Posted April 26, 2014 I recently finished Roger Ebert's autobiography. I did not agree with his left-leaning politics, but his film criticism was incredibly entertaining, insightful, and always stated with a solid opinion -- a must for a good critic. It has been a while since he died, but I still miss his wit and wisdom. Anyway, Roger was in South Africa in the 1960s. He was at a bar and met an attractive lady who seemed incredibly interested in him -- a pudgy, nerdy guy who was, however, well read and interesting. He was a virgin, and she invited him back to her apartment. Hot damn, he thought. Just before the clothes came off, she said, "Why don't we take care of the business first?" And that's when he realized he had to pay for it. He did pay for it. The fact that he relays this incident shows that this will be an honest and forthright memoir. The book is very much his life, and not a recitation of big stars he got to meet. However, he does relay meeting John Wayne when the Duke was still somewhat in his prime and a living legend. They went to a diner together and the waitress casually walked over when John said, "Well, darling, I'll have the ham and eggs and a cup of coffee if you don't mind." The waitress did a double take, swooned, and nearly fainted. The Duke just smiled as if he were used to it. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted April 26, 2014 The Duke is the man... period! I forget, is Roger Ebert the one who had part of his jaw removed due to cancer? 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted April 26, 2014 Roger did have part of his jaw removed due to cancer. Incidentally, he admits that he made a mistake in his treatment by going with a more experimental approach, not a "new age" approach, but one that did not have as much medical literature behinds its efficacy. He is convinced that he would have been in much better shape had he gone with the more conventional approach. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
