Steven Spielberg is a name that has inspired and influenced generations and different age groups of people. Not only that, his movies through four decades have spanned several themes, path-breaking concepts and experimental genres. With adventure thrillers and science fiction movies like Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind in the 1970s, Spielberg’s directorial ventures in Hollywood began and since then there was no looking back. He started off with directing for the television and it was Universal Studios that offered him his first TV films and then the director’s chair for the horror-thriller, Jaws that became his first step to the showbiz world.
Here are some more lesser known facts about the renowned and highest-grossing director of Hollywood who has produced and written many of his films:
Empire of the Sun is his darkest film, said Spielberg
Christian Bale’s debut film, Empire of the Sun is believed to be Spielberg’s darkest movie till date. He said, “I made a movie to satisfy me, not the audience,” adding that “It’s as dark as I’ve allowed myself to get.”
His net worth has been estimated to be worth three billion dollars by Fortune and he is the highest-grossing director whose early film, E.T. is one of the highest grossing films of Hollywood, the writer-director chose not to take a single penny for his role in making Schindler’s List only because he believed that the money he would receive would be ‘blood money‘.
Raiders of the Lost Ark was an adventure thriller that motivated the film craftsman to create its sequel in the form of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as he strongly believed that if he did not create the sequel, somebody else will. These insecurities and “pangs of separation” as he called it, were responsible for the direction and creation of Temple. He was quoted saying, “I got a little bit jealous, and I got a little bit frustrated.”
Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. were different from how they are now known as
It was UFOs, political scandals and a whistle blower’s act of creating awareness about government’s move to conceal about aliens that formed the initial script of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. However, after much rewrites that also involved Paul Schrader of Taxi Driver fame that had been rejected by Spielberg and his team, after which the final script of the movie was penned down. E.T., meanwhile, was initially set to be a horror flick where aliens petrify a family living in the villages.
Steven Spielberg’s creativity is indomitable and unsurpassed. A movie adapted from H.G. Wells’ novel, War of the Worlds was originally intended to document the apocalypse of 9/11 and the aftermath of the tragedy that finally came out to be a family movie. He said about the film, “I never made War of the Worlds for a family audience, it was a very intense post 9/11 apocalyptic movie about the end of everything.”
He described the time between his graduation days and finally his degree for B.A. in Film and Video production in 2002 as the longest post-production schedule. To secure the degree, he submitted Schinder’s List as his student film.
Spielberg had to direct Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade to apologize for Temple of Doom.
A director truly becomes a mastermind of films when he can critique his own work. Spielberg found his film, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom to be “too horrific” which is why as an apology for his second Indiana Jones film, he created the third one, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.
As shocking as it may sound, Spielberg never drank a cup of coffee in his lifetime as he dislikes the smell of coffee. “I don’t drink coffee. I have never had a cup of coffee in my entire life. That’s something you probably don’t know about me. I have hated the taste since I was a kid.”
It is even more difficult to believe but is true to the T that Spielberg could not complete his education as he became the youngest director to be signed for a seven-year contract by Universal Studios for TV films and finally got his degree in 2002 at the age of 55. He was a victim to massive bullying in his school days because of his inability to read due to dyslexia which he was not diagnosed with until late.
Parent to seven kids
Spielberg first married Amy Irving, his actress from Close Encounters, who he started dating early on in her career, but separated after their professions started creeping in to their personal lives and later again revived their romance to get married in 1985 to get divorced four years later. Spielberg for the second time married Kate Capshaw, the lead actress in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and is a parent to seven children of the Spielberg – Capshaw family.
Apart from these, Spielberg is also known for his active contributions to video games – he was responsible for building on an idea for a WWII shooting game that came to be the first “Medal of Honor” game.
Photo credits: Shutterstock.com
Genghis Khan
Probably known as one of the most successful rulers in history, his Mongol empire stretched out from modern day Europe to China, the largest that we have ever seen. Thanks to his many military raids, he managed to become extremely wealthy. However, Genghis Khan was as rich as he was generous. According to history, whenever he conquered any territory, the loot would be noted down and then distributed to his soldiers, officers and their families. So in truth, he was more of a real estate holder than actual wealth.
Bill Gates
The Microsoft founder will one day become the first trillionaire of the modern world. It is reported that he is worth nearly $79 billion! Yes, with a B. And his success also extends to his philanthropy, where he and wife Melinda Gates use their influence to make the world a better place and are trying to eradicate diseases in developing nations.
Akbar I
Another historical figure who ruled during the golden age of the Moghul Empire. It is said that Akbar I actually had 25% of the world’s GDP during his time. He was a man of great influence, almost as much as his affluence. He build some of the most beautiful structures that still stand as testament to his glorious rule.
Augustus Caesar
It seems that conquering and looting nations is the only way to become a wealthy man. Another historical figure who can probably be considered one of the top five richest men in history is Augustus Caesar. His worth, in today’s figures, is estimated to be $4.6 trillion! He conquered all the productive, prosperous lands, including Egypt that made him so rich.
Mansa Musa
You probably haven’t heard of his name, but this guy had a lot of wealth. He ruled Timbuktu back in the day and was leader during the time of the gold flow. The shiny metal was in high demand, as it is to this day, and he was sole collector of the fortune. Historians say they can’t even estimate his wealth, because it is way beyond counting.
