ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the emergent public construction of Michael J. Fox's personal health narrative as well as the implications of that narrative for policies and perspectives about Parkinson's disease. As a performer, Fox has played numerous characters on television and in movies, yet Fox's enactment of himself and his preferred identities also constitute ongoing performances. Through on-record comments such as these, politicians validate the credibility of Fox as a witness because of his celebrity status. Fox chose the path of public disclosure and activism. For Fox, as someone who yearns for distinct boundaries between his public and private lives, that initial choice to share his situation stemmed in part from fear of tabloid disclosure. Given the increasingly fuzzy lines between public and private domains for celebrities and politicians, the ethics of implicitly forcing disclosure must be discussed by journalists and by fans who stress their "need to know."
