So, as you watch Ebert on Oprah this week and see him, ready for his closeup, the center of the world at last, if you wonder to yourself, “They’re making him into some sort of saint. Is he really that nice of a guy?” … just know that, yes, he really is that nice of a guy. But more than that, he’s a wonderful, soulful writer who is better, and more devoted, than just about anyone in the game. He’s been my personal hero for 25 years, but he belongs to the world now. I’m just honored to have gotten to know him as briefly as I did, whether or not I deserved it, whether or not I was mature enough to handle it. Ebert’s a national treasure. I couldn’t be more ecstatic that so many people finally realize it. He did it the right way all along: He did it by writing, and being, resolutely, himself.