Cecil B De Mille

Home > ... > Literature and the Arts > Performing Arts > Dance: Biographies > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side World Encyclopedia The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition

Cecil B. De Mille

Cecil B. De Mille (Cecil Blount De Mille), 1881-1959, American movie director and producer, b. Ashfield, Mass. In 1914, together with Samuel Goldwyn , he made the first feature-length film in Hollywood, The Squaw Man. The following year he came into prominence with his first "spectacle" film, Carmen. These films were marked by their epic style and their theatricality, by their mass crowd scenes, and often by their biblical themes. In 1953 he won an Academy Award for The Greatest Show on Earth. His biggest and most popular production, The Ten Commandments (1956), was a remake of his 1923 film. Among his other "spectacle" films are The Crusades (1935) and Union Pacific (1952).

Bibliography: See his autobiography, ed. by D. Hayne (1959, repr. 1985); biographies by C. Higham (1980) and S. Louvish (2008); study by G. Ringgold and D. Bodeen (1969); G. Ringgold and D. Bodeen, The Complete Films of Cecil B. De Mille (1985).

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-DeMille" title="Facts and information about Cecil B De Mille">Cecil B De Mille</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"Cecil B. De Mille." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 29 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"Cecil B. De Mille." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (November 29, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-DeMille.html

"Cecil B. De Mille." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved November 29, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-DeMille.html

Learn more about citation styles

De Mille, Cecil B.

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Â© World Encyclopedia 2005, originally published by Oxford University Press 2005. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

De Mille, Cecil B. ( Blount) (1881–1959) US film producer and director, noted for his lavish dramatic presentations. His debut film, The Squaw Man (1913), established Hollywood as the world's film production capital. Much of his best-known work deals with biblical themes, such as The Ten Commandments (two versions, 1923 and 1956) and King of Kings (1927). Other major films include Forbidden Fruit (1921), Union Pacific (1939), and The Greatest Show on Earth (1952).

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O142-DeMilleCecilB" title="Facts and information about Cecil B De Mille">Cecil B De Mille</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"De Mille, Cecil B." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 29 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"De Mille, Cecil B." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (November 29, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-DeMilleCecilB.html

"De Mille, Cecil B." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved November 29, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-DeMilleCecilB.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Cecil B. DeMille and American Culture: The Silent Era. (book reviews) Magazine article from: Journal of Popular Film and Television; 3/22/1996
	The Hollywood History of the World: From One Million Years B.C. to Apocalypse Now. Magazine article from: National Review; 4/7/1989
	Hamlet. Magazine article from: National Review; 2/10/1997

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Metro Choice: Streatham's Cecil B de Mille Newspaper article from: The Independent - London; 11/11/1994; 342 words ; Welcome to Streatham, its legions, its orgies and chariots. Next week on the stretch that boasts the Megabowl, ice rink and two Italian restaurants with competing Elvis impersonators, a mighty opening - Caesars, a dine, dance and floorshow nightclub in the tradition of the Talk of the Town, only
	NO RUN-OF-DE MILLE TALENT.(L.A. LIFE)(Review) Newspaper article from: Daily News (Los Angeles, CA); 3/17/1996; 700+ words ; ...everyone seems to be named George, Cecil or Anna.) William, a playwright...join William's younger brother, Cecil, in Hollywood. But the family unraveled as he became Cecil B. De Mille, one of the most famous and powerful...
	AGNES DE MILLE BIO REPORTS WARTS AND ALL.(Entertainment/Weekend/Spotlight)(Review) Newspaper article from: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO); 3/14/1996; 700+ words ; ...girls born to William and Anna de Mille. William, a playwright, was a...join William's younger brother, Cecil, in Hollywood. But the family unraveled as he became Cecil B. de Mille, one of the most powerful of early...
	Agnes de Mille's Strides in Dance Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 5/8/1987; ; 700+ words ; ...gratitude enough. There are de Mille's reminiscences of her grandfather...playwright and film director William de Mille ("I thought he was God...and of her celebrated uncle Cecil B. De Mille, an important early influence...
	BIOGRAPHER DOES A CREDIBLE JOB REPORTING ON AGNES DE MILLE'S LIFE.(Lifestyle)(Review) Newspaper article from: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, WA); 3/12/1996; 700+ words ; ...everyone seems to be named George, Cecil or Anna.) William, a playwright...join William's younger brother, Cecil, in Hollywood. But the family unraveled as he became Cecil B. De Mille, one of the most famous and powerful...
	Agnes de Mille Dies at 88; Legendary Choreographer Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 10/8/1993; ; 700+ words ; ...of character that was mesmerizing." Agnes de Mille, who was born in New York, was the niece of famed film director Cecil B. De Mille. Her father, Cecil's older brother William, was also a director...
	DE MILLE STORY WORTH WATCHING Newspaper article from: The Boston Globe; 5/8/1987; ; 700+ words ; ...chance to see film footage of de Mille ballets is welcome: There's a...adjective "indomitable" suits de Mille well. She fought parental opposition...George and niece of film director Cecil B. de Mille, she had a pampered childhood...
	The Arts: `It's not mad, it's De Mille' Buried beneath the sands of California lies the city that Hollywood forgot, the film set of the 1923 silent epic, `The Ten Commandments'. William Langley reports on the latest plans to excavate it Newspaper article from: The Sunday Telegraph London; 4/9/2000; ; 700+ words ; Cecil B. De Mille's 1923 epic The Ten Commandments was...into the slippery sands went the set De Mille had built on a remote stretch of California...You can only dig what's there." De Mille, who died in 1959, must have seen this...
	Appreciation; Dance's Magnificent Desperado; Agnes De Mille, Keeping Choreography on the Run Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 10/8/1993; ; 700+ words ; ...showman, choreographer Agnes de Mille - who died yesterday at 88 - was...playwright father and her renowned uncle Cecil B. De Mille. She fought ballet convention by...celebrity uncle, "Money symbolized for Cecil an essential verity. He talked...
	Digging De Mille;`Ten Commandements' Set May Be Excavated Newspaper article from: The Washington Post; 11/15/1990; ; 700+ words ; ...California landscape under which Cecil B. De Mille buried a gigantic set used in his...conference there on Monday. De Mille, whose name has become synonymous...instead of hauling the set away, De Mille had it dismantled and buried on...