Lucky Man: A Memoir (2002)

It was actually a coincidence that I felt like rewatching the Back to the Future films a while ago. I hadn't seen them in years (it says enough that I only had them on VHS) but between the second and third film I also felt like delving a little more into the world of Michael J. Fox. He is an actor who has left his mark on films and television with Family Ties, Back to the Future and Spin City, but who has also given Parkinson's disease a face for many people. Surprise, surprise: I have his biography in my bookcase!

It is therefore a stroke of luck (pun not intended) that Lucky Man: A Memoir is about literally all those things. These types of biographies are usually written according to a certain pattern (birth, youth, first successes, etc.) and it is nice that Fox does not always follow that pattern. These are themes that are all discussed, but there is quite a lot of jumping back and forth in terms of time and characters. Is that bad? Absolutely not, you just have to pay some attention to it. If you succeed, you will be presented with an intriguing portrait of a man who seemed to have it all and one morning saw the earth swept away from under his feet. What follows is a frank and honest account of the problems with the press, how he deals with his relationships with friends/partners/family and of course the Parkinson verdict. My respect for Fox has certainly only grown. In any case, it's also cool to gain some more insight into what went on behind the scenes in productions such as Back to the Future and how one of the stunts from the third part (the one where Marty is hanged) almost ends fatally. I do love some movie trivia.

It is always nice when the person the biography is about does not act too seriously and shows a good dose of self-mockery. Fox is no barrel of laughs, but manages to hit the right mark several times with a certain comment, and the way he approaches life leaves you with a smile on your lips until the last page. Even his "thanks to" speech is in the typical style in which the book was written.

Lucky Man: A Memoir (2002)
Writer: Michael J. Fox
Published by: Hyperion
Number of pages: 260

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