[236][189][237], Aside from his Biblical and historical epics which are concerned with how man relates to God, some of DeMille's films contained themes of "neo-naturalism" which portray the conflict between the laws of man and the laws of nature. Eddie Murphy is going to the Golden Globes. Date of birth. (Cecil Blount De Mille o DeMille; Ashfield, 1881 - Hollywood, 1959) Productor y director de cine estadounidense recordado especialmente por sus superproducciones de epopeyas histricas y religiosas. His most notable works include The Ten Commandments -1923, The Sign of the Cross-1932 and Cleopatra-1934.Cleopatra earned him credits as it was the first film that was listed among the nominees for an Academy Award.. Despite the urging of his associate producer, DeMille wanted to return to the set right away. The other three children were surprised by this, as DeMille did not treat the children differently in life. education: American Academy Of Dramatic Arts, Pennsylvania Military College. retrieved. From the archive, 22 January 1959: Pioneering film maker Cecil B. deMille dies Even the severest critics of his films had to concede that he was a great showman Cecil B. deMille (1881-1959). [61] Moreover, when he was busy directing other films, he would co-author other Lasky Company scripts as well as create screen adaptations that others directed. DeMille also produced and directed plays. [227], Cecil B. DeMille's film production career evolved from critically significant silent films to financially significant sound films. His first three films were Westerns, and he filmed many Westerns throughout his career. [112] He was also a real estate speculator,[113] an underwriter of political campaigns, and vice president of Bank of America. Cecil B. DeMille. (TV Special) Self - Cecil B. DeMille Award Recipient 1963-1964 Password (TV Series) Self - Celebrity Contestant / Self - James Stewart vs . [287][288] The Lasky-DeMille Barn was dedicated as a California historical landmark in a ceremony on December 27, 1956; DeMille was the keynote speaker. Large gallery of Cecil B. DeMille pics. He worked with visual technicians, editors, art directors, costume designers, cinematographers, and set carpenters in order to perfect the visual aspects of his films. [242] Another common theme in DeMille's films is the reversal of fortune and the portrayal of the rich and the poor, including the war of the classes and man versus society conflicts such as in The Golden Chance and The Cheat. 10 June 2021. Robin Williams, 2005. The original story Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is about two teenagers, Romeo and Juliet, who fall in love and their families' feud ends with death of Romeo and Juliet. [168] Despite a cast led by Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner, the 1958 film The Buccaneer was a disappointment. [103] It held the Paramount record for twenty-five years until DeMille broke the record again himself. The Warrens of Virginia (1915) $500 /week. [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. [255] Andrew Sarris, a leading proponent of the auteur theory, ranked DeMille highly as an auteur in the "Far Side of Paradise", just below the "Pantheon". Constance Adams DeMille (April 27, 1873 July 17, 1960) actress and wife of filmmaker Cecil Blount DeMille. [171], Cecil B. DeMille suffered a series of heart attacks from June 1958 to January 1959,[168] and died on January 21, 1959, following an attack. [298][299], DeMille's legacy is maintained by his granddaughter Cecilia DeMille Presley who serves as the president of the Cecil B. DeMille Foundation, which strives to support higher education, child welfare, and film in Southern California. [124] DeMille followed this epic uncharacteristically with two dramas released in 1933 and 1934. He was disliked by many inside and outside of the film industry for his cold and controlling reputation. LOS ANGELES -- Cecilia de Mille Harper, daughter of pioneer film-director Cecil B. de Mille and one of the first child movie actresses, has died after a long battle with . [206] Bernstein recalled that DeMille would scream, yell, or flatter, whatever it took to achieve the perfection he required in his films. When the AFRA expanded to television, DeMille was banned from television appearances. He was an active Freemason and member of Prince of Orange Lodge #16 in New York City.