Roger Ebert's Cancer Is Back

Roger Ebert is announcing a "leave of presence" from his work as a critic as he suffers from "a new cancer," he writes at the Chicago Sun-Times. Radiation treatment prevents him from attending screenings as frequently as in the past, but his work will go on, he writes: A "leave of presence ... means I am not going away." Instead, he'll write selected reviews while a "handpicked" group of critics review other films.

"I'll be able at last to do what I've always fantasized about doing: reviewing only the movies I want to review," he writes. Meanwhile, a "new and improved" RogerEbert.com is getting a relaunch under Ebert Digital, a group controlled by Ebert, his wife, and a friend. The critic is also pushing a Kickstarter project to get the At the Movies TV show back on the air. "On this day of reflection I say again, thank you for going on this journey with me," Ebert writes. "I'll see you at the movies." (More Roger Ebert stories.)