Historical Figure
Steven Spielberg
b. 1946
American filmmaker (born 1946)
Talk to Steven Spielberg
Have a conversation with this historical figure through AI
Biography
Steven Allan Spielberg is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the history of cinema and is the highest-grossing film director of all time. Among other accolades, he has received three Academy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards, four BAFTA Awards, twelve Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award, as well as the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1995, an honorary knighthood in 2001, the Kennedy Center Honor in 2006, the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2009, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, and the National Medal of Arts in 2023. According to Forbes, he is the wealthiest celebrity. He is one of 22 people to achieve EGOT status.
In Their Own Words (5)
Watching violence in movies or TV programs stimulates the spectators to imitate what they see much more than if seen live or on TV news. In movies, violence is filmed with perfect illumination, spectacular scenery, and in slow motion, making it even romantic. However, in the news, the public has a much better perception of how horrible violence can be, and it is used with objectives that do not exist in the movies.
In an interview by the Brazilian magazine Veja (1993). Spielberg adds that so far he has not permitted his young son to watch some of his well-known movies (Jaws, the Indiana Jones series) because of the amount of blood and violence shown. , 1993
The most expensive habit in the world is celluloid, not heroin, and I need a fix every few years.
Time, 1979 , 1979
People have forgotten how to tell a story.
"Science Fiction in Steven Spielberg’s Suburbia" by Chris Hodenfield, Rolling Stone, January 26, 1978 , 1978
I dream for a living.
Time (July 15, 1985) , 1985
I interviewed survivors, I went to Poland, saw the cities and spent time with the people and spoke to the Jews who had come back to Poland after the war and talked about why they had come back.
The Making of Schindler's List
Timeline
The story of Steven Spielberg, told in moments.
Jaws opens. The mechanical shark keeps breaking. He shoots around it. Shows the fin, the barrels, the faces of the actors. The less you see, the more you fear. It earns $470 million worldwide and invents the summer blockbuster. He is 28.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial opens. It becomes the highest-grossing film of all time, passing Star Wars. The flying bicycle silhouette becomes one of the most recognized images in cinema. He's drawn from his own childhood loneliness after his parents' divorce. Adults cry in theaters.
Directs Jurassic Park and Schindler's List in the same year. The dinosaur movie becomes the highest-grossing film ever. The Holocaust film, shot in black and white in Krakow, is called one of the greatest ever made. He wins his first Best Director Oscar. He's 47 and has been snubbed for nearly two decades.
Saving Private Ryan opens with a 27-minute D-Day sequence that veterans say is the closest anything has come to what it was actually like. He wins his second Best Director Oscar. He also co-founded DreamWorks in 1994, the first new major film studio in decades.
Directs The Fabelmans, a semi-autobiographical film about growing up making movies and watching his family come apart. He's 76. He's directed over 35 feature films. Three Oscars. Seven of the 50 highest-grossing films of all time. He changed what movies look like, how they're released, and how much money they make.
More from the Modern
Explore what happened on the days that shaped Steven Spielberg's life. Today In History connects historical figures with the events, births, and deaths that defined their era. Browse all historical figures or explore today's events.