Danny ChaiI kind of feel like people whitewash the Siskel/Ebert relationship. As if they were all buddies and everything. I dunno, I used to watch them a lot and for a long time, they didn’t even like each other. It was only in the last few years that they kept it to just arguing, as opposed to hating each other, but yeah, they argued to the very end.
One of my favorite moments was a few years before Siskel died, they were arguing and Siskel was getting pissed because Ebert was just discounting his opinion as if his own was all that mattered and Siskel lets out something like, “Oh yeah, your opinion is all that matters. Forget the name of the show. Welcome to the new show: ‘Ebert’.” And Ebert just glared, silent. Quality television.
Anyway, I happened to see this old clip of them appearing on Later with Bob Costas and it was hilarious. They really didn’t like each other. Bob asks them, “What do you bring to the show that the other doesn’t?” And Siskel quickly responds, “Intelligence.” And Ebert shoots back, “Intelligence and emotion.” Great stuff.