at the movies

film lovers all over the world lost a wonderful critic yesterday, roger ebert.  his partner in rhyme, gene siskel, died in 1999.  together they made film criticism cool and film critics celebrities in their own right.  i was an early adherent to their show when it was broadcast on PBS back in -- i'm not sure -- but i started watching the program when i was told by a friend about it around 1981. i was 13 or 14 years old. back then the show was called Sneak Previews and i recall it opening with two newspaper delivery truck, the chicago sun times and the chicago tribune, both rival papers and each with their own movie critic.  those critics -- gene siskel and roger ebert -- teamed up and created a broadcast with a forum for film criticism a show devoted to movies that aired clips of the latest films all before VCRs turned every household in to a movie theater?  i was hooked.

nowadays television is saturated by sneak previews, celebrity gossip shows, and trailers.  i don't think siskel and ebert were the first hosts of their kind but they were the pair that set the mold.  even so siskel and ebert were eggheads and slightly goofy which were their strength and charm.  if you want go to youtube.com where you will find oodles of siskel and ebert at work.  i'd post a clip here but i have a date to watch a flick with nick.  we will even have jiffypop popcorn.