By Lisa Richwine
LOS ANGELES, Florida (Reuters) – Actor Michael. J. Fox, who wowed audiences in the television comedy “Caras & Grimes” and the “Back to the Future” films in the 1980s, received an honorary Oscar on Saturday for his activist work that has raised $1.5 billion in Parkinson’s disease research resources.
Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, a nerve disorder that causes tremors and other symptoms, at age 29. He later limited his acting career and founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research to help the search for a cure in 2000.
“It is with the deepest of humility that I am here and I accept your kindness,” said the Canadian actor onstage at the annual Governors Awards, where he received a standing ovation from a gathering of stars including Tom Hanks and Jennifer Lawrence.
Fox said the worst part of his diagnosis was “dealing with the uncertainty” and that he kept the diagnosis a private matter for years because “I didn’t know if the public would be able to laugh if they knew I was suffering.”
The Canadian actor, now 61, received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the committee of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the group that hands out the Oscars, and was introduced by friend Woody Harrelson.
“He turned a chilling diagnosis into a courageous mission,” said the actor.
Other recipients of Governors Awards include songwriter Diane Warren, whose songs have been used in over 100 films.
Warren, 66, has been nominated for an Oscar for best original song 13 times but has never won.
“I’ve waited 34 years to say this: I’d like to thank the Academy,” Warren said, to applause on Saturday.
Australian director Peter Weir, known for films such as “The Witness” and “Dead Poets Society”, and Euzhan Palcy, who became the first black woman to direct a film for a major Hollywood studio with “Custodial Murder”, were also honored.
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