Michael J. Fox Receives Thunderous Ovation at Emmys, Vows To Keep Fighting To Eradicate Parkinson’s

Michael J. Fox faced a tough decision when he was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s in his late 20s. Initially, “I kept it a secret. I was afraid it would affect my work and my relationship with audiences. Would they laugh if they knew I was sick?” the comic actor asked in a moving speech at the 78^th Emmys.

He was accepting the Television Academy’s prestigious Bob Hope Humanitarian Award along with remarkable standing ovations both before and after his remarks.

The honor is given to an individual in the TV industry “whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry and whose deeds and actions have had a lasting impact on society,” per the Academy. After his diagnosis, he launched the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, which has become the largest funder in the field, supporting more than $3 billion in research.

He said Bob Hope meant a lot to him and his family. “My parents were born during the Great Depression. To them, Bob was more than an entertainer. He was a selfless champion of soldiers, military families like mine for decades. Christmases, Thanksgivings, other holidays where he could have been celebrating his family, he was showing up for the troops in Berlin, Saigon, the Middle East, with a turkey leg and a golf club.

“I learned from his example. When it starts to get tough, you show up, you help, and if you get a little joy while you’re doing it, that’s even better. I couldn’t have known how these lessons would resonate in my own life,” he said.

“Because you stood up for me,” he gestured to the audience, “I kept doing what love … I didn’t have to surrender to it.”

The five-time Emmy winner happened to be nominated for the 19th time this year for his guest role in Apple TV’s Shrinking.

Fox, who won three consecutive Emmys for his breakout role in the 1980s sitcom Family Ties leading to a film and TV career that included the Back to the Future movie trilogy, Teen Wolf, The Secret of My Success, Casualties of War, The American President, Doc Hollywood and series Spin City among others, revealed 1998 that he had been diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease. He created his foundation two years later.

“I set up it up to advocate and raise money and look for a cure,” he said tonight. “I found brilliant people to lead the effort, to fund the best science in the world. I am proud of the progress we have achieved. I am deeply grateful to our staff who make the possible.”