New ‘Ben-Hur’ for Heston

Charlton Heston, in what may be one of his final acting roles, is climbing aboard the chariot one more time, narrating and providing the voice of the title character in a new animated version of “Ben-Hur” that airs at 7 tonight on Christian broadcaster TBN.

Heston’s son, Fraser, is one of the producers of the program, which repeats at 2 p.m. Wednesday and at midnight Thursday.

The animated “Hur” is based more on Lew Wallace’s original novel than the 1959 William Wyler film that earned Heston a best actor Oscar. The actor and National Rifle Assn. president recently announced that he is suffering from the effects of Alzheimer’s disease.

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Jonathan Taylor