Notably, DeMille had cinematographer John P. Fulton create the parting of the Red Sea scene in his 1956 film The Ten Commandments, which was one of the most expensive special effects in film history, and has been called by Steven Spielberg "the greatest special effect in film history". [73] There were problems; however, with the perforation of the film stock and it was discovered the DeMille had brought a cheap British film perforator which had punched in sixty-five holes per foot instead of the industry-standard of sixty-four. [29] He fled the school to join the SpanishAmerican War, but failed to meet the age requirement. [231] DeMille's distinctive style can be seen through camera and lighting effects as early as The Squaw Man with the use of daydream images; moonlight and sunset on a mountain; and side-lighting through a tent flap. The continued success of his productions led to the founding of Paramount Pictures with Lasky and Adolph Zukor. Many of these displays were thought to be staged, however, as an exercise in discipline. Stills. Cecil Blount DeMille (August 12, 1881 - January 21, 1959) was an American film director and Academy Award-winning film producer in both silent and sound films. . [321]:2123. Henry, a . [49] DeMille had a daughter, Cecilia, on November 5, 1908, who would be his only biological child. Cecil B. DeMille | Biography, Movies, & Facts | Britannica [239], DeMille's films contained many similar themes throughout his career. 'Ten Commandments' went from film to stone - Chron [231][note 14] The Ten Commandments inspired DreamWorks Animation's later film about Moses, The Prince of Egypt. [51] In 1911, DeMille became acquainted with vaudeville producer Jesse Lasky when Lasky was searching for a writer for his new musical. [247] Adjusted for inflation, DeMille's remake of The Ten Commandments is the eighth highest-grossing film in the world. September 17, 1914. Cecil B. DeMille's granddaughter writes new book Journal of Religion & Film Cecil B DeMille Family Tree & History, Ancestry & Genealogy - FameChain [91] Although DeMille considered enlisting in World War I, he stayed in the United States and made films. [86] A large collection of DeMille's materials including scripts, storyboards, and films resides at Brigham Young University in L. Tom Perry Special Collections. Movie posters. It was the longest (3 hours, 39 minutes) and most expensive ($13million) film in Paramount history. Cause of death: Heart failure: Nationality: American: Occupation: Producer, director, editor, screenwriter, actor: Years active: 1913-1959: Spouse(s) Constance Adams . [46] Life was difficult for DeMille and his wife as traveling actors; however, traveling allowed him to experience part of the United States he had not yet seen. Cause of Death: Heart Attack. Cecil B. DeMille - Wikimedia Commons In his first instance, in 1917, he remade The Squaw Man (1918), only waiting four years from the 1914 original. Robin Williams, 2005. A dark, exotic beauty, Katherine DeMille was a fascinating screen presence in the 1930s and 1940s. However, Beatrice introduced Lasky to DeMille instead. [10], Cecil B. DeMille's mother, Beatrice, a literary agent and scriptwriter, was the daughter of German Jews. Beatrice DeMille's family was not in attendance, and Simon Louvish suggests that this was to conceal DeMille's partial Jewish heritage. [159] The Ten Commandments, released in 1956, was DeMille's final film. [101], After five years and thirty hit films, DeMille became the American film industry's most successful director. DeMille was credited in small print as "based on an idea by Cecil DeMille". [58], Desiring a change of scene, Cecil B. DeMille, Jesse Lasky, Sam Goldfish (later Samuel Goldwyn), and a group of East Coast businessmen created the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company in 1913 over which DeMille became director-general. The Roaring Twenties were the boom years and DeMille took full advantage, opening the Mercury Aviation Company, one of America's first commercial airlines. The American Academy of Dramatic Arts honored DeMille with an Alumni Achievement Award in 1958. Despite its quick turnaround, the film was fairly successful. Cecil B. DeMille Biography - Facts, Childhood, Family Life & Achievements After the film was shown, viewers complained that the shadows and lighting prevented the audience from seeing the actors' full faces, complaining that they would only pay half price. DeMille was painstakingly attentive to details on set and was as critical of himself as he was of his crew. Spanish Wikipedia. DeMille wanted to film in Canada; however, due to budget constraints, the film was instead shot in Oregon and Hollywood. Heart Ailment. [106] His first film in the new production company, DeMille Pictures Corporation, was The Road to Yesterday in 1925. Although less critically revered than D.W. Griffith, DeMille actually played a more important role in . [165] This film would be his last. [316] DeMille's Union Pacific received a Palme d'Or