Oscar winner Heston has senile dementia

Charlton Heston, the Oscar-winning actor who is also a gun lobby campaigner, announced yesterday that he was suffering from a form of senile dementia similar to Alzheimer's disease.

The 78-year-old actor, best known for his epic roles in filmsBen Hur and The Ten Commandments, broke the news in a taped statement played at a news conference at a Beverly Hills hotel.

"I wanted to prepare a few words for you now because when the time comes I may not be able to," he said.

He said his doctors had diagnosed him as having a "neurological disorder whose symptoms are consistent with Alzheimer's disease".

Heston did not say whether he would be giving up his activities as leader of the National Rifle Association, the gun lobby that has a powerful influence in the US.

Instead he struck a note of macho defiance entirely in keeping with his on-screen persona, asserting to those listening: "I'm neither giving up nor giving in.

"I worked my whole life on the stage and screen before you," he said.

"I found purpose and meaning in your response. For an actor, there is no greater loss than the loss of his audience.

"I can part the Red Sea, but I can't part with you."