04/08/2026
Remembering Billionaire Howard Hughes
On the anniversary of his death 50 years ago (1976), we reflect on Howard Hughes, one of the world’s most eccentric billionaires.
There is an old saying that everything is bigger in Texas, which seems to be true for Hughes. Born in the Lone Star State in 1905, Hughes inherited the family’s business, becoming a millionaire at age 18. Over the course of his 70-year life, Hughes grew a business fortune which spanned the aviation, real estate holdings and film production sectors. Not only a businessman, Hughes had a passion for flying, setting numerous records and risking his life in the process.
Some Fun Facts About Howard Hughes:
• A young Hughes showed an aptitude in science and technology, building Houston’s first wireless radio transmitter at the age of 11 and becoming the first person in the city with a motorized bike, which he built from steam engine parts the following year. His fondness for how things worked eventually led to many innovations in the production of commercial aircraft, an industry in its infancy at that time.
• Hughes was obsessed with flying faster and survived four airplane accidents, including a near fatal crash in 1946. He was credited with breaking both the landplane airspeed record and the transcontinental airspeed record.
• Hughes produced several big-budget and often controversial films, including “The Racket,” “Hell’s Angels” and “Scarface.”
• Hughes won the Harmon Trophy (twice), the Collier Trophy and the Congressional Gold Medal for his contributions to aviation. During the Second World War, his company operated as a major U.S. defence contractor.
• Hughes has been credited with transforming Las Vegas from a gangster paradise into a more refined tourist destination.
Sadly, Hughes was troubled with mental illness, stemming from an obsessive-compulsive disorder, and became an unrecognizable recluse in his later years. He died of kidney failure on board a Learjet headed from his Mexico home to Houston. He is buried alongside his parents at Houston’s Glenwood Cemetery.
© Huskilson's Funeral Homes/CFHC Online
Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American aviator, aerospace engineer, business magnate, film producer, and investor.[2] He was one of the richest and most influential people in the world during his lifetime. He first became prominent as a film producer, and then...
