E.T. premiered as the closing film of the Cannes Film Festival
on May 26, 1982, and was released in the United States on
June 11.

The film was a smash hit at the box office, surpassing Star
Wars (1977) to become the highest-grossing film of all time,
a record it held for eleven years until Spielberg’s own Jurassic
Park surpassed it in 1993.

E.T. received universal acclaim from critics, and is regarded
as one of the greatest and most influential films ever made.

It received nine nominations at the 55th Academy Awards,
winning Best Original Score, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound,
and Best Sound Editing in addition to being nominated for
Best Picture and Best Director.

It also won five Saturn Awards and two Golden Globe Awards.

Steven Allan Spielberg will turn 80 in December.