Charlton Heston

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Birthday:

4 October 1923, Wilmette, Illinois, USA

Birth Name:

John Charles Carter

Height:

189 cm

With features chiseled in stone, and renowned for playing a long list of historical figures, particularly in Biblical epics, the tall, well built and ruggedly handsome Charlton Heston was one of Hollywood's greatest leading men and remained active in front of movie cameras for over sixty years. As a Hollywood star, he appeared in 100 films over the course of 60 years. He played Moses in the epic film, The Ten Commandments (1956), for which he received his first Golden Globe Award nomination. He also starred in Touch of Evil (1958) with Orson Welles; Ben-Hur, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor (1959); El Cid (1961); and Planet of the Apes (1968). He also starred in the films The Greatest Show on Earth (1952); Secret of the Incas (1954); The Big Country (1958); and The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965). A supporter of Democratic politicians and civil rights in the 1960s, Heston later became a Republican, 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.Heston was born John Charles Carter on October 4, 1924, in No Man's Land, Illinois, to Lila (Charlton) and Russell Whitford Carter, who operated a sawmill. He had English and Scottish ancestry, with recent Canadian forebears.Heston made his feature film debut as the lead character in a 16mm production of Peer Gynt (1941), based on the Henrik Ibsen play. In 1944, Heston enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces. He served for two years as a radio operator and aerial gunner aboard a B-25 Mitchell stationed in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands with the 77th Bombardment Squadron of the Eleventh Air Force. He reached the rank of Staff Sergeant. Heston married Northwestern University student Lydia Marie Clarke, who was six months his senior. That same year he joined the military.Heston played 'Marc Antony' in Julius Caesar (1950), and firmly stamped himself as genuine leading man material with his performance as circus manager 'Brad Braden' in the Cecil B. DeMille spectacular The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), also starring James Stewart and Cornel Wilde. The now very popular actor remained perpetually busy during the 1950s, both on TV and on the silver screen with audience pleasing performances in the steamy thriller The Naked Jungle (1954), as a treasure hunter in Secret of the Incas (1954) and another barn storming performance for Cecil B. DeMille as "Moses" in the blockbuster The Ten Commandments (1956).Heston delivered further dynamic performances in the oily film noir thriller Touch of Evil (1958), and then alongside Gregory Peck in the western The Big Country (1958) before scoring the role for which he is arguably best known, that of the wronged Jewish prince who seeks his freedom and revenge in the William Wyler directed Ben-Hur (1959). This mammoth Biblical epic running in excess of three and a half hours became the standard by which other large scale productions would be judged, and it's superb cast also including Stephen Boyd as the villainous "Massala", English actor Jack Hawkins as the Roman officer "Quintus Arrius", and Australian actor Frank Thring as "Pontius Pilate", all contributed wonderful performances. Never one to rest on his laurels, steely Heston remained the preferred choice of directors to lead the cast in major historical productions and during the 1960s he starred as Spanish legend "Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar" in El Cid (1961), as a US soldier battling hostile Chinese boxers during 55 Days at Peking (1963), played the ill-fated "John the Baptist" in The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), the masterful painter "Michelangelo" battling Pope Julius II in The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965), and an English general in Khartoum (1966). In 1968, Heston filmed the unusual western Will Penny (1967) about an aging and lonely cowboy befriending a lost woman and her son, which Heston has often referred to as his favorite piece of work on screen. Interestingly, Heston was on the verge of acquiring an entirely new league of fans due to his appearance in four very topical science fiction films (all based on popular novels) painting bleak future's for mankind.In 1968, Heston starred as time traveling astronaut "George Taylor", in the terrific Planet of the Apes (1968) with it's now legendary conclusion as Heston realizes the true horror of his destination. He returned to reprise the role, albeit primarily as a cameo, alongside fellow astronaut James Franciscus in the slightly inferior sequel Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970). Next up, Heston again found himself facing the apocalypse in The Omega Man (1971) as the survivor of a germ plague that has wiped out humanity leaving only bands of psychotic lunatics roaming the cities who seek to kill the uninfected Heston. And fourthly, taking its inspiration from the Harry Harrison novel "Make Room!, Make Room!", Heston starred alongside screen legend Edward G. Robinson and Chuck Connors in Soylent Green (1973). During the remainder of the 1970s, Heston appeared in two very popular "disaster movies" contributing lead roles in the far fetched Airport 1975 (1974), plus in the star laden Earthquake (1974), filmed in "Sensoround" (low bass speakers were installed in selected theaters to simulate the earthquake rumblings on screen to movie audiences). He played an evil Cardinal in the lively The Four Musketeers (1974), a mythical US naval officer in the recreation of Midway (1976), also filmed in "Sensoround", an LA cop trying to stop a sniper in Two-Minute Warning (1976) and another US naval officer in the submarine thriller Gray Lady Down (1978). Heston appeared in numerous episodes of the high rating TV series Dynasty (1981) and The Colbys (1985), before moving onto a mixed bag of projects including TV adaptations of Treasure Island (1990) and A Man for All Seasons (1988), hosting two episodes of the comedy show, Saturday Night Live (1975), starring as the "Good Actor" bringing love struck Mike Myers to tears in Wayne's World 2 (1993), and as the eye patch wearing boss of intelligence agent Arnold Schwarzenegger in True Lies (1994). He also narrated numerous TV specials and lent his vocal talents to the animated movie Hercules (1997), the family comedy Cats & Dogs (2001) and an animated version of Ben Hur (2003). Heston made an uncredited appearance in the inferior remake of Planet of the Apes (2001), and his last film appearance to date was in the Holocaust themed drama of My Father, Rua Alguem 5555 (2003).Heston narrated for highly classified military and Department of Energy instructional films, particularly relating to nuclear weapons, and "for six years Heston [held] the nation's highest security clearance" or Q clearance." The Q clearance is similar to a DoD or Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) clearance of Top Secret.Heston was married to Lydia Marie Clark Heston since March 1944, and they have two children. His highly entertaining autobiography was released in 1995, titled appropriately enough "Into The Arena". Although often criticized for his strong conservative beliefs and involvement with the NRA, Heston was a strong advocate for civil right many years before it became fashionable, and was a recipient of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, plus the Kennedy Center Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2002, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and did appear in a film or TV production after 2003. He died in April 2008. Truly, Charlton Heston is one of the legendary figures of US cinema. Show less «

