Catch.
From my farm.
If you like it, I can get you a bushel.
Trouble with Mr. Hughes?
There's too much Howard Hughes in Howard Hughes.
That's the trouble.
Beautiful.
Don't you take Christmas off?
Nice to see you. Sorry, I've got grease on my hands.
Have we got something to show you.
Take a look. The XF-11 reconnaissance flier. Spy plane, really.
Designed every inch of her myself.
She's got a top speed of 450...
...which means she can outrun anything they throw against her.
After the Japs stole my H-1 design for their Zeros...
...I needed to do them one better.
Yeah, she's my Buck Rogers ship.
She's a looker.
Okay, what do you got for me?
Jiminy Cricket.
Seating capacity for 60. Wingspan, 123 feet.
Four Double Cyclone engines. Her ceiling's 25,000 feet.
- Gross weight? - 86,000, wing loading of 41 pounds.
So less drag on the plane in thinner air.
So high-cruise power, you're looking at a top speed of around 340.
Giving her a range of about 3000 miles.
- Cross-country. - Nonstop.
Bob...
...you know something? You are a son of a bitch.
Yeah. Bob, you got something on your suit.
Yeah.
On your lapel. You got something on your lapel.
Right there, Bob.
You missed it. Right there.
Clean it off, would you?
Here. Thanks.
No, throw it away.
No, over there.
Thanks. So, what do you call her?
The Constellation, but we can change that.
No, no.
It's pretty. I like her.
So, what kind of deal can you give me?
What kind of deal can you give me?
The first 40 planes off the assembly line.
That should give us about two years' exclusivity.
Hell, more than that.
United and American don't have the imagination for a plane like this.
Two years ahead of Juan Trippe, then.
How much?
Four hundred and fifty thousand each.
So that's 18 million for the first 40.
Hell, TWA can't afford that. The damn airline's flat broke.
Guess I'll just have to pay for them myself.
Build them, Bob. Send the bill to Noah Dietrich.
Oh, and thank you.
Merry Christmas.
You've just placed the largest order for airplanes in the history of the damn planet.
Lockheed sent us a bill for $ 18 million.
Don't get all hysterical on me, Noah. It isn't good for you.
- This is a lot of money for planes. - I know it's a lot of money.
It's too damn much. You think I've got $ 18 million in petty cash?
I should've told you. It slipped my mind.
- Slipped your mind? Oh, for... - Right.
- I'll get back to you. Bye. - How could $ 18 million slip your mind?
Hey, honey. What are you doing home?
You're not one for tears, and, well...
...neither am I, so it's best to come out with it.
I've met someone. I've fallen in love and I'm moving out.
If I could make it any more gentle, I would.
But I can't, so...
...there we both are.
Let's be honest.
It's all been a grand adventure, but it couldn't possibly last.
We're too alike, you and I.
You met someone?
Someone more appropriate. To me, I mean.
What does that mean, "more appropriate"?
Someone more attuned to my needs.
Look at me, Katie.
Stop acting.
I'm not acting.
I wonder if you even know anymore.
Don't be unkind.
You?
You wanna go?
Go on.
Actresses are cheap in this town, darling.
- And I got a lot of money. - This is beneath you.
No, no, this is exactly me.
You tell me you're leaving me, and you have the nerve to expect graciousness?
I expect a little maturity.
I expect you to face the situation like an adult who...
Don't talk down to me!
Don't you ever talk down to me! You are a movie star.
Nothing more.
Don't answer it.
What is it, Howard?
Hey, Noah...
...I need you to get to Penney's and buy me some clothes.
- Penney's isn't open. - Oh, shit.
- It's 2 in the morning. - Yeah, that's right.
Well, first thing tomorrow, then, all right?
I need two new suits off the rack. One light and one dark.
Three white shirts and three pairs of white tennis shoes. Got that?
- Yeah. - No, no.
- Make it Woolworth's. - Woolworth's.
No, no, Penney's. Penney's.
All right.
I'll get into it as soon as I can, Howard.
- All right? - Noah, do you have a recorder?
- No. - Are you recording this conversation?
- No. - Okay.
I trust you.
- Howard... - I need those suits first thing tomorrow.
- All right. - Wait. Did I say Penney's or Woolworth's?
- Penney's. - Better make it Sears.
All right, then, Sears.
I'm sorry, honey.
If I don't answer, he'll just call back.
Stop there, if you please, Miss Domergue.
Have you had surgery, Miss Domergue?
No.
Do you have scars of any kind?
No.
Wipe off your lipstick.
That's much better.
Now, you understand that you'd be under contract to me? Personally.
Do you know what that means?
Now turn around for me.
Very nice.
You move well.
You live with your family, do you?
Yes.
That's nice.
Tell me something.
How old are you, Miss Domergue?
Fifteen.
Holy Mother of God.
Well, a car picks me up every morning at 8, and off I go.
I'm getting my high school diploma.
Howard thinks that education is important.
- That's right. - And then, after classes...
...I'm off for elocution and grooming and fittings.
Well, blow me down.
Pan Am's working out of the Cocoanut Grove?
- Hello, Jack. - Hello, Juan.
Helen, good to see you.
- How are you, Howard? - Good, thanks.
- This is Faith Domergue. - Sit down.
- Pleasure. - What are you doing here?
Well, I'm out to meet with Douglas about the DC-4.
It's our new plane, and it is gonna be a pip, let me tell you.
- How's the Constellation coming? - Good.
