Hughes, the private diaries, memos and letters : the definitive biography of the first American billionaire / by Richard Hack.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hack, Richard.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Hughes, Howard, 1905-1976.

Hughes, Howard.

Businesspeople--United States--Biography.

Businesspeople.

United States.

Millionaires--United States--Biography.

Millionaires.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xii, 444 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Beverly Hills, Calif. : New Millennium Press, 2001.

Summary:

The definitive biography of the first American billionaire. Howard Hughes was a true American original: legendary lover, record-setting aviator, award-winning film producer, talented inventor, ultimate eccentric, and, for much of his lifetime, the richest man in the United States.

His desire for privacy was so fierce and his isolation so complete that even now, twenty-five years after his death, inaccurate stories continue to circulate, and many have been published as fact. Hughes explodes the illusion of his life and exposes the man behind the myth. He was a playboy whose sexual exploits with Hollywood stars and starlets were legendary. He was a man without compassion; an entrepreneur without ethics; an explorer without maps; and ultimately, an eccentric trapped by his own insanity, sealed off from reality, who died a lonely and, until now, mysterious death.

Newly uncovered personal letters, over 110,000 pages of sealed court testimony, recently declassified FBI files, never-before-published autopsy reports and exclusive interviews reveal a man so devious in his thinking, so perverse in his desires, and so influential that his impact continues to be felt even today. From entertainment to politics, aviation to espionage, the influence and manipulation of this billionaire has left an indelible and unique mark on the American cultural landscape.

Howard Hughes never kept a diary, yet he wrote over 8000 pages of memos, letters and personal notes that chronicle his life and thoughts. Impeccably researched for decades by Hollywood investigative writer Richard Hack, here at last is the complete and definitive story of a truly extraordinary life.

Contains 12 pages of exclusive and revealing photographs, many never before published.

Contents:

Prologue: Death by Neglect 3

1 Unto Us a Son Is Given 21

2 From Boy to Man 37

3 Freedom 55

4 A Star Named Billie A Mistress Named Angel 73

5 Up From the Ashes, Into the Air 91

6 An American Hero 109

7 A Plane Made of Wood And a Bra Made of Steel 125

8 Crash and Burn 143

9 Citizen Hughes 159

10 Hooray for Hollywood 179

11 Communists, Lovers, And Other Strangers 197

12 From Darkness to Shadows 215

13 Til Death Us Do Part 233

14 To the Asylum Born 247

15 Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop 265

16 The King of Las Vegas 283

17 The Richest Man in America 301

18 The Great Divide 317

19 Isolation 341

20 Being of Sound Mind and Body 359

Epilogue: And the Winner Is 375.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

189322435X

OCLC:

47690414