NEWSRoger Ebert Responds to Bam Margera: My Tweet Wasn't Intended to Be Cruel
June 21 2011, Published 5:50 a.m. ET
Film critic Roger Ebert tweeted yesterday in the wake of Jackass star Ryan Dunn's death in a car crash, "Friends don't let jackasses drink and drive," angering fans and Ryan's friend, Bam Margera. Bam replied with a series of two tweets raging at Roger, writing, "I just lost my best friend, I have been crying hysterically for a full day and piece of shit roger ebert has the gall to put in his 2 cents About a jackass drunk driving and his is one, f**k you! Millions of people are crying right now, shut your fat f**king mouth!." Roger wants to clear the air, writing in a blog post that he never intended to be cruel.
OK! NEWS: BAM MARGERA BLASTS ROGER EBERT FOR RYAN DUNN DRUNK DRIVING TWEET — SHUT YOUR FAT MOUTH
On his blog for the Chicago Sun-Times he writes: "To begin with, I offer my sympathy to Ryan Dunn's family and friends, and to those of Zachary Hartwell, who also died in the crash. I mean that sincerely. It is tragic to lose a loved one. I also regret that my tweet about the event was considered cruel. It was not intended as cruel. It was intended as true. I have no way of knowing if Ryan Dunn was drunk at the time of his death. What I knew before posting my tweet was that not long before his death, he posted a photo on Tumbler showing himself drinking with two friends."
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He goes on to explain his original tweet, saying he didn't mean Ryan was a jackass, but that he was referring to his association with Jackass.
Roger does admit that he doesn't know for certain that alcohol was definitely involved in the accident, but that excessive speed was cited by police as a possibly contributing factor.
- Bam Margera Leaves Jail to Check Into 'Short-Term' Rehabilitation Clinic After DUI Arrest
- Bam Margera 'Looking Forward to' Continuing Sobriety Journey Once He's Released From Prison After DUI Arrest, Says His Lawyer
- Bam Margera Arrested and in Prison for Driving Under the Influence — 1 Year After Troubled Star Became Sober
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"I don't know what happened in this case, and I was probably too quick to tweet. That was unseemly. I do know that nobody has any business driving on a public highway at 110 mph, as some estimated -- or fast enough, anyway, to leave a highway and fly through 40 yards of trees before crashing. That is true in any event. It is especially true if the driver has had three shots and three beers. Two people were killed. What if the car had crashed into another car?" writes Roger.
OK! NEWS: ROGER EBERT SLAMS RYAN DUNN'S DEATH; ACCUSES HIM OF DRUNK DRIVING
Roger's Facebook page, which made no mention of Ryan, was taken down this morning, he thinks most likely as Jackass fans flagged it as "hateful, threatening or obscene."
No matter whose side you're on or whether or not drinking was involved in this accident, one thing remains true — don't drink and drive and keep your friends from doing so.
