Ben Lyons, Ebert's Replacement, Admits: "It Has Definitely Helped To Have My Dad Open Some Doors For Me"

New York Daily News:

Jeffrey Lyons is denying snipes by fellow movie critics that he used influence to get his son Ben the plum job of replacing Roger Ebert in the show "At the Movies" with Richard Roeper.

Ebert and Roeper left the ABC program within 24 hours of each other this week, and Disney immediately hired Ben Lyons, who's 26, and Ben Mankiewicz as hosts.

Critics have no beef with the erudite Mankiewicz, an expert on animation and other film genres who's a host on the Turner Classic Movies channel. But they say Ben Lyons, an E! channel personality, doesn't have the experience to replace Ebert, a Pulitzer Prize winner who created the famous "thumbs up, thumbs down" review show with Gene Siskel in 1975.

Jeffrey Lyons told us: "[My son] Ben and I are on two separate networks and different coasts. If anything, I'd have less pull getting him on."

But Ben Lyons admitted, "It has definitely helped to have my dad to open some doors for me. But you have to do the work yourself."

Read the whole story: New York Daily News

Comments

[robXdion]

Affirmative Action huh?

[DCCommuter]

how come nobody sees this as another form of affirmative action [for rich people]. Hard working White Americans should be mad at rich people for holding all the plum jobs. not minorities.

[kassandrasduplex]

And NEPOTISM gets a big TWO THUMBS UP!

[ScandalousCandice]

Ben Lyons is an awful choice. Daddy got me my job. I despise people like this.

[LeaveArtieAlone]

Show will be canceled, no Roger NO SHOW cred!

[dooleynoted]

No Ben, you famous father didn't help you get the job - he held your hand, led you through the door and sat you down in the chair with a signed contract. Jeffrey Lyons is about as untalented as it gets but i guess if Paris Hilton can get a show so can the no-talent son of a no-talent critic. Its just sad to see such a ground-breaking show turned over to two guys who, if it weren't for their famous last names, would be selling audio equipment at Best Buy.

[Bettysdad]

No reason to insult the workers at Best Buy, or similar. It's about as elitist as one can get.

Some people like being around consumer electronics.
and dealing with the public.

A lot of car mechanics love working on cars, and made a career out of it.

There are people that don't dream of being pension consultants.

I do what I do because I love it.

[DCCommuter]

I don't think he was insulting people with those jobs. He was just saying that is what ordinary people do who don't have millionaire parents.

[Bettysdad]

Yes, Jeffrey.

Executives at Yahoo don't know anyone at Google to help their kid.

[mediamarv]

Ah, the sweet smell of nepotism..... reminds me of peace... or low ratings, I'm not sure this early in the day....

[CAMBEL]

why do the parents pretend that they didn't have anything to do with the kid getting a job? It's dumb, it would be like Chelsea Clinton or one of the Bush getting a gigantic partnering job in a lobbying firm anx then trying to claim that they weren't hired due to family connections. Does anybody remember when Tori spelling claimed that she auditioned for and got on to her Fathers show "90210" all by herslef because she used a fake name and nobody knew who she was? Enough already.

[Bettysdad]

You mean Chelsea Clinton didn't get her job at the DOD's largest consultant by herself.

Well then she must have at the hedge fund run by one of her mommy's biggest contributors.

[beanhole]

duh... a no brainer. nepotism.
and tim russert's kid doing reporting for the conventions. i'm SURE he earned that job on his own too.

how do i join this club? anybody want to adopt me?

[lisakaz2]

Yay for more nepotism! With Booo$hie, they don't have to worry about rules and the EEOC much, do they?

[1099]

What does the EEOC have to do with this? This is the way the world works. If you've got connections you are very lucky; if not, you are S.O.L. Life isn't fair. Grow up and deal with it.

[Eric8869]

Jeffrey Lyons is a bad film reviewer himself - no where near the quality of a Roger Ebert. Who cares what his spawn thinks of movies?

[MemphisBuffalo]

The lucky sperm club wins another!

[1099]

Some other members of the lucky sperm club:

John F. Kennedy
Robert F. Kennedy
Ted Kennedy

You got any problem with them?

[sf101]

First Tim Russert's kid and now Lyon's kid. So in this hypercorporate culture "paying your dues" is passe? Considering a lot of media corp. profit is down, you better have some nice escape clauses in your contract.