Cecil B. Demille's Hollywood

Cecil B. DeMille was one of the giants of twentieth-century Hollywood. His box-office record was unsurpassed, and his swaggering style established the public image for movie directors. Best remembered today for screen spectacles such as "The Ten Commandments," "Samson and Delilah," and "The Greatest Show on Earth," DeMille was often criticized for his success and accused of pandering to the lowest common denominator. In Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood, Robert S. Birchard, an award-winning film editor and film historian, draws extensively on DeMille's personal archives and other primary sources, for a revealing portrait of the film-maker that goes behind studio gates and beyond DeMille's legendary persona. It also provides a chronicle of cinematic work that changed the course of film history and a fascinating look at how movies were made during Hollywood's golden age.