Great.
So how about letting me steal a peek?
I don't think so.
I should be cross with you. You stole Ray Loewy from us.
- He's doing our interior design. That's right. - He was doing ours.
So...
...what are your colors? - Stop fishing.
So you have buttons...
...or zippers?
I'm sorry?
Buttons or zippers for the drapes on the sleeping berths?
Zippers.
Buttons.
So I suppose you'll be expanding on down to Mexico.
- Why do you say that? - Well, your range is 3000 miles.
I'd imagine you'd expand from Los Angeles to Mexico and South America.
Hey, that's a good idea. Anyone got a pen?
Or across the Atlantic.
You've had enough of this ice cream.
You give me that spoon. You don't wanna get your gloves all sticky.
Isn't that too far?
New York...
...to Newfoundland...
...to Ireland.
To Paris.
Well...
...Pan Am welcomes you.
We're overbooked as it is.
It's such a burden doing it all on your own, let me tell you.
So when's the Connie gonna be ready?
- Next year maybe. DC-4? - Next year.
Well, we look forward to her then.
And I to the Connie.
I've ordered the next 40 after you.
- It's Miss? - Domergue.
Yes, of course. Now, was that a rumba or a samba you were doing?
- It was a samba. - A samba, yes.
Howard, I never knew you were such a good dancer.
Helen, Jack.
Good going. You gave away our entire postwar strategy.
- He can't stop us. - He's Pan Am. He can stop anything.
Give me the largest Scotch you got.
I don't know what in the hell you're so damn giddy about. Excuse me.
Jack.
Get in touch with Joyce and Berg. Those are my boys in Washington.
Set up a meeting with Jones, secretary of commerce, old golfing buddy.
- Slow down. - We'll need terminals in Ireland and France.
I wanna get some tax breaks.
If that ass thinks he owns the world, he's got another thing coming.
Pan Am owns Europe. We ought to think about Mexico.
To hell with Mexico. No airline should have a monopoly on flying the Atlantic.
It just isn't fair. He owns Pan Am, he owns Congress.
He owns the Civil Aeronautics Board, but he does not own the sky.
We're in a street fight with that son of a bitch.
I've been fighting high-hat Ivy League pricks like him my whole life.
And listen, fire Ray Loewy. You goddamn heard me? Fire Ray Loewy.
He's spying for Trippe. That shitheel knew all about the buttons.
Spies in my midst, Jack.
Spies in my midst.
- Hello, Howard. - Roland.
So...
...what can I do for you?
I want all the pictures you have of Kate Hepburn and Spencer Tracy.
All the negatives. And I want you to kill the story.
Howard, he's a married man. He's a Catholic.
They're movie stars. Fair game all around.
My office knows where I am, Howard.
I'm not gonna kill you, Roland.
I don't do that.
- How much? - Not for sale.
How much?
Not for sale.
You ever cheat on your wife, Roland?
You ever screw a colored girl?
You ever steal anything? You ever hurt anyone?
Good night, Howard.
You ever go to a Communist Party meeting, Roland?
TWA stock.
How much?
Fifty thousand shares.
Ten.
All right.
This isn't gonna be that easy.
He's been making big contributions on both sides of the aisle.
And Jack Frye is out there lobbying everybody in town.
The French and British ambassadors are lined up on his side.
I'm telling you, TWA is serious about going international.
Okay.
Point, Mr. Hughes.
I think it's time for you to introduce the community airline bill...
...on the floor of the Senate.
- Is it done? - My people are finishing it right now.
I also have to get you on the committee investigating the national defense.
On the committee or chairman?
I could be much more effective as chairman.
It's a great public platform. You know, it generates a lot of press.
- Wasn't Truman chairman of that committee? - Yeah, right.
He's vice president. Look what he did with it.
No, I think...
I think chairman.
What do you think?
- Chairman. That is interesting. - Yeah.
Let me show you these specs for the DC-4.
Ava, what do you think about Trans World Airlines?
Transcontinental and Western doesn't fit anymore.
We're international, we need a name that reflects that.
Trans World is good. Kind of peppy.
TWA, right?
That way you don't need to repaint any of the planes.
That's you. Always pinching pennies.
Hand me my wrap.
Knock it off.
I have something for you.
Stay here.
- What the hell is this? - It's a present.
Go on, open it.
Oh, a box of trash. You shouldn't have.
Keep looking, keep looking.
It's a Kashmiri sapphire.
I had my boys all over the damn globe looking for this.
Why?
Because.
Look.
It matches your eyes.
I am not for sale.
For chrissakes, it's just a present.
You can't buy me, Howard, so stop trying.
Don't buy me any more diamonds or sapphires or any other damn thing.
You can buy me dinner. How about that?
Jesus, Ava.
It's bad enough I have to endure those gym shoes of yours.
But I get all dolled up and we go out in this jalopy without a hood.
Ava, will you marry me?
- No, Howard. - Well, why not, for heaven's sake?
In the first place, I don't love you.
In the second place, I'm still married.
Look, you got girls stashed all over town. You got a damn harem just at the Bel-Air.
Marry one of your bungalow girls.
Those are employees. I won't marry an employee. How would that look?
What is going on?
- Oh, my God! - Goddamn it!
Faith!
- Faith, what the hell? - Look out!
Goddamn, what the hell are you doing?
- Are you okay, lady? - What are you doing with her?
We are going to dinner. Now, get out of there.
Get that crazy bitch away from me!
