Cecil B. DeMille
105 movies
- Known for
- Directing
- Born
- Aug 12, 1881
- Died
- Jan 21, 1959 (age 77)
- Place of birth
- Ashfield, Massachusetts, USA
- Also known as
- Cecil Blount de Mille · Cecil Blount DeMille
Biography
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.
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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.
Profiles IMDb
Known for
Cecil B. DeMille: movies and TV shows
Acting (18)
- 1995
- 1958 The Buccaneer
as Presenter of Prologue
- 1957 The Buster Keaton Story
as Cecil B. DeMille (uncredited)
- 1956 The Ten Commandments
as Narrator (uncredited)
- 1952 Son of Paleface
as Photographer (uncredited)
- 1952 The Greatest Show on Earth
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
- 1950 Sunset Boulevard
as Cecil B. DeMille
- 1949 Samson and Delilah
as Narrator (uncredited)
- 1947 Variety Girl
as Cecil B. DeMille
- 1944 The Story of Dr. Wassell
as Voice of Narrator (uncredited)
- 1942 Reap the Wild Wind
as Prologue Speaker (voice) (uncredited)
- 1942 Star Spangled Rhythm
as Cecil B. DeMille
- 1940 North West Mounted Police
as Narrator (voice) (uncredited)
- 1935 Hollywood Extra Girl
as Cecil B. DeMille
- 1930 Madam Satan
as Radio Newscaster (voice) (uncredited)
- 1930 Free and Easy
as Director Cecil B. DeMille (uncredited)
- 1923 Hollywood
as Cecil B. DeMille
- 1914 The Squaw Man
as Faro Dealer
Behind the camera (98)
- 1958 The Buccaneer
Executive Producer, Producer
- 1956 The Ten Commandments
Director, Producer
- 1953 The War of the Worlds
Executive Producer
- 1952 The Greatest Show on Earth
Director, Producer
- 1949 Samson and Delilah
Director, Producer
- 1947 Unconquered
Director, Producer
- 1944 The Story of Dr. Wassell
Director, Producer
- 1942 Reap the Wild Wind
Director, Producer
- 1940 North West Mounted Police
Director, Producer
- 1939 Land of Liberty
Editor
- 1939 Union Pacific
Director, Producer
- 1938 The Buccaneer
Director, Producer
- 1936 The Plainsman
Director, Producer
- 1935 The Crusades
Director
- 1934 Cleopatra
Director, Producer
- 1934 Four Frightened People
Director, Producer
- 1933 This Day and Age
Director, Producer
- 1932 The Sign of the Cross
Director, Producer
- 1931 The Squaw Man
Director
- 1930 Madam Satan
Director, Producer
- 1929 Dynamite
Director
- 1928 The Godless Girl
Director, Producer
- 1928 Let 'Er Go Gallegher
Executive Producer
- 1927 The Angel of Broadway
Producer
- 1927 The Fighting Eagle
Producer
- 1927 Vanity
Producer
- 1927 The King of Kings
Director, Producer
- 1927 White Gold
Producer
- 1926 The Cruise of the Jasper B
Producer
- 1926 The Volga Boatman
Producer, Director
- 1926 Silence
Producer
- 1926 Whispering Smith
Producer
- 1926 Red Dice
Presenter
- 1925 The Wedding Song
Producer
- 1925 The Road to Yesterday
Director
- 1925 The Dressmaker from Paris
Supervising Producer
- 1925 The Golden Bed
Director
- 1924 Feet of Clay
Director, Producer
- 1924 Triumph
Producer, Director
- 1923 The Ten Commandments
Director, Producer
- 1923 Adam's Rib
Director, Producer
- 1922 Manslaughter
Director
- 1922 Saturday Night
Director, Producer
- 1921 Fool's Paradise
Director
- 1921 The Affairs of Anatol
Director
- 1921 Forbidden Fruit
Director, Story, Producer
- 1921 The Affairs of Anatol - Promo Reel
Director
- 1920 Something to Think About
Director, Producer
- 1920 Why Change Your Wife?
Director, Producer
- 1919 Male and Female
Director, Producer
- 1919 For Better, for Worse
Director
- 1919 Don't Change Your Husband
Director
- 1918 The Squaw Man
Director
- 1918 Till I Come Back to You
Director
- 1918 We Can't Have Everything
Director, Editor
- 1918 Old Wives for New
Director, Producer, Editor
- 1918 The Whispering Chorus
Director
- 1917 The Devil Stone
Director
- 1917 Nan of Music Mountain
Director
- 1917 The Woman God Forgot
Director, Editor, Producer
- 1917 The Little American
Director, Producer, Writer, Editor
- 1917 A Romance of the Redwoods
Director, Writer, Editor, Producer
- 1917 Lost and Won
Producer
- 1917 Betty to the Rescue
General Manager
- 1916 Joan the Woman
Director, Editor, Producer
- 1916 The Dream Girl
Director
- 1916 Maria Rosa
Director
- 1916 The Heart of Nora Flynn
Director
- 1916 The Love Mask
Writer
- 1916 The Trail of the Lonesome Pine
Director, Story, Producer
- 1915 The Golden Chance
Director, Producer, Editor, Story
- 1915 Temptation
Editor, Director
- 1915 The Cheat
Editor, Director, Producer
- 1915 Chimmie Fadden Out West
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
- 1915 Carmen
Director, Editor, Producer
- 1915 Kindling
Producer, Writer, Director
- 1915 Chimmie Fadden
Writer, Producer, Editor, Director
- 1915 The Arab
Director, Writer, Producer
- 1915 The Wild Goose Chase
Director
- 1915 The Captive
Director, Writer, Producer, Editor
- 1915 The Unafraid
Director, Story
- 1915 The Warrens of Virginia
Director, Producer
- 1915 After Five
Director
- 1915 The Girl of the Golden West
Director, Producer, Writer, Editor
- 1914 The Ghost Breaker
Writer, Director, Producer
- 1914 The Circus Man
Writer
- 1914 The Rose of the Rancho
Editor, Director, Writer
- 1914 The Man From Home
Director, Editor, Producer, Writer
- 1914 Ready Money
Writer
- 1914 What's His Name
Director, Producer, Editor, Writer
- 1914 The Virginian
Director, Editor
- 1914 The Call of the North
Director
- 1914 The Man on the Box
Director
- 1914 The Only Son
Director
- 1914 Lord Chumley
Theatre Play
- 1914 The Master Mind
Director
- 1914 Brewster's Millions
Director, Producer
- 1914 The Squaw Man
Producer, Director, Writer
Talk shows and appearances (35)
- 2022 The U.S. and the Holocaust
1 episode
- 2021
- 2020
- 2020
- 2020
- 2019
- 2019
- 2016
- 2012
- 2007
- 2003
- 1988
- 1984
- 1983
- 1982
- 1980 Hollywood
1 episode
- 1976
- 1975
- 1974 Spécial cinéma
1 episode
- 1956 Cinépanorama
1 episode
- 1952 This Is Your Life
1 episode
- 1952
- 1950 What's My Line?
1 episode
- 1948 The Ed Sullivan Show
1 episode
- 1947
- 1945
- 1942
- 1939
- 1934
- 1933
- 1930
- 1928
- 1927
- 1927
- 1922