Cecil B. DeMille
Directing
🎂 1881-08-12
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.
Cast credits(46)
Self
1956
Self
1948
Self
1950
Self (archive footage)
1974
Self
1952
Narrator (uncredited)
1956
Cecil B. DeMille
1923
Narrator (uncredited)
1949
Cecil B. DeMille
1950
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1952
Self (archive footage)
1975
Self - Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1947
Self (archive footage)
2014
Prologue Speaker (voice) (uncredited)
1942
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2019
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2021
Cecil B. DeMille
1947
Self
2020
Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
1940
Voice of Narrator (uncredited)
1944
Cecil B. DeMille
1942
Cecil B. DeMille
1957
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1983
Photographer (uncredited)
1952
Self (archive footage)
1976
Self (archive footage)
2007
Self (archive footage)
1984
Radio Newscaster (voice) (uncredited)
1930
Self
2016
Self, Introduction
1952
Self
2003
Self (archive footage)
2020
Self
1942
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2019
Self (Guest Appearance)
1930
Director Cecil B. DeMille (uncredited)
1930
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2020
Self
1945
Self
1922
Self (uncredited)
1947
Cecil B. DeMille
1935
Self
1928
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
1933
Self (archive footage)
1939
Self
1934
Self
1927
Directing (76)
Director
1956
Director
1949
Director
1952
Director
1927
Director
1947
Director
1939
Director
1923
Director
1942
Director
1914
Director
1934
Director
1936
Director
1940
Director
1928
Director
1920
Director
1932
Director
1929
Director
1944
Director
1933
Director
1938
Director
1921
Director
1922
Director
1919
Director
1915
Director
1935
Director
1917
Director
1924
Director
1915
Director
1918
Director
1934
Director
1930
Director
1916
Director
1915
Director
1916
Director
1918
Director
1915
Director
1915
Director
1922
Director
1923
Director
1926
Director
1915
Director
1914
Director
1917
Director
1915
Director
1920
Director
1914
Director
1925
Director
1921
Director
1917
Director
1914
Director
1914
Director
1917
Director
1916
Director
1931
Director
1915
Director
1915
Director
1918
Director
1918
Director
1918
Director
1915
Director
1917
Director
1921
Director
1916
Director
1919
Director
1916
Director
1915
Director
1915
Director
1925
Director
1914
Director
1915
Director
1924
Director
1915
Director
1914
Director
1914
Director
1914
Director
1919
Director
1914
Production (61)
Producer
1956
Executive Producer
1953
Producer
1949
Producer
1952
Producer
1927
Producer
1947
Producer
1939
Producer
1923
Producer
1942
Producer
1958
Executive Producer
1958
Producer
1914
Producer
1934
Producer
1936
Producer
1928
Producer
1940
Producer
1920
Producer
1932
Producer
1944
Producer
1933
Producer
1938
Producer
1919
Producer
1917
Producer
1915
Producer
1934
Producer
1930
Producer
1916
Producer
1927
Producer
1915
Producer
1926
Producer
1915
Producer
1927
Producer
1915
Producer
1922
Producer
1923
Producer
1926
Producer
1914
Supervising Producer
1925
Producer
1915
Producer
1926
Producer
1920
General Manager
1917
Producer
1927
Producer
1921
Producer
1917
Producer
1925
Producer
1914
Producer
1917
Producer
1915
Producer
1915
Executive Producer
1928
Producer
1918
Producer
1927
Producer
1917
Producer
1916
Producer
1915
Producer
1926
Producer
1915
Producer
1924
Producer
1915
Producer
1914
