Charlton Heston's career as a commanding male lead provided a one-person Hollywood trek through the pages of world history and a forceful, conservative vision of a world in which America always wins. The Northwestern University acting student's first film appearances were in ambitious amateur 16mm productions of "Peer Gynt" (1941) and "Julius Caesar" (1949), both directed by fellow student David Bradley. After service in World War II, he and his wife Lydia Clarke worked as models in New York and ran a theater in Asheville, NC before he found success on Broadway in Katharine Cornell's production of "Antony and Cleopatra" (1947). He also made a vivid impression on early television, especially in a flurry of dashing romantic leads (Heathcliff, Rochester, Petruchio) on the famous drama anthology "Studio One.” By the time he went to Hollywood to act in William Dieterle's moody film noir "Dark City" (1950), Heston was already a star, listed in the credits ahead of the more established Lizabeth Scott. More often than not over the next four decades, Heston retained top billing.
With his role as the ill-tempered circus manager in his second film, Cecil B. DeMille's "The Greatest Show on Earth" (1952), Heston began his reign as the actor of choice for Hollywood epics. Solidly built, with a lithe walk, a granite-carved profile and sonorous voice, he could intimidate opponents with just a glare. Few actors could dish up righteous anger with such force, yet even though many of his screen creations could be unpleasantly hostile, the power of his presence invariably commanded respect, conveyed integrity – even in villainous roles – and often managed to be likable. There was something timeless about his rueful expression and his brand of gritty heroism. At the same time, however, he glorified a concept of the power of the individual which was perfectly in step with Middle America's vision of how the world should be. Consequently, even though Heston never quite disappeared into his roles, he was perfect for Hollywood's writing of an Americanized world history picture book and its equally splashy renditions of the Bible.
Heston's take on Buffalo Bill in "The Pony Express" (1953) was the first in a long line of historical and Biblical characters that included Andrew Jackson ("The President's Lady," 1953; "The Buccaneer," 1958), Moses (in DeMille's landmark second version of "The Ten Commandments," 1956), El Cid (in the 1961 film of that title), John the Baptist ("The Greatest Story Ever Told," 1964), Michelangelo ("The Agony and the Ecstasy," 1965), General Charles Gordon ("Khartoum," 1966), Cardinal Richelieu ("The Three Musketeers," 1973 and its 1975 sequel), Henry VIII ("Crossed Swords," 1977) and Sir Thomas More (in TNT’s "A Man for All Seasons," 1988). Indeed, he seemed to possess the power to transform fiction into fact when his Oscar-winning turn in "Ben-Hur" (1959) elevated the story of a Jewish charioteer transfixed by the sight of Christ to the stuff of legend. As French critic Michel Mourlet infamously rhapsodized, "Charlton Heston is an axiom of the cinema."
Less indecisive and rebellious than Robert Mitchum; less of an everyman than William Holden, Heston – like these fellow 50s icons – was frequently called on to suffer, frequently with his shirt off. Perhaps it all started with Moses making bricks. But Heston was still stripping down to either get down to work or to be punished well into the 1980s. As historical epics gradually became passé in the late 1960s, Heston made more Westerns, war sagas and, interestingly enough, science fiction films to take up the slack. In 1968, he marked a banner year with two landmark performances: playing the anguished hero of the highly entertaining, futuristic "Planet of the Apes” and the aging, reflective cowpoke of "Will Penny” – perhaps one of his finest films and one of his personal favorite performances. The 1970s brought the cult classic sci-fi film, "Soylent Green" (1973) – complete with the famous line, "Soylent Green is people!" – and a series of routine roles in "Battle of Midway" (1976) and "Gray Lady Down" (1977) titled major, colonel or general. Some later parts, however, traded in wastefully on his iconic value – for instance, his cameo in "True Lies" (1994) – a virtual Republican-fest between him and the film’s star, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Though hampered by budgetary restrictions, Heston directed his first feature in 1971 with a decent adaptation of Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" and did double duty again with "Mother Lode" (1982), which was written and produced by his son Fraser. After a 15 year absence, the actor returned to the small screen as the star of the CBS miniseries "Chiefs" (1983) and later found work as a series regular on the primetime soap opera "The Colbys" (ABC, 1985-87), before settling into a succession of starring roles in telefilms. He directed and starred in a 1988 TNT remake of "A Man for All Seasons," reprising his stage role as Sir Thomas More. Heston went on to essay iconic fictional characters Long John Silver and Sherlock Holmes in two TNT movies adapted and produced by his son – "Treasure Island" (1990) and "The Crucifer of Blood" (1991). Although features allowed him to portray God ("Almost an Angel" 1990) and provided ample opportunity for him to use his marvelous voice as a narrator ("Armageddon," 1998), Heston continued to find his best later roles on television, adding to his gallery of historical figures with a turn as Brigham Young in TNT's "The Avenging Angel" (1995).
