JEWS TAKE ISSUE WITH HESTON'S PERFORMANCE AS MOSES; ARABS DECRY BRYNNER'S RAMESESTEL AVIV - For the first time since its 1956 premiere, Cecil B. DeMille's epic The Ten Commandments was shown in the Middle East last night, airing simultaneously on television networks in both Israel and Egypt. After the final credits, thousands of angry Israeli citrizens took to the streets, looting and rioting. Hundreds of television sets reportedly were thrown from the windows of apartment complexes and homes across the country, and many were set on fire. Rabbi Ovadia Yosef decried the film as contrary to Jewish teaching. "The Talmud expressly forbids scenery-chewing by any actor portraying figures from the Pentateuch," he said. One commentator noted that Israel has not experienced such widespread rioting since Jews happened to notice the foreskin on the statue of Michelangelo's depiction of Jewish King David. See related story: Jews demand that marble be circumcised; Bob Vila, ex-star of This Old House, retained to chisel away "foreskin abomination"
As large crowds gathered around the United States embassy, Ambassador Robert Levine appealed for calm. “The American people are united with our Jewish friends in expressing revulsion at Mr. Heston's performance in what is otherwise an uplifting Biblical motion picture. Sophisticated American filmgoers of good-will agree that Mr. Heston is, indeed, a ham, and we all know how you people feel about ham.”
Ambassador Levine had no sooner finished his statement when he received word from the State Department that thousands of Egyptians were attacking the United States Embassy in Cairo after watching Yul Brynner’s portrayal of Rameses in the same film. In light of recent events, the Knesset ordered all copies of John Huston’s The Bible pulled from the shelves of video stores and libraries. “Once they see George C. Scott as Abraham,” said one Israeli official speaking on condition of anonymity, “all hell is going to break loose.”
