THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 13, 1995 TAG: 9509130407
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERESA ANNAS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
On Tuesday night, Moses walked slowly down the halls of The Founders Inn, his back slightly bent, his gray slacks a tad long. He was surrounded by strong men in suits, who opened the doors to a great hall filled with well-dressed diners.
``Well, let's do it,'' said Charlton Heston, who picked up his stride as he entered the ballroom. When the famous actor parted his arms in greeting, the room roared like the Red Sea. Behind him, projected on a giant screen on stage, were clips from his many epic films - ``The Ten Commandments,'' ``Ben Hur,'' ``The Greatest Story Ever Told.''
Outside the room, Jim Horne, a Christian Broadcasting Network project manager, shook his head. The introduction had not gone as planned, he said.
``We had intro music from `The Ten Commandments.' And a drum roll.''
Not to worry. The fanfare came in handy for Heston's second entrance half an hour later, when the 72-year-old actor began the trying task of autographing 1,000 copies of his book.
Heston, who lives in Los Angeles, was in Virginia Beach to promote his latest project, ``In the Arena: An Autobiography,'' released this month by Simon & Schuster. About 300 patrons paid $25 each to attend the dinner, after which Heston signed books, at least 400 of them purchased for $27.50 at Wordsworth Bookstore at the inn.
Today at 10 a.m., Heston appears live on ``The 700 Club,'' to be aired on The Family Channel. The Beach is his fourth stop in a two-month national tour.
Before the signing, Heston said he wrote the book entirely on his own. ``I could not have written it at all if I had not kept a journal. That gave me a solid base of what I did, when I did it, a description of my thoughts and feelings at the time.''
Relying solely on memory, the story might have been different, he said. ``I think we all edit our lives as we go long.''
From the 1950s, Heston often played larger-than-life characters - Moses in ``The Ten Commandments,'' Michelangelo in ``The Agony and the Ecstasy,'' King Henry VIII in ``Crossed Swords.''
``I challenge (the idea of) `larger than life,' '' Heston said. ``Those were real men. Big men, but not larger than life.''
Still, he admitted, ``They are not like us.''
He researched great men's lives, and pondered their motivations. ``Almost all of them had two things in common - an enormous nervous energy, and they could focus their energy like a laser. Whether it was painting the Sistine Chapel or getting elected president, they could channel their energy like a firehouse.
``I believe in the extraordinary man,'' Heston said, adding that he's not among them.
``I wish I was capable of the kind of focus those men had.''
The moment Heston re-entered the ballroom, a line began to form to the spotlit stage, where the grand old actor with startlingly blue eyes was posted in a comfortable chair at a long table. Assistants helped keep the line rolling and preserve Heston from much conversation.
Though fans were held back from much personal contact with the star, a holiday mood prevailed.
``I feel like I'm going to be slain in the spirit, or something,'' Joyce Horne of Chesapeake joked as she anticipated walking on stage.
Afterwards, the longtime fan showed off Heston's lyrical penmanship. ``It reminds me of the signatures on the Declaration of Independence,'' she said.
During dinner, Horne felt moved by a clip from ``Ben Hur'' showing Jesus giving water to the fictional slave played by Heston.
``I could imagine Jesus giving me that water,'' Horne said. ``I could hardly eat. How can we eat and watch this?''
Nearby, Pam Lynch of Virginia Beach was taking a snapshot of her husband, Michael, with two signed books. ``Oh, we love Charlton Heston. We raised our kids on his films, and I like his conservative values,'' Michael Lynch said.
``To me, he's bigger than life.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
L. TODD SPENCER
With pictures from his film career in the background, Charlton
Heston was in Virginia Beach on Tuesday to hawk his latest project,
``In the Arena: An Autobio-graphy,'' released this month by Simon &
Schuster. About 300 patrons paid $25 each to attend a dinner at The
Founders Inn. Afterward, Heston signed books. At least 400
autographed copies sold for $27.50 at Wordsworth Bookstore at the
inn.
Today at 10 a.m., Heston is to appear live on ``The 700 Club,'' to
be aired on The Family Channel. The Beach is his fourth stop in a
two-month national tour.
by CNB