17. Cecil B. DeMille brought the Bible to film and created the biblical epic as a film genre
Cecil B. DeMille is credited with creating the first feature film which was made entirely in Hollywood, and thus has claim to being both the founder of the American film industry and of the California community with which it is inextricably linked. During his long career, he produced 70 films (from 1914 – 1958), and developed a reputation as a director of films that became known as biblical epics, many of which were silent films, including 1927’s King of Kings. His silent The Ten Commandments (1923) held the record for box office revenue attained by an American film for 25 years. His link with the Bible as a source for his films is in some ways unjust, he also directed The Greatest Show on Earth, a circus epic which won the Oscar for Best Picture, and Union Pacific, a film about the drive to complete America’s Transcontinental Railroad, among many others.
But it was the biblical epic, which he created as a film genre, in which his reputation largely lies, and it was 1956’s The Ten Commandments in which he put the capstone on his career. His presentation of the Bible on film was often controversial, always lavish in production, long in running time, and expensive to produce. DeMille brought the stories of the Bible to the big screen, without editorial comment for the most part, and was one of the earliest filmmakers to present the stories of the Old Testament and the New as entertainment rather than as religious doctrine. In doing so he stuck to his source documents, such as presenting the tale of the Ten Commandments from the Book of Exodus in a manner which is supported by the biblical narrative, often with his actors speaking the lines as they are found in the King James Version (a Christian translation) of the Hebrew Bible. Nonetheless, The Ten Commandments is broadcast on American television every Passover and Paschal season.