STEVEN SPIELBERG - SPIELBERG RECALLS UNIVERSITY REJECTION

Acclaimed director STEVEN SPIELBERG's dream of making movies was threatened as a teen, when he was rejected by the University of Southern California (USC).

Spielberg's fellow film-makers, RON HOWARD, JOHN SINGLETON and GEORGE LUCAS were all accepted into UCS, but the SCHINDLER's LIST creator was rejected by an admissions officer who deemed his grade C average unacceptable.

Spielberg recalls, "I said, 'Well, 'I understand you allow people in football and basketball to play here and they have C averages.' He said, 'If you can make a basket or throw a football, you can get in here, too."

Spielberg eventually went on to study at Long Beach University, before dropping out to pursue his showbiz career.