Don't you love me anymore?
Course I love you, pork chop.
Ava, look over here. Howard.
Hey.
Juan Trippe is working with Senator Brewster now.
They're after you. If the community airline bill becomes law, we are finished.
Pan Am will have a monopoly on international travel.
Well, how can they justify it? It's un-American.
Brewster is saying that nationalized foreign carriers, like Air France...
...can offer lower rates because they don't have to compete.
Let's get rid of competition and have a nationalized airline...
...and why don't we make it Pan Am? - I'm not kowtowing to anyone.
- Howard, I need you up here. - One sec, Odie.
Look, we are Trans World Airlines, all right?
Get me something with a circle or a globe or something round, for God's sake.
- Speak up. - One cut.
I don't give a rat's ass. I'm not making a cut. I'll release it without a seal.
We gotta go public with this.
I'm gonna talk to Hearst...
...but we gotta get some senators on our side.
- What do you want me to do? - What Trippe does.
Offshore operations. See who's up for re-election...
...let's start making donations. - Bribe senators?
I don't want them bribed. I want it done legally.
I want them bought. Put a team of investigators on Brewster.
I need to know everything about that shitbag.
Where he goes, what he says and who he screws.
- Get into it right now. - You got it.
Just give me a second.
- All right, what do you need? - Rudder and elevators.
No. These are fine.
Have Simon and Pete get back to me on the assemblies. We need a secondary system.
Okay.
Listen, we need to take another look at the wheel.
- Jesus. The damn wheel? - Yeah.
It just doesn't feel right.
Christ almighty, you've seen 8000 goddamn wheels. Choose one, please.
- Just one of them. - I know, I know.
- This one? - I know, this one...
This one's pretty close. Pretty close.
Odie.
That man sweeping up over there...
...does he work for me? I mean, have you seen him before?
Name's Nick, something like that.
Why's he looking at me?
I don't know.
Fire him. And make sure they use damp brooms from now on.
Respiratory diseases are expensive, and I don't want lawsuits.
But can we at least proceed with the instrument panel?
- The tool shop's ready. - I wanna see the blueprints.
Look, Howard, the deadline is now completely unrealistic.
The war is gonna be over by the time she's done.
I need you to help consult on vital decisions, and you're off dealing with movies.
You got 1000 workers waiting for you to make a decision...
Hey, Odie!
Take it easy, all right.
You're under pressure, but it's gonna do me no good if you crack up on me.
All right? Look...
...take a couple of hours off, all right.
- You just relax a little. - Okay.
- See your wife. - Okay.
All right.
- Be sure to show me all the blueprints. - All right.
Show me all the blueprints.
I'm serious, now. Show me all the blueprints.
- Howard. - Show me all the blueprints.
Show me all the blueprints.
I wanna get this done right.
Show me all the blueprints.
- Howard. - Show me all the blueprints.
Show me all the blueprints. Show me all the blueprints...
Quarantine.
Q...
...U...
...A...
...R...
...A...
...N...
...T...
...I...
...N...
...E.
Quarantine.
General McEwan. Colonel Bertrang. Thanks for coming down.
Odie, you reading me okay?
Yeah, you're A-okay.
All right, flight controls are active. She's all yours.
Spotless. No wiggle on the wheel or throttle.
Take it easy.
- How does she sound, Howard? - She's whispering to me, buddy.
All right, make her sing.
Well, Odie, she can fly. Congratulations.
I'm glad to hear it. Retract landing gear and climb to 5000 feet...
...on a heading of 2-7-0.
Retracting landing gear and climbing to 5000 feet on a heading 2-7-0.
- She's fast. - What's your air speed?
292.
- All right, take her back to 200. - No damn way.
We gotta bring her home.
Scheduled time of one hour and 45 minutes has elapsed.
- Set course for 0-9-0... - Ten more minutes. Roger that.
Negative, Howard. Bring her home.
Okay. Okay. Setting course for 0-9-0.
Preparing to descend.
- Jesus. - What is it, Howard?
The right wing just dipped. I'm losing starboard engine.
Increasing power to 2800 rpm.
Cutting back.
Increasing starboard engine only.
Cutting back. I'm losing altitude.
Check starboard-engine manifold pressure.
- It's good, but rpm's are low. - Are both starboard props turning?
Hold on.
They are, but she's pulling me back and starboard, Odie.
- How bad is your cross control? - I'm at full left rudder...
...and full left aileron, but she won't stay level. Goddamn it.
- Give us your position. - Two thousand feet over...
Oh, Christ, I don't know, Beverly Hills. Fifteen hundred feet.
We're going down.
I'll try for the Wilshire Country Club. Ninth hole. You reading me?
Wilshire Country Club, copy that. Howard, reduce engines to 1000.
I'm going down! I'm not gonna make it, buddy!
Goddamn it!
Is there anyone else inside? Is there anyone else?!
No.
I'm Howard Hughes, the aviator.
- Every inch of his wiring and fluid connection.
He has burns to 78 percent of his body.
Nine ribs are shattered, not broken, shattered...
...as are his nose, his chin, his cheek, his left knee, his left elbow.
He has 60 lacerations on his face, to the bone.
His chest was crushed, so his left lung collapsed...
...and his heart has shifted to the right side of his chest cavity.
Jesus, God.
- He's getting blood transfusions now, but... - Whose blood?
- I'm sorry? - Whose blood?
From our stock.
- Oh, he's not going to like that. - Mr. Dietrich, I doubt he's...
