News RIP Roger Ebert - Page 2

ShowtimeSBMVP · 04-04-2013, 01:36 PM

Charles Robinson ‏@CharlesRobinson 2m

RIP RT @Suntimes: It is with a heavy heart we report that legendary film critic Roger Ebert (@ebertchicago) has passed away.

Messier · 04-04-2013, 01:54 PM

He must have known the end was near. A few days ago he wrote, "I'm taking a leave of presence."

ClevelandBronco · 04-04-2013, 01:57 PM

Sad news surely, but we must all try to keep our chins up.

Mr. Laz · 04-04-2013, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

.

not the place

raybec 4 · 04-04-2013, 02:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ClevelandBronco

Sad news surely, but we must all try to keep our chins up.

Baziiiinggg

KC_Connection · 04-04-2013, 02:02 PM

The news saddens me. Great writer, critic, and man. It isn't for no reason that he was read by so many. RIP Roger.

**Donger** · 04-04-2013, 02:04 PM

That sucks, RIP. Although his last name always reminded me of that 80s video game.

Rasputin · 04-04-2013, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

I hated this news. Hated hated hated hated hated this news.

The worst part of this is the timing just bad timing at the end to die. Should of made a better script for the ending and not let Roger Ebert die. Other than that Roger had a good life to live and maybe they would let John Goodman play him if they would make a movie about him. Oh wait JG is dead, never mind.

bowener · 04-04-2013, 02:05 PM

I was worried after his "leave of presence" yesterday, but I didn't think he would be dead within 20 hours.

**Reaper16** · 04-04-2013, 02:14 PM

THE critic.

**MahiMike** · 04-04-2013, 02:16 PM

Why would anyone care what a movie critic says?

bowener · 04-04-2013, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MahiMike

Why would anyone care what a movie critic says?

Why do you read other people's opinions on Chiefsplanet then?

Jenson71 · 04-04-2013, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MahiMike

Why would anyone care what a movie critic says?

Because he 'said' it with knowledge, insight, and good prose.

Lex Luthor · 04-04-2013, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

That was fast

Fast? Not really. He was diagnosed with cancer a LONG time ago, and he looked awful for the last several years.

Lex Luthor · 04-04-2013, 02:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Demonpenz

I thought the fat one would die first.

Gene Siskel says "Well, excuse me for dying".

**Tribal Warfare** · 04-04-2013, 02:29 PM

Roger Ebert Dies at 70
04.04.13 | 12:36PM PT
Legendary film critic died Thursday after battle with cancer

Film critic Roger Ebert was not only the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize, but one of the only critics known to the general public, thanks to his long-running movie review shows such as “Sneak Previews” and his thumbs-up or down movie reviews. He died Thursday in Chiccago of complications from cancer, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. He was 70.

The avuncular champion of movies big and small had been fighting thyroid cancer since 2002, and in the past few years spoke with a voice machine. The latest show to bear his name is the PBS series “Roger Ebert Presents at the Movies,” in which he briefly appears on camera with a prosthetic chin though other critics shoulder reviewing duties.

He apperared on the Oprah Winfrey show in 2010, speaking with a machine that tailored his speech more closely to his natural voice.

He continued reviewing films and kept in the public eye writing on his popular website and tweeting frequently.

Ebert is generally seen as a champion of filmmakers and underappreciated films, a fair reviewer with a dry wit and occasional quirks who wouldn’t hesitate to sock it to films he considers below par, but never in a mean or vindictive way. At times he reviewed films in the form of stories, poems or songs, just to mix it up.

Ebert became the Chicago-Sun Times film critic in 1967, just a year after he joined the paper as a features writer. He wrote in Variety in 2007, “Film criticism in those days was moving from the age of (Bosley) Crowther to the age of (Pauline) Kael. Junkets and sound bites and protective publicists were not so universal, and I was able to spend a lot of time with interview subjects, who would, in such cases as Lee Marvin, John Wayne, Groucho Marx and Robert Altman, say anything, literally anything, and not care if you quoted them.”

When Ebert and Gene Siskel helped launch “Sneak Previews” in 1975, it was the first TV show offering film reviews. The various incarnations of the program would go to be Emmy nommed seven times. His Pulitzer Prize came in 1975 for his Sun-Times reviews during 1974.

Born in Urbana, Ill., he started writing sports for the local paper and articles for sci fi fanzines while still in high school. He graduated the U. of Ill. at Urbana-Champaign, where he was editor of the paper and contributed reviews for films including “La Dolce Vita” and “Bonnie and Clyde,” which he called “a milestone in the history of American movies, a work of truth and brilliance.”

