Cecil B. DeMille

Cecil Blount DeMille was born August 12, 1881. He co-founded Paramount Pictures. He hosted and directed Lux Radio Theatre from June 1, 1936 to January 22, 1945. Under DeMille the show drew 40 million weekly listeners and he earned 100000 dollars annually. He resigned in January 1945 rather than pay a one-dollar union political assessment from AFRA, arguing no organization could compel members to support political causes. This ended his radio career permanently. He died January 21, 1959.