...ever gonna like or dislike anything again.
I'm terribly sorry.
Orange juice.
It's not fresh from the kitchen, so I...
I have them make it here so... So I can see.
Look at me.
I'm a monster.
Yeah. Orange juice has nutritional value.
There's... There's some flies outside my window, though.
So...
...little Howard likes...
...citrus.
Don't he just?
Tell me.
An oil seal ripped off the starboard rear propeller.
When the pressure dropped, the prop reversed pitch.
Do you understand me?
Howard, I'm sorry to have to tell you this now, but there's something else.
- You following me? - Yeah.
The Air Force canceled the contract on The Hercules.
The war's over now, and they say they don't need it anymore.
I have to know what you want me to do. Should I release the staff?
How far...
...from finishing?
- About six months. - No, in money.
Seven million.
Maybe more.
Build it.
Build it, Odie.
Howard...
...a Constellation crashed outside Reading, Pennsylvania.
The Civil Aeronautics Board has grounded the whole fleet.
You know...
...Juan Trippe sent me flowers.
Take a look.
- What did you do with all the others? - Oh, I had them taken out.
They... They attract aphids.
Aphids are... They're just awful little creatures.
But...
But these ones...
...I wanted to see these ones every day.
Can white elephants fly? That's everybody's question.
The hull of the world's mightiest airplane, a flying boat built by Howard Hughes.
Two hundred and twenty feet long, it towers higher than a five-story building.
Power lines have to be cut as it starts the trip from Culver City...
...to the Pacific, 30 miles away.
Moving the 60-ton load is quite an engineering problem.
But you gotta ask, was anything this big ever supposed to fly?
There goes one wing section, 160 feet long with four engine housings.
Double that and you've got some idea of the wingspread.
An airplane that challenges a mountain for sheer size.
How long can they keep us grounded?
Until they finish investigating the Reading crash. Could be months.
You're running a $ 14 million deficit. How will you afford to keep them out of service?
- We go international, we'll make it up. - Brewster's C.A.B. Bill isn't going away.
That bill passes, and you bought these for nothing.
- We're fighting the C.A.B. Bill. - Meanwhile, how do we keep TWA flying?
Don't say, "Just go to Tool Co. " We're pumping every cent into The Hercules...
...which the Air Force doesn't even want anymore.
I'm glad Jack is feeling sunny about things, but I've seen the books.
I'm telling it straight. I'm not crying wolf.
We're in serious trouble. You've gotta make a choice.
You wanna be bankrupted by the big plane or by the big airline?
Go see Thomas Parkinson at the Equitable in New York.
Get a loan against all the TWA equipment and capital.
Use the planes as collateral. Hell, use the desks, use the pens, use everything we got.
- Try to get me 40 million. - And if TWA defaults on the loan?
Then Juan Trippe buys us cheap.
Under my bed! You put a goddamn microphone under my bed!
Listen to me. I am concerned about you.
- I just wanna make sure you're okay. - And who is in that car?!
It's been with me 24 hours a day.
That car is for your protection!
The only one I need protection from is you, you sick bastard!
You don't own me, Howard.
I'm not one of your teenage whores or some damn airplane.
I'll have them take all the bugs out.
I need to know where you are.
- Why?! - Because I worry about you, that's why.
Bullshit!
What do you mean, "all the bugs"?
There's more.
How many?
I don't know, 12. Twelve, maybe, and on the telephones.
Oh, Christ, Howard, on the telephone?
You listen to my phone calls?
No, no, honey, I would never do that. I'd never do that.
I just read the transcripts, that's all.
What do you wanna know, Howard?
Was I screwing Artie Shaw last night?
Was I screwing Sinatra the night before? You bet.
Everyone said you were a lunatic, I didn't listen.
It's no wonder Kate Hepburn dumped your demented ass!
Shut your goddamn mouth.
Get out, you pathetic freak.
Get out!
Is everything all right, sir?
Take out all the bugs, huh?
Except for the one on the bedroom phone.
Sir, the FBI are at the house.
This is outrageous! Everything here is the private property of Hughes Productions.
- My legal counsel is on the way... - Federal warrant.
Don't interfere with the search, sir.
Dateline: Los Angeles. Howard Hughes has a new houseguest.
No, it's not another beautiful starlet. This time it's the FBI.
Noah, you've got to help. This is the 10th time they have been here.
Rumor has it that agents working for Senator Owen Brewster...
...have practically taken up residence in the aviation mogul's home.
Look, I mean, they are touching things.
- Noah, they are touching things. - Just keep yourself calm...
...and I'll be down there as soon as I can, Howard.
Howard?
Howard, hello.
- Nice to see you again. - Good to see you. Come on inside.
- Emma, you can start up lunch now. - Yes, sir.
Well, really lovely room. It's nicely decorated.
Thank you. Here, have a seat.
Thanks for coming by.
I thought you and I should have a chance to talk privately.
You know, outside the office.
Well...
...I appreciate that, Owen.
So you're coming out pretty strong against the C.A.B. Bill.
- You're coming on pretty strong for it. - Well, it's my bill, Howard, you know.
Look, I believe sincerely that America cannot afford...
...to have more than one international carrier.
I mean, do you think it's fair that one airline should have a monopoly on international...?
A monopoly? No, no, no. Oh, no.
No, I think one airline could do it better, see, without competition.
All I'm thinking about are the interests, the needs of the American passenger.
That's just beautiful. What is that?
