One of the most influential personalities in the history of cinema, Steven Spielberg is Hollywood's best knowndirector and one of the wealthiest filmmakers in the world. He has an extraordinary number of commercially successful and critically acclaimed credits to his name, either as a director, producer or writer since launching the summer blockbuster withJaws (1975), and he has done more to define popular film-making since the mid-1970s than anyone else.

Steven Allan Spielberg was born in 1946 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Leah Frances (Posner), a concert pianist and restaurateur, andArnold Spielberg, an electrical engineer who worked in computer development. His parents were both born to Russian Jewish immigrant families. Steven spent his younger years in Haddon Township, New Jersey, Phoenix, Arizona, and later Saratoga, California. He went to California State University Long Beach, but droppedout to pursue his entertainment career.Among hisearly directing efforts were Battle Squad (1961), which combined WorldWar II footage with footage of an airplane on the ground that he makesyou believe is moving. He also directedEscape to Nowhere (1961), whichfeatured children as World War Two soldiers, including his sisterAnne Spielberg, andThe Last Gun (1959), a western.All of these were short films. The next couple of years, Spielbergdirected a couple of movies that would portend his future career inmovies. In 1964, he directedFirelight (1964), a movie about aliensinvading a small town. In 1967, he directedSlipstream (1967), which wasunfinished. However, in 1968, he directedAmblin' (1968), which featured the desertprominently, and not the first of his movies in which the desert wouldfeature. Amblin' also became the name of his productioncompany, which turned out such classics asE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).Spielberg had a unique and classic early directing project,Duel (1971), withDennis Weaver. In the early 1970s,Spielberg was working on TV, directing among others such series asRod Serling'sNight Gallery (1969),Marcus Welby, M.D. (1969)andMurder by the Book (1971).All of his work in television and short films, as well as his directingprojects, were just a hint of the wellspring of talent that woulddazzle audiences all over the world.

Spielberg's first major directorial effort wasThe Sugarland Express (1974),withGoldie Hawn, a film that marked him asa rising star. It was his next effort, however, that made him aninternational superstar among directors:Jaws (1975). This classic shark attack talestarted the tradition of the summer blockbuster or, at least, he wascredited with starting the tradition. His next film was the classicMichi tono sôgû (1977),a unique and original UFO story that remains a classic. In 1978,Spielberg produced his first film, the forgettableI Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978),and followed that effort withUsed Cars (1980), a criticallyacclaimed, but mostly forgotten,Kurt Russell/Jack Wardencomedy about devious used-car dealers. Spielberg hit gold yet one moretime withReidâsu/Ushinawareta âku (1981),withHarrison Ford taking the partof Indiana Jones. Spielberg produced and directed two films in 1982.The first wasPoltergeist (1982), butthe highest-grossing movie of all time up to that point was the alienstoryE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).Spielberg also helped pioneer the practice of product placement. Theconcept, while not uncommon, was still relatively low-key whenSpielberg raised the practice to almost an art form with his famous (orinfamous) placement of Reese's Pieces in "E.T." Spielberg was also oneof the pioneers of the big-grossing special-effects movies, like "E.T."and "Close Encounters", where a very strong emphasis on special effectswas placed for the first time on such a huge scale. In 1984, Spielbergfollowed up "Raiders" withIndi Jônzu - Makyû no densetsu (1984),which was a commercial success but did not receive the critical acclaimof its predecessor. As a producer, Spielberg took on many projects inthe 1980s, such asGoonies (1985), and was thebrains behind the little monsters inGremlin (1984). He also produced thecartoonAmerika monogatari (1986), aquaint little animated classic. His biggest effort as producer in 1985,however, was the blockbusterBack to the Future (1985),which madeMichael J. Fox aninstant superstar. As director, Spielberg took on the bookThe Color Purple (1985), withWhoopi Goldberg andOprah Winfrey, with great success. In thelatter half of the 1980s, he also directedEmpire of the Sun (1987), amixed success for the occasionally erratic Spielberg. Success would notescape him for long, though.

