I'd been a fan of Roger Ebert's since the early PBS show days. At that time in the late seventies/early eighties, TV film critics were usually either obnoxious pricks (the Jew-fro sporting, bushy-stachin' Gene Shalit) or pretentious prissies (closet-case Rex Reed). Roger came from a journalistic background and it was evident in the way he presented factual and credible criticisms of the films he reviewed. His soon-to-be classic "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" was not merely a gut reaction by an overpaid eccentric it was quantified by clear and concise literary comments on specific reasons for his yeas or nays. Hi rapport with his reviewer partner, sometimes adversary was always civilized and despite if they agreed or not on any particular film, they conveyed a sense of mutual respect and affection that came so well across on screen.
After Gene Siskel's passing, Roger found a new side-kick in Richard Roeper. I'm probably not alone in thinking the chemistry wasn't quite the same but the reviews were just as honest and explanatory as before.
It was noticeable in the '90s as well, that Roger was undergoing some physical changes as well. He lost a dramatic amount of weight and later admitted he had been battling cancer.
As he, and the rest of us, embraced the new technologies of the new millennium he seemed to have bettered his cancer and took on new vigor in blogging and tweeting his way into the hearts and minds of millions of long time fans like me and no doubt hoards of younger ones as well. His film reviews were available in newsprint, television, and on the internet. I'm sure his smile or frown was an incredibly powerful tool, but it seemed he avoided being used by the studios or the media and spoke of his own free will. Surely his reviews were respected enough in the industry as to potentially make or break a film's box office.
Yesterday, I learned this morning, we sadly lost Roger to his long-time enemy cancer. My last tweet of his is a link to his blog announcing his cancer had returned and he was limiting his regular blogging and tweeting. But it expressed hope that he'd be soon endeavoring on new projects.
Whether this was truly his intent or was a way of saying goodbye we'll probably never know.
To the Grim Reaper I give a big thumbs down for taking away a true American treasure too soon. To you, Mr. Ebert though, you get a big thumbs up! You'll be truly missed.