Giving Back

Property of Variety


By now, if you haven't heard that Roger Ebert has been suffering, and now in remission, from thyroid cancer - then you live in a hole. Or, you aren't a real movie fan.



Photo property of Esquire magazine


Regardless, I have always seen him as an admirable, talented individual. How many people can you count that have won the Pulitzer Prize in Journalism, when most of their writing (10,000+) is movie reviews? He isn't dry or humorless. He actually writes about the film, its nuances, provides background on the cast and crew, and is honest.

He was on Oprah yesterday, and you should check that out. There are two clips on the website out of a roughly 13-15 minute interview.

He has a blog he keeps now, and you should read it. Yes, he is politically different from me, but I am not closed-minded and am willing to read his opinion as he is highly educated, well-read, and worldly. I have always enjoyed a good debate/discussion.

He has a Twitter, you should follow him.

And if you really want to catch up on lost time, read the Esquire interview that catches you up on everything since 2002. He is The Essential Man.

I joined The Ebert Club today. $4.99 on Paypal. Simple, easy. I am always willing to give back to someone who has saved me money.

This was the comment I submitted to his journal:

Mr. Ebert -

I am a college student who grew up in a film-heavy household with a father who was a Theater major (since Film wasn't an option at W&L in the 1970s). We watched movies every weekend, whether at home or in the movie theater. I grew up watching your show with Gene Siskel with my father when I was small, and it was fun to bond over and look forward to your reviews so we could determine what movies we were going to see next. My entire family was moved to tears by the Esquire story, and I have enjoyed following your website/journal. Yesterday your interview with Oprah was intense and personal for me as my Aunt has suffered from, and survived mouth cancer THREE times, and it made me realize how grateful I should be for my own health. I was more than happy to join the Ebert Club for $4.99, not for the features, but to be able to give something back to you. Break it down this way, all of the good movies you have reviewed I have seen, and at $5.00-9.00 a ticket for movies I may have seen if you hadn't said how "thumbs down" they were, makes even more sense to give back to you. You have saved me a lot of money, and you are an individual whose writing has been inspirational for quite some time.

Thank you