The Bible in film religious epics produced as vehicles for its biggest stars. "Samson and Delilah" was the biggest moneymaking movie of 1949 and is considered the picture that sparked the biblical-epic film craze of the 1950s. It was followed by two of 1951’s biggest box-office hits, "Quo Vadis" and "David and Bathsheba". Charlton Heston starred in Cecil B. DeMille's "The Ten Commandments" and "Ben-Hur". According to author Diane Apostolos-Cappadona, in the 1950s and 1960s, during the era of the production code, "the most acceptable cinematic path for movies to incorporate sex and violence was the biblical epic". Basing a film on the Bible
Cecil B. DeMille for "Union Pacific", a DGA Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. He was also the first recipient of the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award, which was later named in his honor. There are several variants of his surname. His family's Dutch surname was originally spelled "de Mil" and then became "de Mille". As an adult, he adopted the spelling "DeMille" for professional purposes but continued to use "de Mille" in private life. The family name "de Mille" was used by his children Cecilia, John, Richard, and Katherine. DeMille's brother, William, and his daughters, Margaret