Howard Hughes

Billionaire, extreme OCD recluse

Contemporary weird famous 172 sayings

Sayings by Howard Hughes

His ears made him look like a taxicab with both doors open.

Approx. 1930s-1940s — Referring to movie star Clark Gable.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Sometimes I truly fear that I am losing my mind. And if I did it it would be like flying blind.

Approx. 1950s-1970s — Reflecting on his mental state.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I'm not a paranoid deranged millionaire. Goddamit, I'm a billionaire.

Approx. 1970s — Addressing public perception of his mental state and wealth.
Strange & Unusual Confirmed

Wash four distinct and separate times, using lots of lather each time from individual bars of soap.

Approx. 1950s-1970s — Part of his detailed instructions for staff, reflecting his germophobia.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Never make a decision. Let someone else make it and then if it turns out to be the wrong one, you can disclaim it, and if it is the right one you can abide by it.

Not specified — A cynical approach to decision-making.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

She'll do better than this, Odie. She'll do three-sixty-five; I just know it.

1935 — Said to his mechanic, Odie, immediately after a near-fatal plane crash while attempting a speed reco…
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I have learned you cannot fulfil a great purpose like the building of Nevada and make ice-cream on the front porch every night too.

Approx. 1950s-1960s — Metaphorical statement about the demands of grand ambitions.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

No! Never check an interesting fact!

Not specified — Advice or personal rule.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I'm going to turn this gal into a sex symbol.

Approx. 1940s-1950s — Referring to actress Terry Moore.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I sleep. In this room. In the dark. I have a place I can sleep. I have a chair. That's just beautiful. Oh, yeah. I like the desert. It's hot there in the desert, but it's clean. It's clean.

Approx. 1950s-1970s — Describing his reclusive living conditions and obsession with cleanliness.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Do not fraternize with persons outside the office. Do not engage in long, unnecessary conversations with secretaries. Be sure that all confidential and secret material from wastepaper baskets is properly destroyed and burned. Tell your wife as little as possible.

Not specified, during his period of detailed instructions to staff. — From a six-page directive Hughes wrote to his male employees.
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

first soak and remove the label, and then brush the cylindrical part of the can over and over until all particles of dust, pieces of paper label, and, in general, all sources of contamination have been removed.

Approx. 1950s-1970s — Part of a staff manual Hughes wrote, detailing a nine-step process for disinfecting and washing cann…
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I'm not a paranoid, I'm a realist.

1950s — Reported conversation
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I like to work, I like to be busy, and I've got a lot of things to do.

1940s — Interview
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

If I can't do it better, I don't do it at all.

1930s-1940s — General philosophy
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

Money is no object. It cannot be. It's only a tool.

1950s — Reported conversation
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I'm a man who just wants to be left alone.

1960s — Reported statement during reclusiveness
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I have no desire to be remembered as a playboy. I want to be remembered as a serious businessman.

1930s — Reported conversation
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I have never in my life made a business deal in which I did not have the conviction that I was making money for the other fellow as well as for myself.

1940s — Interview
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable

I'm not a genius. I'm just a guy who's willing to work hard.

1930s — Reported conversation
Strange & Unusual Unverifiable