Howard Hughes: Power, Paranoia, and Palace Intrigue, Revised and Expanded

by Geoff Schumacher

This newly revised and expanded edition of Howard Hughes chronicles the life and legacies of one of the most intriguing and accomplished Americans of the twentieth century. Hughes, born into wealth thanks to his father’s innovative drill bit that transformed the oil industry, put his inheritance to work in multiple ways, from producing big-budget Hollywood movies to building the world’s fastest and largest airplanes. Hughes set air speed records and traveled around the world in record time, earning ticker-tape parades in three cities in 1938. Later, he moved to Las Vegas and invested heavily in casinos. He bought seven resorts, in each case helping to loosen organized crime’s grip on Nevada’s lifeblood industry.

Although the public viewed Hughes as a heroic and independent-minded trailblazer, behind closed doors he suffered from germophobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and an addiction to painkillers. He became paranoid and reclusive, surrounding himself with a small cadre of loyal caretakers. As executives battled each other over his empire, Hughes’ physical and mental health deteriorated to the point where he lost control of his business affairs.

This second edition includes more insider details on Hughes’ personal interactions with actresses, journalists, and employees. New chapters provide insights into Hughes’s involvement with the mob, his ownership and struggles as the majority shareholder of TWA and the wide-ranging activities of Hughes Aircraft Company, Hughes’s critical role in the Glomar Explorer CIA project (a deep-sea drillship platform built to recover the Soviet submarine K-129), and more. Based on in-depth interviews with individuals who knew and worked with Hughes, this fascinating biography provides a colorful and comprehensive look at Hughes—from his life and career to his final years and lasting influence.  This penetrating depiction of the man behind the curtain demonstrates Hughes’s legacy, and enduring impact on popular culture.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published February 15, 2007

About the author

Geoff Schumacher grew up in Souther Nevada and has beena reporter, columnist and editor in Las Vegas for 16 years.
Currently, Schumacher is the director of community publications and a weekly columnist for the Las Vegas Review-Journal"

Reviews

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was intrigued about this book as it is an inside look into Howard Hughes Las Vegas endeavors. Sadly with a man so reclusive it's very hard to find any facts. The author does a good job or pulling from lots of Las Vegas newspaper pieces during the time and speaking to some who lived it but still, not a lot of 'inside information' needed to make this book truly great. Yet the author compiles many legends and goes in depth to either debunk or prove them but some are still left as legend. Howard Hughes was truly an interesting individual and his time in Las Vegas seemed to be the end of his mental stability. He truly changed Las Vegas by buying out the mob and turning Gangster's Paradise into a Corporate Wonderland. This book is an easy read and I would recommend it to people like me, but ain't nobody like me so this is gonna sit on my shelf for a long time.

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was passed on to me from a friend. I would not have read it otherwise. Nonetheless, it was an interesting book. There is a lot to be learned about Howard Hughes that is not often told. I think that Shumacher did a good job of condensing the things that are well known about Hughes and bringing out the lesser known details. The book focuses on his life after he moved to Las Vegas and the effects which he had on the city. I'm not sure how the man made so much money when his "investments" seemed to lose him more money than to gain any. At times, Shumacher is redundant, but overall the book is well organized. It is good for just flipping through or to read cover to cover.

[Jeff Russo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enough new material to make it worth my time, even given that it's the 10th Hughes book I've read. Parts of it were rehashes of stuff I know inside out, but some stuff was original (like the interview with Paul Winn and the newer Melvin Dummar stuff.)

The book has no chronology, and does slant somewhat (though not overwhelmingly) to Vegas material. It's sober, straightforward, and light on salacious material.

See all my Howard Hughes book reviews.

[Darrell Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great biography and history of Las Vegas and the influence Hughes had while he was there. I understand the book is out of print; I got my copy from the author who is currently the curator of the Mob Museum in Vegas.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of Howard Hughes. It filled in the questions I had after watching "The Aviator"