Marty McFly’s ‘Back to the Future’ guitar is missing and Gibson wants your help
It’s been 40 years since “Back to the Future” debuted, but one key piece of the film’s legacy has vanished. Gibson is asking for the public’s help tracking it down.
The guitar in question? The cherry red Gibson ES-345 famously played by Michael J. Fox’s character, Marty McFly, in the 1985 cult classic.
A guitar lost in time
The instrument was originally borrowed from Norman’s Rare Guitars in Los Angeles. But when production on “Back to the Future Part II” began, producers noticed the guitar had gone missing.
Gibson, the guitar manufacturer behind the iconic model, officially launched a public search on Tuesday. The brand announced the initiative with help from Back to the Future stars — including a cameo from Huey Lewis, who also appeared in the original film.
The space-time mystery
In a 2023 interview with guitarist Joe Bonamassa, Norman’s owner shared that he warned producers the guitar model wasn’t era-accurate. It wasn’t released until 1958, though the film’s setting was 1955. But the team chose to take “artistic liberty” and used it anyway.
Actor Christopher Lloyd, who played Doc Brown, joked in the video announcement that the guitar might have fallen into a paradox or vanished into the space-time continuum.
But some believe the answer might be a little more grounded.
Mark Agnesi, Gibson’s director of brand experience, told Billboard the guitar was apparently sold and resold multiple times.
“We know it was returned to Norm’s,” Agnesi said. “At that time in the mid-’80s, there was a Japanese vintage guitar boom; charter buses of Japanese tourists were pulling up and buying everything in sight,” he explained. “So it could be someone has it in Japan.”
How to submit tips
Gibson’s hunt for the guitar will also be chronicled in an upcoming documentary titled “Lost to the Future,” timed with the 40th anniversary of the film.
The project invites fans and guitar lovers alike to join the mission and help solve one of pop culture’s most intriguing mysteries.
Those with any information about the guitar’s whereabouts are encouraged to call 1-855-345-1955 or submit a message at LostToTheFuture.com.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
