The baby-dinosaur hunter who ended up in Hollywood

好莱坞终结者,这位宝宝恐龙猎人

Lives Less Ordinary

2025-10-20

39 分钟
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Jack Horner inspired a character in Jurassic Park after the dino discovery of a lifetime. Jack has been fascinated by fossils for as long as he can remember. He spent his childhood digging around in the fossil-rich earth of Montana, as his father was involved in the gravel-extraction business. By the age of eight he was rewarded with his first big treasure – a real piece of dinosaur bone. As Jack's fossil collection grew, so did his passion for palaeontology. But he struggled at school, where severe undiagnosed dyslexia led his teachers and parents to write him off as lazy and spoiled. He pushed on regardless and in 1978 made a life-changing find: the world's first baby-dinosaur skeletons, and evidence that dinosaur parents cared for and raised their young like many modern birds. The discovery made front-page headlines around the world, and led to awards and accolades Jack had never thought possible. It also brought him to the attention of author Michael Crichton, who based a lead character in his hit book, Jurassic Park, on Jack. And when the call came from Stephen Spielberg to come and advise on the movie version, his fame as a dinosaur expert hit a whole new level. Jack was then himself inspired by the movie, and supervised one of his students in extracting DNA from a T. rex. It didn't work – but it led to his current 'Dino Chicken' project, where he is discovering how to bring ancient dinosaur features back to life in modern birds so he can finally have a pet dinosaur of his own. Presenter: Asya Fouks Producer: Anna Lacey and Lucy Davies Lives Less Ordinary is a podcast from the BBC World Service that brings you the most incredible true stories from around the world. Each episode a guest shares their most dramatic, moving, personal story. Listen for unbelievable twists, mysteries uncovered, and inspiring journeys - spanning the entire human experience. Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected.   Got a story to tell? Send an email to liveslessordinary@bbc.co.uk or message us via WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784   You can read our privacy notice here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5YD3hBqmw26B8WMHt6GkQxG/lives-less-ordinary-privacy-notice
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  • She had found and wanted to identify.

  • And I identified it for her.

  • I said, it's the tail end of a duckbill dinosaur.

  • And so as we were leaving, she said, oh, by the way, can you tell me what these are?

  • And she held out her hand.

  • And in her hand were five little pieces of bone.

  • And I knew right away what they were.

  • I just almost fell on the floor.

  • You're listening to Lives Less Ordinary from the BBC World Service.

  • I'm Asya Fuchs and you're about to hear from a man with a deep passion for the distant past.

  • Dinosaurs have captured his interest and imagination like nothing else.

  • Today,

  • Jack Horner is a world-famous paleontologist with credits on Jurassic Park and a lab that's trying to make a chicken look like one of its dino ancestors.

  • But for the longest time, people told him he'd come to nothing.

  • Thankfully,