in retrospect at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. [303] In 1957, DeMille gave the commencement address for the graduation ceremony of Brigham Young University wherein he received an honorary Doctorate of Letter degree. His first biblical epic, The Ten Commandments (1923), was both a critical and commercial success; it held the Paramount revenue record for twenty-five years. [218][219] DeMille cast some of his performers repeatedly, including: Henry Wilcoxon,[220] Julia Faye, Joseph Schildkraut,[221] Ian Keith,[222] Charles Bickford,[223] Theodore Roberts, Akim Tamiroff[224] and William Boyd. [57] Having become disinterested in working in theatre, DeMille's passion for film was ignited when he watched the 1912 French film Les Amours de la reine lisabeth. DeMille told the actor that he was "one hundred percent yellow". Large gallery of Cecil B. DeMille pics. [84] In 1916, exhausted from three years of nonstop filmmaking, DeMille purchased land in the Angeles National Forest for a ranch which would become his getaway. Although this final reel looked so different from the previous eleven reels that it appeared to be from another movie, according to Simon Louvish, the film is one of DeMille's strangest and most "DeMillean" film. The first 24 of his silent films were made in the first three years of his career (1913-1916). Cecil B. DeMille: Hollywood Directing Legend | Full Documentary Martin Scorsese recalled that DeMille had the skill to maintain control of not only the lead actors in a frame but the many extras in the frame as well. [181] Henry was heavily influenced by the work of Charles Kingsley whose ideas trickled down to DeMille. [44], DeMille performed on stage with actors whom he would later direct in films: Charlotte Walker, Mary Pickford, and Pedro de Cordoba. He graduated in 1900, and for graduation, his performance was the play The Arcady Trail. He appeared in eleven of the fifteen plays presented that season, although all were minor roles. The first, for radio contributions, is located at 6240 Hollywood Blvd. Death: December 20, 1982 (68) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, United States. View Bio. Cecil B. DeMille Birthday, Real Name, Age, Weight, Height, Family [5] On September 1, 1881, the family returned with the newborn DeMille to their flat in New York. [292], In summer 2019, The Friends of the Pompton Lakes Library hosted a Cecil B DeMille film festival to celebrate DeMille's achievements and connection to Pompton Lakes. Long before he made his first sound picture, DeMille had become a cinema . Cemetery Name: Hollywood Forever Cemetery. They continued filming in 1955 in Paris and Hollywood on 30 different sound stages. [23][note 2] DeMille's parents operated a private school in town and attended Christ Episcopal Church. [18] The family lived in Washington, North Carolina,[19] until Henry built a three-story Victorian-style house for his family in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey; they named this estate "Pamlico". [194] DeMille was particularly adept at directing and managing large crowds in his films. He was entombed at the Hollywood Memorial Cemetery (now known as Hollywood Forever). Work period (start) 1899; Work period (end) 1959; Country of citizenship: He volunteered for the Intelligence Office during World War II as well. In this way, the characters' thoughts and desires are the visual focus rather than the circumstances regarding the physical scene. [195] DeMille was adept at directing "thousands of extras",[113] and many of his pictures include spectacular set pieces: the toppling of the pagan temple in Samson and Delilah;[196] train wrecks in The Road to Yesterday,[197] Union Pacific[198] and The Greatest Show on Earth;[199] the destruction of an airship in Madam Satan;[200] and the parting of the Red Sea in both versions of The Ten Commandments. Henry was a tall, red-headed student. [202] DeMille was unique in using this technique. Cecil B DeMille Bio Details. The Ten Commandments: DeMille was here | Manchester Ink Link Consequently, the film was never made. [255], Publicly Episcopalian, DeMille drew on his Christian and Jewish ancestors to convey a message of tolerance. Eddie Murphy is going to the Golden Globes. [174] DeMille left his multi-million dollar estate in Los Feliz, Los Angeles in Laughlin Park to his daughter Cecilia because his wife had dementia and was unable to care for an estate. Step Inside Cecil B. De Mille's House in Los Angeles [9] DeMille's father was also an English teacher at Columbia College (now Columbia University). Name in native language: Cecil Blount DeMille: Date of birth: 12 August 1881 Ashfield: Date of death: 21 January 1959 Hollywood: Cause of death: heart failure; Place of burial: Hollywood Forever Cemetery; Pseudonym: C.B. Oscars 1950 - Honorary Award. Birthplace: Laramie, Albany County, Wyoming, United States. Cecil B. DeMille - Wikipedia [134] William Keighley was his replacement.
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