Charlton Heston was born in Evanston, Illinois
on October 4, 1924. He attended Northwestern from 1941-1943. After
the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, he enlisted in the
Army Air Corps, but his call-up was delayed until 1943. While studying
at Northwestern, Heston met his future wife, Lydia Marie Clarke, a
student of the School of Speech’s renowned Alvina Krause. While
at Northwestern he played Judge Black in the University Theatre production
of "Hedda Gabler" (see photograph). Heston’s early
professional appearances were on the stage. He appeared in "Antony
and Cleopatra" in 1947 before going on to films. Heston has appeared
in over fifty movies, including "Ben Hur," for which he
received an Academy Award for best actor. He has also had numerous
television roles and has been a director as well.
