Charlton Heston and the Biblical Epic

Two of the top 5 movies Charlton Heston starred in were biblical epics (The Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur), both released in the 1950s.  Unlike a lot of other actors who starred in 1950s movies, Heston lived a long life.  Susan Hayward and Humphrey Bogart died at 57, Gary Cooper at 60, Audrey Hepburn at 63 and the list goes on of 50s stars who didn't make it to age 70.  Acting  as a biblical character was probably a healthy choice since you didn't see too many of them smoking cigarettes on the screen.