[from a taped announcement concerning his having symptoms of Alzheimer's disease] For an actor, there is no greater loss than the loss of hi...Show more »

[from a taped announcement concerning his having symptoms of Alzheimer's disease] For an actor, there is no greater loss than the loss of his audience. I can part the Red Sea, but I can't part with you, which is why I won't exclude you from this stage in my life . . . For now, I'm not changing anything. I'll insist on work when I can; the doctors will insist on rest when I must. If you see a little less spring to my step, if your name fails to leap to my lips, you'll know why. And if I tell you a funny story for the second time, please laugh anyway. Show less «

[on Sam Peckinpah] Sam is the only person I've ever physically threatened on a set.

If you need a ceiling painted, a chariot race run, a city besieged, or the Red Sea parted, you think of me.

You can take my rifle ... when you pry it from my cold dead hands!

[after hearing an unkind remark made about his condition by George Clooney, nephew of Rosemary Clooney] It's funny how class can skip a gene...Show more »

[after hearing an unkind remark made about his condition by George Clooney, nephew of Rosemary Clooney] It's funny how class can skip a generation, isn't it? Show less «

[on why he turned down Alexander the Great (1956)] Alexander is the easiest kind of movie to do badly.

Affirmative action is a stain on the American soul.

[on conquering his alcohol addiction in 2000] It was one of my best recent years. And now I'm not drinking at all. I wasn't slurring my word...Show more »

[on conquering his alcohol addiction in 2000] It was one of my best recent years. And now I'm not drinking at all. I wasn't slurring my words. I wasn't falling over, but I realized it had become an addiction for me. And in my profession, it's a terrible flaw to fall into. I believe I did it in time. Show less «

Political correctness is tyranny with manners.

The Internet is for lonely people. People should live.

[from his final televised interview in December 2002, regarding his recent diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease] What cannot be cured must be en...Show more »

[from his final televised interview in December 2002, regarding his recent diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease] What cannot be cured must be endured. Show less «

I've played cardinals and cowboys, kings and quarterbacks, presidents and painters, cops and con-men.

[on Robert De Niro] It's ridiculous for an actor that good to keep playing Las Vegas hoods.

