Ebert to go solo as Siskel recuperates from surgery
Chi critic returns in September
Nine months after undergoing brain surgery, Gene Siskel is heeding doctors' advice and taking a seven-month break from his TV and print duties to fully recover from the operation.
Siskel, who had a growth removed from his brain last May, is expected to return to his regular schedule in September. According to a press release, the film critic will continue his rehabilitation program at his Chicago-area home.
Siskel, 53, pens a syndicated column for the Chicago Tribune and co-hosts the syndie "Siskel & Ebert" movie review series with fellow Chi film critic Ebert.
For the time being, "Siskel & Ebert" will continue with just Ebert, but reps for the show, distributed by Disney's Buena Vista TV, say they'll decide in a few weeks whether an interim co-host will be brought in until Siskel returns. Ebert's first solo show was taped Tuesday for broadcast this weekend.
Also on hold until the fall are Siskel's regular contributions to TV Guide and his weekly segments on CBS' "This Morning."
Siskel and Ebert, arguably the nation's best-known film critics, have been offering their famed thumbs up/thumbs down reviews as a TV crix team since 1978.
"I'm in a hurry to get well because I don't want to let Roger get more screen time than I," Siskel said in a statement issued Wednesday. "Also, this experience will give me a chance to work out my left thumb, the stunt double."