Image Credit: Shutterstock
So when it comes to conquering obstacles, there are always the triumphant stories and then there are those that end in tragedy. Mt. Everest in the Himalayas is one of those historic monuments that stands testament to many-a trial and failure, but also achievements that literally match no other. Here are some of the Top Stories From The Summit Of Mt. Everest…
Shailendra Kumar Upadhyay
“First to climb Mt. Everest” prize already went to Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary years ago. So, there are others who want to create and break their own records. One of these over-ambitious people was former Foreign Minister of Nepal, Shailendra Kumar Upadhyay. He took it upon himself to scale the summit and become the oldest living person to do so. However, on the way up, his body couldn’t take it anymore and by the time he tried to climb down and reach the base, he unfortunately breathed his last. He was 76 at the time. The current record for the oldest living person to successfully make it up goes to Yuichiro Miura, a Japanese climber who was 80 years old and had gone through a couple of heart operations and a problem with his pelvis.
Shriya Shah-Klorfine
Anyone in their right mind knows the dangers of climbing a mountain and literally puts their life and death in the hands of volatile nature. The same can be said for Nepal-born and Canadian-raised Shriya Shah-Klorfine. The professional climber tried to make it to the summit and was almost successful, though she, like many others, fell ill. On her descent down the mountain of ice, she succumbed to the roughness of Everest. Her body had to be carried down by experienced Sherpas, a perilous task that requires serious expertise and expenses. She is lucky to have been able to afford the over $30,000 price, as there are many other deceased climbers who’s resting place are the slopes of mountainside.
Hannelore Schmatz
Have you heard of the South East Ridge of Mt. Everest? It is also called the “Rainbow Valley” due to the number of bodies of dead climbers, all garbed in colourful attire. Many have been buried by snow, others recovered and returned to their homes and still more never recovered. One distinctive climber who’s remains became somewhat of a landmark for others belonged to German Hannelore Schmatz. It was 1979 that she managed to summit the peak, but on her way down, triumph evaded her. Though she was warned by the Sherpa she came with to continue descending, she and climbing partner, Ray Gennet decided to spend the night after building a camp. When the Sherpa came back the next day, what he found haunted other Everest enthusiasts for years to come – Hannelore was found with her head resting on her backpack, eyes frozen and hair billowing in the wind. It stayed that way until a gust of ice cold wind finally blew her body off her resting place. Ray Gennet’s body was never found.
Francys Arsentiev
When mountaineer Francys Arsentiev and her husband Sergei decided to scale Everest without bottled oxygen, everyone was a sceptic. However, they succeeded to do so, but with little luck on their side. On their way back down, they were exhausted, and had to spend another night on the slope with barely any oxygen. Somewhere the next day, Sergei got separated from his wife and tried to climb back up the mountain to find her. Long story short, his body was found a year later, and from the looks of it, he had fallen to his death. As for Francys – she was found by two other climbers with little life left in her, and they stayed till her very end. Her body was lowered out of site of regular climbers and she was given a sort-of decent last rites to the dead.
Namgyal Sherpa
Another brave soul who traversed the difficult slopes of Mt. Everest was local resident Namgyal. They say you can play with fire only so many times before you get burnt. The same goes for this brave Sherpa who was part of the expedition to clear Everest of all the trash and some bodies left behind by climbers. During his own life, Namgyal has scaled his favourite mountain a cool 1o times, but the 11th was to be his last. At 8,000 metres (the location of many-a collapse and death of unfortunate climbers), he pointed to his chest and breathed his last. He had not been feeling particularly well during this last ascent.
Additional Reads:
What is it that separates the legends from the rest? It’s that they stay in our hearts and minds through their untimely deaths. Overdoses, accidents, murders – unwanted circumstances took away our favorite stars while they still shined their brightest. Here is a list of Musicians Who Died Before Their Time…
Dimebag Darrell – Pantera, Damageplan
A guitarist whose fingers danced across the fretboard, Darrell “Dimebag Darrell” Abbott is probably one of metal’s most famous musicians. He was part of the cowboy metal band, Pantera and had a promising career ahead of him with the new-formed Damageplan that he co-founded with his brother. He was truly a man of raw talent. However, his prolific career was cut short on that fateful day, December 8, 2004. A deranged fan stormed the stage and point-blank shot the guitar maverick before taking a concert-goer hostage. He was later shot and killed by a police officer. Dimebag may have been slain, but there is no doubt that his memory and the work he left behind will forever stay with his fans.
They say it’s a man’s world. But that’s not completely true – because there are kickass women in history who have invented some of the things that we can’t live without even today. For example, did you know a woman invented the Chocolate Chip Cookie? What would your life be without Chips Ahoy! and how would you kill time with friends without some Monopoly? Yes, the board game was created by a woman as well! Check out these Fantastic Inventions By Women and prepare to be amazed…
Ever since we got to know about the August 2016 release of DC Comic’s Suicide Squad, people have been waiting with baited breath to be introduced to the “worst of the worst”. Though we are mesmerized by the trailers, let’s be honest with ourselves – we don’t really know ALL the members. Sure, characters like The Joker and Harley Quinn may be the most recognized, but what about the others? Let’s help you Get To Know The Suicide Squad…
Image Source: comicbook.com
Christmastime is just round the corner and if you’ve been good, you can wish for any of these items listed here and you might just find it under your tree! These things are just too cool to pass over…
Here are some of the most bizarre and unimaginable ways animals use to protect themselves from any danger and use certain distinct mechanisms to defend themselves from predators.
1. Malaysian exploding ant – Malaysian ants internally combust under threat, causing their bodies to explode while they wait until their enemies are close enough to die before detonating. Camponotus saundersi soldier ants have large glands full of poison inside their bodies. When they sense a threat, they contract their abs, causing the glands on either side of their bodies to explode and spray poison.
When we hear or talk about Switzerland the first few things that instantly come to our mind are Alps-snow clad mountains, Swiss bank, chocolates, swizz knife and beautiful location seen across movies especially in Bollywood movies. But there more interesting stories which describes Switzerland than the stereo type. Mentioned below are few such interesting unheard stories of Swiss land.