People have been asking me for thirty-five years if I was losing jobs because of my conservative politics. I've never felt that was the case...Show more »

People have been asking me for thirty-five years if I was losing jobs because of my conservative politics. I've never felt that was the case. Show less «

Here's my credo. There are no good guns, There are no bad guns. A gun in the hands of a bad man is a bad thing. Any gun in the hands of a go...Show more »

Here's my credo. There are no good guns, There are no bad guns. A gun in the hands of a bad man is a bad thing. Any gun in the hands of a good man is no threat to anyone, except bad people. Show less «

I don't know the man - never met him, never even spoken to him. But I feel sorry for George Clooney - one day he may get Alzheimer's disease...Show more »

I don't know the man - never met him, never even spoken to him. But I feel sorry for George Clooney - one day he may get Alzheimer's disease. I served my country in World War II. I survived that - I guess I can survive some bad words from this fellow. Show less «

[message sent to US troops in Iraq, 2003] There is no duty more noble than that which has called you across the world in defense of freedom....Show more »

[message sent to US troops in Iraq, 2003] There is no duty more noble than that which has called you across the world in defense of freedom. Yours is a mission of hope and humanity for the oppressed. Rest assured that while pretend-patriots talk of supporting you, even as they condemn your noble cause, an unwavering vast majority of Americans share and take pride in your mission. You represent all that is good and right about America and are the true face of American patriotism. You walk in those same righteous footsteps of all those patriots who, before you, fought to preserve liberty for all. Our prayers and our personal gratitude are with you and your families. May God Bless You, Charlton and Lydia Heston/. Show less «

[talking about what he sees as Hollywood's stereotyping of Protestant religious figures] Clergymen tend to be unreliable and pompous figures...Show more »

[talking about what he sees as Hollywood's stereotyping of Protestant religious figures] Clergymen tend to be unreliable and pompous figures. Seldom Jewish rabbis, less often Catholic priests, but Protestant ministers tend to be . . . not really very admirable. Not necessarily evil, but silly. And wrong, of course. Show less «

There's a special excitement in playing a man who made a hole in history large enough to be remembered centuries after he died.

If you can't make a career out of two de Milles, you'll never do it.

[after completing El Cid (1961)] After spending all of last winter in armor it's a great relief to wear costume that bends.

The minute you feel you have given a faultless performance is the time to get out.

I have played three presidents, three saints and two geniuses. If that doesn't create an ego problem, nothing does.

I've been killed often, on film, the stage, and the television tube. Studios insist the audience doesn't like this. It's been my experience ...Show more »

I've been killed often, on film, the stage, and the television tube. Studios insist the audience doesn't like this. It's been my experience that it makes them unhappy, but that's not the same thing. In any event, they often attend those undertakings where I come to a violent end even more enthusiastically than they do those where I survive. There may be a message for me somewhere there. Show less «

I can't remember a time when I didn't want to be an actor.

[following the death of Gary Cooper in 1961] He was a wonderful, forthright and honorable man.

[following the death of Barbara Stanwyck in 1990] She was a great broad, in all the meaning of the word.

It's hard living up to Moses.

It is essential that gun owners unite in an active, growing force capable of flexing great muscle as the next millennium commences.

The great roles are always Shakespearean.

Most people in the film community don't really understand what being politically active means. They think it is just doing interviews. I'm c...Show more »

Most people in the film community don't really understand what being politically active means. They think it is just doing interviews. I'm content that the Hollywood left thinks being a political activist means riding Air Force One and hanging out with the President. Show less «

Warren Beatty is non-typical of Hollywood liberals. He thinks [Bill Clinton] is an idiot.

It is not widely known that one of the finest gun collections on the West Coast is Steven Spielberg's. He shoots, but very privately.

[on The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)] There are actors who can do period roles, and actors who can't . . . God knows, [John Wayne] couldn...Show more »

[on The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)] There are actors who can do period roles, and actors who can't . . . God knows, [John Wayne] couldn't play a first-century Roman! Show less «

In recent years, anyone in the government, certainly anyone in the FBI or the CIA, or recently, in again, [Clint Eastwood]'s film, In the Li...Show more »

In recent years, anyone in the government, certainly anyone in the FBI or the CIA, or recently, in again, [Clint Eastwood]'s film, In the Line of Fire (1993), the main bad guy is the chief advisor to the president. Show less «

[on Pulp Fiction (1994)] Now what [Quentin Tarantino will say to that is, "Don't you understand? This is a black comedy. We're holding this ...Show more »

[on Pulp Fiction (1994)] Now what [Quentin Tarantino will say to that is, "Don't you understand? This is a black comedy. We're holding this up to ridicule". There's no worse thing you can accuse a cool person of being than not getting a joke. Show less «

The big studio era is from the coming of sound until 1950, until I came in ... I came in at a crux in film, which was the end of the studio ...Show more »

The big studio era is from the coming of sound until 1950, until I came in ... I came in at a crux in film, which was the end of the studio era and the rise of filmmaking. Show less «

You can spend a lifetime, and, if you're honest with yourself, never once was your work perfect.

