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Chaz Ebert
Chaz Ebert (née Hammel, previously Hammel-Smith, born October 15, 1952) is an American businesswoman. She is best known for her marriage to film critic Roger Ebert, having been married to him from 1992 until his death in 2013.
| Chaz Ebert |
|---|
| Ebert at the Hawaii International Film Festival in 2010 |
| Charlie Hammel (1952-10-15) October 15, 1952Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| University of Dubuque (BA)University of Wisconsin–Platteville (MA)DePaul University (JD) |
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| since 1972 |
| .mw-parser-output .marriage-line-margin2px{line-height:0;margin-bottom:-2px}.mw-parser-output .marriage-line-margin3px{line-height:0;margin-bottom:-3px}.mw-parser-output .marriage-display-inline{display:inline} |
| Merle Smith (divorced) |
| Roger Ebert |
| (m. 1992; died 2013) |
| 2 |
Chaz Ebert (née Hammel, previously Hammel-Smith, born October 15, 1952) is an American businesswoman. She is best known for her marriage to film critic Roger Ebert, having been married to him from 1992 until his death in 2013.
Ebert was born Charlie Hammel in Chicago, Illinois, to Johnnie Hobbs Hammel and Wiley Hammel Sr. She attended Crane Technical High School in Chicago. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Dubuque, a Master of Arts from University of Wisconsin–Platteville, and a Juris Doctor from the DePaul University College of Law.
Ebert was an executive producer and guest on Ebert Presents: At the Movies. She is the CEO and publisher of Ebert Digital, which publishes RogerEbert.com, a website that contains an archive of her deceased husband Roger Ebert's film reviews and publishes contributors' film reviews. She was featured in the 2014 documentary Life Itself about Roger Ebert and was an executive producer of the 2019 film Selah and the Spades.
In 2005, Ebert was part of a group of high-profile minority and female shareholders who filed a federal lawsuit against other investors in the bankrupt Rosemont, Illinois-based Emerald Casino. Ebert and the other investors said they lost more than $21 million after the Illinois Gaming Board revoked the license from the Emerald Casino, reportedly because the other investors were accused of lying to state regulators or having ties to organized crime.
After the death of her husband in 2013 and until 2025, Ebert became the host of Ebertfest, an annual film festival held in Champaign, Illinois, in collaboration with the UIUC College of Media.
On September 28, 2022, during the 2022 Screen Gems Benefit, Ebert announced that she would make her directorial debut on a documentary about Deborah Szekely, the centenarian so-called godmother of health and fitness. The film, entitled The Wellness Warrior, premiered on October 26, 2024, at the Chicago International Film Festival.
On May 7, 2024, Ebert published a book entitled It's Time to Give a FECK: Elevating Humanity through Forgiveness, Empathy, Compassion, and Kindness, about the importance of forgiveness, empathy, compassion, and kindness, inspired by the work of her late husband Roger Ebert.
Ebert has two children from her first marriage to Merle Smith, whom she divorced. She was married to film critic Roger Ebert from 1992 until his death in 2013.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | The 17th Annual Gotham Awards | Herself | TV special |
| 2013 | Roger Ebert's 14th Annual Film Festival: A Retrospective | Herself | Short film |
| 2014 | Life Itself | Herself | |
| 2019 | 90 Years of the Music Box Theatre | Herself | Short film |
| 2019 | Benjamin Marshall Architect | Herself | Short film |
| 2021 | 3rd Annual AAFCA TV Honors | Herself | TV special |
| 2024 | The 15th Annual AAFCA Awards | Herself | TV special |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | The Oprah Winfrey Show | Guest | Episode: "Oprah's Pre-Oscar Special" |
| 2011 | Ebert Presents: At the Movies | Contributor | 10 episodes |
| 2013 | Entertainment Tonight | Herself | 1 episode |
| 2014 | HuffPost Live Conversations | Guest | 1 episode |
| Tavis Smiley | Guest | 1 episode | |
| The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon | Herself | Episode: "Dan Aykroyd/Chaz Ebert/Nick Thune" | |
| 2014-2015 | The Insider | Herself | 2 episodes |
| 2019 | CTV News at 11:30 Toronto | Herself | 1 episode |
| CTV News at Noon Tornoto | Herself | 1 episode | |
| 2024 | Tamron Hall | Herself | Episode: "Let's Get Lit! (2024) #2" |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | LCJ Q&A Podcast | Guest | Episode: "Chaz Ebert" |
| 2018 | Maltin on Movies | Guest | Episode: "Chaz Ebert" |
| 2019 | Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso | Herself | Episode: "Chaz Ebert" |
| 2022 | Lagralane Spirits | Guest | Episode: "Passing Part 2 - The Roles We Play" |
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On September 28, 2022, Ebert was awarded the FACETS Legend Award at the 2022 Screen Gems Benefit for her efforts to promote diversity within the film world.
- Official website
- Chaz Ebert at IMDb
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