What is that? Is that a?
Is that a yak?
- Some kind of a yak? - No, that's a Ilama.
My wife picked that up when we were in Peru.
Son of a gun.
A real Ilama.
- From Peru? - Yeah. From a year ago, I think it was...
- Yeah, it was about a year ago. - Lunch is served, senator.
Good. Okay. Come on, let's go have some lunch.
Now, did you...? Did you actually get to see any Ilamas?
No, no. My wife just liked the painting.
It's an interesting animal. I'll have to read up on those.
How do you spell that? Like? Like Fernando Lamas?
No, no. It's... It's the animal, it's got two L's.
Here, come on, have a seat.
It's brook trout. Hope you like fish.
I love it. Thanks.
I know you're not a drinking man, so I hope... Hope water's okay.
Thanks.
All right, let's get down to business. Let's talk turkey.
My investigators...
My investigators have turned up a lot of dirt.
It could be really embarrassing if this stuff got out.
I'd like to save you from that embarrassment.
That's very kind of you, Owen.
My committee has the power to hold public hearings.
I'd like to spare you that.
Would you, now?
Look...
Do you wanna go down in history as a war profiteer, Howard?
Is that what you want?
What do you want, Owen?
You agree to support my C.A.B. Bill, and I won't hold public hearings.
- I can't do that. - Why not?
I can't do that, Owen. The C.A.B. Would kill TWA.
Sell TWA to Pan Am.
You'll get a good price. You'll get a fair price.
And then...? Then you won't go public?
Right. That's right. The investigation's closed. Nobody knows a thing.
That's... It's better for everybody.
You know, Owen, I'm still wondering one thing.
- What's that? - The picture of the Ilama you got last year?
- Yeah. - Where'd you sail from?
We didn't sail. We flew.
- You flew? - Yeah.
Are you sure you want to do this, Owen?
You want to go to war with me?
It isn't me, Howard. It's the United States government.
We just beat Germany and Japan.
Who the hell are you?
You... You tell Juan Trippe something for me, all right?
Tell him thanks for the flowers.
And he can kiss both sides of my ass.
Well, we have a long list of particulars.
Chief among them is that he defrauded the American government...
...of $56 million while at war, when we could least afford it.
While brave men were dying on the beaches of Normandy...
...Mr. Hughes was picking the pocket of the American taxpayer.
I sleep...
...in this room...
...in the dark.
I'll have him dragged here to Washington if I have to.
I wanna see the whites of his lies.
I have a place.
- I can sleep. - He has a lot of questions to answer.
- I have a chair. - Particularly about that monstrous...
...boondoggle of his, that model airplane he's building...
...that flying lumberyard, that spruce goose.
No, he'll... We'll get him here.
That's just beautiful.
Oh, yeah. I like the desert.
It's hot there in the desert, but it's clean.
It's clean.
I need to sleep.
I should drink something first.
Wait a minute.
What if that milk is sour?
That milk is bad.
I shouldn't pick up the bottle of milk with my right hand.
And I shouldn't take the top off with my left hand...
...put it in my pocket.
My left pocket.
Howard, it's Kate. I need... I need to talk to you.
Can you hear me?
I'm coming in.
Howard, unlock this door immediately.
I can't, sweetie.
You mean you won't.
Howard, please let me see you.
- I haven't shaved. - Well, neither have I.
Come on.
You...
You let me in.
I can hear you, Katie.
I could always hear you. Even in the cockpit, with the engines on.
That's because I'm so goddamn loud.
Howard, I...
I came to thank you.
I found out what you did for Spence and me.
Buying those awful pictures.
You love him.
He's everything I have.
Howard?
I'm glad for you, Kate.
Go away now. Would you do that?
- Howard, please. - Go away.
Just for now. I'll see you soon.
- We'll go flying together. - Yes.
Yes, please. You take me flying again.
Howard, I can take the wheel.
Howard?
Howard, are you...? Are you there?
Howard?
Howard, are you there?
Come on, Howard.
Howard, are you there?
Come in with the milk.
He is to open the bag with his right hand...
...and hold the bag out to me at a 45-degree angle...
...so I may reach into the bag without...
Without touching the paper.
Repeated from the beginning.
If there is any variation of these instructions...
...even to the smallest degree...
...the entire process must be repeated...
- ... from the beginning. - Come in with the milk.
- Repeated from the beginning. - Come in with the milk.
- Repeated...
...from the beginning.
Repeated from the beginning.
Come in with the milk.
Q...
R...
N...
T...
Q...
...U...
E...
I...
T...
...I...
...N...
...E.
N...
...E.
E...
I...
Howard?
Hello?
Who is it?
Howard, it's Juan.
Juan.
Juan, right. Yeah.
We had an appointment, right? Yeah.
I remember that. Look...
...I got a hell of a cold in here. A hell of a cold.
So take a seat out there, because I don't wanna get you sick.
I'd never forgive myself if I got you sick. I don't wanna get you sick. I don't wanna...
Thank you.
Okay, Howard, I'm sitting.
I've brought along our accountings. Now...
...Pan Am is trading at 13 and five-eighths.
TWA at four and a quarter.
- Now, if you take... - Come on.
Come on, come on, come on. We both know I'm not gonna sell TWA.
Besides, you couldn't afford her.
Our domestic routes alone are worth more than twice Pan Am.
Well, considering our stock is trading at three times yours...
...I find that a dubious claim, Howard.
What I...
What I mean is, you have no domestic routes. All right?
