Howard Robard Hughes was born in Houston, Texas, on December 24, 1905.
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. was the son of successful inventor and businessman Howard R. Hughes Sr. and Allene Stone Gano. Hughes Jr. showed interest in science and technology from a young age, building Houston's first "wireless" radio transmitter at 11 and taking flying lessons at 14. After his parents' deaths, Hughes inherited 75% of the family fortune and established a medical research laboratory in his will. He also became a proficient golfer, but gradually gave up the sport to pursue other interests, including filmmaking in Los Angeles after marrying Ella Botts Rice.
Howard Hughes was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist. During his lifetime he was known as one of the richest and most influential people in the world.
Howard Hughes formed the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, hiring numerous engineers, designers, and defense contractors. He set multiple world air speed records and built the Hughes H-1 Racer and H-4 Hercules, the latter being the largest flying boat in history. Hughes acquired and expanded Trans World Airlines and Air West, renaming it Hughes Airwest. He won multiple aviation awards, including the Harmon Trophy twice, the Collier Trophy, and the Congressional Gold Medal. He was inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame and included in Flying magazine's 2013 list of the 51 Heroes of Aviation.
Howard Hughes founded the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1932, which became a major defense contractor during and after World War II. Hughes also set aviation records, including a flight around the world in just 91 hours in 1938, beating the previous record by almost four days. He flew a Lockheed 14 Super Electra with a crew of four, and the flight was a triumph of U.S. aviation technology. Hughes and his crew were awarded the 1938 Collier Trophy for their achievement. Hughes received other aviator awards, such as the Bibesco Cup of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale in 1938, the Octave Chanute Award in 1940, and a special Congressional Gold Medal in 1939 "in recognition of the achievements of Howard Hughes in advancing the science of aviation and thus bringing great credit to his country throughout the world". President Harry S. Truman sent the Congressional medal to Hughes after the F-11 crash, as Hughes had declined to go to the White House to collect it.
Howard Hughes was widely considered eccentric and suffered from severe obsessive-compulsive disorder. He had a phobia about germs and was fixated on trivial details, such as the appearance of Jane Russell's blouse in one of his films. Hughes had a passion for secrecy that became a mania, and his unpredictable mood swings made it difficult for people to work with him. Richard Fleischer, who directed a film with Hughes as executive producer, wrote about the tycoon's indecisiveness and obstinacy, and wondered if the film would ever be completed.