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Los Angeles, CA - $10 1902 Plain Back Fr. 624 The Comme

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:1,250.00 USD Estimated At:5,000.00 - 10,000.00 USD
Los Angeles, CA - $10 1902 Plain Back Fr. 624 The Comme
<B>Los Angeles, CA</B></I> - $10 1902 Plain Back Fr. 624 <B>The Commercial National Trust & Savings Bank</B></I> Ch. # 6864<BR>This note comes on the heels of a discovery piece which appeared in our FUN 2005 sale and sold for $11,500. Both notes bear the signature of Hollywood legend Cecil B. deMille as V. President. This is far more than a celebrity autograph on a National Bank Note, or a stunt created by deMille's publicity department, as Mr. deMille signed this note while serving as Chairman and vice-President of motion picture loans for this bank, a position he held in addition to his duties as an officer, producer and director at Paramount Pictures. In addition to his work at Paramount and his career in banking, deMille founded the Mercury Aviation Company, one of the pioneering outfits in the commercial aviation business.<BR>DeMille was born in 1881, the son of Henry deMille, a preacher and playwright who also taught English at Columbia University, and Beatrice deMille, who also was a playwright. His father died when deMille was twelve, and Beatrice supported the family by operating a school for girls as well as a theater troupe. DeMille made his stage debut in 1900, and for the next twelve years he worked as an actor in and co-manager of his mother's theater company. In 1913, after viewing the movie "The Great Train Robbery" with his friend, Jesse L. Lasky, the pair became convinced that films had a future, and resolved to establish a film production company. Joining forces with Samuel Goldwyn (then named Samuel Goldfish), they formed the company that eventually became Paramount Pictures. DeMille's career as a producer and director continued until his passing in 1959. He is best remembered for his epic "The Ten Commandments," filmed in 1956, "The Greatest Show on Earth," made in 1956, and his 1934 version of "Cleopatra." His total body of work includes over 80 films he produced,