Michael J. Fox a 'reluctant poster boy'

ROCHESTER, N.Y., Oct. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. actor Michael J. Fox says he has no memorabilia from "Back to the Future," the movie that earned him lasting big-screen fame.

While reminiscing about his acting career and his experience with Parkinson's disease in front of a crowd of about 5,100 people at New York's Rochester Institute of Technology Saturday afternoon, Fox said he didn't have the foresight to project the movie's success," the Rochester (N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle reported.

"I was a fool. I thought the movie would be terrible, would suck, so I didn't save anything," he said. "But I think I have some stuff from 'Teen Wolf.'"

The Canadian-born actor, who initially became known for his role on the TV sit-com "Family Ties" before his turn as Marty McFly in "Back to the Future," said he has taken on the role as the "reluctant poster boy" for Parkinson's disease.

Fox, 50, said he initially thought his shaking hands were due to a hangover from a night of drinking -- "Woody Harrelson ... is always a problem," he quipped.

But when the shaking didn't stop, he went to the doctor and got his diagnosis.

Seven years passed until he told the public in 1998 that he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, which led to a mainstream national discussion about the disease, Fox said.

"My sister-in-law had early onset Parkinson's as well, and my brother didn't want anyone to know at all," said Marianne Knowles, a Boston resident who was visiting her daughter at Rochester Institute of Technology. "So I like that [Fox] was so open about it."