Ebert had been battling cancer for years, even losing his lower jaw as a result. The loss resulted in his inability to speak or eat, but that didn't stop him from maintaining his role in the public eye.
Ebert took to the web just two days ago to announce that his cancer had been back, saying that he was taking a "leave of presence". He went on to say, "At this point in my life, in addition to writing about movies, I may write about what it's like to cope with health challenges and the limitations they can force upon you," he wrote. "It really stinks that the cancer has returned and that I have spent too many days in the hospital. So on bad days I may write about the vulnerability that accompanies illness. On good days, I may wax ecstatic about a movie so good it transports me beyond illness."
He leaves behind a wife, Chaz Ebert.