[1999] I marched for civil rights with Dr. [Martin Luther King] in 1963 - long before Hollywood found it fashionable. But when I told an aud...Show more »

[1999] I marched for civil rights with Dr. [Martin Luther King] in 1963 - long before Hollywood found it fashionable. But when I told an audience last year that white pride is just as valid as black pride or red pride or anyone else's pride, they called me a racist. I've worked with brilliantly talented homosexuals all my life. But when I told an audience that gay rights should extend no further than your rights or my rights, I was called a homophobe. I served in World War II against the Axis powers. But during a speech, when I drew an analogy between singling out innocent Jews and singling out innocent gun owners, I was called an anti-Semite. Everyone I know knows I would never raise a closed fist against my country. But when I asked an audience to oppose this cultural persecution, I was compared to Timothy McVeigh. Show less «

It's been quite a ride. I loved every minute of it.

People don't perceive me as a shy man. But I am. I am thought of mostly in terms of the parts I play. I am seen as a forbidding authority fi...Show more »

People don't perceive me as a shy man. But I am. I am thought of mostly in terms of the parts I play. I am seen as a forbidding authority figure. I only wish I were as indomitable as everyone thinks. Show less «

I find my blood pressure rising when [Bill Clinton]'s cultural shock troops participate in homosexual rights fund raisers but boycott gun ri...Show more »

I find my blood pressure rising when [Bill Clinton]'s cultural shock troops participate in homosexual rights fund raisers but boycott gun rights fund raisers - and then claim it's time to place homosexual men in tents with Boy Scouts and suggest that sperm-donor babies born into lesbian relationships are somehow better served. Show less «

Mainstream America is depending on you - counting on you - to draw your sword and fight for them. These people have precious little time or ...Show more »

Mainstream America is depending on you - counting on you - to draw your sword and fight for them. These people have precious little time or resources to battle misguided Cinderella attitudes, the fringe propaganda of the homosexual coalition, the feminists who preach that it's a divine duty for women to hate men, blacks who raise a militant fist with one hand, while they seek preference with the other. Show less «

The Constitution was handed down to guide us by a bunch of those wise old, dead, white guys who invented this country. It's true - they were...Show more »

The Constitution was handed down to guide us by a bunch of those wise old, dead, white guys who invented this country. It's true - they were white guys. So were most of the guys who died in [Abraham Lincoln]'s name, opposing slavery in the 1860s. So, why should I be ashamed of white guys? Why is Hispanic pride or black pride a good thing, while white pride conjures up shaved heads and white hoods? Show less «

People in the film community think being politically active means getting on Air Force One and going to dinner at the White House. I've scor...Show more »

People in the film community think being politically active means getting on Air Force One and going to dinner at the White House. I've scorned a few liberals in this town, and I get a kick out of that. Show less «

In the beginning an actor impresses us with his looks, later his voice enchants us. Over the years, his performances enthrall us. But in the...Show more »

In the beginning an actor impresses us with his looks, later his voice enchants us. Over the years, his performances enthrall us. But in the end, it is simply what he is. Show less «

In Hollywood there are more gun owners in the closet than homosexuals.

Somewhere in the busy pipeline of public funding is sure to be a demand from a disabled lesbian on welfare that the Metropolitan Opera stage...Show more »

Somewhere in the busy pipeline of public funding is sure to be a demand from a disabled lesbian on welfare that the Metropolitan Opera stage her rap version of "Carmen" as translated into Ebonics. Show less «

Once the 1964 Civil Rights Act passed, I had other agendas.

I didn't change. The Democratic Party slid to the Left from right under me.

[explaining his endorsement of the Gun Control Act of 1968] I was young and foolish.

[on President Bill Clinton] America didn't trust you with their health-care system, America didn't trust you with gays in the military, Amer...Show more »

[on President Bill Clinton] America didn't trust you with their health-care system, America didn't trust you with gays in the military, America doesn't trust you with our 21-year-old daughters. And we sure, Lord, don't trust you with our guns. Show less «

I'm pissed off when Indians say they're Native Americans! I'm a Native American, for chrisakes!

