The Official MovieSet Blog
Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper leave the balcony…for now
Monday, July 21, 2008
I’m just catching up with the day’s news and I’ve learned that both Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper have called it quits with Disney Television and their syndicated TV series At the Movies. Both of the talented film critics have ended their relationship with Disney ABC Domestic Television and when the series returns this fall neither man will be associated with it.
What it means for you and me is that there won’t be a place on your TV where you can find out whether a movie merits a thumbs up or thumbs down rating. Ebert and Gene Siskel created the thumbs up/down ratings system back in the late 1970s when they hosted Sneak Previews on PBS before graduating to the syndicated big leagues with At the Movies in the ’80s. When Siskel passed half of the share of the rights to the thumbs up/down went to his widow. In a released statement announcing his departure from At the Movies, Ebert says that this is not the end of his TV career nor the end of the thumbs. “The trademark still belongs to me and Marlene Iglitzen, Gene’s widow, and the thumbs will return,” writes Ebert. “We are discussing possibilities, and plan to continue the show’s tradition.”
At least this reassures everyone that ol’ Roger isn’t calling it a day just yet. As for Roeper, word is that he’s already been contacted about starting up a new movie review show. Sounds like another cat that will land on his feet.
Posted at 5:49AM by admin
