Cecil B. DeMille
Known For: Directing
Gender: Male
Date of Birth: August 12, 1881
Day of Death: January 21, 1959 (77 years old)
Place of Birth: Ashfield, Massachusetts, USA
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.
2021
2020
2019
2016
2014
2007
1984
1983
1975
1958
1957
1956
1953
1952
1950
1949
1947
1945
1944
1942
1940
1939
1938
1936
1935
1934
1933
1932
1931
1930
1929
1928
1927
1926
1925
1924
1923
1922
1921
1920
1919
1918
1917
Director
Nan of Music Mountain
Director
A Romance of the Redwoods
Director
The Woman God Forgot
Director
The Little American
Writer
A Romance of the Redwoods
Producer
A Romance of the Redwoods
Editor
A Romance of the Redwoods
Producer
The Little American
Editor
The Little American
Writer
The Little American
Producer
The Woman God Forgot
Editor
The Woman God Forgot
Producer
Lost and Won
Director
The Devil Stone
General Manager
Betty to the Rescue
1916
1915
Director
The Wild Goose Chase
Editor
The Cheat
Director
The Cheat
Director
Carmen
Director
The Golden Chance
Director
The Warrens of Virginia
Producer
The Warrens of Virginia
Story
The Unafraid
Director
The Unafraid
Editor
Temptation
Producer
The Cheat
Story
The Golden Chance
Producer
Carmen
Producer
The Golden Chance
Editor
The Golden Chance
Editor
Carmen
Writer
Kindling
Producer
Kindling
Director
Kindling
Director
The Captive
Writer
The Captive
Producer
The Captive
Editor
The Captive
Producer
The Girl of the Golden West
Director
The Girl of the Golden West
Writer
The Girl of the Golden West
Director
Temptation
Director
Chimmie Fadden Out West
Writer
Chimmie Fadden
Producer
Chimmie Fadden
Producer
Chimmie Fadden Out West
Director
Chimmie Fadden
Editor
Chimmie Fadden
Editor
Chimmie Fadden Out West
Writer
Chimmie Fadden Out West
Producer
The Arab
Director
The Arab
Writer
The Arab
Director
After Five
1914
Theatre Play
Lord Chumley
Director
The Virginian
Producer
The Squaw Man
Producer
The Ghost Breaker
Writer
The Ghost Breaker
Director
The Ghost Breaker
Director
The Squaw Man
Director
Brewster's Millions
Editor
The Virginian
Writer
The Squaw Man
Editor
The Rose of the Rancho
Director
The Rose of the Rancho
Editor
The Man From Home
Director
The Man From Home
Writer
The Man From Home
Producer
The Man From Home
Writer
The Rose of the Rancho
Director
The Call of the North
Writer
What's His Name
Director
What's His Name
Editor
What's His Name
Producer
What's His Name
Writer
Ready Money
Director
The Only Son
Writer
The Circus Man