Michael J. Fox Lectures At The Fox 11/10

Michael J. Fox knows the importance of being earnest. It's his trademark. It's allowed him to go comfortably from playing lovable conservative Alex P. Keaton on NBC's "Family Ties" to capturing on film the deep angst of a Vietnam-era soldier in "Casualties of War."

And since 1998 he has turned that earnestness to the dual battle of his life - his private struggle with Parkinson's and the public fight to clear the way for the research to cure it.

On Wednesday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. at Jorgensen, the perpetually boyish Fox will deliver a free lecture, entitled, after his latest book, "Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist."

Fox launched The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research in 2000 in an effort to raise much-needed research funding and awareness for Parkinson's disease. Along the way, he has been an informed spokesman in the national debate about stem cell research. He wholeheartedly believes that the public's influence on medical and political thought is the key to pinpointing the cause of Parkinson's and uncovering a cure in our lifetime.

The Canadian-born Fox is best known for his stronghold on TV stardom with "Family Ties" in the '80s and in the role of New York deputy mayor Michael Flaherty, created for him in ABC's "Spin City" in the mid-'90s. He received Emmy and Golden Globe honors for both series. In "Spin City," shot entirely in New York City and after his 1991 diagnosis with Parkinson's, Fox did everything from galloping bareback through Central Park to jumping into the Hudson River. He left the series in 2000 but has since guest-starred on "Rescue Me," "Boston Legal" and "Scrubs."

He and "Family Ties" co-star Tracy Pollan married in 1988 and had four children, leading him to projects suited to the younger set. Fox voiced Chance the dog in Disney's "Homeward Bound" movies and the title character in Sony's "Stuart Little." He made his animated film debut in "Atlantis The Lost Empire" for The Walt Disney Co. in 2001.

His best-known film work was in the "Back to the Future" trilogy, now celebrating its 25th anniversary, but he also starred in "The Hard Way," "Doc Hollywood," "The Secret of My Success," Bright Lights, Big City," "Light of Day," "Teen Wolf," "Casualties of War," "Life With Mikey," "For Love or Money," "The American President," "Greedy," "The Frighteners," and "Mars Attacks!" His 2002 memoir, "Lucky Man," made the New York Times bestseller list, as did his newest book.

Fox did not share his diagnosis with young-onset Parkinson's disease until seven years later, in 1998.

Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts is located at 2132 Hillside Road on the UConn campus in Storrs. This event is free. For information, call the Box Office at 860.486.4226, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., or visit jorgensen.uconn.edu. Convenient free parking is available across the street in the North Garage.

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