Ebert also knew about the inside of the movie business, having teamed with sexploitation helmer Russ Meyer to write “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls” and “Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens.”

“Sneak Previews” started out on Chicago public broadcasting station WTTW and went national in 1978. In 1982, the pair moved to a syndicated commercial show called “At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert,” and then created “Siskel & Ebert & the Movies” in 1986 with Buena Vista Television. After Siskel died in 1999, the show was renamed “Roger Ebert & the Movies,” and then “At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper” when fellow Chicago Sun-times columnist Richard Roeper joined as co-host. Ebert last appeared on “Ebert & Roeper & the Movies” in 2006, when complications from his operations left him unable to speak.

A range of guest hosts filled in, from the New York Times’ A.O. Scott and New York Magazine’s David Edelstein to director Kevin Smith and blogger Kim Morgan.

But Ebert and Disney-ABC wrangled over the value of the “thumbs up, thumbs down” feature, which is a registered trademark owned by Ebert and the estate of the late Gene Siskel.

Though Ebert bemoaned the loss of local newspaper film critics, he was quick to embrace the Internet, finding his website the ideal place to communicate with fellow film geeks, and even more empowering once he lost his voice and amassed nearly a million Twitter followers. “Moviegoers these days know so much more about the movies, in every respect, than they did years ago,” he wrote Variety.

After growing up with Fellini and Welles (he named “Citizen Kane” the most important film ever made, if not “the best”), he ignited controversy when he said videogames would never equal film with their storytelling or artistry.

“I am prepared to believe that video games can be elegant, subtle, sophisticated, challenging and visually wonderful. But I believe the nature of the medium prevents it from moving beyond craftsmanship to the stature of art,” he wrote on his site after the release of the videogame film “Doom.”

A critic of the film ratings system, he objected to an R rating for the violent “Passion of the Christ” and misuse of the NC-17 rating.

He wrote more than 15 books on subjects from Martin Scorsese to London and rice cookers, including “Awake in the Dark” and “Your Movie Sucks,” a collection of his negative reviews. Since 1999 he has hosted Ebertfest, featuring overlooked films, in Champaign, Ill.

Ebert married the former Chaz Hammelsmith in 1992. The former attorney took over his business operations, served as a producer on his TV show and traveled to the Cannes Film Fest in 2011 to take over Ebert’s tradition of filing interviews with festival filmmakers.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by a step-daughter and two step-grandchildren.

04-04-2013, 01:36 PM
ShowtimeSBMVP Chiefs Join Date: Feb 2009 Casino cash: $1326009	RIP Roger Ebert Charles Robinson ‏@CharlesRobinson 2m RIP RT @Suntimes: It is with a heavy heart we report that legendary film critic Roger Ebert (@ebertchicago) has passed away.
Posts: 23,832

04-04-2013, 01:54 PM	#16
Messier MVP Join Date: Mar 2004 Casino cash: $10005050	He must have known the end was near. A few days ago he wrote, "I'm taking a leave of presence."
Posts: 7,610

04-04-2013, 01:57 PM	#17
ClevelandBronco I'm with the banned. Join Date: Sep 2006 Casino cash: $5658955	Sad news surely, but we must all try to keep our chins up. __________________ "Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth ..." – Pope Saint John Paul II
Posts: 28,113

04-04-2013, 02:02 PM	#20
KC_Connection Perpetual Mediocrity Join Date: Jan 2006 Casino cash: $1752783	The news saddens me. Great writer, critic, and man. It isn't for no reason that he was read by so many. RIP Roger.
Posts: 57,587

04-04-2013, 02:04 PM	#21
Donger "Think BOOM!" Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: 33.675° N 106.475° W Casino cash: $6949900 VARSITY	That sucks, RIP. Although his last name always reminded me of that 80s video game. __________________ I think the young people enjoy it when I "get down," verbally, don't you?
Posts: 190,761

04-04-2013, 02:05 PM	#23
bowener BAMF! Join Date: Nov 2007 Casino cash: $9549897	I was worried after his "leave of presence" yesterday, but I didn't think he would be dead within 20 hours. __________________ Main Entry: bowe·ner Pronunciation: \ˈbō-nər\ Function: noun Date: circa 2007
Posts: 8,358

04-04-2013, 02:16 PM	#25
MahiMike He's Mahomie! Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Jax, FL Casino cash: $10023443	Why would anyone care what a movie critic says? __________________ 99.9%
Posts: 17,387

