Charlton Heston, the legendary actor, has died. He was 84 years old.
With a booming baritone voice, the tall, ruggedly handsome actor delivered his signature role as the prophet Moses in Cecil B. DeMille's 1956 Biblical extravaganza "The Ten Commandments," raising a rod over his head as God miraculously parts the Red Sea.
Heston won the Academy Award for best actor in another religious blockbuster in 1959's "Ben-Hur," racing four white horses at top speed in one of the cinema's legendary action sequences: the 15-minute chariot race in which his character, a proud and noble Jew, competes against his childhood Roman friend.
Heston stunned the entertainment world in August 2002 when he made a poignant and moving videotaped address announcing his illness.
Late in life, Heston's stature as a political firebrand overshadowed his acting. He became demonized by gun-control advocates and liberal Hollywood when he became president of the National Rifle Assn. in 1998.
Heston answered his critics in a now-famous pose that mimicked Moses' parting of the Red Sea. But instead of a rod, Heston raised a flintlock over his head and challenged his detractors to pry the rifle "from my cold, dead hands."
Like the chariot race and the bearded prophet Moses, Heston will be best remembered for several indelible cinematic moments: playing a deadly game of cat and mouse with Orson Welles in the oil fields in "Touch of Evil," his rant at the end of "Planet of the Apes" when he sees the destruction of the Statue of Liberty, his discovery that "Soylent Green is people!" in the sci-fi hit "Soylent Green" and the dead Spanish hero on his steed in "El Cid."
That's from the Los Angeles Times obituary, which is wonderfully detailed, as you would expect from a newspaper located in the heart of the entertainment industry. Heston is survived by his wife of 64 years, Lydia, and their two children. Rest in Peace.
UPDATE: Others, via Memeorandum . Power Line, Scared Monkeys, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS, Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler, Outside The Beltway, The Other McCain, Gateway Pundit, The American Mind,
charlton was the man!
If you wanted someone to play a larger than life character with panach and be convincing in the role, there were very few actors to choose from – Charlton Heston was right up there at or near the top of the list. He was an icon to people growing up in my generation. He is another who will be sorely missed.
Some parts were made for the actor, and some actors were made for the parts … But when the two are forged in the same mold, it’s perfect synchronicity.
The IMDb site has this one sentence in Heston’s Mini Bio that says it all:
"With features chiseled in stone, who else but Charlton Heston could you picture as Michelangelo, as Ben-Hur, as Moses?"
Heston was a man that statues envy to emulate.
Most/Many of today’s actors … not so much.
Rest in peace, Chuck.
My favorite memory of Heston was a short cameo appearance as the "good actor" in the movie Wayne’s World 2.