[1]. [7] His brother, William C. DeMille, was born on July 25, 1878. Further illustrated by his home life, DeMille required formality and politeness at home. Broadway Actor. This was, according to DeMille, the lowest point of his career. [253] However, Simon Louvish wrote "he was the complete master and auteur of his films"[254] and Anton Kozlovic called him the "unsung American auteur". [138] Audiences liked its highly saturated color, so DeMille made no further black-and-white features. Adams was 29 years old at the time of their marriage, eight years older than DeMille. He had completely adapted to the production of sound film despite the film's poor dialogue. [180] His playwright father introduced him to the theater at a young age. [28] This was the first of few film collaborations with his brother William. A censorship board called the Hays Code was established. DeMille filming the "big Indian raid" of Call of the North. [191] Plot and dialogue were not a strong point of DeMille's films. [229] He began the production of epics earlier in his career until they began to solidify his career in the 1920s. English Wikipedia. DeMille instructed the guilty man to leave town and would never reveal his name. . [132], DeMille sued the union for reinstatement but lost. [264], DeMille was liked by some of his fellow directors and disliked by others, though his actual films were usually dismissed by his peers as vapid spectacle. DeMille directed The King of Kings (1927), a biography of Jesus, which gained approval for its sensitivity and reached more than 800million viewers. Famous Players-Lasky donated the films. [164] Although DeMille completed the film, his health was diminished by several more heart attacks. Male. "A Digger, A Director and A Practical Joker". Oscars 1950 - Honorary Award. Cause of Death. [45] His 1905 performance in The Prince Chap as the Earl of Huntington was well received by audiences. These films represent those which DeMille produced or assisted in directing, credited or uncredited. [62] When William found out that DeMille had begun working in the motion picture industry, he wrote DeMille a letter, disappointed that he was willing "to throw away [his] future" when he was "born and raised in the finest traditions of the theater". The picture of her husband was taken in 1916, the year they bought the house, when he was 35 and an increasingly active and . Gender. He was confined to bed and unable to eat. [232] In the early age of cinema, DeMille differentiated the Lasky Company from other production companies due to the use of dramatic, low-key lighting they called "Lasky lighting" and marketed as "Rembrandt lighting" to appeal to the public. Cecil B. DeMille photo shoot. Biographer Scott Eyman suggested that this may have been a result of Adams's recent miscarriage. [252], Despite his box-office success, awards, and artistic achievements, DeMille has been dismissed and ignored by critics both during his life and posthumously. [228] Throughout his career, he did not alter his films to better adhere to contemporary or popular styles. William had been a successful playwright, but DeMille was suffering from the failure of his plays The Royal Mounted and The Genius. Despite his loss, DeMille continued to lobby for the TaftHartley Act, which passed. [36][note 6], Film started becoming more sophisticated and the subsequent films of the Lasky company were criticized for primitive and unrealistic set design. Martin Scorsese cited Unconquered, Samson and Delilah, and The Greatest Show on Earth as DeMille films that have imparted lasting memories on him. *mother - Ashkenazi Jewish. DeMille served as executive producer but could not improve Quinn's style of direction. 21 January 1959. [233] DeMille's 1956 version of The Ten Commandments, according to director Martin Scorsese, is renowned for its level of production and the care and detail that went into creating the film. [26] The aim of the school was to teach young women to properly understand and fulfill the women's duty to herself, her home, and her country. DeMille was variously declared 'the master of the religious epic', 14. the 'arch apostle of spectacle', 15. and the 'King of the epic Biblical spectacular', 16. as also [41] DeMille and his brother at times worked with the legendary impresario David Belasco, who had been a friend and collaborator of their father. . [258], DeMille was one of the first directors to become a celebrity in his own right. [39] In the summer of 1905 DeMille joined the stock cast at the Elitch Theatre in Denver, Colorado. [119] These three films, Dynamite, Madame Satan, and his 1931 remake of The Squaw Man were both critically and financially unsuccessful. He then appealed to the California Supreme Court and lost again. An annual award, the Golden Globe's Cecil B. DeMille Award recognizes lifetime achievement in the film industry. [13] She had emigrated from England with her parents in 1871 when she was 18; the newly arrived family settled in Brooklyn, New