In this episode, we profile Steven Spielberg, the highest-grossing film director of all time and the visionary widely credited with pioneering the modern Hollywood blockbuster. We trace his origins as a self-taught amateur filmmaker who turned a childhood terrifying experience with a train set into a passion for visual storytelling,. Listeners will learn how Spielberg launched the era of the summer blockbuster with the massive success of Jaws in 1975, before dominating pop culture with hits like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,,.

We also explore his critical evolution in 1993, a pivotal year where he released both the dinosaur thriller Jurassic Park and the Holocaust drama Schindler's List, the latter earning him his first Acade ...