Michael J. Fox is searching for the missing cherry red Gibson ES-345 guitar that he played as Marty McFly in the beloved 1985 film Back to the Future. The guitar was used during the memorable "Enchantment Under the Sea" dance scene when Michael's character performs Chuck Berry's "Johnny B. Goode." This guitar has been missing nearly four decades, reportedly stolen from the set shortly after filming. Its disappearance has become a mystery, with speculation that it may have been sold and possibly ended up overseas during a surge in vintage guitar collecting in the mid-1980s.
Michael, along with Gibson Guitars and his fellow cast members Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Harry Waters Jr. and Huey Lewis, who played an uncredited role and whose song "The Power of Love" is prominently featured in Back to the Future, has launched a public campaign to locate the guitar, including a new documentary titled Lost to the Future that chronicles the search.
The campaign involves a public appeal for information, with Michael jokingly suggesting the guitar might be "lost in the space-time continuum" or "in some Teamster's garage." The search coincides with the 40th anniversary of the film and aims to recover a piece of movie and music history that has inspired many fans and musicians over the years.
Michael has expressed a deep personal passion for the guitar and rock 'n' roll, noting that the film and the guitar scene inspired him and others to pursue music and filmmaking. The guitar holds great sentimental and cultural value, making its recovery important to Michael and many fans and musicians. ~Alexandra Heilbron