York, where they maintained a middle-class, English-speaking household. According to Richard Birchard, DeMille's weakened state during production may have led to the film being received as uncharacteristically substandard. DeMille purchased the home in 1916 for $27,893 (Yes, five digits) and lived there with his family until his death in 1959. His wife did not like Paradise, so DeMille often brought his mistresses there with him including actress Julia Faye. [107] Aside from The King of Kings, none of DeMille's films away from Paramount were successful. Sitting in an IMAX Derided then . [271] DeMille was immortalized in Billy Wilder's Sunset Boulevard when Gloria Swanson spoke the line: "All right, Mr. DeMille. Belasco was known for adding realistic elements in his plays such as real flowers, food, and aromas that could transport his audiences into the scenes. By 1930, DeMille had perfected his film style of mass-interest spectacle films with Western, Roman, or Biblical themes. [263] Joseph Henabery recalled that DeMille looked like "a king on a throne surrounded by his court" while directing films on a camera platform. [53] Another DeMille-Lasky production that opened in January 1912 was The Antique Girl. Julia was born in Richmond, Virginia, of French-American parentage. [261][262] He was known for his unique, working wardrobe which included riding boots, riding pants, and soft, open necked shirts. DeMille liked to sail and dive; he had several boats throughout his lifetime. Radford, Bill. [160] The Exodus scene was filmed on-site in Egypt with the use of four Technicolor-VistaVision camera filming 12,000 people. [115] In 1916, DeMille purchased a mansion in Hollywood. Beatrice was intelligent, educated, forthright, and strong-willed. Recent images. [283] In response to the claims, DeMille donated some of the profits from The King of Kings to charity. Heart Ailment. Instead of portraying the danger and anarchy of the West, he portrayed the opportunity and redemption found in Western America. Groesbeck's art was circulated on set to give actors and crew members a better understanding of DeMille's vision. Birthplace: Laramie, Albany County, Wyoming, United States. DeMille: The Master of the American Biblical Epic . The legendary comedian, 61, has been confirmed to receive one of the night's highest honors, the Cecil B. DeMille Award, given as a way to honor "outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment," per the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. In the 1950s, Paramount sold its entire pre-1948 film library, including those of DeMille, to, The set was discovered by Peter Brosnan after hearing a rumor in 1982 that DeMille had ordered the enormous set to be buried after filming rather than taken away. [38], In 1902, he played a small part in Hamlet. DeMille is one of the more commercially successful film directors in history[246] with his films before the release of The Ten Commandments estimated to have grossed $650million worldwide. DeMille's highest-grossing films include: The Sign of the Cross (1932), Unconquered (1947), Samson and Delilah (1949), The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), and The Ten Commandments (1956). [155], We have just lived through a war where our people were systematically executed. Henry was a tall, red-headed student. [84] While on a European vacation in 1921, DeMille contracted rheumatic fever in Paris. DeMille discovered the possibilities of the "bathroom" or "boudoir" in film without being "vulgar" or "cheap". As DeMille continued to rely on Groesbeck, the nervous energy of his early films transformed into more steady compositions of his later films. Furthermore, DeMille argued with Zukor over his extravagant and over-budget production costs. A dark, exotic beauty, Katherine DeMille was a fascinating screen presence in the 1930s and 1940s. [117] He also popularized the camera crane. [129], From June 1, 1936, until January 22, 1945, Cecil B. DeMille hosted and directed Lux Radio Theater, a weekly digest of current feature films. [231][note 14] The Ten Commandments inspired DreamWorks Animation's later film about Moses, The Prince of Egypt. [169] DeMille attended the Santa Barbara premiere of The Buccaneer in December 1958. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cinema and the most commercially successful producer-director in film history. Cemetery Name: Hollywood Forever Cemetery. This was the first feature-length film made in Hollywood. 