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The year was 1985. What a magical time, actor Michael J. Fox says of the time he was co-starring in Family Ties and Back to the Future. Fox had found himself working on the TV show during the day, the film at night. Family Ties still had three months of shows left to produce for season three.

Family Ties made Fox a TV star; Back to the Future made him a MOVIE STAR! But first, he had to get through the filming. Fox had not been the first actor cast as Marty McFly – Eric Stoltz had not only been cast, but production had started and filming was in progress. Fox was replacing an actor, and that wasn’t popular with everyone. Lea Thompson, who of course played his mother in the film, had become friends with Stoltz and didn’t warm to the change. That story, of replacing Stoltz, an actor who Fox would not meet until many years later. Thompson and Stoltz had made The Wild Life just before Back to the Future, and ironically would co-star in John Hughes’ Some Kind of Wonderful (1987).

“I remember specifically being really snooty because there was a big division between movie stars and TV stars at that point,” Thompson said in an interview with Entertainment. Once she started working with Fox, she said the differences in how Fox and Stoltz approached the Marty character and the comedy in the script were completely different. “He was so funny and fun to act with.”

Fox explains that Back to the Future producers originally wanted him for the role of Marty, but he wasn’t available, hence the selection of Stoltz, who was a busy young actor making films for the studio. Six weeks into filming, producers made the change, no small or inexpensive action. The story begins.

Fox reads the audio version of Future Boy, Back to the Future and My Journey Through the Space-time Continuum (2025, Flatiron Books). Parkinson’s has affected Fox’s voice, but you soon don’t notice, his enthusiasm and colorful memories fill the air. I’m really glad that I could hear this great personal and movie story in his own words. There are a few exceptions when dialogue from the movie, and snippets of interviews are included, but mostly it’s Fox relating his story.

Fox is very humble about those early days in Hollywood, he gives a lot of credit to the other cast members of Family Ties for the series’ success. Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter Birney were the show’s stars, but it soon became evident that the breakout star was Fox, and the network pushed to focus on his character. Ironically, that happened at the same time that Fox was doing double duty with the series and Back to the Future.

One of the best stories Fox tells concerns the music in the film, the performance scenes of him at the school dance, and the legacy of the Gibson guitar he used in the film. The musical performance part of the film is one of the reasons Back to the Future became such a classic.

The other great story is about Fox and Stoltz, the part featured in the book’s epilogue. There are other good stories, about the film, fellow actors and filmmakers, and his days as a struggling actor.

Whether you like his TV or films or not, he’s never asked for sympathy. Fox is a gutsy guy, he didn’t disappear when his disease advanced, he kept working and led the effort for research and care. There is a thankfulness in his appreciation for the film that recognizes what Back to Future means to the fans, and the opportunities he gained from it. And he says, it’s a pretty good film.

If you are a Michael J. Fox fan, love Back to the Future, or just want an enjoyable read, the print edition is 187 pages, perfect for a weekend read.