I mean, you get TWA, you span the globe.
I'm not gonna sell, and you know I'm not gonna sell.
Here's the point.
Owen Brewster works for you.
Howard, I didn't elect Senator Brewster. We can thank the voters of Maine for that.
Now, if I appear at his hearings, Juan, it could get nasty.
Real nasty for all of us.
Well, I think, considerably more so for you.
While the good people of America were losing sons at Anzio...
...you produced a dirty movie and built airplanes that don't fly.
Well, that's just not fair, is it?
I mean, the XF-11 flew quite well for an hour and 45 minutes.
I wish you were up there with me, Juan. It was exhilarating.
Be that as it may, you still have to answer for the Spruce Goose.
It's called The Hercules!
And it will fly, goddamn it!
I hope so. The American people deserve something for their $ 13 million.
I won't sell TWA!
I won't!
I know that, Howard.
I know that.
But I'm going to get it anyway.
You will default on your loan from Equitable after Senator Brewster...
...destroys your reputation and you can't find additional capital for the airline.
The hearings will also show Hughes Aircraft to be mismanaged and incompetent...
...and it will go bankrupt too.
But you won't be insolvent. You'll still have Tool Co.
Perhaps you'll head back to Houston to rebuild your empire.
I rather hope you do.
By that time, Pan Am will have bought TWA...
...and painted all those magnificent Connies blue and white.
So when you do return, it will be on a Pan Am plane.
Well...
You seem to have me in a corner here, buddy.
Not a position in which I'm very comfortable.
I think you're gonna be less comfortable at Senator Brewster's hearings.
Very public, Howard.
Lots of cameras and newsmen.
I understand you're not particularly fond of crowds.
Perhaps we should spare you that.
Well, thank you for your concern, Juan.
I find that...
...very moving.
It's been a real pleasure.
Noah will see you back to the airport now.
You fly safe.
Thank you, Howard, and you take care of that cold.
Don't you worry.
I certainly will.
Bye-bye.
If you let him appear at those hearings, the whole world will see what he's become.
People should remember him as he was.
He'll have a subpoena in three days to appear in Washington.
If you can get him out of there by then.
Mr. Hughes?
I don't have any shoes.
- Could you get me some shoes? - Shoes.
Yeah.
How nice of you to dress for me.
Can I come in?
Yeah, you can come in.
Thank you for coming.
Now, let's get a drink.
Wait, wait, wait, honey. You can't move. You're safe here.
You're in the germ-free zone now. You understand?
- I'll take my chances. - No, no, honey. Wait, wait.
Love what you've done with the place.
Now, let me look at you.
When do you go to Washington?
A week.
No, no. Just under a week.
I don't know the date today, but I have to be...
All right, take it easy.
There's nothing there, Howard.
I see things.
I know, baby.
Rinse your face off, now.
Put your hands in the water and wash off the soap.
I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere.
- Does that look clean to you? - Nothing's clean, Howard.
But we do our best, right?
Yeah.
What do you think?
- Well, I look all right. - You look great.
Will you marry me?
You're too crazy for me.
I gotta go, baby.
Okay.
Thanks.
You'd do it for me.
Hi, Howard. How you doing?
The committee will come to order.
Ladies and gentlemen, I must insist that we maintain quiet during these proceedings.
All right, Mr. Hughes, will you stand and be sworn?
Do you solemnly swear that in the matter now pending before this committee...
...you will tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?
- I do. - Pardon me for speaking loudly...
...but I know you have difficulty hearing. - That's quite all right.
I mean, everybody knows I'm deaf. I'm not gonna try to hide it.
Mr. Hughes, it is the intention of this committee...
Mr. Hughes has a statement.
All right, you may proceed with this statement, Mr. Hughes.
Mr. Hughes, do you have a statement?
I'm gonna attempt to be honest here.
I mean, my reputation's being destroyed, so I might as well lay the cards on the table.
Senator Brewster, if you hadn't gone too far overboard...
...if you hadn't put the red-hot iron in my side...
...I might have been willing to take a shellacking in this publicity spree of yours.
I may have been willing to sit back and take a certain amount of abuse simply because...
...well, I am only a private citizen.
Whereas you are a senator...
...with all sorts of powers.
But I think this goddamn circus has gone on long enough!
- That's quite sufficient. - You have called me a liar, sir, in the press.
You have called me a liar and a thief and a war profiteer!
- The witness will restrain... - Why not tell the truth for once, senator?
Why not tell the truth that this investigation was really born on the day that TWA...
...decided to fly to Europe? On the day that TWA first invaded Juan Trippe's territory!
- Sit down. - On the day TWA first challenged...
...the generally accepted theory that only Juan Trippe's great Pan American Airways...
...had the right to fly the Atlantic! - You are not here to make a speech.
I asked for silence! I asked for quiet in this room...
We have in our possession receipts in the amount of $ 170,000...
...acquired from Mr. John Meyer. Mr. Meyer works for you, does he not?
- He does. - And what is his official title?
I don't exactly know, senator. A lot of people work for me.
Can you explain why your press agent would pay out...
...more than $ 170,000 to representatives of the United States Air Force?
- I don't know. You'd have to ask him. - Well, would you produce him?
- Produce him? - Will you cause him to appear?
You had John Meyer on the stand for three days last week.
Be that as it may, we would like him to reappear.
Would you ask him to return?
No, I don't think I will.
Will you try to have him return?
