“Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood”
We have Four Books to Giveaway this Month!
CMH is happy to announce our next Classic Movie Book Giveaway as part of our partnership with University Press of Kentucky! This time, we’ll be giving away FOUR COPIES of “Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood” by Robert S. Birchard.
In order to qualify to win this book via this contest giveaway, you must complete the below entry task by Saturday, Sept 25 at 6PM EST. Winners will be chosen via random drawings.
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We will announce our four lucky winners on Twitter @ClassicMovieHub on Sunday, Sept 26, around 9PM EST. And, please note that you don’t have to have a Twitter account to enter; just see below for the details.
To recap, there will be FOUR WINNERS, chosen by random, all to be announced on Sept 26.
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And now on to the contest!
ENTRY TASK (2-parts) to be completed by Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 6PM EST
1) Answer the below question via the comment section at the bottom of this blog post
2) Then TWEET (not DM) the following message*:
Just entered to win the “Cecil B DeMille’s Hollywood” #BookGiveaway courtesy of @KentuckyPress & @ClassicMovieHub – #EnterToWin http://www.classicmoviehub.com/blog/cecil-b-demilles-hollywood-book-giveaway-sept/
THE QUESTION:
What is your favorite Cecil B. DeMille film and why? And, if you’re not familiar with his work, why do you want to win this book?
*If you do not have a Twitter account, you can still enter the contest by simply answering the above question via the comment section at the bottom of this blog — BUT PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU ADD THIS VERBIAGE TO YOUR ANSWER: I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.
NOTE: if for any reason you encounter a problem commenting here on this blog, please feel free to tweet or DM us, or send an email to clas…@gmail.com and we will be happy to create the entry for you.
ALSO: Please allow us 48 hours to approve your comments. Sorry about that, but we are being overwhelmed with spam, and must sort through 100s of comments…
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Don’t forget to check our chats in our Screen Classics Discussion Series with University Press of Kentucky and @CitizenScreen. You can catch them on Facebook and YouTube:
Jayne Mansfield: The Girl Couldn’t Help It — with Author Eve Golden
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Vitagraph: America’s First Great Motion Picture Studio – with Author Andrew Erish:
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Jane Russell and the Marketing of a Hollywood Legend – with Author Christina Rice:
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Growing Up Hollywood with Victoria Riskin and William Wellman Jr:
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About the Book: Cecil B. DeMille was the most successful filmmaker in early Hollywood history. Cecil B. DeMille’s Hollywood is a detailed and definitive chronicle of the screen work that changed the course of film history and a fascinating look at how movies were actually made in Hollywood’s Golden Age. Drawing extensively on DeMille’s personal archives and other primary sources, Robert S. Birchard offers a revealing portrait of DeMille the filmmaker that goes behind studio gates and beyond DeMille’s legendary persona. In his forty-five-year career DeMille’s box-office record was unsurpassed, and his swaggering style established the public image for movie directors. DeMille had a profound impact on the way movies tell stories and brought greater attention to the elements of decor, lighting, and cinematography. Best remembered today for screen spectacles such as The Ten Commandments and Samson and Delilah, DeMille also created Westerns, realistic “chamber dramas,” and a series of daring and highly influential social comedies. He set the standard for Hollywood filmmakers and demanded absolute devotion to his creative vision from his writers, artists, actors, and technicians.
Click here for the full contest rules.
Please note that only United States (excluding the territory of Puerto Rico) and Canada entrants are eligible.
Good Luck!
And if you can’t wait to win the book, you can purchase them on amazon by clicking below:
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–Annmarie Gatti for Classic Movie Hub
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Although I’m not too familiar with all of DeMille’s movies, I am absolutely fascinated by his movie The Ten Commandments and the fact it was partially filmed on a CA beach near the small city of Guadalupe, CA, which is just a couple of hundred miles from where I live. I have visited the small “museum” in Guadalupe that houses a collection of some of the props from the movie that had been found on the beach. I fantasize about finding a prop myself! This book would be wonderful to give me more information on the movie and it’s making. I marvel that so many years ago, DeMille could wrangle so many actors on such a wild location and turn out a masterpiece!
I do not have a Twitter acct so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet.
My favorite DeMille film is “Cleopatra”. Claudette Colbert was smashing as the Egyptian queen and the sets and costumes were magnificent. Actually,in all of DeMille’s films the sets and costumes were superb.
I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.
