Jan 10, 1952: “The Greatest Show on Earth” premiered in New York (Best Picture 1953) it was directed by Cecil B. DeMille and in Technicolor – released by Paramount Pictures.
It is a Cecil B. DeMille extravaganza, one of the best he produced and directed – it is a also nice tribute to the Ringling Brothers&Barnum&Bailey Circus .
The film won The Best Picture Oscar for 1952
Box Office success – this was the highest grossing film in the USA in 1952 – way ahead of its nearest rival – these figures are adjusted for inflation to todays finances
| Rank | Movie | Release Date | Distributor | Genre | 1952 Gross | Tickets Sold |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Greatest Show on Earth | Jan 10, 1952 | Drama | $36,000,000 | 60,000,000 | |
| 2 | The Snows of Kilimanjaro | Sep 17, 1952 | Drama | $12,933,403 | 21,555,671 | |
| 3 | High Noon | Jul 24, 1952 | $8,000,000 | 13,333,333 | ||
| 4 | The Quiet Man | Aug 21, 1952 | Romantic Comedy | $7,600,000 | 12,666,666 | |
| 5 | Singin’ in the Rain | Apr 10, 1952 | MGM | Musical | $7,124,335 | 11,873,891 |
| 6 | The World in His Arms | Oct 9, 1952 | $3,000,000 | 5,000,000 | ||
| 7 | Million Dollar Mermaid | Dec 4, 1952 | MGM | Musical | $2,750,000 | 4,583,333 |
| 8 | Invasion, U.S.A. | Dec 10, 1952 | $1,200,000 | 2,000,000 | ||
| 9 | Snow White and the Seven Dw… | Feb 22, 1944 | Walt Disney | Musical | $1,100,000 | 1,833,333 |
| Total Gross of All Movies | $79,707,738 | |||||
| Total Tickets Sold | 132,846,227 |
The circus as a cinema subject, gives us dazzling colour and liveliness making it ideal for a Cecil B DeMille production
He himself narrates portions of the film showing the work involved in putting on the Greatest Show on Earth. His was a familiar voice to the American public because for 10 years DeMille came into American households via radio narrating the Lux Radio Theater. In fact until Alfred Hitchcock got his own anthology TV series, DeMille’s voice was probably the most known to the American public of a film director.
When you think about it, outside of main actors, only Cecil B. DeMille and Walt Disney’s name could sell a film and guarantee box office returns in those days
Spectacle was his thing and DeMille was the master.
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