Former adolescent idol Michael J. Fox rose to fame for his role in “Family Ties.” As they played love interests, that is how he met Tracy Pollan, his one and only wife. Since then, the couple has been together and has had difficult times.
For his iconic performance as Alex P. Keaton in the 1982 comedy “Family Ties,” actor Michael J. Fox is well-known. Along with him, Tracy Pollan played his lover Ellen Reed in the movie.
The two fell madly in love with each other while playing love interests. Pollan stated her character was more apprehensive about their first on-screen kiss while she wasn’t.
When rumors about her relationship with Fox off-screen surfaced at the time, she and the Canadian-American native who made the following statement both denied them:
“I wouldn’t be so conceited as to think that might happen,” she said.
The actress, who at the time dated actor Kevin Bacon, claimed that Fox and Pollan were amicable on set but did not interact off the set. She and Fox hid their relationship from the other actors.
The production reportedly interviewed over 300 young women in search of the ideal match for the endearing Keaton as the lead actor, according to casting director Judith Weithorn. On the other side, Fox described Pollan’s personality as strong and aggressive, describing how well she complemented Keaton. Weithorn continued
We were trying to go beyond the stereotypical comedy girlfriend, the stereotypical blond bimbo.
Fox cast a hopeful vote for Pollan over the other five contenders for the position. He was 24 when he played a 19-year-old, and she was 25 when she played an 18-year-old, which helped foster empathy because they belonged to the same age range. Added him:
Despite her strength, Tracy wasn’t domineering.
Fox stated to People in February 1986 that Keaton and Reed had a traditional bond. However, unlike his and Pollan’s real-life happily ever after, their romance did not endure.
However, they were each seeing other people before they fully committed to their now-burgeoning romance. Fox and actress Nancy McKeon were partners for many years, and Pollan dated actor Kevin Bacon for five years.
He was said to be dating Courteney Cox after his relationship with McKeon came to an end. She portrayed Lauren Miller, Keaton’s new committed partner. He and Pollan were romantically involved at the time.
Fox dismissed the rumors that he was dating Cox in December 1987 by stating that he had a great personal relationship with Pollan and a great professional relationship with Cox.
He continued, paying special attention to his future wife: “In LA, Tracy feels like a total outsider. She finds it challenging to blend in because she is so unassuming and unforced.”
On the filming of the 1988 movie “Big Lights, Big City,” Pollan and Fox’s relationship grew. Fox’s intelligence and sense of humor won Pollan, a native of New York, over, who revealed this to Oprah Winfrey in 2002.
“I have always found his sense of humor and brain to be hilarious. He is incredibly intelligent.”
Although it may have sounded insensitive, the retired actor admitted to People in 1989 that he had courted Pollan in one of those situations where he was informed that she and Bacon were no longer together and moved right away.
On December 26, 1987, just seven months after they were given official status, Fox, 60, proposed to Pollan. He was sure she would accept his proposal since he was confident in this:
“I didn’t fear that she would decline. The most difficult thing was attempting to decide when to get married and how no one else could find out.”
The two were worried because Pollan had begun receiving threatening messages from a young woman in February 1988. After being detained in a mental hospital for nine months while awaiting trial, the unnamed female was eventually charged with making terroristic threats.
The terrifying threats encouraged the soon-to-wed couple to increase security everywhere they went. Pollan even chose to go under an assumed name. But the two didn’t want to risk their lives.
On July 16, 1988, the pair exchanged vows at the West Mountain Inn in Arlington, Vermont. The expectant father was so supportive when Pollan became pregnant with their first child that he managed to fit Lamaze classes within his shooting schedule.
On May 30, 1989, their son Sam was born, and in December of that same year, Fox told People that his wife’s pregnancy and birth had gone smoothly.
The Golden Globe winner claimed he and Pollan had a pact that they would not even bring about the subject while they were still changing diapers when asked about the prospect of growing their family at the time.
Fox and Pollan’s marriage was not without its difficulties early on, as they went through some difficult moments together. When Fox was 29 years old, he received a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis.
