Late Friday, the AP ran a story about Roger Ebert’s on-going contract negotiations with Disney/ABC (the producers of Ebert & Roeper) with the headline, “Ebert, No Thumbs, Up or Down, on TV Show“. Along with the wife of his former partner, Gene Siskel, Ebert owns the trademark to the “thumbs up” concept, and according to a press release submitted by ABC to the AP, Ebert had “exercised his right to withhold use of the `thumbs’ until a new contract is signed.” The AP story goes on to report that two episodes of Ebert & Roeper have been taped sans both Ebert and thumbs.
But in a statement released over the weekend, Ebert said ABC’s press release was misleading:
Contrary to Disney’s press release, I did not demand the removal of the Thumbs™. They made a first offer on Friday which I considered offensively low. I responded with a counter-offer. They did not reply to this, and on Monday ordered the Thumbs™ removed from the show. This is not something I expected after an association of over 22 years. I had made it clear the Thumbs™ could remain during good-faith negotiations.
In his statement, Ebert expresses a desire to resolve the dispute, and to get the thumbs back on the air as soon as possible. But is that still a viable possibility?
