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DeMille, Cecil B. (Cecil Blount), 1881-1959

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1881 - 1959

Biographical History

Cecil B. DeMille (1881-1959) was an American motion picture producer and director, considered the archetype of the American film mogul. His 70 films reflect changing American tastes and values, and he was particularly noted for his multimillion-dollar spectacles.

Cecil B. DeMille was born on August 12, 1881 in Ashfield, Massachusetts to Henry Churchill de Mille and Matilda Beatrice Samuel de Mille. DeMille started acting on Broadway in 1900, and by 1913 he joined a film studio partnership which would eventually become Paramount Pictures. DeMille had a long and storied career as a filmmaker and directed several epic films, such as the Ten Commandments (1956). DeMille died on January 21, 1959, in Hollywood, California.

Citation:
His The Royal ...

LC data base, 10/11/85 (hdg.: DeMille, Cecil Blount, 1881-1959; usage: Cecil B. DeMille); LC manual auth. cd. (also shows usage: Cecil B. De Mille)

Wikipedia, Sept. 16, 2010 (Cecil Blount DeMille; b. Aug. 12, 1881 in Ashfield, Mass.; d. Jan. 21, 1959 in Hollywood, Calif.; American film director and producer)

Turner Classic Movies database, Oct. 7, 2010 (Cecil B. DeMille Productions; est. 1921; founded by Cecil B. DeMille)

Empire of dreams, 2010: p. 212 (Cecil B. DeMille Pictures Corporation; founded by Cecil B. DeMille)

Found in 573 Collections and/or Records:

Lux Radio Theatre, 1936-1963

 Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 14
Scope and Contents

The 77 boxes in this series contain annotated radio scripts, correspondence, and listener response during the nine years that DeMille was master of ceremonies (1936-1945). There is also a box of file cards containing listener-generated story suggestions. Titles are arranged chronologically, followed by the actors--and in parentheses the names of any special guests for that evening's broadcast. See also: Cecil B. DeMille Productions, Personal, and Scrapbooks.

Dates: 1936-1963

Madam Satan, 1929-1930

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 9 Sub-Series 2 Sub-Series 2
Scope and Contents From the Series: The 10 boxes comprising this series document DeMille's nearly four years at MGM, 1928 to 1931. The records are grouped under general correspondence, arranged chronologically, but alphabetically within each year by name, organization, or activity. The second group, Motion Picture Production Files, contains a limited number of treatments, scenarios, script drafts, casting information, and preview cards relating to Dynamite, Madam Satan, and the third version of The Squaw Man. See also:...
Dates: 1929-1930

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1928-1931

 Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 9
Scope and Contents The 10 boxes comprising this series document DeMille's nearly four years at MGM, 1928 to 1931. The records are grouped under general correspondence, arranged chronologically, but alphabetically within each year by name, organization, or activity. The second group, Motion Picture Production Files, contains a limited number of treatments, scenarios, script drafts, casting information, and preview cards relating to Dynamite, Madam Satan, and the third version of The Squaw Man. See also:...
Dates: 1928-1931

Miscellaneous, 1942-1945

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 2 Sub-Series 3 Sub-Series 27
Scope and Contents From the Series: Identified by DeMille as "Personal," this group of 196 boxes begins with 22 boxes dealing with the research and writing of the posthumously published The Autobiography of Cecil B. DeMille (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1959), edited by Donald Hayne. The files are arranged chronologically by year, and items within each year are arranged alphabetically by subject or name. Over time, the organization of some of the files deteriorated into groups of unrelated records. Therefore, files...
Dates: 1942-1945

Miscellaneous

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 6 Sub-Series 4
Scope and Contents From the Series:

These files are listed chronologically from 1868 to 1936 and are comprised of plays written by Henry C. DeMille, Cecil B. DeMille, William deMille, and David Belasco. Some are holographs, some are typescripts, and some are professionally printed and published. Many are annotated. Also in this series of 11 boxes is correspondence and material relating to the theater business of the family. See also: Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company/ Famous Players-Lasky Film Corporation.

Dates: 1868-1936

Miscellaneous correspondence, 1952-1957

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 10 Sub-Series 2 Sub-Series 16 Sub-Series 26 Sub-Series Sub-Sub-Sub-Sub- 3
Scope and Contents From the Series: In 1932 DeMille returned to Paramount Pictures after an eight-year absence. There he set up his own production entity know to those on his Paramount lot as the DeMille Unit. This series is the largest single group of material in the DeMille Archives, numbering 450 boxes. It is organized into two main groups: General Correspondence and Motion Picture Production Files.General Correspondence is arranged chronologically, and then alphabetically within each year by individual,...
Dates: 1952-1957

Motion Picture Associates: Cumulative Profit and Loss Statements/Participation Statement, Schedule of Income Billings, 1935-1980

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 11 Sub-Series 2
Scope and Contents From the Series: Cecil B. DeMille Pictures was initially formed in the 1920s when DeMille operated his own studio. Another organization, utilizing the same name appeared in the records in 1933, but was not fully operational until 1937. DeMille Pictures was dissolved as an active company in 1952, although minutes of meetings carry the company name up to 1970. These files, consisting of 4 boxes, contain articles of incorporation and minutes of meetings. Also included are Cumulative Profit and Loss...
Dates: 1935-1980

Motion picture cost and gross statements, 1933-1959

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 2 Sub-Series 5 Sub-Series 4
Scope and Contents From the Series: Identified by DeMille as "Personal," this group of 196 boxes begins with 22 boxes dealing with the research and writing of the posthumously published The Autobiography of Cecil B. DeMille (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1959), edited by Donald Hayne. The files are arranged chronologically by year, and items within each year are arranged alphabetically by subject or name. Over time, the organization of some of the files deteriorated into groups of unrelated records. Therefore, files...
Dates: 1933-1959

Motion picture production files, 1926-1958

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 8 Sub-Series 2
Scope and Contents From the Series: In late 1924, DeMille purchased the Thomas Ince Studio in Culver City and renamed the facility DeMille Studio. This series of 35 boxes documents the nearly four-year lifespan of the organization and contains two main parts: the first deals with general financial and business correspondence and story properties from 1925 to 1928, and is arranged alphabetically ; the second part is comprised of film production files from the same period including 13 boxes of material on The Road to Yesterday,...
Dates: 1926-1958

Motion picture production files, 1928-1930

 Sub-Series
Identifier: MSS 1400 Series 9 Sub-Series 2
Scope and Contents From the Series: The 10 boxes comprising this series document DeMille's nearly four years at MGM, 1928 to 1931. The records are grouped under general correspondence, arranged chronologically, but alphabetically within each year by name, organization, or activity. The second group, Motion Picture Production Files, contains a limited number of treatments, scenarios, script drafts, casting information, and preview cards relating to Dynamite, Madam Satan, and the third version of The Squaw Man. See also:...
Dates: 1928-1930