Charlton Heston
Actor, Film actor
1923 – 2008
Who was Charlton Heston?
Charlton Heston was an American actor and political activist.
As a Hollywood star he appeared in 100 films over the course of 60 years. He is best known for his roles in The Ten Commandments; Ben-Hur, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor, El Cid, and Planet of the Apes. He also is well known for his roles in the films The Greatest Show on Earth, Touch of Evil, and The Agony and the Ecstasy. The starring roles gave the actor a grave, authoritative persona and embodied responsibility, individualism and masculinity; he rejected scripts that did not emphasize those virtues. His media image as a spokesman for Judeo-Christian moral values enabled his political voice.
A supporter of Democratic politicians and civil rights in the 1960s, Heston eventually rejected liberalism, founding a conservative political action committee and supporting Ronald Reagan. Heston's most famous role in politics came as the five-term president of the National Rifle Association from 1998 to 2003. After being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, Heston retired both from acting and being the NRA president in 2003, and died of complications of pneumonia in 2008.
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- Born
- Oct 4, 1923
Evanston - Also known as
- John Charles Carter
- Chuck
- Charlton Easton
- Captured Slave Charlton Heston
- Charlie
- Parents
- Spouses
- Lydia Clarke
(1944/03/17 - 2008/04/05)
- Lydia Clarke
- Children
- Ethnicity
- English American
- Scottish American
- Nationality
- United States of America
- Profession
- Education
- Northwestern University
- New Trier High School
- Lived in
- Evanston
- Wilmette
- St. Helen
- Los Angeles
- Died
- Apr 5, 2008
Beverly Hills
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
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"Charlton Heston." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/charlton_heston>.
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