Howard Hughes Blows Up Hollywood | Calling the Shots | 1

Business Movers

Wondery

History, Business, Entrepreneurship

4.8 • 1.5K Ratings

🗓️ 31 July 2025

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Teenage millionaire Howard Hughes heads west with dreams of conquering Hollywood. But the bold Texan outsider quickly learns that making a hit movie is harder than it looks under Tinseltown’s bright lights.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Want to get more from business movers?
0:02.2	Subscribe to Wondry Plus for early access to new episodes,
0:05.7	ad-free listening, and exclusive content you can't find anywhere else.
0:09.6	Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.
0:13.0	OneRoury. It's spring 1928 on an airfield in Englewood, California. Under the midday sun,
0:35.3	22-year-old millionaire film producer Howard Hughes
0:38.3	stands at the edge of a dusty runway and shakes his head as a pilot stalls a biplane.
0:43.4	It's a few months into the shooting of Howard's most ambitious movie to date,
0:47.6	a World War I epic with real dogfights in the sky.
0:51.6	But there's a problem holding back today's filming.
0:54.0	His pilot can't even take
0:55.4	off. Howard calls out. What on earth are you doing? Sorry, Mr. Hughes. She's a little cranky
1:02.2	today. Might need a minute to cool off. Howard marches toward the plane, irritation written all
1:08.2	over his face. You're being too cautious on the throttle.
1:11.2	You need to show these old kites who's boss. Give it some gas. You'll fire right up. But, sir, if I push too hard, the engine might overheat. Could cut out in midair. And if you baby it, we sit here all day burning time and money. I'm not paying for you to twiddle your thumbs. I'm paying for results. I understand, sir, but this isn't the throttle.
1:09.2	It's about feel.
1:10.7	You know, when I understand, sir, but this isn't
1:27.6	the throttle. It's about feel. You know what I feel? Frustrated. Just get out. Excuse me?
1:33.9	Get out of the cockpit. If you can't fly a simple stunt, I'll do it myself. Sir, with all due
1:39.3	respect, these old planes are temperamental. Howard steps closer. You ever heard of the Wright brothers?
1:45.6	Of course I have, sir.
1:47.1	Yeah, they're my fifth cousins.
	...

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