Showbiz

Michael J. Fox is joined by Sheryl Crow for charity concert A Country Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson’s in aid of his foundation

Michael J. Fox is joined by Sheryl Crow for charity concert A Country Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson’s in aid of his foundation

Michael J. Fox was joined by Sheryl Crow for a charity concert in aid of his foundation in Nashville. 

The Back To The Future star, 63, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991 aged just 29, held a country concert to raise money for The Michael J. Fox Foundation.

Performers took to the stage at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday to benefit the foundation – which was founded in 2000 by the star to find a cure for Parkinson’s. 

Among the speakers on the night was singer-songwriter Crow, 63, who was seen taking pH๏τos with the retired actor on the red carpet. 

Crow looked glam for the occasion as she stepped out in a black velvet suit jacket adorned with metal studs, and a pair of tailored bootleg trousers. 

She accessorised with a glitzy silver and black sequin shoulder bag and an eccentric metal feathers pendant necklace. 

Michael J. Fox was joined by Sheryl Crow for a charity concert in aid of his foundation in Nashville on Wednesday

Michael J. Fox was joined by Sheryl Crow for a charity concert in aid of his foundation in Nashville on Wednesday

The Back To The Future star, 63, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1991 aged just 29, held a country concert to raise money for The Michael J. Fox Foundation

The Back To The Future star, 63, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991 aged just 29, held a country concert to raise money for The Michael J. Fox Foundation

Meanwhile Fox looked dapper in a burnt orange and white floral shirt, with a tan suede biker jacket, blue jeans and brown cowboy boots.

The evening saw country music group Little Big Town take to the stage, while journalist Willie Geist interviewed Fox.  

It comes after Shrinking creator Bill Lawrence revealed in December that his long friendship with Fox influenced the way Parkinson’s disease is portrayed on the award winning dramady. 

In Shrinking, Harrison Ford’s character Paul, a mental health professional, has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, a brain disorder which can cause tremors, stiffness, balance and coordination difficulties and painful muscle contractions, according to the Mayo Clinic.

At An Evening with Shrinking at PaleyLive on December 12, Lawrence, 56, told People that his dad and co-creator Brett Goldstein’s father  have both been diagnosed with the disease.

‘It’s cool to get to write about things you care about now,’ the Emmy winner said.

‘And Michael J. Fox is my first mentor. So we wanted to represent it in hopefully an inspiring and not sad or tragic way.’

Lawrence and Fox worked together on the hit comedy Spin City, which aired from 1996-2002. 

Performers took to the stage at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday to benefit the foundation

Performers took to the stage at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday to benefit the foundation

Among the speakers on the night was singer-songwriter Crow, 63, who was seen taking pH๏τos with the retired actor on the red carpet

Among the speakers on the night was singer-songwriter Crow, 63, who was seen taking pH๏τos with the retired actor on the red carpet

Crow looked glam for the occasion as she stepped out in a black velvet suit jacket adorned with metal studs, and a pair of tailored bootleg trousers

Crow looked glam for the occasion as she stepped out in a black velvet suit jacket adorned with metal studs, and a pair of tailored bootleg trousers

Meanwhile Fox looked dapper in a burnt orange and white floral shirt, with a tan suede biker jacket, blue jeans and brown cowboy boots

Meanwhile Fox looked dapper in a burnt orange and white floral shirt, with a tan suede biker jacket, blue jeans and brown cowboy boots

In 1998, Fox revealed he had been diagnosed with the disorder – seven years after finding out for himself. 

‘I found the first mentor in my life and career, Michael J. Fox, to be so inspiring with the way he took it in stride and continues to work harder than anybody I know,’ the writer and director explained. ‘And we want to kind of carry that spirit, if we can, into the show.’

Lawrence revealed he already has plans for season three and Paul’s journey revealing he is ‘obsessed with showing the portrait of living with it.’

‘I suck in the inspiring people around me, and I steal from them as much as I possibly can,’ he explained, adding that he ‘generally has kind of attacked tough situations with comedy in his actual life,.’

‘It takes you a while as a writer to realise what your voice is — I think mine is hopeful and optimistic by nature.’

Phillip Sweet of Little Big Town performs onstage for A Country Thing Happened On The Way To Cure Parkinson's

Phillip Sweet of Little Big Town performs onstage for A Country Thing Happened On The Way To Cure Parkinson’s 

Meanwhile journalist Willie Geist interviewed Fox (Seen with Fox and Crow on the red carpet at the event)

Meanwhile journalist Willie Geist interviewed Fox (Seen with Fox and Crow on the red carpet at the event)

Ford, 82, said he takes his portrayal of Paul ‘ᴅᴇᴀᴅly f**king seriously.’

‘There are people that absorb these kinds of experiences with grace and courage and a little bit of wisdom,” he said. 

‘It’s just to say that this is a person particularly equipped to communicate what it’s like, and that is something that I feel that is worth sharing with our audience.’

‘I feel like I’m telling a story,’ the Oscar nominee explained. ‘The story I’m telling is a story that I know, and so I can just simply feel it.’

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