[Source: Newsweek]
Health and celebrities are an intoxicating mix. Major disease organizations chronically search for famous faces to represent them—and for good reason. Celebs make a difference.
Michael J. Fox, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 1991, has raised awareness—and large amounts of money. Since the Michael J. Fox Foundation was launched in 2000, it has funded almost $196 million in Parkinson’s research. And Fox is open about the physical effects of his disease. He’ll soon appear on CBS’s series The Good Wife, where he’ll play a lawyer “willing to use anything in court, including symptoms of his neurological condition, to create sympathy for his otherwise unsympathetic client: a giant pharmaceutical company,” according to the network.
Autism is another one of Hollywood’s chosen causes. The condition has inspired exceptional acting (Dustin Hoffman in Rain Man) and persistent debates (Jenny McCarthy’s stance on vaccines). At its best, Hollywood tells stories that captivate, educate, and illuminate. And this month, Los Angeles magazine, attempts to do just that with a special package of pieces about autism, which you can read here for $3 if you can’t find the magazine on a newsstand or in a bookstore near you.
Read an Accounting of the LA Times Magazine Story in USA Today