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. [269] He often appeared in his coming-attraction trailers and narrated many of his later films,[270] even stepping on screen to introduce The Ten Commandments. DeMille traveled abroad to find employment until he was offered a deal at Paramount. Mrs. DeMille's office and library opened to the music room. DeMille asked David Niven to star in the film, but it was never made. But he put on pictures that made a fortune. [50], DeMille was poor and struggled to find work. 22. [137] Following his surgery and the success of Union Pacific, in 1940, DeMille first used three-strip Technicolor in North West Mounted Police. [note 4], While filming The Captive in 1915, an extra, Bob Fleming, died on set when another extra failed to heed to DeMille's orders to unload all guns for rehearsal. His last and best known film, The Ten Commandments (1956), also a Best Picture Academy Award nominee, is currently the eighth-highest-grossing film of all time, adjusted for inflation. [10] He worked as a playwright, administrator, and faculty member during the early years of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, established in New York City in 1884. [190], DeMille's filmmaking process always began with extensive research. Considered one of the founders of Hollywood, film producer and director Cecil B. DeMille (1881-1959) earned a place in moviemaking history with such religious epic films as The Ten Commandmentsand King of Kings.. Cecil Blount DeMille was born in Ashfield, Massachusetts, while his parents were vacationing there, and grew up in Washington, North Carolina. He produced or directed about 80 movies - including The Ten Commandments (1956), a movie in the 'epic' genre for which he is probably best known today. [109] Six of DeMille's filmsThe Arab, The Wild Goose Chase, The Dream Girl, The Devil-Stone, We Can't Have Everything, and The Squaw Man (1918)were destroyed due to nitrate decomposition, and are considered lost. Constance Adams DeMille (April 27, 1873 - July 17, 1960) was an American actress and wife of filmmaker Cecil B. DeMille. This concerned the executives at Paramount; however, the film turned out to be the studio's highest-grossing film. [11] Henry deMille frequently collaborated with David Belasco in playwriting;[12] their best-known collaborations included "The Wife", "Lord Chumley", "The Charity Ball", and "Men and Women". The Ten Commandments gave the director a chance to play God, to film miracles. William deMille reluctantly became a story editor. The mistress could not keep the boy due to her tuberculosis. Mini Bio (1) Julia Faye's career is inextricably linked to director Cecil B. DeMille. He later moved to writing and directing stage productions, some with Jesse Lasky, who was then a vaudeville producer. The project was later completed by DeMille's former assistant director. Friday 12 Aug 1881. that DeMille found his greatest inspiration. He suffered from a post-surgery infection from which he nearly did not recover, citing streptomycin as his saving grace. [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. Hot! Eventually, he became manager of the agency and later, a junior partner with his mother. DeMille recalled that this church was the place where he visualized the story of his 1923 version of The Ten Commandments.[25]. Heart Ailment. DeMille did not like the first draft of the biography, saying that he thought the person portrayed in the biography was an "SOB"; he said it made him sound too egotistical. We should get down on our knees to Cecil and say "Thank you! [43] DeMille was credited with creating the premise of Belasco's The Return of Peter Grimm. [10] At the military college, even though his grades were average, he reportedly excelled in personal conduct. Ben Gabbe/Getty. [300] In 1963, the Cecil B. DeMille Foundation donated the "Paradise" ranch to the Hathaway Foundation, which cares for emotionally disturbed and abused children. He claimed he abandoned the project in order to complete a different project, but in reality, it was to preserve his reputation and avoid appearing reactionary. [8] Henry de Mille, whose ancestors were of English and Dutch-Belgian descent, was a North Carolina-born dramatist, actor, and lay reader in the Episcopal Church. [203], DeMille often edited in a manner that favored psychological space rather than physical space through his cuts. Its interracial love story made it commercially successful and it first publicized Hollywood as the home of the U.S. film industry. [319] The Ten Commandments is broadcast every Saturday at Passover in the United States on the ABC Television Network. [273], As a filmmaker, DeMille was the aesthetic inspiration of many directors and films due to his early influence during the crucial development of the film industry. [114] He was additionally vice president of the Commercial National Trust