also be seen in Tim Burton's Mars Attacks! and Peter Jackson's The Frighteners. In 1999, the diminutive actor lent his talents to another wee man, voicing the title character of Stuart Little for the film adaptation of E.B. White's beloved children's book about a walking, talking mouse.

Married to actress Tracy Pollan, who played his long-time girl friend on Family Ties, since 1988, Fox has credited her with helping him survive his battle with Parkinson's Disease, which he was diagnosed with in 1991. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Filmography

Magic 7, The (2003) (TV) (voice)
Back to the Future: Making the Trilogy (2002) (V) .... Himself
Stuart Little 2 (2002) (voice) .... Stuart Little
NBC 75th Anniversary Special (2002) (TV) .... Himself
... aka NBC 75th Anniversary Celebration (2002) (TV) (USA)
Interstate 60 (2002) (uncredited) .... Mr. Baker
... aka Interstate 60: Episodes of the Road (2002) (USA)
Concert for New York City (2001) (TV) .... Himself
Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) (voice) .... Milo James Thatch
Saturday Night Live: Presidential Bash 2000 (2000) (TV) (archive footage) .... Dan Quayle
David Blaine: Frozen in Time (2000) (TV) .... Himself
51st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, The (1999) (TV) .... Himself/Presenter, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Saturday Night Live: The Best of Chris Rock (1999) (TV) .... Steve Charlton
Stuart Little (1999) (voice) .... Stuart Little
"Healthy Kids" (1998) TV Series .... Himself
Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen's (1998) (uncredited) .... Himself
I Am Your Child (1997) (TV) .... Himself
"Spin City" (1996) TV Series .... Michael 'Mike' Flaherty (1996-2000)
Mars Attacks! (1996) .... Jason Stone
Frighteners, The (1996) .... Frank Bannister
... aka Frighteners (1997) (UK)
... aka Robert Zemeckis Presents: The Frighteners (1996) (USA: complete title)
Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco (1996) (voice) .... Chance
Your Studio and You (1995) .... Himself
American President, The (1995) .... Lewis Rothschild
Blue in the Face (1995) .... Pete Maloney
Coldblooded (1995) .... Tim Alexander
... aka Reluctant Hitman, The (1995) (Australia: video title)
Don't Drink the Water (1994) (TV) .... Axel Magee
Greedy (1994) .... Daniel McTeague
Where the Rivers Flow North (1993) .... Clayton Farnsworth
For Love or Money (1993) .... Doug Ireland
... aka Concierge, The (1993) (Australia) (USA: working title)
Life with Mikey (1993) .... Michael Chapman
... aka Give Me a Break (1993)
Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey (1993) (voice) .... Chance
James Cagney: Top of the World (1992) (TV) .... Host
Trap, The (1991) (TV)
Doc Hollywood (1991) .... Dr. Benjamin Stone
Hard Way, The (1991) .... Nick Lang/Ray Casanov
Reach for the Stars 1990: The Official Boston Bruins Video (1990) (V) (voice) .... Narrator
Sex, Buys & Advertising (1990) (TV)
Secrets of the Back to the Future Trilogy, The (1990) (TV) .... Himself/Marty McFly (footage from the films)
Back to the Future Part III (1990) .... Martin 'Marty' McFly / 'Clint Eastwood', Seamus McFly
Miles Turns 21 (1990) (TV) .... Himself
Back to the Future Part II (1989) .... Marty McFly/ Marty McFly Junior/ Marlene McFly
Casualties of War (1989) .... Eriksson
Return of Bruno, The (1988) .... Himself
Bright Lights, Big City (1988) .... Jamie Conway
Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam (1988) (TV) (voice) .... Pfc. Raymond Griffiths
... aka Dear America (1988) (TV)
Funny, You Don't Look 200: A Constitutional Vaudeville (1987) (TV) .... Himself
Secret of My Succe$s, The (1987) .... Brantley Foster aka Carlton Whitfield
Light of Day (1987) .... Joe Rasnick
NBC 60th Anniversary Celebration (1986) (TV) .... Himself
Family Ties Vacation (1985) (TV) .... Alex P. Keaton
Bob Hope Buys NBC? (1985) (TV) .... Himself
Teen Wolf (1985) .... Scott Howard
Back to the Future (1985) .... Martin 'Marty' McFly / 'Calvin Klein'
Poison Ivy (1985) (TV) .... Dennis Baxter
High School U.S.A. (1983) (TV) (as Michael Fox) .... Jay-Jay Manners
"Family Ties" (1982) TV Series .... Alex P. Keaton
Class of 1984 (1982) .... Arthur
Trouble in High Timber Country (1980) (TV) .... Thomas Elston
... aka Yeagers, The (1980) (TV)
"Palmerstown, U.S.A." (1980) TV Series .... Willy-Joe Hall
... aka "Palmerstown" (1980) (USA: short title)
Midnight Madness (1980) .... Scott
Letters from Frank (1979) (TV) .... Ricki
"Leo and Me" (1976) TV Series (as Mike Fox) .... Jamie