Sunday, April 06, 2008

Charlton Heston Passes Away at 84

Charlton Heston has passed away at the age of 84 in Los Angeles. His voice was commanding and his presence was undeniable. My childhood memories all seemingly revolve around Heston's characters. Whether it was Ben Hur, the Omega Man or even the guy who figured out Soylent Green was people, Charlton Heston was a legendary actor whose presence on the screen always left an impression.

Of course, his most famous role is that of Moses in the Ten Commandments. While the scene of him parting the Red Sea may not be online, the mashup is.

Here's his take on playing Moses, the role of a lifetime (despite having many other roles that could be considered in a lifetime of excellent roles):



Heston would play other flawed characters throughout his decades of work in Hollywood, and one of the more interesting characters was the title character in the movie Ben Hur, which is notable for among other things, the historic chariot race.

His lines were legendary. Consider the last lines of Planet of the Apes, and later in his career, he would do bit parts and cameos, including one in Wayne's World 2:


However, his became greatly associated with his stand on the Second Amendment as he became President of the National Rifle Association. He strongly supported the individual right to bear arms, a principled stand that set him at odds with many in Hollywood.

This was despite being at the vanguard of the civil rights movement and marching with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr in 1963.

He will be missed.

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