20 Years On, 'Back to the Future II' Still Awesome

CLEVELAND - Michael J. Fox is one of my all-time favorite actors, but I must admit, it's probably because of just one of the many roles he has played during the past three decades and it may not even be his most popular.

Marty McFly.

That's right. Fox's portrayal of the 17-year old skateboarding, aspiring musician in 1985's blockbuster hit film Back to the Future got me hooked like a raging crack addict on both he and the film. Needless to say, I eagerly anticipated the long awaited sequel which ended up taking four years to come to movie theaters. And so it was, 20 years ago today that Back to the Future, Part II premiered, much to the delight of my 12-year old self. I had been hanging on every little morsel of info I could that came out prior to the sequel's release. I salivated with joy at a featurette that was produced and broadcast in the weeks leading up to the film's theatrical release. In short, I was insanely obsessed.

Fox starred on TV's "Family Ties" as the ultra-Conservative and proudly young Republican Alex P. Keaton beginning in 1982. When Back to the Future was released in '85, he was in the midst of his third season and enjoying tremendous success on the series. By the time the sequel came out, "Family Ties" had ended and Fox, at age 28, still convincingly played the adolescent McFly with charm, verve and enthusiasm. He even played multiple roles in the flick as well as the finale to the trilogy which was filmed concurrently to Part II and released six months later.

Back to the Future, Part II picked up when the first film left off. Still set in 1985, the sequel called for Fox as McFly to travel 30 years into the future to 2015 to fix a "flaw" in his future kids' life. Doing more harm than good, McFly unknowingly returns to his "present time" of 1985 thinking all was corrected. He soon finds that he must return to 1955, the era to which he traveled in the first movie to correct a "simple error" he made in 2015 that wound up ruining not only his own past and present, but his entire family dynamic and the world at large! The film allowed us to view events and scenes from the first movie at different angle against the backdrop of a more layered and complex story.

It was amazing and innovative.

The film ended in a cliffhanger, just as the first one did and segued into the Western-themed Back to the Future, Part III. Among the awesome aspects of Part II was the hoverboard in 2015 as well as the Nike sneakers with "power laces."

It saddens me to this day that Fox became afflicted with Parkinson's Disease two years after this film's release, though he didn't publicly disclose that until 1998. Now 20 years hence, he has since retired from acting because of the degenerative nature of the disease, but he's remarkable in his positive attitude about it. In Back to the Future, Part II, the 1985 McFly always grew enraged when someone called him a chicken and that fact greatly compromised his future. For Michael J. Fox, he's been anything but a "chicken" in dealing with his present.

That's why, no matter what, his future will always be bright.

'Harlem Nights' Ended A Brilliant Era In Comedy

CLEVELAND - As a child, I idolized one of the worst people a child of the 1980's could idolize: Eddie Murphy. From his hilarious stint on Saturday Night Live to his mega successful films, Murphy was a huge part of where my comedic sensibilities derived. But to me, his true genius hit its apex with the release of Harlem Nights.

The critics hated that flick.

Hard to believe, but it was 20 years ago today that Murphy's final film of the '80's hit movie theaters nationwide. But Harlem Nights, a period piece set in 1938 Harlem, NY had far more value than its unimpressive storyline would indicate. First off, Murphy wrote, directed and starred in the film. Secondly, he assembled a highly accomplished cast that featured Danny Aiello and Michael Lerner as well as Della Reese and Jasmine Guy. Those people were just the icing on the cake. The cherry on top was the appearance of legendary comedians Richard Pryor and Redd Foxx alongside Murphy, who was the biggest box office draw in the U.S. at the time.

Pryor, who turned 49 a month after the film's release had long been the biggest comedic influence for Murphy, who turned to comedy as a result of being amazed at Pryor's racy performances. Similarly, Foxx had been one of Pryor's influences early in his career.

The story of the movie is less important when compared to the awesome assembly of three generations of comedic gold. Foxx, then 67 was best known for his legendary portrayal of junk dealer Fred Sanford on the 1970's sitcom Sanford and Son. Pryor was quite possibly the biggest influence in the history of modern comedy and like Foxx, enjoyed a successful acting career. Murphy, at age 28 was the baby of the group but had amassed far greater film success and financial rewards than both Pryor and Foxx combined. Even still, the hilarious triumvirate meshed well together and each had their individual moments of humorous grandeur in the film.

As great as Harlem Nights was as a showcase of legendary black talent, there is a very sad fact about what that movie came to represent. Pryor had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis just three years prior to this film but had not yet begun showing any of the debilitating signs of the disease. Just a few years after Harlem Nights, the effects of MS became so visually obvious that Pryor began to look and act like a shell of his former self. Foxx died less than two years after Harlem Nights premiered and Murphy's film career, nearly perfect until this film was never quite the same. In essence, Harlem Nights ended an amazing era in comedy.

Pryor died in December 2005, which saddened many who remembered the man as a true giant in his field. Though no longer an A-list actor, the 48-year old Murphy has spent the past 15 years reinventing himself as an actor. He hasn't done stand up in 22 years, since 1987's Eddie Murphy Raw, but he still holds some appeal to children (of all people) with his more family friendly roles.

Harlem Nights was a huge deal to me in 1989. Not only did it contain my man Eddie, it also featured Arsenio Hall in a bit part. Hall's celebrity was heavy on the rise at the time because of his eponymous late night talk show which had become a sensation, and I was a big fan of his too. I must admit, I refuse to accept anything Murphy has done after his awesome string of hit films in the '80's (except 1992's Boomerang) so Harlem Nights was almost like saying goodbye to the Eddie Murphy that I knew and loved.

I still can't believe it's been 20 years!

20 Years Later, 'Do the Right Thing' Still 'Happens'

CLEVELAND - It was 20 years ago today that filmmaker Spike Lee released his seminal film, Do the Right Thing. Both controversial and highly acclaimed, the flick turned out to be a classic.

Maybe not in the traditional sense.

Do the Right Thing never got the credit it truly deserved. For one, Lee was establishing himself as a militant and controversial director. At age 32, he was releasing his third straight envelope-pushing film which was an ingenious piece of work due to its unflinching look into the world of racism. Indeed, the chasm between Black and White cultures and beliefs and how racial tension is almost always bubbling beneath the surface were on full display.

There was the Italian-Americans proudly extolling the greatness of Frank Sinatra and Sylvester Stallone while the African-Americans touted Michael Jackson and Sammie Davis, Jr as their heroes. The confrontation between the Black kid in the Michael Jordan sneakers and the White kid in the Larry Bird jersey. And of course, the tragically violent, yet stunningly realistic climax and ensuing interracial riot in the streets of Brooklyn, New York.

Blacks and Whites often behave the same way in real life against each other and it's the reason that we'll never make real progress; we continue to segregate ourselves from other races and act as if we're not all the same in the end. Violence is never a good solution, especially when it's racially motivated. Even the election of Barack Obama doesn't show TRUE progress because he's still so unaccepted by many people solely because of the "black" half of his ethnicity.

Lee was a genius with this film. The story continues to play out.