My favorite Cecil B. DeMille movie would have to be The Ten Commandments. I watched it every Easter with my family. The movie is a link to my childhood and a testament of my Catholic faith.
Twitter: @melodyfayre
Sign of the Cross & Cleopatra and equally my favorites of DeMille’s work. The pre-code subversion is in full effect!! And the pressure he was under to not only re-prove himself at Paramount, but to work with a small budget (Sign of the Cross) made them even better!!
I love The Plainsman (1936)! Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur are great together as Wild Bill Hickok and Calamity Jane. It is a very enjoyable movie, mostly because of its two stars. (However, James Ellison, who plays the important role of Buffalo Bill, is kind of weak–good looking but no spark.) Director DeMille doesn’t fool around with political correctness in this film: the Indians are the bad guys and they are scary. There is a lot of tension in the fast-paced, but historically incorrect plot. And the cinema technology is impressive. Although mostly shot on a sound stage, the impression of depth and three-dimensional action is suggested by the use of a screen, where previously filmed activity is projected, behind the primary shot. It is very clever and effective. Indeed, I was impressed by this 1936 film–so much more engaging than our computer-generated “action” pictures of today.
I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.
I do not have a twitter account. I am entering to be one of the winners of the “Cecil B.
DeMille’s Hollywood” book. My favorite C.B. DeMille movie is “The Greatest Show on
Earth” which my father took me to see when the theater showing a revival of “King Kong” was too expensive. I was so moved by this movie, I went to see it a second time when it played in my area, Bronx, New York. I was about 11-years-old at the time. I just loved that movie. It is my all time favorite movie. Sad to say, they don’t make them like that any more.
I love Mr. DeMille’s work…
The Ten Commandments (1956) is standard annual viewing at my house for many years. A great tradition…
I remember seeing The Greatest Show on Earth when I was just a kid. It was pretty impressive at the time and still ranks as my favorite De Mille film. Thanks for the chance to win a copy of this wonderful book.
My favorite Cecil B. DeMille film is an easy one to narrow down for me. The Ten Commandments! My Dad loved watching this movie pre-VHS tapes and we would watch it as a family every Easter season. Now a Dad myself, I watch it every year with my children.
THE PLAINSMAN is my favorite movie from the legendary Cecil B. DeMille. He took Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur and a top-rate cast and wove a grand, large-scale western story about Wild Bill Hickok & Calamity Jane. I really love the musical score by George Antheil….top notch all around!!!!
I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.
My favorite move of Mr. DeMille’s is The Ten Commandments. My family and I watched it every Easter and, even as a little kid, I was in complete awe of it’s scope and spectacle. I was fortunate enough to see it on the big screen for the first time a few years back and it was overwhelmingly enthralling!
My favorite Cecil B. DeMille movie is The Ten Commandments. It was family viewing every Easter season for as long as I can remember. I finally got to see it on the big screen this year. What a treat.
I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter but cannot tweet the message.
My favorite film of his is: the ten commandments (1956) because: its got a very amazing cast, the color is very wonderful, the special effects are absolutely definitely amazing.
The easiest choice for favorite DeMille is the 1956 version of The Ten Commandments, since it is the most frequently seen and well known, (and is a visual feast fo widescreen color), although the original silent version, as well as The King of Kings and Cleopatra rank high on the list.
If I could choose anything with DeMille’s involvement, then it would be Sunset Boulevard, without a doubt. One of my favorite films- great story and acting! If it’s something DeMille directed, then The Ten Commandments for its epic spectacle and Charleton Heston lead, though I saw The King of Kings on TCM and loved the cinematography and lighting in that, too (and its Jesus, H.B. Warner, also appeared in Sunset Boulevard).
“The Ten Commandments” is a classic that we watched every year it came on TV, after my parents saw it on the big screen years earlier. The storytelling is first-rate for that moviemaking era, and the special effects were pretty spectacular, too. Memorable in every way.
My favorite Cecil B. film is The Ten Commandments, which I have watched virtually every year at Eastertime since I was a kid, so probably at least 50 years. I saw it this year on the big screen, which was wonderful! The special effects are amazing, especially since CGI was not a thing back then. The scope of the film, with 1,000s of extras, is almost unimaginable. I also love his silent Ben-Hur. Again, without CGI, the chariot race is amazing.
