Ebert to make first public appearance since cancer surgery

[Rhiannon12866]

Source: The Napa Valley Register

Thursday, April 26, 2007
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Film critic Roger Ebert says he won’t miss his annual film festival, despite the advice from some who said he should sit out this year.

The 64-year-old’s participation at his annual film festival Wednesday night was expected to be his first public appearance since a cancerous growth was removed from his salivary gland last June. Doctors removed a portion of his jaw in the process and needed to perform a tracheostomy to allow him to breathe. It has left him unable to speak.

“I was told photos of me in this condition would attract the gossip papers,” he wrote in a column in Tuesday’s Chicago Sun-Times. “So what?”

“To paraphrase a line from ‘Raging Bull,’ I ain’t a pretty boy no more,” Ebert wrote.


Read more: http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/04/26/features/arts_and_entertainment/doc46302d90dbcdf413030300.txt

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This is good news, will be glad to see him back... :-)

[Cooley Hurd]

1. Great news! Get well soon Roger!

:thumbsup:

[hlthe2b]

2. Good for Ebert

Hang tight, Roger

[youngdem]

3. Good for him. That takes balls in an industry driven by image

I hope it makes a lot of people thankful for what they have an aware of what cancer can do.

Best wishes, 'Bert.

[Bicoastal]

4. Always liked Roger...

As a critic, he may not always be right, but he's never un-entertaining. Good for him!

:thumbsup:

[Rhiannon12866]

5. I like him too, he's a good liberal, though I used to usually agree with Gene,

when it came to movies. I just saw footage of him on CNN and he is very changed, looks very unlike his former self and has aged remarkably, poor guy. But I give him a lot of credit for carrying on and living his life as he wants to...:-)

BTW, my friend who was movie editor where I used to work (wrote about TV) met him one time, years ago, at a conference. He told me that the reason that his lips often looked blue or purple was because he was always sucking on hard candies, probably grape...:D

[supernova]

7. I always wondered about that

the "blue" lips ... if it didn't belie a chronic condition of some sort.

Good to know it's just candy. :-)

And I think Roger looks just fine. Have a good time, Roger!

[Rhiannon12866]

9. That's what my friend said, which explains it...

A small piece of trivia. And I thought so too, wondered about his health, but my friend told me that he was constantly popping candies... And I hope that he has a good time, too, since he sure deserves it...:-)

[Raine]

6. All the best to him

hope to see him back reviewing movies soon.

[tabasco]

8. Roger Ebert is very cool.

I emailed him once and got a personal reply.

There are very few movies I disagree with him on.