In his later years, eccentric behavior took over, which is in part what led him to live a withdrawn lifestyle.
One of the richest people on Earth during his lifetime, Howard Hughes was an industrialist, engineer, aviator, movie director and producer, and philanthropist. While he developed a repute for making controversial and costly movies in the late 1920s, he was more famous for being a highly influential aviator. He constructed the Hughes H-1 Racer and H4 Hercules, set numerous world air-speed records, and bought and enlarged Trans World Airlines. In his later years, eccentric behavior took over, which is in part what led him to live a withdrawn lifestyle.