04-04-2013, 02:29 PM	#30
Tribal Warfare Man of Culture Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $-2767187	Roger Ebert Dies at 70 04.04.13 \| 12:36PM PT Legendary film critic died Thursday after battle with cancer Film critic Roger Ebert was not only the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize, but one of the only critics known to the general public, thanks to his long-running movie review shows such as “Sneak Previews” and his thumbs-up or down movie reviews. He died Thursday in Chiccago of complications from cancer, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. He was 70. The avuncular champion of movies big and small had been fighting thyroid cancer since 2002, and in the past few years spoke with a voice machine. The latest show to bear his name is the PBS series “Roger Ebert Presents at the Movies,” in which he briefly appears on camera with a prosthetic chin though other critics shoulder reviewing duties. He apperared on the Oprah Winfrey show in 2010, speaking with a machine that tailored his speech more closely to his natural voice. He continued reviewing films and kept in the public eye writing on his popular website and tweeting frequently. Ebert is generally seen as a champion of filmmakers and underappreciated films, a fair reviewer with a dry wit and occasional quirks who wouldn’t hesitate to sock it to films he considers below par, but never in a mean or vindictive way. At times he reviewed films in the form of stories, poems or songs, just to mix it up. Ebert became the Chicago-Sun Times film critic in 1967, just a year after he joined the paper as a features writer. He wrote in Variety in 2007, “Film criticism in those days was moving from the age of (Bosley) Crowther to the age of (Pauline) Kael. Junkets and sound bites and protective publicists were not so universal, and I was able to spend a lot of time with interview subjects, who would, in such cases as Lee Marvin, John Wayne, Groucho Marx and Robert Altman, say anything, literally anything, and not care if you quoted them.” When Ebert and Gene Siskel helped launch “Sneak Previews” in 1975, it was the first TV show offering film reviews. The various incarnations of the program would go to be Emmy nommed seven times. His Pulitzer Prize came in 1975 for his Sun-Times reviews during 1974. Born in Urbana, Ill., he started writing sports for the local paper and articles for sci fi fanzines while still in high school. He graduated the U. of Ill. at Urbana-Champaign, where he was editor of the paper and contributed reviews for films including “La Dolce Vita” and “Bonnie and Clyde,” which he called “a milestone in the history of American movies, a work of truth and brilliance.” Ebert also knew about the inside of the movie business, having teamed with sexploitation helmer Russ Meyer to write “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls” and “Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens.” “Sneak Previews” started out on Chicago public broadcasting station WTTW and went national in 1978. In 1982, the pair moved to a syndicated commercial show called “At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert,” and then created “Siskel & Ebert & the Movies” in 1986 with Buena Vista Television. After Siskel died in 1999, the show was renamed “Roger Ebert & the Movies,” and then “At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper” when fellow Chicago Sun-times columnist Richard Roeper joined as co-host. Ebert last appeared on “Ebert & Roeper & the Movies” in 2006, when complications from his operations left him unable to speak. A range of guest hosts filled in, from the New York Times’ A.O. Scott and New York Magazine’s David Edelstein to director Kevin Smith and blogger Kim Morgan. But Ebert and Disney-ABC wrangled over the value of the “thumbs up, thumbs down” feature, which is a registered trademark owned by Ebert and the estate of the late Gene Siskel. Though Ebert bemoaned the loss of local newspaper film critics, he was quick to embrace the Internet, finding his website the ideal place to communicate with fellow film geeks, and even more empowering once he lost his voice and amassed nearly a million Twitter followers. “Moviegoers these days know so much more about the movies, in every respect, than they did years ago,” he wrote Variety. After growing up with Fellini and Welles (he named “Citizen Kane” the most important film ever made, if not “the best”), he ignited controversy when he said videogames would never equal film with their storytelling or artistry. “I am prepared to believe that video games can be elegant, subtle, sophisticated, challenging and visually wonderful. But I believe the nature of the medium prevents it from moving beyond craftsmanship to the stature of art,” he wrote on his site after the release of the videogame film “Doom.” A critic of the film ratings system, he objected to an R rating for the violent “Passion of the Christ” and misuse of the NC-17 rating. He wrote more than 15 books on subjects from Martin Scorsese to London and rice cookers, including “Awake in the Dark” and “Your Movie Sucks,” a collection of his negative reviews. Since 1999 he has hosted Ebertfest, featuring overlooked films, in Champaign, Ill. Ebert married the former Chaz Hammelsmith in 1992. The former attorney took over his business operations, served as a producer on his TV show and traveled to the Cannes Film Fest in 2011 to take over Ebert’s tradition of filing interviews with festival filmmakers. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a step-daughter and two step-grandchildren. __________________
Posts: 43,419