Original one sheet poster for the Cecil B. DeMille epic of Circus Life, THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH (1952) starring Charlton Heston, Betty Hutton, Cornel Wilde, James Stewart, Gloria Grahame, Dorothy Lamour and Henry Wilcoxon. One of DeMille’s most popular films, the movie was honored with the Academy Award for Best Picture in 1953. Colorful and lively, with great heaping dollops of melodrama and in-the-arena excitement, THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH was filmed up close and personal at Ringling Brothers summer headquaters in Florida. Other pictures have tried to capture the glamor of the circus, but somehow are not remembered with the affection that this magnificent, rowdy and sentimental movie inspires. DeMille was nominated by the Academy of Motion PIcture Arts and Sciences for Best Director, and was awarded the Golden Globe. For a wonderful read about the production of this movie and the many other films which defined DeMille as a great showman, read the wonderful DeMille biography by Scott Eyman, “Empire of Dreams.” The one sheet is in very fine condition.

Original Paramount Pictures Lobby Card (11×14) for the Cecil B. DeMille historical epic, CLEOPATRA (1934) starring Claudette Colbert, Warren William, and Henry Wilcoxon. This film has all the DeMille staples of a great epic—unmitigated opulence, cruel barbarity, shocking decadence and a knowing wit that makes it enormously enjoyable. Claudette Colbert, who was more at home in romantic comedies, delivers a stunning performance as the deadly and fascinating queen of Egypt. The outrageous scene aboard her barge was sneaked in right before the Production Code began to be enforced, which would have censored this and many other “immoral” scenes in the film. This original lobby card of Colbert as the wily queen is in very fine condition for its age, with only some minor pinholes mostly in the borders and some very minor surface wear. Very Fine. A beautiful card indeed.