One morning in 1990, he awoke to see his left pinkie twitching violently. Fox was given the Parkinson’s disease diagnosis a year later by a Manhattan doctor.
Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that diminishes motor function over time and is incurable. Fox only shared the information with those closest to him. Although his family handled it without incident, he found it to be intolerable to deal with.
As a result, the “Back to the Future” actor experienced sadness and turned to heavy alcohol consumption, which he had reduced after being married to Pollan. He admits to hiding empty bottles from his wife at home.
I was cutting off communication with my family.
The young couple experienced a significant setback, and 61-year-old Pollan recounted the terrifying event in an interview with People in August 2018 and said it was frightening since their future appeared uncertain.
For Fox, everything changed one night in 1992. He returned from a night out with friends after his wife had gone to sleep late, passed out on a sofa with a beer can spilling into the rug next to him, and went to sleep.
The next morning, Pollan discovered her husband slumped down on the couch; this time, he was awake and assumed she was indignant after scanning her from her feet to her face. The “Natalee Holloway” actress wasn’t, though. Fox, though, observed that she appeared bored.
Before he had a chance to react, Pollan asked him if that was what he intended to do with his life. Fox stopped drinking as a result of that critical event. After a long period of abstinence, he began attending a therapist, who assisted him in learning to live with Parkinson’s.
Fox was involved in an accident a few years ago that put his optimistic attitude on life to the test. He shattered his arm after tripping and had spinal cord surgery.
He claimed that in October 2021, when the incident took place, he felt sorry for himself because he was helpless and lying on the ground. Fox recalled asking people to be positive, but said that at the time, it hurt.
Fox eventually came to the conclusion that he had plenty to be thankful for, recognizing that it was possible to be both realistic and optimistic at the same time, and that if he could not accept it, he would not be able to move ahead.
He eventually made progress and tried to see the positive side of things. For 34 years, Fox and his lovely wife Pollan have been together. Pollan responded that they give each other the benefit of the doubt when asked by People in 2018 about the secret to their long-lasting marriage, and her husband added:
Find your strengths and the positive aspects of life, and celebrate them.
Pollan agreed with Fox’s upbeat view of the universe in which everything has power. She said that, in contrast to her, he did not care about the future.
In the meantime, he acknowledged that way of thinking can add a lot of work for a partner because the other person could be at ease believing the other would handle it. They are certain that their relationship will last forever.
Sam, their oldest kid, is 32 years old; Aquinnah and Schuyler, their twin girls, are 27; and Esme, their youngest child, is 20. Pollan and Fox are parents to all four of their children.
In February 1995, the couple gave birth to twins, and their youngest daughter Esme arrived in November 2001. When Esme left for college in November 2019, they confessed to People that they would become empty nesters and that they intended to travel.
Undoubtedly, the children have had a big impact on their parents’ lives. For instance, they convinced their father to reprise his part as Marty McFly from “Back to the Future” in the Christmas song “Holiday” for rapper Lil Nas.
Fox explained to James Corden that the singer’s crew contacted his agent and that his children took control from there during an interview for “The Late Late Show” in November 2020:
“Young adults describe them. They went bonkers.”
If he had no other commitments that year, his brood urged him to take the risk and shoot the music video. The father of four acknowledged that although he had not yet met Lil Nas, he thought they were terrific when they came to film the video and that he had fun.
In relation to parenting, Pollan and Fox were thrilled to become parents for the first time when they welcomed their first child. Sam, who deviated from his parents’ acting path but is now eerily similar to his father, once held the title of Mister Golden Globe in 2013.
The Californian enjoys traveling and spending time with his loved ones, according to his Instagram account. He frequently posts images of his well-known father as well.
Aquinnah, one of the twin daughters, has not yet pursued an acting career in Hollywood, much like her older brother. On Instagram, she does update followers on her daily activities by posting photos from her travels.
Since Schuyler is more discreet than her spouse, not much is known about her daily activities. But over the years, she has accompanied her family to red carpet events.
Esme, the family’s youngest member, has worked primarily behind the scenes and has stayed largely out of the spotlight.
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