Cecil B. DeMille
Cecil Blount DeMille (August 12, 1881 – January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker, known as 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.
Crew
The Buccaneer
Executive Producer, Producer
The Ten Commandments
Producer, Director
The Ten Commandments
Director, Producer
Joan the Woman
Director, Editor, Producer
Nan of Music Mountain
Director
The Greatest Show on Earth
Director, Producer
Samson and Delilah
Director, Producer
Four Frightened People
Director, Producer
Union Pacific
Director, Producer
Reap the Wild Wind
Director, Producer
The Plainsman
Director, Producer
Cleopatra
Director, Producer
The Volga Boatman
Director, Producer
The Wild Goose Chase
Director
The King of Kings
Director, Producer
The Sign of the Cross
Director, Producer
Don't Change Your Husband
Director
North West Mounted Police
Director, Producer
Unconquered
Director, Producer
The Cheat
Editor, Director, Producer
Forbidden Fruit
Director, Producer, Story
Madam Satan
Director, Producer
The Affairs of Anatol
Director
Male and Female
Director, Producer
Why Change Your Wife?
Director, Producer
The Story of Dr. Wassell
Director, Producer
The Godless Girl
Director, Producer
The Virginian
Director, Editor
This Day and Age
Director, Producer
Carmen
Director, Producer, Editor
The Buccaneer
Director, Producer
The Whispering Chorus
Director
The Squaw Man
Producer, Director, Writer
A Romance of the Redwoods
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
Old Wives for New
Director, Editor, Producer
The Woman God Forgot
Director, Producer, Editor
The Golden Chance
Director, Story, Producer, Editor
The Road to Yesterday
Director
Something to Think About
Director, Producer
For Better, for Worse
Director
The Ghost Breaker
Producer, Writer, Director
The Little American
Director, Producer, Editor, Writer
The Fighting Eagle
Producer
The Angel of Broadway
Producer
Let 'Er Go Gallegher
Executive Producer
Saturday Night
Director, Producer
The Heart of Nora Flynn
Director
The Warrens of Virginia
Director, Producer
The Unafraid
Story, Director
Triumph
Producer, Director
Adam's Rib
Director, Producer
We Can't Have Everything
Editor, Director
Temptation
Editor, Director
The Cruise of the Jasper B
Producer
Brewster's Millions
Director, Producer
The Trail of the Lonesome Pine
Story, Director, Producer
Kindling
Writer, Producer, Director
The Captive
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
The Rose of the Rancho
Editor, Director, Writer
The Girl of the Golden West
Producer, Director, Writer
The Man From Home
Editor, Director, Writer, Producer
The Dressmaker from Paris
Supervising Producer
The Call of the North
Director
What's His Name
Writer, Director, Editor, Producer
Chimmie Fadden Out West
Director, Producer, Editor, Writer
Chimmie Fadden
Writer, Producer, Director, Editor
The Arab
Producer, Director, Writer
The War of the Worlds
Executive Producer
Till I Come Back to You
Director
Betty to the Rescue
General Manager
The Man on the Box
Director