The Ten Commandments is my favorite DeMille film because it’s so sincere in its reverence for the story it’s telling. The narration and dialogue are seen as over-the-top by modern standards, but are actually perfect for that type of Biblical epic. The same is true of the acting. And as a spectacle it’s still unmatched.
Another favorite is The Greatest Show on Earth, but I enjoy that one on a much more absurd level. The idea of clown who is actually a doctor and who never takes off his make-up because he’s wanted for murder is hilarious, and yet we accept it within the context of the story. It take incredible moxie to make a movie with that in it.
The Ten Commandments!
Undoubtedly, like many others on this blog, my favorite DeMille epic would have to be The Ten Commandments…my mother took my brothers and sisters and I to see it when the film was first released (the second one, not the first one…lol) and it was the first movie I ever saw in a movie theater.
Believe or not, I have to choose The Greatest Show on Earth, because it is such a guilty pleasure. It’s a movie that no one wanted or cared about, but one that ridiculously won the Best Picture Oscar, which makes it an anomaly more than anything. It’s so entertaining (in an absurd way) and silly, but there’s always something about it draws you in.
My favorite CB DeMille movie is the pre code 1927 Chicago. Watch it sometime, Phyllis gives Roxie (from the 2002 version) a run for her stockings
The Ten Commandments, by far!
I enjoyed the Ten Commandants because of not only stars that were in the film but also because of the special effects.
My favorite is the Oscar nominated “The Ten Commandments”. It’s a great movie on family. When Moses learns of his true family, he could easily stay a rich royal prince. But he leaves to be with his mother & guide his people. Family & love are richer than money.
My favorite Cecil B. DeMille movie is The Ten Commandments. I look forward to watching it every year! It was always on the night before Easter. I loved everything about it, especially the actors and special effects! And the narrating made it even better! It was just a very exciting movie to watch with my parents and I still carry on the tradition with my daughter who is now 30!
Samson and Delilah, which I saw in a theatre as a kid. It was colorful and corny, with an interesting cast. Whenever biblical film played local religious groups around my small town got excited, which seemed quaint and strange to me. I do not have a Twitter account, so I am posting here to enter, but cannot tweet the message.
My favorite is Male and Female, great story and acting and I love Gloria Swanson.
So many amazing movies to choose from, but I really enjoyed his Cleopatra. Claudette Colbert was an interesting choice for Cleopatra but she did not disappoint. While the story itself strays (vastly so) from historic accounts, it is visually stunning piece for the times.
I like The Plainsman because of Jean Arthur & Gary Cooper, and Union Pacific because of Barbara Stanwyck, Joel McCrea, Robert Preston & Brian Donlevy, all favorite actors of mine.
The Ten Commandments. I watch it every year and those set pieces are mesmerizing.
Curious to learn beyond The Ten Commandments and ” I’m ready for my close-up. “
My favorite film by DeMille would be the 1956 version of The Ten Commandments, which might be an obvious answer, but it holds sentimental meaning to me. I first watched it as a kid decades ago and fell in love with it, it was one of the first classic films I saw that got me into Film History in the first place. I love how well acted it is (Yul Brynner as Rameses II is my second favorite role of his next to his role as the King of Siam in The King and I), I love the lavish art design, costumes and sets, and the writing still has a profound effect on me to this day. DeMille really brought it all together when he remade his 1923 classic, it’s a film that still holds up to this day and will always stand the test of time.
(Twitter user name @wishisabish)
As a videomaker and filmmaker, I started my carreer studying and learning from the best film directors/producers/writers in the industry and Cecil B. DeMille in my view represents an entire era in terms of creative, inspiration, and dedication to the craft of filmmaking for many generations that were about to come. And The Greatest Show on Earth (1952) is a masterpiece that represents the essence of the art in Hollywood since the Golden Age in many different aspects like directing, production design, and storytelling. Also, the colorful palette, the dialogs, and all the acting performances were/are state-of-the-art symbols that should be kept taught anywhere one can learn about the art of making movies.
The word “icon” is often overused. In DeMille’s case, it’s defined. He was there from the beginning and helped to architect the studio system with Lasky and Goldwyn, and lived to see the end of it. One of the only directors to achieve greatness during the silent era and then again during the modern era before his death.Would we have had epic like Gone With The Wind if DeMille had not pioneered the genre with movies like King Of Kings? He was also one of the first to introduce color to movies. My personal favorite it Union Pacific, primarily because I’ve seen it so many times and still find it watchable.