Editing Cecil B. DeMille (section)

===1915–1928: silent era===

====Westerns, Paradise, and World War I====
[[File:FamousPlayers-Lasky-partners, 1916.jpg|thumb|Famous Players–Lasky Corporation – DeMille is seated, second from the right.|alt=Five well-dressed men seated or standing at various levels]]
Cecil B. DeMille's second film, credited exclusively to him, was ''[[The Virginian (1914 film)|The Virginian]]''. It is the earliest of DeMille's films available in a quality, color-tinted video format, but that version is actually a 1918 rerelease.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=71}} The Lasky Company's first few years were spent making films nonstop. DeMille directed 20 films by 1915.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=75}} The most successful films during this period were ''Brewster's Millions'' (co-directed by DeMille), ''[[Rose of the Rancho (1914 film)|Rose of the Rancho]]'', and ''[[The Ghost Breaker (1914 film)|The Ghost Breaker]]''.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=10}} DeMille adapted Belasco's dramatic lighting techniques to film technology, mimicking moonlight with U.S. cinema's first attempts at "motivated lighting" in ''[[The Warrens of Virginia (1915 film)|The Warrens of Virginia]]''.{{sfn|Presley|Vieira|2014|p=47}} This was the first of a few film collaborations with his brother William. They struggled to adapt the play from the stage to the set. After the film was shown, viewers complained that the shadows and lighting prevented the audience from seeing the actors' full faces and said they would pay only half price. Sam Goldwyn suggested that if they called it "Rembrandt" lighting, the audience would pay double the price.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=84}} Additionally, because of DeMille's cordiality after the ''Peter Grimm'' incident, DeMille was able to rekindle his partnership with Belasco. He adapted several of Belasco's screenplays into film.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|pp=76–77}}

DeMille's most successful film was ''[[The Cheat (1915 film)|The Cheat]]''; his direction in the film was acclaimed.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=11}} In 1916, exhausted from three years of nonstop filmmaking, DeMille purchased land in the [[Angeles National Forest]] for a ranch that would become his getaway. He called this place "Paradise", declaring it a wildlife sanctuary; no shooting of animals besides snakes was allowed. His wife did not like Paradise, so DeMille often brought his mistresses there with him, including actress [[Julia Faye]].<ref>{{harvnb|Eyman|2010|p=131}}</ref><ref name="paradise">{{cite news |last=Rasmussen |first=Cecilia |title=Echoes of Epics in DeMille's Paradise |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-sep-21-me-34726-story.html |access-date=July 17, 2019 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=September 21, 1997}}</ref> In 1921, DeMille purchased a yacht he called ''The Seaward''.{{refn|group=note|DeMille liked to sail and dive; he had several boats throughout his lifetime. He donated ''The Seaward'', his most cherished boat, to the merchant marine for service during World War II. The boat was returned to him destroyed. DeMille gave up the boat and never bought another one.{{sfn|Eyman|2010|p=370}}}}

While filming ''[[The Captive (1915 film)|The Captive]]'' in 1915, an extra, Charles Chandler, died on set when another extra failed to heed DeMille's orders to unload all guns for rehearsal. DeMille instructed the guilty man to leave town and never revealed his name. Lasky and DeMille maintained Chandler's widow on the payroll and, according to leading actor [[House Peters Sr.]], DeMille refused to stop production for Chandler's funeral. Peters said that he encouraged the cast to attend the funeral with him anyway since DeMille would not be able to shoot the film without him.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=95}} On July 19, 1916, the Jesse Lasky Feature Play Company merged with Adolph Zukor's [[Famous Players Film Company]], becoming [[Famous Players–Lasky]]. Zukor became president, Lasky vice president,{{sfn|Dick|2001|p=11}} DeMille director-general, and Goldwyn chairman of the board.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=11}} Famous Players–Lasky later fired Goldwyn for frequent clashes with Lasky, DeMille, and Zukor.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=11}} While on a European vacation in 1921, DeMille contracted rheumatic fever in Paris. He was confined to bed and unable to eat. His poor physical condition upon his return home affected the production of his 1922 film ''[[Manslaughter (1922 film)|Manslaughter]]''. According to Richard Birchard, DeMille's weakened state during production may have led to the film being received as uncharacteristically substandard.{{sfn|Birchard|2004|pp=172–173}}

