Charlton Heston, Hollywood hero

October 4th marks the 100th anniversary of Charlton Heston’s birth, and TCM will be honoring him every Wednesday during the month and showing some of his most famous films, such as Ben-Hur, He won the Oscar for Best Actor in 1959. Torment and ecstasy or lust for evilwhich was directed by Orson Welles.

Heston continues the tradition of great screen adventurers started by Douglas Fairbanks and Errol Flynn. In his film works, there are a large number of mythological and historical figures: Moses, Ben-Hur, El Cid, Michelangelo, Cardinal Richelieu, Mark Antony, Buffalo Bill, Henry VIII, Charles John the Baptist, Thomas More, President Jackson, etc. He is the undisputed king of color blockbusters, starring in the films of Cecil B. DeMille, William Wyler, Orson Welles, Sam Peckinpah, Laurence Olivier and Franklin J. Worked under the direction of great directors such as John Fner.

Charlton Heston was born in Illinois. She started working as a model at an art school, but it wasn’t long before she entered the world of theater and television. In 1950, he made his first appearance on the big screen city ​​in shadow,

A film noir. Two years later, Cecil B. DeMille chose him to be the director of his circus. the greatest show in the worldOr, the film won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1952 and became the second highest-grossing film in film history at the time, behind gone With the Wind. The title’s success didn’t have much of an impact on Heston, though, and he was once classified as a burly hero.

It wasn’t until Cecil B. DeMille cast him again in “Moses” that his career fully took off. Ten Commandments.Critics accepted him, thanks to such works as great view Most importantly, the film is considered by many to be the best role of his entire career: Desire for evil. “I learned a lot about acting and directing from Orson Welles, but I didn’t think it was a great movie,” admits the actor himself.

His ultimate devotion comes the day he climbs into his chariot and defeats the Roman Messala in one of the most spectacular contests in film history. “It’s not particularly difficult for me because I’m not a biographical figure like other people and I feel very comfortable with him.” He won the only Oscar of his career for “Ben-Hur” and Confirmed that he is an outstanding actor in blockbusters such as El Cid or Beijing 55 days.

Charlton Heston became interested in science fiction films in the early 1970s, starring in films such as War for the Planet of the Apes, When Destiny Caught Up or The Last Man Standing… live. Gradually, however, Charlton Heston began to diversify his film roles more and more. In the eighties, he appeared on the television series The Colbys and was limited to brief appearances in films such as Dangerous Lies, In the Mouth of Fear or the Tim Burton-directed remake. planet of the apesin which he appears as a primate.

In the last years of his life, Heston made headlines for six years chairing the National Rifle Association, a powerful lobbying group that defends the use and sale of weapons in the United States. He died of pneumonia in April 2008 at the age of 84. For three decades, he was the screen’s highest-grossing actor alongside John Wayne, and his name appeared in the casts of some of the most beloved films of all time.