The late 1980s found Spielberg's projects at the center of pop-cultureyet again. In 1988, he produced the landmark animation/live-action filmRoger Rabbit (1988).The next year proved to be another big one for Spielberg, as heproduced and directedAlways (1989) aswell asIndi Jônzu: Saigo no seisen (1989),andBack to the Future: Part II (1989).All three of the films were box-office and critical successes. Also, in1989, he produced the little known comedy-dramaDad (1989), withJack Lemmon andTed Danson, which got mostly mixed results.Spielberg has also had an affinity for animation and has been a strongvoice in animation in the 1990s. Aside from producing the landmark "WhoFramed Roger Rabbit", he produced the animated seriesTiny Toon Adventures (1990),Animaniakkusu (1993),Pinky and the Brain (1995),フリーカゾイド！ (1995),Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain (1998),Family Dog (1993) andToonsylvania (1998). Spielbergalso produced other cartoons such asLittlefoot (1988),We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story (1993),Casper (1995) (the live action version) aswell as the live-action version ofThe Flintstones (1994), wherehe was credited as "Steven Spielrock". Spielberg also produced manyRoger Rabbit short cartoons, and many Pinky and the Brain, Animaniacsand Tiny Toons specials. Spielberg was very active in the early 1990s,as he directedHook (1991) and produced suchfilms as the cute fantasyJoe Versus the Volcano (1990)andAn American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991).He also produced the unusual comedy thrillerArachnophobia (1990),Back to the Future: Part III (1990)andGremlin 2 Shin - shu - tan - jou (1990).While these movies were big successes in their own right, they did notquite bring in the kind of box office or critical acclaim as previousefforts. In 1993, Spielberg directedJurassic Park (1993), which for ashort time held the record as the highest grossing movie of all time,but did not have the universal appeal of his previous efforts. Bigbox-office spectacles were not his only concern, though. He producedand directedSchindler's List (1993), astirring film about the Holocaust. He won best director at the Oscars,and also got Best Picture. In the mid-90s, he helped found theproduction company DreamWorks, which was responsible for manybox-office successes.

As a producer, he was very active in the late 90s, responsible for suchfilms asThe Mask of Zorro (1998),Men in Black (1997) andDîpu inpakuto (1998). However, it wason the directing front that Spielberg was in top form. He directed andproduced the epicAmistad (1997), aspectacular film that was shorted at the Oscars and in release due tothe fact that its release date was moved around so much in late 1997.The next year, however, produced what many believe was one of the bestfilms of his career:Private Ryan (1998), afilm about World War Two that is spectacular in almost every respect.It was stiffed at the Oscars, losing best picture toShakespeare in Love (1998).

Spielberg produced a series of films, includingEvolution (2001),Hôntingu (1999) andShrek (2001). he also produced two sequelstoJurassic Park (1993), which werefinancially but not particularly critical successes. In 2001, heproduced a mini-series about World War Two that definitely *was* afinancial and critical success:Band of Brothers (2001), atale of an infantry company from its parachuting into France during theinvasion to the Battle of the Bulge. Also in that year, Spielberg wasback in the director's chair forA.I. (2001),a movie with a message and a huge budget. It did reasonably at the boxoffice and garnered varied reviews from critics.

Spielberg has been extremely active in films there are many otherthings he has done as well. He produced the short-lived TV seriesSeaQuest DSV (1993), ananthology series entitledAmazing Stories (1985),created the video-game series "Medal of Honor" set during World WarTwo, and was a starting producer ofER (1994). Spielberg, if you haven'tnoticed, has a great interest in World War Two. He andTom Hanks collaborated onShooting War: World War II Combat Cameramen (2000), adocumentary about World War II combat photographers, and he produced adocumentary about the Holocaust calledA Holocaust szemei (2000).With all of this to Spielberg's credit, it's no wonder that he's lookedat as one of the greatest ever figures in entertainment.