Michael J Fox and Tracy Pollan
How their love withstood his Parkinson’s diagnosis
Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan have been married since 1988.
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Michael J. Fox has suffered from Parkinson’s disease for over 30 years. In an interview he now talks about how his wife Tracy supports him.
Actor Michael J. Fox (62) has been living with Parkinson’s disease for more than 30 years; he was diagnosed in 1991 at the age of 29. At that time he had just been married to his wife Tracy Pollan (63) for three years.
Despite the serious diagnosis, Pollan stayed with him and the two have now been married for 35 years. In an interview with “CBS Mornings,” the actor spoke about how his wife has supported him over the years. “It was great for me, I don’t know what it’s like for her. I love Tracy, of course. She’s a wonderful person and has been through a lot,” says the actor. “I realize she has her own life – regardless of the fact that I have Parkinson’s, that I’m not Alex Keaton or Marty McFly, she’s her own person. I think that’s why it turned out well.”
Separation because of Parkinson’s diagnosis? “I would have forgiven her for that at any time”
It wasn’t a given for Fox that his wife stayed with him during his serious illness. “I would have forgiven her anytime if she had said, ‘I’m just getting out.’ But she didn’t do that.” Instead, Tracy Pollan stuck to her wedding vows: “She told me: ‘In good times and bad, in health and sickness,'” said Michael J. Fox. “She managed to get me through it. And she’s been doing that for 35 years.”
Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan tied the knot in 1988 and have four children together: son Sam Michael (34), twins Aquinnah Kathleen and Schuyler Frances (28) and 21-year-old Esmé Annabelle. In 2000, Fox founded his foundation, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, which raises and distributes funds for Parkinson’s research.