Roger Ebert, one of America's best known film critics, has not been able to speak since he had emergency cancer surgery on July 1 to repair a burst blood vessel near the site of his June 16 surgery to remove a cancerous growth on his salivary gland. But he can still give a thumbs up or thumbs down as he reviews movies on his Web site.

Starting today, clips from Ebert & Roeper and Ebert's prior episodes of his movie review TV show will be posted here. It just may be the largest collection ever of video-based online movie reviews -- 5,000 movie reviews spanning the past 20 years will be featured.

Ebert is not quite sure when he might return to television as he awaits another surgery to restore his voice. In the meantime, he screens as many as three films a day. He watches DVDs at night to catch up on those he missed, and he's writing more than ever, he says.

Movie critic Roger Ebert expects to be back to work at his annual festival for overlooked movies this week. It will be his first public appearance since having cancer surgery last summer -- and while some say his appearance may attract the gossip papers, Ebert says, "So what?"

Ebert, 64, will be seen at the ninth annual Overlooked Film Festival, beginning today at the University of Urbana-Champaign, wearing a gauze bandage around his neck. And his mouth will be seen to droop, he says.

This is all because of Ebert's tracheostomy -- it opens an airway through an incision in his windpipe, rendering him speechless -- that resulted from his June 16 surgery to remove a cancerous growth on his salivary gland and a subsequent July 1 surgery to repair a burst blood vessel close to the same site.

On Tuesday, Ebert shared that his cancer began in his salivary gland but then spread to his lower right jaw. As a result, part of his mandible was removed and two surgeries were necessary to reconstruct the area. Both surgeries were unsuccessful, however, and led to unanticipated bleeding.

"The doctors now plan an approach that does not involve the risk of unplanned bleeding," Ebert, a film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times since 1967, says. "If all goes well, my speech will be restored."

This cancer survivor, who says we spend too much time hiding illness and is proud to be back in the spotlight, has also co-hosted the Ebert & Roeper television show with fellow Sun-Times columnist Richard Roeper since 2000. Film critics and filmmakers have been filling in for Ebert during his recovery.

Back in June, Roger Ebert, a three-time thyroid cancer survivor, underwent surgery to remove a cancerous growth on his salivary gland. In July, due to complications from the surgery, he was admitted again into the hospital when a blood vessel burst. Surgeons performed a life-saving emergency procedure to correct the complication. Reports at that time indicated Ebert was in serious but stable condition.

Ebert continues to recover in the hospital. Recently, he explained that the blood vessel rupture was due to breakdown of tissue near the artery as a result of aggressive and intense radiation treatments, called neutron beam radiation, three years ago. He is working to strengthen his vocal cords.

In June, when Ebert, who is 63, first went in for surgery, he said, "This is not considered to be a life-threatening form of cancer, and I expect to make a full recovery. I'll continue to function as a film critic during this time." With this recent explanation on how his recovery is progressing, he said, "I don't have a crystal ball, so I can't tell you when, but I sure look forward to being back on the movie beat,'' and he wanted all his fans to know that he is grateful for the good wishes and support.

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