"Family Ties" Parkinson's conspiracy

Has anyone heard that Michael J. Fox was only one of several people who developed Parkinson's disease that worked on the set of Family Ties? MJF thought it was unusual for multiple acquaintances to come down with a rare disease. I think someone claimed they contracted it from an environmental anomaly?

How 'bout cha, fellow Richmonder?! I grew up in Richmond and went to VCU...

I hadn't read that about Michael J. Fox and the 'others'. That would be pretty upsetting, I should think. Who else has it? Cast members? Crew?

Was it on Family Ties? I heard it was connected to this Canadian show Fox did when he was a kid...how some crew members got Parkinsons as well as himself...

Man, when I first read he had this disease, I felt terrible for him!

I've never seen squat about a MJF show tie to mass parkinsons.

Though it reminds me of the John Wayne movie filmed out west near atomic testing grounds where a large portion of the cast ended up dying of cancer.

Wow, haven't thought about that since I was a kid. Deserves research.

The US govt. killed the Duke?

Hello CattleSpy, I like any others went to VCU for a spell. And other readers! It was members of the crew, or people directly involved with the production of the show who got sick. It's rare to get Parkinson's, it's another thing to know several people in the same office, so to speak to get sick. The whole topic seem to die out in the media after I saw the original story.

Skullone, do have any names of the cast members so that we can verify the validity of this claim? I mean just one name or something.

I remember reading a story about this in a local newpaper this year about how strange it was that while working on a film a lot of the cast later went on to get Parkinson's. I will see if i can hunt up some info on it.

looks like it wasn't the Family Ties show with other Parkinson's cases. The following article says that four cast members of a 1979 show called Leo & Me have developed the disease.

This theory might explain the startling fact that four cast and crew members of the 1976 CBC comedy Leo & Me -- out of 125 people who worked on the series -- have been diagnosed with Parkinson's.

The incidence of PD in the general population is estimated at one person in 300, so four cases in a group of 125 is an eye-opener. Was there some flu or virus or environmental toxin that affected this particular cluster?

Fox, then 16, played one of the kids; Brent Carver was also in the cast. A crew member, Sally Gardner, who still lives in Vancouver, is shown coping with and being treated for PD. Two other sufferers were not identified.

www.canoe.ca...

[edit on 26-6-2004 by AmethystWolf]

and, more info here:

content.health.msn.com...