Ebert was born Roger Joseph Ebert on June 18, 1942 in Urbana, Illinois. His parents were Annabel (née Stumm) and Walter H. Ebert. His ancestry was German, Dutch, and Irish. He was raised Roman Catholic, attending St. Mary's elementary school and serving as an altarboy in Urbana. Ebert studied at Urbana High School, at the University of Chicago, and at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Ebert was raised in Chicago, Illinois.