Cecil B. DeMille

Cecil B. DeMille

Birthday: 1881-08-12

Deathday: 1959-01-21

Place of birth: Ashfield, Massachusetts, USA

Also known as:

imdb_id: nm0001124

Biography:

Cecil Blount DeMille was a founder of the Hollywood motion-picture industry, one of the most commercially successful producer-directors of his time, and one of the most influential filmmakers in history. Between 1914 and 1956, he made seventy feature films; all but seven were profitable. Cecil B. DeMille is synonymous with religious epics: The King of Kings, Samson and Delilah, and The Ten Commandments (1956). He blended spectacle, sex, and spellbinding narrative to convey a message of faith. It was DeMille who created the image of the omnipotent director, megaphone in hand, wearing boots and a visored cap. DeMille gave Hollywood numerous stars: Wallace Reid, Gloria Swanson, William (“Hopalong Cassidy”) Boyd, Claudette Colbert, Robert Preston, Jean Arthur, and Charlton Heston. DeMille created the posts of studio story editor, art director, and concept artist. He was one of the first to use theatrical lighting on a movie set. In the late 1920s, when Hollywood converted to sound films, DeMille defied the sound experts, liberating the camera from a confining booth, and implementing the microphone boom. DeMille’s authority extended beyond the confines of his studio. He was a power in aviation, banking, politics, and real estate. In the 1930s, his fame as a filmmaker was surpassed by his fame as a radio star. He was a founder of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, an institution from which he eventually won two awards. In 1953 his film The Greatest Show on Earth won the Award for Best Picture of 1952; and he was presented with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. DeMille’s influence on world culture is incalculable, but there are estimates and milestones. His biography of Jesus Christ, The King of Kings, was a silent film, but because of a unique distribution arrangement, it was eventually seen by 800 million viewers. Samson and Delilah (1949) and The Ten Commandments (1956) are still listed with the top ten all-time box-office champions. They continue to generate revenue and provoke thought.

Played in movies:

Patterns of Evidence: The Red Sea Miracle

Score: 10.0

Going Hollywood: The '30s

Score: 10.0

Sunset Boulevard

Score: 8.3

The Making of The Ten Commandments

Score: 8.0

Patterns of Evidence: The Red Sea Miracle II

Score: 8.0

Indiana Jones: The Search for the Lost Golden Age

Score: 7.8

The Ten Commandments

Score: 7.8

Yul Brynner, the Magnificent

Score: 7.5

A Trip to Paramountown

Score: 7.3

Hail Satan?

Score: 7.0

Sword-and-Sandal: The Story of the Period Epic

Score: 7.0

Hollywood

Score: 7.0

And the Oscar Goes To...

Score: 7.0

Samson and Delilah

Score: 6.5

Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage

Score: 6.5

Reap the Wild Wind

Score: 6.4

The Greatest Show on Earth

Score: 6.3

North West Mounted Police

Score: 6.3

The Story of Dr. Wassell

Score: 6.3

Son of Paleface

Score: 6.3

Unconquered

Score: 6.2

Free and Easy

Score: 6.1

Variety Girl

Score: 6.1

Hollywood Extra Girl

Score: 6.0

Madam Satan

Score: 5.9

Star Spangled Rhythm

Score: 5.9

Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?

Score: 5.7

The Circus: Premiere

Score: 5.4

The Lost City of Cecil B. DeMille

Score: 5.2

Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema

Score: 4.9

The Buster Keaton Story

Score: 4.9

The Movies March On

Score: 3.5

Jens Mons in America

Score: 3.0

Hooray for Hollywood

Score: 0.0

The Fallbrook Story

Score: 0.0

The Hollywood You Never See

Score: 0.0

Hollywood on Parade No. B-5

Score: 0.0

Screen Snapshots (Series 22, No. 10)

Score: 0.0

Screen Snapshots (Series 25, No. 1): 25th Anniversary

Score: 0.0

Life in Hollywood No. 1

Score: 0.0

Estrellados

Score: 0.0

Played in tv shows:

Cinépanorama

Score: 8.0

What's My Line?

Score: 6.9

The Ed Sullivan Show

Score: 6.7

This Is Your Life

Score: 6.5

Spécial cinéma

Score: 0.0