During World War I, the Famous Players–Lasky organized a military company underneath the National Guard, the Home Guard, made up of film studio employees, with DeMille as captain. Eventually, the Guard was enlarged to a battalion and recruited soldiers from other film studios. They took time off weekly to practice military drills. Additionally, during the war, DeMille volunteered for the Justice Department's Intelligence Office, investigating friends, neighbors, and others he came in contact with in connection with the Famous Players–Lasky. He also volunteered for the Intelligence Office during World War II.{{sfn|Eyman|2010|pp=140–141}} DeMille considered enlisting in World War I, but stayed in the U.S. and made films. He did take a few months to set up a movie theater for the French front. Famous Players–Lasky donated the films.{{sfn|Eyman|2010|p=141}} DeMille and Adams adopted [[Katherine DeMille|Katherine Lester]] in 1920, whom Adams had found in the orphanage she directed.{{sfn|Eyman|2010|p=162}}{{Refn|group=note|Katherine's father had been killed in [[World War I]] and her mother had died of [[tuberculosis]].<ref>{{harvnb|Louvish|2007|p=185}}; {{harvnb|Eyman|2010|p=162}}</ref> To DeMille's dismay, Katherine became an actress; however, she ultimately gained his approval. In 1936 she married actor Anthony Quinn.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bergan |first=Ronald |title=Anthony Quinn: Colourful Hollywood star who built a career playing ethnic heroes and villains |url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2001/jun/05/guardianobituaries.filmnews |work=The Guardian |date=June 5, 2001 |access-date=May 24, 2019}}</ref>}} In 1922, the couple adopted Richard deMille.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=90}}{{refn|group=note|After the death of William deMille, DeMille revealed to Richard DeMille that William was his father and he had been born to William and a mistress. DeMille had adopted him to avoid revealing the affairs to William's wife. The mistress could not keep the boy due to her tuberculosis.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=90, 206-207}} DeMille became a notable psychiatrist, filmmaker and writer.<ref>{{cite web |title=Guide to the Richard DeMille Collection |url=https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt6z09n8nt/ |website=Online Archive of California |publisher=California Digital Library |access-date=May 23, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Birchard|2004|p=xvi}}</ref><ref name="obit">{{cite news |title=Cecil DeMille, 77, Pioneer of Movies, Dead in Hollywood |url=http://movies2.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0812.html |work=The New York Times |date=January 22, 1959 |access-date=May 24, 2019}}</ref>}}

====Scandalous dramas, Biblical epics, and departure from Paramount====
Film started becoming more sophisticated and the Lasky company's subsequent films were criticized for primitive and unrealistic set design.{{sfn|Birchard|2004|p=21}} Consequently, Beatrice deMille introduced the Famous Players–Lasky to [[Wilfred Buckland]], whom DeMille knew from his time at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and he became DeMille's art director. William deMille reluctantly became a story editor. William later converted from theater to Hollywood and spent the rest of his career as a film director.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=11}} DeMille frequently remade his own films. In 1917, he remade ''[[The Squaw Man (1918 film)|The Squaw Man]]'' (1918), only four years after the original. Despite its quick turnaround, the film was fairly successful. DeMille's second remake at [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]] in 1931 was a failure.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=17}}

After five years and 30 hit films, DeMille became the American film industry's most successful director. In the silent era, he was renowned for ''[[Male and Female]]'' (1919), ''Manslaughter'' (1922), ''[[The Volga Boatman (1926 film)|The Volga Boatman]]'' (1926), and ''[[The Godless Girl]]'' (1928). His trademark scenes included bathtubs, lion attacks, and Roman orgies.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=19}} Many of his films featured scenes in two-color [[Technicolor]]. In 1923, DeMille released the modern melodrama ''The Ten Commandments'', a significant change from his previous irreligious films. The film was produced on a budget of $600,000, Paramount's most expensive production. This concerned Paramount executives, but the film was the studio's highest-grossing film.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=28}} It held the Paramount record for 25 years until DeMille broke the record again.<ref name="He Himself Was 'Colossal'">{{cite news|title=He Himself Was "Colossal"|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1946&dat=19590122&id=6IoxAAAAIBAJ&pg=1891,3704755|access-date=April 29, 2014|newspaper=[[The Montreal Gazette]]|date=January 22, 1959}}</ref>

