You know, i've always liked Heston. Yeah, he's a conservative, and his NRA rhetoric got on my nerves. But he is one of those old-school actors who always said what he felt. He didn't dissemble or demure for fear of damaging his career and rep: he told it like it was. Heston did a wide range of films, being fortunate enough to work back in the days when Biblical epics were considered as valid as cop dramas. And he crossed into scifi at a time when some major stars shied away from it as too silly for them. Heston also spoke out against segregation and racism when he was younger, back when many stars refused to get involved. He marched with Dr. King. (see wiki entry below). Now later in life he became more conservative, attacked "political correctness", and was against affirmative action. I think like a lot of white guys, the reality of having to *work* for a *long time* to ensure equality was more and scarier than he thought when he was marching and speaking out. (Lot of white folk have fatigue with our issues; i guess they think 30 years of half-ass equality more than makes up for going on 400 years of oppression).
Despite his swing to the right, though, I still like Heston. I guess he seems like one of those old school "real men" whose attitudes i often abhor, but whose courage and forthrightness i can respect. If only their powers could be used for good and all... >From wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charleton_Heston In his earlier years, Heston was a liberal Democrat, campaigning for Presidential candidates Adlai Stevenson in 1956 and John F. Kennedy in 1960. A civil rights activist, he accompanied Martin Luther King Jr. during the civil rights march held in Washington, D.C. in 1963, even going so far as to wear a sign that read "All Men Are Created Equal". Heston later claimed it a point of pride that he helped in the civil rights cause "long before Hollywood found it fashionable", as he often says in his speeches. Heston had also planned to campaign for Lyndon Johnson, but was unable to do so when filming on Major Dundee went over schedule. In 1968, following the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Heston appeared on The Joey Bishop Show and, along with fellow actors Gregory Peck, Kirk Douglas and James Stewart, called for public support for President Johnson's Gun Control Act of 1968. He later claimed he was "young and foolish."[citation needed] In 1969, Heston was asked by some Dem ocrats to run for the California State Senate, a move that would have likely had bipartisan support in the state.[citation needed] He declined because he wanted to continue acting. He was also an opponent of McCarthyism and racial segregation, which he saw as only helping the cause of Communism worldwide. He opposed the Vietnam War and considered Richard Nixon a disaster for America. He turned down John Wayne's offer of a role in The Alamo, because the film was a right-wing allegory for the Cold War. By the 1980s, however, Heston had began to support more conservative positions on such issues as affirmative action and gun rights. Heston changed his registration from Democrat to Republican. He has campaigned for Republican candidates and Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. -------------- Original message -------------- From: "Tracey de Morsella (formerly Tracey L. Minor)" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sad :( Martin wrote: > Yes, Tracey, he has. > > "Tracey de Morsella (formerly Tracey L. Minor)" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hasn't he retired from public life as a result of Alzheimer's? > > Astromancer wrote: > >> NRA... >> >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: no, refresh my memory on that one... >> >> -------------- Original message -------------- >> From: Martin <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Pondering on this, Keith, I'm reminded that, in a sense, Heston has taken >> this into real life. >> >> "From my cold dead fingers." Ring a bell? >> >> [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: i've only seen "The Omega Man" on network TV, so >> that scene was cut. I remember liking the movie, and shaking my head at the >> ending. You ever notice how many times in movies Heston died at the end, but >> in a noble, martyr-like way? In "Omega man", he looks like nothing so much >> as Christ on the Cross at the end. He also had a bloody, dramatic death in >> one of the Planet of the Apes films. Indeed, isn't he the one who setoff the >> Earth-destroying nuke in his death throes? And then there's El Cid, where he >> dies at the end, yet is tied to his horse so that his body, riding onward on >> the battlefield, can continue to inspire his men. My wife and I always laugh >> at Heston in such roles... >> >> -------------- Original message -------------- >> From: "ravenadal" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> I am a big fan of "Omega Man." The late, great Rosalind Cash plays >> the "sassy black girl." Although she remains too thin for my taste, in >> 1971, when I was fifteen years old, her brief nude scene sho nuff ruled >> my world. >> >> ~rave! >> >> --- In scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com, "Mike Street" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> wrote: >> >> >>> I watched Omega Man and The Last Man on Earth yesterday via Netflix. >>> All very good movies. I like Omega Man cause of the sassy blk girl >>> Lisa. But I can see how they mashed both versions of the movies >>> together to create the Will Smith movie. But see how I Am Legend is >>> much more developed then the previous versions. >>> >>> If anyone is interested there is also a good movie that comes with The >>> Last Man on Earth DVD called Panic in Year Zero. It was a really good >>> film. No zombies but a good look at how if bombs hit people will go >>> nuts. >>> >>> >>> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >> >> "There is no reason Good can't triumph over Evil, if only angels will get >> organized along the lines of the Mafia." -Kurt Vonnegut, "A Man Without A >> Country" >> >> --------------------------------- >> Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it >> now. >> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >> >> >> >> >> >> >> "Akin, but no matter what you think, I am concerned for your life, so I'll >> only say this once; if you talk too much or ask too many questions, you >> might say something that interests the Community, and you really, really >> don't want to get them interested." - The Side Street Chonicles by C.W. Badie >> >> --------------------------------- >> Looking for last minute shopping deals? Find them fast with Yahoo! Search. >> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] >> >> >> >> >> Yahoo! Groups Links >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > > > "There is no reason Good can't triumph over Evil, if only angels will get > organized along the lines of the Mafia." -Kurt Vonnegut, "A Man Without A > Country" > > --------------------------------- > Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > > > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