- No, I don't think I'll try. - You don't think you'll try?
No, I don't think so.
The $ 170,000 paid out to the Air Force in the form of hotel suites...
...TWA stock...
...female companionship.
Now, is it possible that these could be considered bribes?
I suppose you could call them that, yes.
Would you repeat that?
I said, I suppose you could consider them bribes, yes.
Well, would you like to explain that, Mr. Hughes?
I'm afraid you don't know how the aviation business works, senator.
See, wining and dining Air Force dignitaries is common in our business.
It's because we all want the big contracts. All the major aircraft companies do it.
I don't know whether it's a good system...
...I just know it's not illegal. You, senator, you are the lawmaker.
If you pass a law that states no one can entertain Air Force officers, well, hell...
...I'd be happy to abide by it.
Your story is a pack of lies. I can tear it apart if allowed to cross-examine.
- We're not gonna have this bickering. - Yes. Somewhere between two and 500...
...if you'll let me get started. - Lf you believe your wealth and power...
...can intimidate any member of this committee, you're mistaken.
- Now submit your questions. - I'll put this very simply.
On February 12th, at the Mayflower Hotel...
...did you or did you not tell me that if I were to sell TWA to Pan Am...
...that this entire investigation would be called off?
I did not. And I have asked you to submit your questions in writing.
- How long have you known Juan Trippe? - I've known him for some time now.
- And that's not the question. - Is it not true that Juan donated $20,000...
...to your last campaign? I mean, he spoke to me as if you worked for him.
I have a personal friendship with...
Is it true you accept free Pan Am tickets to circle the globe...
...in support of your C.A.B. Bill? - No, it is not true.
Well, who wrote that bill, senator? Who actually wrote the C.A.B. Bill?
- The actual words. Did you write them? - This is not how these hearings...
...are gonna be conducted. - I have it. Maybe it'll refresh your memory.
"Bill S-987 to amend the Civil Aeronautics Act. "
Now, you introduced this bill to the Senate.
A lot of words.
You write all of them?
- Did you write any of them, senator? - Now, look...
Now, this entire bill was written by Pan Am executives...
...and designed to give that airline a monopoly on international travel.
You've been flogging this bill all around the world on their behalf, have you not?
I have duties that take me all over the world, Mr. Hughes.
Well, what the hell does a senator from Maine need to visit Peru for?
I was seeking outlets for our trade goods.
Buy a lot of lobsters down there, do they?
Senator, how many times have you visited Trippe's office in New York...
...in the last three months?
Would you like me to tell you, senator?
All right, this has gone on long enough. Juan is a great American.
His airline has advanced the cause of commercial aviation for decades.
Juan Trippe is a patriot. Juan Trippe is not a man who is interested in making money.
Well, I'm sure his stockholders would be happy to hear that.
We're gonna clear this room.
This is James McNamara speaking to you from the Hughes 2000-ton flying boat...
...the world's largest aircraft. This is the sky giant...
...which has prompted Congress to investigate the war contracts of Mr. Hughes.
Before boarding the craft, Mr. Hughes told newsmen that this test...
...would be solely a taxi experiment. He said he didn't know what might happen.
The mammoth flying plywood shell...
...might ship water under high-speed taxi pressure. He will not take...
...the craft into the air until next spring. The thin man from Culver City...
...pronounced the craft an unknown quantity. He has an idea what it can do...
None of that, now. None of that.
We are about 5 feet in back of Mr. Hughes.
We are looking through one of the side windows in the cockpit.
Professor, why don't you come on up front here.
In other words, we are 30 feet high in this aircraft.
Strap yourself in right there. You ought to be able to see just great.
Huge crowds jam the surrounding shoreline this morning.
All right, boys, let's fire it up.
One's good.
Two's good.
Three's good.
Four's good.
Five's good.
Six is good.
Seven's good.
Eight's good.
- Advancing master throttles. - Advancing master throttles.
As you probably know, I have to do a great deal...
...of screaming into our microphone.
- Understood. Lower it 15 degrees of flaps. - Lowering 15 degrees of flaps.
Howard, she's gotta hit 70 to have any kind of chance.
Yeah, I know. I know.
It's a beautiful day here off the coast of Southern California. Blue skies...
- ... a warm sun... - Twenty-five miles per hour.
- And a relatively calm sea... - Thirty.
Thirty-five.
One would think these eight power plants might shake the craft to pieces...
Take it easy, Howard.
- Forty! - Throttling back for starboard turn 180.
Throttling back for starboard turn 180.
The flight crew itself consists of four men.
Mr. Hughes, however, has added 11 maintenance men to this maiden taxi test...
...stationed at various places throughout the ship, checking points of stress and strain.
How does she sound, Odie?
Sounds good, Howard.
- Professor. - Yes?
Would you do me a favor?
Would you take a look out that window and tell me what the wind is doing?
I would say that we have a 15-knot wind.
Would you call that a headwind, professor?
I would, Mr. Hughes.
We must maintain silence. We must have quiet during the proceedings.
Mr. Hughes, will you stand and be sworn?
Mr. Hughes, did you receive...
...$43 million to manufacture 100 XF-11 spy planes for the United States Air Force?
I did.
How many functional planes did you deliver to the United States Air Force?
None.
Would you lean a little closer to the microphones, sir?
None.
Did you receive $ 13 million to manufacture...
...a prototype of a flying boat known as The Hercules?
I did.
And did you deliver that plane?
I did not.
So by your admission in this chamber, Mr. Hughes...