[[File:Cecil B. DeMille 1919.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Advertisement (1919)|alt=Sepia toned advertisement for "For Better, For Worse" with a headshot of DeMille at the top]]
In the early 1920s, scandal surrounded Paramount; religious groups and the media opposed portrayals of immorality in films. A censorship board called the [[Hays Code]] was established. DeMille's film ''[[The Affairs of Anatol]]'' came under fire. Furthermore, DeMille argued with Zukor over his extravagant and over-budget production costs.{{sfn|Eames|1985|p=13, 23}} Consequently, DeMille left Paramount in 1924 despite having helped establish it. He joined the [[Producers Distributing Corporation]].<ref>{{harvnb|Ringgold|Bodeen|1969|p=10}}; {{harvnb|Dick|2001|p=15}}</ref> His first film in the new production company, DeMille Pictures Corporation, was ''[[The Road to Yesterday]]'' in 1925. He directed and produced four films on his own, working with Producers Distributing Corporation because he found front office supervision too restricting.{{sfn|Ringgold|Bodeen|1969|pp=5–6}} Aside from ''The King of Kings,'' none of DeMille's films away from Paramount were successful.{{sfn|Ringgold|Bodeen|1969|pp=8–12}} ''The King of Kings'' established DeMille as "master of the grandiose and of biblical sagas".{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=xiv}} Considered at the time the most successful Christian film of the silent era, DeMille calculated that it had been viewed over 800 million times around the world.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bakker |first=Freek L. |title=The Challenge of the Silver Screen: An Analysis of the Cinematic Portraits of Jesus, Rama, Buddha and Muhammad |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YuF5DwAAQBAJ&q=the+king+of+kings+800+million+viewers&pg=PA18 |publisher=Brill |location=Leiden |date=2009 |page=18 |isbn=9789004168619 |access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref> After the release of DeMille's ''The Godless Girl'', silent films in America became obsolete, and DeMille was forced to shoot a shoddy final reel with the new sound production technique. Although this final reel looked so different from the first 11 reels that it appeared to be from another movie, according to Simon Louvish, the film is one of DeMille's strangest and most "DeMillean" film.{{sfn|Louvish|2007|p=278}}

The immense popularity of DeMille's silent films enabled him to branch out into other areas. The [[Roaring Twenties]] were the boom years and DeMille took full advantage, opening the [[Mercury Aviation Company]], one of America's first commercial airlines.<ref>{{cite news |last=Masters |first=Nathan |title=How a Hollywood Director Almost Launched L.A.'s First Commercial Airline |url=https://www.kcet.org/shows/lost-la/how-a-hollywood-director-almost-launched-las-first-commercial-airline |access-date=May 30, 2019 |work=KCET |publisher=Public Media Group of Southern California |date=May 23, 2017}}</ref> He was also a real estate speculator,<ref name="register" /> an underwriter of political campaigns, vice president of [[Bank of America]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Financing Hollywood through the Great Depression |url=https://about.bankofamerica.com/en-us/our-story/financing-hollywood-through-great-depression.html#fbid=dmJMGNL_I39 |website=Bank of America |publisher=Bank of America Corporation |access-date=May 30, 2019}}</ref> and vice president of the Commercial National Trust and Savings Bank in Los Angeles, where he approved loans for other filmmakers.<ref>{{cite book |last=Mahar |first=Karen Ward |title=Women Filmmakers in Early Hollywood |url=https://archive.org/details/womenfilmmakersi0000maha |url-access=registration |publisher=[[Johns Hopkins University Press]] |location=Baltimore |date=2006 |page=[https://archive.org/details/womenfilmmakersi0000maha/page/199 199] |isbn=0801884365 |quote=cecil b demille approved loans for other filmmakers. |access-date=June 20, 2019}}</ref> In 1916, DeMille purchased a mansion in Hollywood. [[Charlie Chaplin]] lived next door for a time, and after he moved, DeMille purchased the other house and combined the estates.<ref>{{cite news |last=Stein |first=Megan |title=Angelina Jolie Buys Historic Cecil B. DeMille Estate for $24.5 Million |url=https://people.com/home/angelina-jolie-puts-offer-in-on-historic-cecil-b-demille-estate/ |work=People |date=June 2, 2017 |access-date=June 26, 2019}}</ref>