Too many gun owners think we've wandered to some fringe of American life and left them behind.

Jackson was one of my favorite Presidents. One mean son of a bitch.

"Hard" is what I do best. I don't do "nice".

[August 9, 2002] My Dear Friends, Colleagues and Fans: My physicians have recently told me I may have a neurological disorder whose symptoms...Show more »

[August 9, 2002] My Dear Friends, Colleagues and Fans: My physicians have recently told me I may have a neurological disorder whose symptoms are consistent with Alzheimer's disease. So . . . I wanted to prepare a few words for you now, because when the time comes, I may not be able to. I've lived my whole life on the stage and screen before you. I've found purpose and meaning in your response. For an actor there's no greater loss than the loss of his audience. I can part the Red Sea, but I can't part with you, which is why I won't exclude you from this stage in my life. For now, I'm not changing anything. I'll insist on work when I can; the doctors will insist on rest when I must. If you see a little less spring in my step, if your name fails to leap to my lips, you'll know why. And if I tell you a funny story for the second time, please laugh anyway. I'm neither giving up nor giving in. I believe I'm still the fighter that Dr. [Martin Luther King] and [John F. Kennedy] and Ronald Reagan knew, but it's a fight I must someday call a draw. I must reconcile courage and surrender in equal measure. Please feel no sympathy for me. I don't. I just may be a little less accessible to you, despite my wishes. I also want you to know that I'm grateful beyond measure. My life has been blessed with good fortune. I'm grateful that I was born in America, that cradle of freedom and opportunity, where a kid from the Michigan Northwoods can work hard and make something of his life. I'm grateful for the gift of the greatest words ever written, that let me share with you the infinite scope of the human experience. As an actor, I'm thankful that I've lived not one life, but many. Above all, I'm proud of my family ... my wife Lydia, the queen of my heart, my children, Fraser and Holly, and my beloved grandchildren, Jack, Ridley and Charlie. They're my biggest fans, my toughest critics and my proudest achievement. Through them, I can touch immortality. Finally, I'm confident about the future of America. I believe in you. I know that the future of our country, our culture and our children is in good hands. I know you will continue to meet adversity with strength and resilience, as our ancestors did, and come through with flying colors - the ones on Old Glory. William Shakespeare, at the end of his career, wrote his farewell through the words of Prospero, in "The Tempest". It ends like this: "Be cheerful, sir. Our revels now are ended. These our actors, as I foretold you, were all spirits and are melted into air, into thin air: And, like the baseless fabric of this vision, the cloud-cap'd towers, the gorgeous palaces, the solemn temples, the great globe itself, yea all which it inherit, shall dissolve and, like this insubstantial pageant faded, leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep". Thank you, and God bless you, everyone. Show less «

I have never felt I was being ill-treated by the press - ill-treated by Barbra Streisand, maybe. But Ms. Streisand I suggest is inadequately...Show more »

I have never felt I was being ill-treated by the press - ill-treated by Barbra Streisand, maybe. But Ms. Streisand I suggest is inadequately educated on the Constitution of the United States. Show less «

[Following the death of Gregory Peck in 2003] Gregory Peck was one of those few great actors of generosity, humor, toughness and spirit. Fro...Show more »

[Following the death of Gregory Peck in 2003] Gregory Peck was one of those few great actors of generosity, humor, toughness and spirit. From our fight scene in The Big Country (1958) to his willingness to stand up for what he believed personally, Gregory Peck faced life's challenges with great vigor and courage. Show less «

[2000] Vote freedom first. Vote George W. Bush. Everything else is a distant and forgettable second place. This is the most important electi...Show more »

[2000] Vote freedom first. Vote George W. Bush. Everything else is a distant and forgettable second place. This is the most important election since the Civil War. Al Gore, if elected, would have the power to hammer your gun rights right into oblivion. Instead of fighting redcoats, we are now fighting blue blood elitists. Show less «

Somebody once approached Kirk Douglas and said they had enjoyed his performance in Ben-Hur (1959). So he said, 'That wasn't me, that was ano...Show more »

Somebody once approached Kirk Douglas and said they had enjoyed his performance in Ben-Hur (1959). So he said, 'That wasn't me, that was another fellow.' And the man said, 'Well, if you aren't Burt Lancaster, who the hell are you?' Show less «

[2000] Al Gore is now saying, "I'm with you guys on guns". In any other time or place you'd be looking for a lynching mob.

