12/31/1968 AD hired
Sidney Sheinberg is credited with discovering director Steven Spielberg. Sheinberg had seen Spielberg's first short film, Amblin, and signed the director, then 20, to a 7-year contract to the MCA/Universal Television in 1968.
As recounted by Spielberg on numerous occasions, Sheinberg famously told him, "a lot of people will stick with you in success; I'll stick with you in failure."
In 1971, Sheinberg became president of Universal Television.
Spielberg's first professional job came when he was choosen to direct one of the segments for the 1969 pilot episode of Night Gallery, written by Rod Serling and starring Joan Crawford. Crawford was "speechless, and then horrified" at the thought of a young and inexperienced newcomer directing her. Spielberg attempted to impress his colleagues with fancy camerawork, but executives ordered him to shoot it quickly. His contributions were not well received, thus Spielberg took a short break from the studio.
However, Crawford said:
When I began to work with Steven, I understood everything. It was immediately obvious to me, and probably everyone else, that here was a young genius. I thought maybe more experience was important, but then I thought of all of those experienced directors who didn't have Steven's intuitive inspiration and who just kept repeating the same old routine performances. That was called "experience." I knew then that Steven Spielberg had a brilliant future ahead of him. Hollywood doesn't always recognize talent, but Steven's was not going to be overlooked. I told him so in a note I wrote him. I wrote to Rod Serling, too. I was so grateful that he had approved Steven as the director. I told him he had been totally right.
Lattitude: 34.05° N
Longitude: 118.25° W
Region: North America
Modern Day United States