...you have received $56 million...
...from the United States government for planes you never delivered.
That is correct.
Well, excuse me for asking, Mr. Hughes...
...but where did all that money go?
Well, it went into the planes, senator. And a lot more.
More? Do tell, Mr. Hughes, what other larcenies did you commit?
I mean, I put my money into the planes, senator. My money.
- See, the thing is that I care... - Your personal finances are not...
Let him speak.
Proceed, Mr. Hughes.
See, the thing is, I care very much about aviation.
It has been the great joy of my life. That's why I put my own money into these planes.
And I've lost millions, senator, and I'll go on losing millions. It's just...
...what I do.
Now, if I've lost a lot of the government's money during the war, I hope folks...
...will put that into perspective.
More than 60 other airplanes ordered from such firms as...
...Lockheed, Douglas, Northrop and Boeing never saw action either.
In all, more than $800 million was spent during the war on planes that never flew.
Over 6 billion on other weapons that were never delivered.
Yet Hughes Aircraft, with her 56 million...
...is the only firm under investigation here.
I cannot help but think that has a little more to do with TWA than planes that did not fly.
- You've made your point, Mr. Hughes. - One second. I have one more thing...
...to say here to this committee.
And that has to do with The Hercules.
Now, I am supposed to be many things which are not complimentary.
I am supposed to be capricious.
I have been called a playboy. I've even been called an eccentric...
...but I do not believe that I have the reputation of being a liar.
Needless to say, The Hercules was a monumental undertaking.
It is the largest plane ever built.
It is over five stories tall with a wingspan longer than a football field.
That's more than a city block.
Now, I put the sweat of my life into this. I got my reputation all rolled up in it.
I have stated several times that if The Hercules fails to fly...
...I will leave this country and never come back. And I mean it.
Now, Senator Brewster, you can subpoena me...
...you can arrest me, you can even claim I've folded up and taken a run-out powder...
...but, well, I've had just about enough of this nonsense. Good afternoon.
I had to do it.
- Mr. Hughes. - Mr. Hughes.
I'd love to see The Hercules in the air.
Thank you, thank you so much.
Switch it off.
- The hearings aren't over yet. - The hearings are over.
The airline bill will be defeated in the Senate.
TWA will begin flights from New York to Paris...
...then on to Moscow, to Japan, to Hawaii, to Los Angeles...
...to New York.
Fuck.
- Power coming up. - Power coming up.
Howard Hughes has just alerted us.
He has asked everyone to hold on. Tremendous horsepower kicking up.
Let me hear it, Odie.
Twenty-five miles per hour.
Thirty.
Here we go. Here we go.
- Thirty-five. - The air-speed indicator...
...has moved up to 25. Thirty.
- Thirty-five. - Forty.
As he pushes the throttle it's 40.
- Forty-five. - Forty-five. More throttle.
- Forty-five. - Fifty.
- It's 50 over a choppy sea. - Fifty-five.
It's 55. It's 55.
- Sixty. - More throttle. It's 60.
- Sixty-five. - Sixty-five.
- Seventy. - It's 70.
- Seventy-five. - It's 75.
And something momentarily cuts out. I believe we are airborne.
We are airborne, ladies and gentlemen. I don't believe that Hughes...
...meant this to be. I don't know.
And we were really up in the air. We were really up in the air.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Hughes mammoth aircraft...
...has flown this afternoon in Los Angeles Harbor.
Well, it certainly looks at this moment that Howard Hughes will be around...
...the United States for quite some time to come.
We must understand that technologies like these are the way of the future.
- That's enough questions. - TWA and Hughes Aircraft are delighted...
...to have you come here and witness this wonderful sight.
- Excuse us for just a second. - All right.
- So you feel like going to Paris? - Now?
TWA is starting up flights to Europe.
I thought I might pilot the first one. Ought to be some fun.
- Lots of shopping in Paris. - I'll buy you anything.
You can buy me dinner. How about that?
Dinner, then. We got a date?
Okay, baby, you got a date.
I'll be back in a second, but don't you go anywhere, now. I mean it.
All right, listen, boys. Something new. Jet airplanes.
- You know about jets? - No, but it sounds expensive.
Oh, it will be, but we gotta get started.
Come on, walk with me.
Whoever can start utilizing jet technology...
...on commercial airliners is gonna win. What do you know about the science?
I know a little. I can work something to show you. Basic turbine stuff.
Noah, who are those fellas?
Do they work for me?
Everybody works for you, Howard.
Lockheed worked on the F-80. Let's get Bob Gross and see if he can help us out.
- What, now? - Of course now.
We gotta get into it. Jets are the way of the future.
- It's 4:30. - I talked to Bob last week. He's in New York.
- So it's 7:30. - He won't be in the office.
We'll figure out what hotel he's at. Do you want a call...
...or you want some kind of meeting? - We want a meeting, don't we?
Do you want me bring him out here tomorrow, then, Howard?
- The way of the future. - Howard?
- The way of the future.
- Let's take a walk, Howard.
- Way of the future. - Give me a hand.
The way of the future. The way of the future.
All right, stay here. I'll be right back. You understand, Howard?
The way of the future.
Guard the door. I'll get a doctor. No one sees him like this.
The way of the future. The way of the future.
You are not safe.
When I grow up...
...I'm gonna fly the fastest planes ever built...
...make the biggest movies ever...
...and be the richest man in the world.
The way of the future.
[ENGLISH]