Funny Fundraiser for a Serious Cause: 'Back to the Future' Actor Battles Wife's Brain Cancer

Some of the San Francisco Bay Area's top comedians are joining together with Hollywood friends to raise money for a Petaluma woman's battle against brain cancer. The cutting-edge show "Tumor Be Gone!" will be presented May 21 at the Glaser Center in Santa Rosa to help Kimbell Jackson cover her rising medical bills.

Jackson is the wife of actor and radio personality Jeffrey Weissman, who is best-known for playing George McFly, Marty McFly's father, in "Back to the Future Part II" and "Back to the Future Part III" with Michael J. Fox and Christopher LLoyd. Weissman, who has appeared in dozens of films and TV series, is also the host of the eclectic music program "Rare and Well Done" on KRCB 88.5 FM in Santa Rosa. The show is currently on hiatus while Weissman cares for his wife.

"I'm very hands-on, so when Kim was diagnosed, my first reaction was ‘We've got to do something,'" he said. "Knowing that I could possibly lose her is devastating, but it's just as bad seeing her deal with the pain and fear. The fundraiser is a way for us to get together with friends and take a break from all the stress."

Weissman and Jackson met in 1972 when they worked together in a children's theatre production. They reunited in 1995, and married after settling in Sonoma County. Jackson has worked in the Northern California wine industry for Chateau St. Jean, Chateau Souverain, Joseph Phelps and Freestore Vineyards. In October of 2008, she was forced to retire after developing chronic migraine headaches. Two years later, an MRI revealed lesions in her brain. A biopsy in January of 2011 proved a diagnosis of central nervous system lymphoma. She has been undergoing regular chemotherapy since, and has made encouraging progress.

"Doctors give Kim a 70 percent chance of remission," Weissman said. "The bad news is that her medications can cost six-thousand dollars for 10 pills. Although she has some medical coverage, her co-payments are very high, not to mention basic living expenses. Once she is healed, she will need rehabilitation to return work."

Throughout the ordeal, Weissman and Jackson have retained their sense of humor, joking that if it were not for their ability to laugh, they probably would not still be together. Weissman plans to share the "lighter" side of chemotherapy when he emcees his wife's fundraiser.

"I was sort of born funny," he said. "I'm sure I will be tearing up, but I have plenty of funny stories from our experiences with steroid psychosis, like when Kim's face swelled up like a chipmunk. And don't get me started on her libido."

"Going through this really makes me appreciate life and living," Jackson said. "I am often in pain, but feeling pain is better than not feeling at all. I'm on fire from all the love people are showing us."

Appearing in "Tumor Be Gone!" will be comedy improv troupes 6th Street Improv, Slip Goose Monkey and World's Biggest Comedy Duo; stand up comics Dave Pokorny and Emmy Award-winner Rick Overton (HBO's "Dennis Miller Live"); Grammy-nominated singer Perla Batalla, who has toured with Leonard Cohen; comic cabaret duos Richard & Sandy Riccardi and Lol Levy & Nancy Gold; and surprise guests, including, possibly, one of Weissman's fellow cast members from the "Back to the Future" movies. A silent auction will feature rare, signed "Back to the Future" memorabilia, North Bay Theatre Group tickets, artwork and vacation packages. Hors d'oeuvres and award-winning fine wines from Graton Ridge will be served.

"Tumor Be Gone!" will take place on Saturday, May 21, 8:00 p.m. at the Glaser Center, 547 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, CA 95401. Tickets are $30 per person, and can be purchased through Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800-838-3006 or at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/165999.

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