On a somber occasion, Michael J. Fox shared the heartbreaking news with his fans that on September 24th of 2022 his mother, Phyllis Fox had passed away at the age of ninety-two – only two weeks prior to this momentous day. While appearing at New York Comic Con alongside co-star Christopher Lloyd from Back To The Future, the sixty-one-year-old actor revealed this sad information in an honest and moving address for all present.
Fox told an anecdote about his mother’s disapproval of his hectic work schedule in the 1980s. During this time, Fox had a job shooting Family Ties during the day and then traveled to film with Back to the Future co-stars at night! Clearly, Fox was no stranger to tireless hard work.
Fox stated, “I was 23 years old, and I called her. She was in Canada, and I said, ‘They want me to do this Steven Spielberg movie, but I have to do it at night, and I have to do Family Ties in the daytime.’ And she said, ‘You’ll be too tired.’”
It’s evident that Fox’s mother was shielding her cherished son. Michael J. Fox is an acclaimed Canadian-American actor.
In response to his mother’s complaints of overworking, he uttered, “I live for this kind of tired. It’ll be okay.”
Fox continued, “To this day — well, till two weeks ago — my mother thought it was a really bad idea for me to do Back to the Future. She loved the movie, [but she was right], I got tired.”
Phyllis Fox, born in 1929 in Winnipeg, Manitoba will always be remembered by her beloved son Michael and two cherished daughters Jackie and Kelli. She was adored by her nine grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, and one precious great-great-grandchild who she held dearly to her heart.
As stated in her obituary, Phyllis “took special pride in raising awareness for Diabetes and Parkinson’s Disease, and in serving on the board of the Michael J Fox Theatre in Burnaby.”
During his New York Comic Con appearance, Fox not only discussed the passing of his mother but also courageously opened up about being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1998. He said although the condition has advanced over time, he is fortunate to have access to high-quality medical care and remains hopeful for what lies ahead.
“Well, in the last year, I’ve broken my cheek, my eye socket, my hand, my elbow … my shoulder. I had a rough year of getting beat up. But that was really cool because it made me realize … with gratitude, it’s sustainable,” he said.
“If you can find something to be grateful for if you can find something and say, ‘Well, that’s good,’… It’ll always get better… I’m very optimistic.”
He continued, “I’d say optimism is thinking that things are more likely to get better than they are to get worse. If you believe in that, and you are grateful for it, that’ll sustain you the rest of your life.”
