Thumbs up to this online archive of 'Siskel & Ebert' clips

Jeff Palmer Sat, Aug 23, 2008 at 09:46 PM EST

I remember them reviewing a movie long ago, I don't remember which unfortunately, but Roger was closing his review with the remarks,"And this time Gene, I KNOW what I'm talking about." To which Gene angrily replied, "Well in that case, Roger, you can do the show yourself! We'll be right back with a brand new show called "Ebert"! You couldn't ask for any better.

Another fan Tue, Aug 7, 2007 at 01:40 PM EST

Ahhh, some good S&E lovin'! Thanks for the tip, and I am also enjoying all the comments here.

What I liked best about these guys were the various special programs they did: Memo To The Academy was always my favorite. Also their Best and Worst of the year, and If We Picked the Oscars. And the priceless specials on some up-and-coming stars, like Rene Zellweger, Leonardo Decaprio, and Johnny Depp. Engaging and eye-opening stuff.

Jakeem Tue, Aug 7, 2007 at 07:28 AM EST

Andy, it was definitely Kathryn Harrold. I've recently found out it was for a 1982 movie called "The Sender."
Perhaps they squabbled over Barbara Hershey, too!

DC Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 03:13 PM EST

All I have to say about these two is they loved "Forrest Gumop"
Which has to be the worse film, othe than "Dancing with Wolves" to win the Oscar.

thwarted Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 11:42 AM EST

Uh oh, there goes all my free time.

Mia Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 10:35 AM EST

Also, like Babette, I too talked at hyperspeed when I met Ebert at Sundance.
And the funniest thing about Sundance is that there are all these stars and indie filmmakers around but only when Ebert walked down the street to the bus stop did EVERYONE stop dead in their tracks and whisper "Hey, there is Ebert". When he is around, EVERYONE is starstruck.

Mia Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 09:59 AM EST

Some of their shows were lost forever.
So, you should check with them to see if they have The Hours and the Times or they need to borrow your tape of it.

Yes, I was addicted to the show when I was little too. My friend and I used to act like we were Siskel & Ebert and debate movies. It was great!

I can't wait to watch all the old clips!!!!

andy Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 09:37 AM EST

Jakeem -- Barbara Hershey is the actress Sisked told Ebert to ask out instead of giving her movie a good review. I think the movie was ``The Entity'' (I'm sure it was a horror movie) which came out in '81 and won't be included in the archive because it dates back to their PBS days.

Chris G Mon, Aug 6, 2007 at 06:53 AM EST

Their Jaws the Revenge and Showgirls reviews are funny as they try to figure out what everyone was thinkig with those movies. And I enjoy the end of Ebert & Roeper's War of the Worlds review when they argue about the merits of giving movies thumbs up/down.

Michael Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 09:44 PM EST

Jay -- Thanks for the response. Good idea, I'll start checking them online every week. :)

DLM Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 04:52 PM EST

The "Silence of the Lambs" dust-up is impressive. I'd never seen it before and loved watching it. Disagreements aren't the only things that are fun. For a good time, watch them rip into awful movies like "Very Bad Things" and "North." And listening to them gush about films like "Fargo" and "Schindler's List" reminds me why I love movies.

Ned Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 11:32 AM EST

Now that I think about it, I don't think the actress was Kathryn Harrold, I'm pretty sure it was Paula Prentiss. I think the movie that was being discussed was Black Marble. Ebert gave it a good review based soley on her performance, and Siskel accused him of giving it a good review because he had a crush on the lead actress.

Ned Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 11:19 AM EST

Jakeem, I remember that episode as well, but there's more to the story. In an interview in Playboy, they were asked about that exchange, and it turns out Kathryn Harold saw that episode, and was so flattered that she had her agent call Ebert and ask him out for her. Ebert said he would think about it, but he suspected it was Gene pulling a practical joke, and never called her back, so he actually could have gone on a date with her.

They did have a rivalry with each other, that's for sure, but there was real affection there. I'll never forget an appearance they made on the Tonight Show, not long before Siskel died, and Ebert turned to Gene and told him that he loved him. Ebert also did a very touching tribute to Gene Siskel on the show after his death.

emily Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 01:21 AM EST

In rodgers review of blue velvet he was going on how they humilated Rosseni in it. This is the same the guy who wrote the screenplay to Beyond the valley of the dolls. Which degrades women alot more then Blue Velvet.

Babette Sun, Aug 5, 2007 at 12:56 AM EST

I work with celebrities everyday and am never starstruck. Roger Ebert is the only person who ever left me silent in awe. My friend forced me to say something to him and when I did I went into this long 10,000 word per minute diatribe about how when I was a kid his reviews for Raiders of the Lost Ark, Shoot the Moon, and My Dinner With Andre turned me into a film lover. Ebert took a moment, thought about it, and finally said, "Yeah. Shoot the Moon was a good movie." I will love him forever because he was so cool when I wasn't. God bless you and get better Mr. Ebert.

Jay Sat, Aug 4, 2007 at 01:31 PM EST

Michael, I live in little Rhody too, and I just check out the reviews online now - it's easier than trying to find when they're going to show it this week (like 12:00 am on a Monday).

Jakeem Sat, Aug 4, 2007 at 06:24 AM EST

My favorite Siskel and Ebert moment was when they were reviewing an '80s movie featuring actress Kathryn Harrold. Siskel hated it. Ebert was enchanted by Harrold's performance.
As a result, Siskel snarled, "Roger, if you like her so much, why don't you call her up and ask her for a date?"
Despite this, I always believed there was underlying affection between the two competitors.

mike Sat, Aug 4, 2007 at 12:53 AM EST

Roger, you ignorant slut!!
You could tell they weren't the best of friends. They were movie critics at rival newspapers. But, they were the only game in town at the time.

garvey Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 11:05 PM EST

I've been on the site since Thursday (re)checking out reviews. One great dust-up was for Silence of the Lambs. Gene loathed it, though I remember him changing his mind later on.

Daniel Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 10:55 PM EST

Wow.

I'm gonna be busy for hours on end now!

Michael Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 09:51 PM EST

Gregory - you're the man. I always tell my friends I could watch Ebert & Roeper (and previously Siskel & Ebert) for hours on end, and when I saw you had put this link up I was ecstatic. No sleep for me tonight!

(P.S. I live in Rhode Island, and I swear I can never find when this show is on. You have more pull than me in the biz, Greg, so do a buddy a favor: call up NBC WJAR and tell them to put this show on at a better time!)

nunya Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 09:36 PM EST

it'll be great to watch these old shows. i actually frequently read and re-read ebert's archived reviews on his website. they are always insightful, well-argued and have the content of articulate critical literature. one of my favorite reviews is ebert's rather distinguished take on my favorite movie - forrest gump. you should read it.

nunya Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 09:33 PM EST

it'll be great to watch these old shows. i actually frequently read and re-read ebert's archived reviews on his website. they are always insightful, well-argued and have the content of articulate critical literature. one of my favorite reviews is ebert's rather distinguished take on my favorite movie - forrest gump. you should read it.

Alyson Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 08:55 PM EST

The review of Say Anything was amazing. I read it at about fourteen, having never seen the movie. I had gotten one of those big collections of Ebert reviews for my birthday and I read nearly every one. Talk about an education. Anyway, the one for Say Anything always sticks in my mind because it seemed like Roger Ebert knew what would be important to a teenage girl, and loved the movie for knowing that, too. I rented it shortly after and still love that movie today.

I also like his review of Love Story, where he talks about how the book takes only fifteen minutes to read.

Nav Fri, Aug 3, 2007 at 07:39 PM EST

This is great. Thanks for the heads up!