(34) Facing Parkinson's late or early: Connolly and Fox

Alternative realities

From my very first post in May 2020:

 

...being parkinsed is a mind game [which] is why I have chosen Hamlet's opening lines of the fourth soliloquy in Shakespeare's Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1) in my blog title.

"To be, or not to be: that is the question. 

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to is suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, 

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

And by opposing end them?"

Realistically, I am able "to take arms against a sea of troubles" but unable to "end them". So, my way of fighting being parkinsed is being on a drug-free regime. But, am I able to reverse its effects? I'm still not sure: depressing for those of us affected by Parkinson's Disease (PD). 

I've selected this topic - "Facing Parkinson's late or early" - because after retiring in 2017, I decided to focus on analysing my PD rather than take a post-retirement contract at the university. So, in 2018, I detached myself from forty-years of specialisation, and, I'm sometimes depressed with this reality. But, when I google myself to remind me of my family and career, then I am "grateful" this late onset of PD. 

Ok, dear reader, let's examine two performers with different periods of PD onset: some of Billy Connolly's way of life and his PD diagnosis and some of Michael J. Fox's. Connolly was diagnosed in 2013, in his early seventies, while Fox was diagnosed in 1991, in his late twenties.  

Billy Connolly's life

Billy Connolly was born in 1942 in Glasgow, Scotland and has been a stand-up comedian since the 1970s. His fame in the UK came in 1975 when British talk-show host, Michael Parkinson, interviewed young Connolly on his show, "Parkinson". During that show, Connolly told a bike joke about a man whose wife had died and had been buried in his backyard. This joke drew the UK public's attention to how far Connolly was willing to go, his peculiar brand of humour and what his audiences could expect. 

In his autobiography "Windswept & Interesting", Connolly describes his unstable and difficult childhood. He was orphaned at four when his mother abandoned him and his sister, while their father was overseas, in the army. He was abused by family, unable to conform at school, had little adult support and few role models. After leaving high school, Connolly trained as an apprentice welder at a Glasgow shipyard after which there was a stint in the army. Later in life there were many performances (here's an excerpt) as a stand-up comedian as well as playing a banjo in a two-man band called the "Humblebums".

 

This range of experiences is likely to have influenced his view of life, the content of his shows and maybe his talent as a comedian. He appeared to be constantly improvising during his shows and loving it. Like most stand-up comedians, he had the ability to start a story and the mental capacity to weave a multitude of alternative angles into that story while telling it. 

About five decades of performing in the UK, then Australasia and finally settling in the USA, has nurtured the Connolly joy. Being "windswept and interesting" has become his trademark and attracted audiences all over the world. This excess of joy in his life includes his regularly dancing in the nude. Sadly, his living on the edge was enveloped by an extended period of alcoholism which he cured during his second marriage. The following seven-minute video of tributes captures his joy of being on stage.          

Besides his success at stand-up comedy, Connolly has also starred in a few memorable movies, some of which are: Indecent Proposal (1993); The Last Samurai (2003); Gulliver's Travel (2010); Brave (2012); Quartet (2012)(my favourite); and What we did on our Holiday (2014). 

As a result of his 2013 diagnosis of PD, Connolly left the stage in 2018. In a Sky News interview he said he had stopped because he needed a fully functioning brain for comedy and PD had "made his brain work differently". The onset of PD also meant giving up his love of handwriting. 

In my opinion, one unintended consequence of a PD diagnosis late in life, can be either to force one into facing that new reality head-on or pretend to ignore it. Another consequence of such a diagnosis is to modify one's life by seeking alternative remedies. 

Sir Billy Connolly received a knighthood in 2017 and is now living in Florida, USA, celebrating his Scottish heritage as well as delving into art and painting. Naturally, he owns property in Scotland, too.  

Michael J. Fox's life 

Michael J. Fox was born in Edmonton, Canada, in 1961 and starred in a television series in 1978. The love of acting led to his leaving Canada when he was 18 to settle in Los Angeles, USA. There he was able to pursue what would become a highly successful career in movies and television. Between 1985 and 2001 he starred in more than three dozen movies and sitcoms, a few of which were voice-overs for animated characters. His most famous movie character is probably as Marty McFly in the Back the Future trilogy (1985; 1989; & 1990), and his best children's movie is probably as a mouse in Stuart Little, (1999). The picture below is of Fox as a young man in his mid-twenties, destined for stardom.