Throughout his career, Heston has been active in the industry, serving as president of the Screen Actors Guild (1966-1971) and chairman of the American Film Institute. During the 1980s, he was head of President Reagan's task force on the arts and humanities, and remained active in charity work – namely with The Will Rogers Institute – and politics, earning a reputation as a staunch Republican and a supporter of the National Rifle Association (NRA). He assumed a higher profile in 1998 with a guest appearance as himself on NBC's "Friends" and as the NRA's newly elected president. Later that year, he made the rounds in support of the re-release of Orson Welles' "Touch of Evil" (1958), in which he had starred as the virtuous Mexican government official (sans accent, but sporting black hair) opposite Welles' supremely debauched police captain. Heston, who had been responsible for Welles getting the directing assignment, received a "special thanks" credit on the re-edit fashioned from a 58-page director's memo and repeatedly avowed his agreement with Cahiers du Cinema that "Touch of Evil" is "beyond any question, the greatest B movie ever made."
Heston made a cameo in Tim Burton’s "Planet of the Apes" (2001) remake as Tim Roth's father; his role was so small, he could in no way be blamed for the film's many flaws. This was one of his rare appearances in film or television, though he stayed active in his political causes. In 2002, he lent his voice to an animated version of "Ben-Hur" which was produced by his son Fraser. Shortly after that performance, it was announced he is had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Also that year, he appeared in Michael Moore’s Oscar-winning documentary, “Bowling for Columbine” (2002), a look at America’s obsession with firearms and the pathology of violence in a country with the highest murder rate per capita in the world. Heston allowed Moore to enter his Beverly Hills home, wherein the filmmaker confronted him on why America is the most violent country in the world. Heston entertained Moore for several minutes, until he was asked about why he held an NRA rally in Flint, MI days after a six-year-old boy brought a handgun to school and killed a fellow student. Moore also asked about a similar rally Heston attended days after the 1999 massacre at Columbine High School in Denver, CO. Uncomfortable with the line of questioning, Heston abruptly dismissed himself from the interview and walked away, leaving Moore to see himself off the premises. Called an ambush by many on the right, Moore was reviled for seemingly taking advantage of an elderly man, clearly suffering from Alzheimer’s. For the left-leaning, Moore was justified in questioning a man who so vehemently defended not only the right to bear all arms, but who had publicly dismissed Affirmative Action and political correctness.
From the time he acknowledged his illness, Heston largely remained out of the public eye. He did emerge in July 2003 to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House from then-President George W. Bush. But afterwards, Heston was enclosed in his Beverly Hills home, suffering from the rapidly deteriorating symptoms of his disease. In fact, the speed of his demise shocked family and friends – there were days he simply could not get out of bed. Various news reports surfaced throughout 2005 and 2006, stating that Heston was admitted to the hospital or was close to death. The family, however, never confirmed the suspicions. Then on Saturday, April 5, 2008, Heston died in his home with Lydia, his wife of 64 years, by his side. The cause of death remained undisclosed at the time of the announcement. He was 84.