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Cecil B. DeMille collection
231
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Abstract: The collection is comprised of material assembled and separated from the Cecil B. DeMille Photographs during processing. The
collection consists primarily of script and research material for SAMSON AND DELILAH (1949), clippings, miscellaneous papers
related to Paramount Studios, and correspondence, including a telegram from Douglas Fairbanks to DeMille about the founding
of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1927. The collection also includes clippings and promotional information
related to DeMille’s Mercury Aviation Company. There is also a drawing by Frederick Stover dating from 1941 of Grauman's Chinese
Theater.
Collector:
DeMille, Cecil B.
Dates: 1916-1980
Dates: 1930-1950
Collection number: 231
Collection Size:
1.8 linear ft. of papers
5 item(s) of artworks
Repository:
Margaret Herrick Library. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Available by appointment only.
Property rights to the physical object belong to the Margaret Herrick Library. Researchers are responsible for obtaining all
necessary rights, licenses, or permissions from the appropriate companies or individuals before quoting from or publishing
materials obtained from the library.
Cecil B. DeMille collection, Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Gift of Mrs. Cecilia DeMille Harper and Mrs. Cecilia Presley, both on behalf of the Cecil B. DeMille Trust, 1981
Cecil B. DeMille (1881-1959) was one of the motion picture industry's most prominent and successful pioneers. He began his
career as an actor and playwright, often working with his brother William and producer David Belasco. In 1913 he formed a
partnership with Jesse Lasky and Samuel Goldfish (later Goldwyn) called the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company. The partners
traveled to California to film the first feature-length motion picture produced in Hollywood, "The Squaw Man" (1914). The
film, co-directed by DeMille, was a critical and financial success. The Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company soon merged with
Adolph Zukor's Famous Players Film Company and ultimately became Paramount Pictures, where DeMille became a leading producer.
By the 1920s DeMille became known for a series of successful, sophisticated sex comedies, many starring Gloria Swanson. In
the 1930s and 1940s DeMille produced and directed memorable epic action-adventure films such as "The Sign of the Cross" (1932),
"Cleopatra" (1934), "The Crusades" (1935) and "Samson and Delilah" (1949). In the 1950s DeMille made two of his best remembered
films: "The Greatest Show on Earth" (winner of the 1952 Best Picture Academy Award) and "The Ten Commandments" (a 1956 Best
Picture nominee).
1. Production files; 2. Subject files
DeMille, Cecil B.
Directors
Producers
Screenwriters