His best recent television sitcom, in my opinion, is in the role of a disabled lawyer, Louis Canning in The Good Fight (2017-2022). The role of Canning allowed Fox to be himself, working within the bounds of his PD and not suppressing his dyskinesia. He was attempting to offer a real life, first-hand view of "the asshole side of a disabled character" the lawyer, Canning, rather than as a stereotype disabled person that was "sentimental, with soft piano music playing in the background". Those of you who saw The Good Fight on television will confirm this description of Fox: a fifty-something with a prominent movement disorder (see picture below).

A short list of Fox's extraordinary early career and of his most successful movies prior to his PD diagnosis in 1999 is as follows: Back to the Future (1985); Teen Wolf (1985); The Secret of my Success (1987); Back to the Future II (1989);  Back to the Future III (1990); Doc Hollywood (1991); The Frighteners (1996); Stuart Little (animated)(1999); and Atlantis: The Lost Empire (animated)(2001). The first nine movies were made prior to his diagnosis with the last two being voice-overs for animated characters in children's movies. It is interesting to note that although Back to the Future (1985), was produced on a budget of $19 million, it made nearly $400 million and is considered to be one of the best movies of all time! And Fox was only 24 years old then and destined for fame and fortune, untill...    

Fox has also written eleven books: the first a collection of photographs; five on business; and six about himself, his most recent being a biography, "No time like the future" (2020). Here, the reader joins him on a life-changing, health journey. 

Peers and critics of actors in movies and sitcoms have acknowledged the Fox festival we have been privileged to experience by awarding Michael J. Fox the following awards: 5 Primetime Emmy (US Television) Awards; 2 Golden Globe (US Film & Television) Awards; 2 Screen Actors Guild (US Movie & Television) Awards; and 1 Grammy (US Music industry) Award.

NEWSFLASH The award that will be worth noting is the honorary Oscar award to be presented to Fox in November 2022 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. He'll receive the Jean Hershold Humanitarian award in recognition for his work as an actor as well as for founding the Michael J. Fox Foundation for PD research, established in 2000, nine years after his own PD diagnosis. To date, his foundation has raised over $800 million towards PD research!

PD onset realities

Connolly's autobiography "Windswept & Interesting" traces his life through 27 chapters and nearly 400 pages. His PD (and prostate cancer that was cured) was diagnosed when he was in his early seventies, and there are brief hints of PD and its impact on his life. In the nearly 400 pages of the book, there are just eight references to his Parkinson's, each only a few lines long. The following selection of excerpts from page 360 of his autobiography are a clear indication of his view of being parkinsed:

 

"I went to see a Parkinson's specialist in New York...It was a huge shock and quite frightening...the symptoms came crashing in...I had trouble getting out of chairs...Eventually the scariness diminished...it really wasn't as bad as I had imagined...There was no pain involved...You just carry it around as another wee burden." 

Fox's 11th book, "No time like the Future" is a memoir specifically tracing that part of his life living with PD. In his book are many graphic details, raw accounts of his episodes of falling and associated traumas as a result of his being parkinsed. Below is an excerpt of my Fox book review. 

"...the reader is invited to share his roller-coaster, life-changing journey. From his PD and accompanying rehabilitation to removal of a tumour on his spine (and rehab) to a terrible fall that shatters his arm (and introduces more rehab). For me, these are the most revealing as they involve detailed accounts of the impact of PD and how one's work and home environment can become an obstacle course!" (Post 20: "PD outfoxed:...").

It is clear that, for as long as possible, Sir Billy Connolly will not allow late onset PD to take over his life. In an interview on his 80th birthday he said that he needed help to get dressed. Other than that he looked and sounded fine. 

Fox's fabulous career was cut short by his young onset PD diagnosis in 1991, announced to the public in 1999. He was driven and highly motivated, dedicating his life to helping others with PD by establishing his Foundation in 2000.

So, dear reader, alternative realities due to Parkinson's are probably influenced by the onset period, age and severity of the accompanying PD symptoms. Stay strong. Do try to be positive, even for a small part of your day. Till next time...