by Dave Workman
Senior Editor

He had a little trouble walking across the stage at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL, and he only made a few "live" remarks, opting instead to deliver a pre-recorded message to the audience of National Rifle Association (NRA) members, but retiring NRA President Charlton Heston left his fans cheering when he promised, as he has often in the past, that the rifle he held above his head would be taken "from my cold, dead hands."

The Academy Award-winning actor was escorted to and from his seat next to the podium at the annual NRA members meeting, and he left shortly after passing the gavel to Kayne Robinson, who has filled in for Heston on many occasions and later was officially elected to succeed Heston in the presidency. Diagnosed last year with the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, Heston finished out his unprecedented fifth term, telling about 4,000 NRA members in the large convention hall that, "I'm going to miss you."

Looking frail, the 78-year-old actor was joined on stage by his wife, Lydia, who graciously thanked NRA members for providing her husband with a challenge.

"Chuck has had a really gratifying experience," Mrs. Heston observed. "I want to thank you for giving him this marvelous challenge, this great cause to work for. It's kept him alive."

NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre presented Heston with a "going away" gift, a handsome Model 1866 Winchester, similar to the rifle Heston carried in the film "Will Penny." A 10-foot bronze statue of Heston as the title character in that film was on display in the lobby of the convention center, and it will eventually be placed at the NRA headquarters building in Fairfax, VA.

With Heston's departure, LaPierre, Robinson and NRA Vice President Sandra Froman proceeded to fire up the crowd at the members meeting with "reports" about where the gun rights movement has been and where it is going.

Robinson lashed out at "elites" whom he said "seem to hate our freedom." He accused "politically correct speech Nazis" of being "united in a global orgy of hatred for George Bush."

An ardent hunter, Robinson used the NRA forum to attack animal rights extremists, while also noting that "too many hunters have looked the other way."

"Thirteen million hunters are a natural for the NRA," Robinson stated. "I say it's time for every hunter in America to stand with the NRA."

Froman, who stands in line to become the NRA's second woman president in two years, delivered a fiery attack on film maker Michael Moore, who won an Academy Award in March for his incendiary anti-gun mockumentary "Bowling for Columbine." She accused Moore of having a "toxic tantrum" with the film, and accused him of being "not so much anti-gun as he is anti-American."

In his film, Froman said, "Moore sacrificed nothing at all except the truth."

She then turned her attention to self-defense issues, warning the audience, "Self-defense is the most precious right we have. It's already gone in England and Australia, but it's not going to disappear in America, not if the NRA has anything to say about it."

LaPierre also criticized Moore, calling him "the enemy." But he quickly turned his attention to Congress, and the NRA's lawsuit to overturn the election reform legislation passed last year. Under the new law, NRA contends it will be difficult, if not impossible, for the organization to present its message to members and sympathizers during election campaigns.

"We won't stand idly by while Congress strangles the First Amendment rights of this organization," he insisted.

(In a timely development, a federal court in Washington, DC, struck down most of the campaign finance law as unconstitutional. See related story.)

He also credited NRA with exposing the "myth" of ballistic fingerprinting. He called the technology a "Trojan horse designed to sneak in national gun registration."

From there he turned his attention to homeland security and NRA's involvement in homeland security and the creation of NRASafe.com (see related story), a new homeland security/emergency preparedness website. He issued a warning to those who might attack the United States.

"If you should get past the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marines, the National Guard, the Highway Patrol, the local sheriff, and the local police," he said, "you have still got to mess with us!"

The comment brought a rousing cheer from the audience.

During the annual meeting, LaPierre introduced a video tribute for Congressional Award winning Marine air ace and former NRA President Joe Foss, who died on Jan. 1. He also introduced Foss' widow, Deedee, and Marion Carter, wife of the late Harlon Carter, who served as executive vice president and the first executive director of the NRA's Institute for Legislative Action.

Thousands of members attended the annual meeting, and the youngest and oldest members present were introduced.