Actor Charlton Heston was born this day in 1923. His name at birth was John Charles Carter. His most famous movie was Ben-Hur for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor in 1959. An oddity in Hollywood, he was married to the same woman from 1944 until his death in 2008.

Heston was known for his political activism. In the 1950’s and 1960’s he was one of the few actors to speak out against racism and was a vocal supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. He was a Democrat but became a conservative Republican. He was the President of the National Rifle Association from 1998 until 2003.

below Charlton Heston and POTUS Ronaldus Magnus.