and Savings Bank in Los Angeles where he approved loans for other filmmakers. DeMille, Cecil B. [268] DeMille appeared as himself in numerous films, including the MGM comedy Free and Easy. The American Academy of Dramatic Arts honored DeMille with an Alumni Achievement Award in 1958. [157] Adolph Zukor convinced the board to change their minds on the grounds of morality. Sarris added that despite the influence of styles of contemporary directors throughout his career, DeMille's style remained unchanged. On January 8, 1893, at age 40, Henry de Mille died suddenly from typhoid fever, leaving Beatrice with three children. [63] The Lasky Company wanted to attract high-class audiences to their films so they began producing films from literary works. At least one DeMille film can represent each film genre. However, Beatrice introduced Lasky to DeMille instead. Cecil B. DeMille: Film director from the United States (1881 - 1959), Actor, Writer, Film producer, Film director, Film editor, Screenwriter, Playwright, Stage actor . He received his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Director for his circus drama The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), which won both the Academy Award for Best Picture and the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture Drama. [305] From the film industry, DeMille received the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award at the Academy Awards in 1953,[306] and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Directors Guild of America Award the same year. They continued filming in 1955 in Paris and Hollywood on 30 different sound stages. [235] DeMille was also known for his use of special effects without the use of digital technology. 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. U.S. State: Massachusetts. [185] Similar to Belasco, DeMille's theatre was revolved around entertainment, rather than artistry. With this year's Oscar nominations soon to be announced, we take a look back at his cinematic extraganzas. [citation needed] He was known as anti-union and worked to prevent unionizing of film production studios. He was her mentor, while she was for many years his mistress (a liaison which was tolerated by De Mille's long-suffering wife Constance Adams ). Cecil B. DeMille was born on August 12th, in 1881. [91] Although DeMille considered enlisting in World War I, he stayed in the United States and made films. The star was being honored with the Cecil B. DeMille award, which was presented to her by Reese Witherspoon, her co-star in the upcoming Disney film A Wrinkle in Time. [61] Sometimes, he directed scenes for other directors at the Feature Play Company in order to release films on time. Date of death: 21 Jan 1959. 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. ", "10 Great Films that Influenced Alfred Hitchcock", "The Construction of a Christ-figure within the 1956 and 1923 Versions of Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments", "The International Film Magazine, Sight & Sound, All films", "Hollywood Heritage volunteers preserve the Industry's earliest incarnation", "National Register of Historic Places Program", "Cecil B. DeMille Film Festival July 2 & 16", "After 54 years, it's the end for DeMille Middle School", "Vietnamese Language Roundtable showcased effectiveness of dual-language immersion program at DeMille Elementary School", "Apollo 11-Technical Air to Ground Voice Transcription", "Cecilia DeMille Presley Joins National Film Preservation Foundation Board of Directors", "BYU special collections archives houses extensive Cecil B. DeMille memorabilia", "BYU Hears: "Understand the Law of God", DeMille Advises 1957 Graduates", "5th Annual DGA Awards Honoring Outstanding Directorial Achievement for 1952", "5th Annual DGA Awards: Honoring Outstanding Directorial Achievement for 1952", "Jeff Bridges to Receive Cecil B. DeMille Award at 2019 Golden Globes", "Academy Alum Cecil B. DeMille, The Founding Father of Hollywood Filmmaking", "Complete National Film Registry Listing", "Robert Townsend Directing 'Brewster's Millions' Reboot", "The Only Son/Cecil B. Demille [motion picture]", "DVD Extra: The first, and best 'Chicago' (1927)", "Rare 1949 Photographs Show the Making of 'Sunset Boulevard', "Screen: 'The Ten Commandments'; De Mille's Production Opens at Criterion The Cast", Cecil B. DeMille's Early Films' Costs and Grosses by David Pierce, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cecil_B._DeMille&oldid=1141568133, This page was last edited on 25 February 2023, at 18:28. Beatrice DeMille's family was not in attendance, and Simon Louvish suggests that this was to conceal DeMille's partial Jewish heritage.