Two BIG Thumbs Up

Fonzie may have made the double thumbs up cool, but Siskel and Ebert turned the thumbs up into a national symbol for a job well done. People everywhere can identify the oft repeated comments: "I give this movie an enthusiastic thumbs up, it's one of the best films of the year." or "Thumbs down all the way. This movie is so terrible I wish I could rewind it and erase it from my memory." Even people who've never seen an episode of Siskel & Ebert, or the present day Ebert & Roeper, know what it means to get a thumbs up or thumbs down. Who would have thought that a little TV show featuring two average and slightly dorky Chicago movie critics would become a phenomenom that has not only spawned a catch phrase but become a true test for filmakers everywhere.

Monday, July 18 was officially dubbed "Roger Ebert Day," complete with speeches, a fancy luncheon, and the unvieling of a sidewalk 'medallion.' Just last month Ebert became the first movie critic to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. If hadn't been clear before, there is no ignoring it now: Ebert is a true movie legend (perhaps a Godfather of sorts). People are not only eager to hear his opinions of movies but also his one of a kind quips and zingers. Ebert delivers some of the funniest lines on TV, lines that would probably be beneficial if they were in the movies he's zinging. Case in point a recent comment on the remake of The Longest Yard, "There is a sense in which attacking this movie is like kicking a dog for not being better at calculus."

Roger Ebert is not only a wonderful film critic he's also a truly good person who deserves to have his own day. The only surprise is that it took this long to come.

Mr. Ebert, I salute you and give you TWO ENTHUSIASTIC THUMBS UP!