[1998] The law-abiding citizen is entitled to own a rifle, pistol, or shotgun. The right, put simply, shall not be infringed.

I have spent my life in service to these two sacred sets of work - the gift of human passion in William Shakespeare and the gift of human fr...Show more »

I have spent my life in service to these two sacred sets of work - the gift of human passion in William Shakespeare and the gift of human freedom enshrined in the American bill of human rights. Tony Blair can have his bodyguards and the police are all allowed to defend themselves, then so should the people. Show less «

[on Orson Welles] He was not an extravagant director. I mean, Warren Beatty can spend $60 million making Reds (1981) a half-hour too long an...Show more »

[on Orson Welles] He was not an extravagant director. I mean, Warren Beatty can spend $60 million making Reds (1981) a half-hour too long and it crosses nobody's lips that that's too much money. Show less «

[on Sophia Loren] All in all the most trying work time with an actress I can ever recall. Mind you, she's not a bitch. She's a warm lady, tr...Show more »

[on Sophia Loren] All in all the most trying work time with an actress I can ever recall. Mind you, she's not a bitch. She's a warm lady, truly; she's just more star than pro. Show less «

[on working with Ava Gardner in 55 Days at Peking (1963)] Today marked the worst behavior I've yet seen from that curious breed I make my li...Show more »

[on working with Ava Gardner in 55 Days at Peking (1963)] Today marked the worst behavior I've yet seen from that curious breed I make my living opposite. Ava showed up for a late call, did one shot (with the usual incredible delay in coming to the set), and then walked off just before lunch when some Chinese extra took a still of her. She came back after a painful three-hour lunch break only to walk off, for the same reason. Show less «

[on Anne Baxter] We never had a cross word. However, I did not find her enormously warming and there was no great personal stirring between ...Show more »

[on Anne Baxter] We never had a cross word. However, I did not find her enormously warming and there was no great personal stirring between us as friends. Show less «

[on Richard Harris] Richard is very much the professional Irishman. I found him a somewhat erratic personality and an occasional pain in the...Show more »

[on Richard Harris] Richard is very much the professional Irishman. I found him a somewhat erratic personality and an occasional pain in the posterior. But we certainly never feuded. Show less «

[on Richard Harris] He's something of a fuck-up, no question.

I have a face that belongs in another century.

I have lived such a wonderful life! I've lived enough for two people.

[on how his marriage lasted as long as it did]: Remember three simple words - I was wrong.

I like playing great men. They're more interesting than the rest of us.

[on his role in The Ten Commandments (1956)] I was a little green in the film. I could do it better now.

I'd rather play a senator than be one.

I've almost never been content with what I've done in any film. My heart's desire would be to do them all over again - and not do a half doz...Show more »

I've almost never been content with what I've done in any film. My heart's desire would be to do them all over again - and not do a half dozen of them at all. Show less «

Why does Cary Grant get all those pictures set entirely in penthouses?

[on actors advocating their political opinions]: Well, we have as much right to shoot our mouths off as anyone else. God knows I've exercise...Show more »

[on actors advocating their political opinions]: Well, we have as much right to shoot our mouths off as anyone else. God knows I've exercised that right. Show less «

[September 2002] I've always been sure of my health and this suddenly gave me something else to think about. But maybe it's good if God give...Show more »

[September 2002] I've always been sure of my health and this suddenly gave me something else to think about. But maybe it's good if God gives you something to think about every so often. Whatever happens happens. You take it in stride if you can. You don't have many options there. Show less «

A lot of men in positions of authority are difficult people, because they're right, and they know they're right.

Orson [Welles] insists he hates acting but of course he is a very good actor and is really able to communicate with actors. It's not too oft...Show more »

Orson [Welles] insists he hates acting but of course he is a very good actor and is really able to communicate with actors. It's not too often that you learn about acting from directors because that isn't what they do. They sometimes make you act better, but to really understand the process is a different thing. Show less «

Orson really understood the process. I remember we were looking at dailies one day and he leaned over and said, 'You know, Chuck, you have t...Show more »

Orson really understood the process. I remember we were looking at dailies one day and he leaned over and said, 'You know, Chuck, you have to work on your tenor range. Those of us with great bass voices love to rumble along in them. The tenor range is a knife edge; the bass is a velvet hammer. You have to use them both'. That was very useful. I'd never thought of it before. Show less «