"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena..."

"Its my ruddy life"

"If you don't go when you want to go, when you do go, you'll find you've gone."

"If you don't follow your dreams, you might as well be a vegetable."

"Invercargill, I-N-V-E-R-C-A-R-G-I-L-L. Sometimes I spell it with one 'L' to save ink."

"You live more in 5 minutes on a bike like this going flat out than some people live in their lifetime."

"Do your worst, Mr. Hughes!"

"Jude Law - Errol Flynn"

"Gwen Stefani - Jean Harlow"

"Adam Scott - Johnny Meyer"

"Danny Huston - Jack Frye"

"Matt Ross - Glenn Odekerk"

"Ian Holm - Professor Fitz"

"Alan Alda - Sen. Ralph Owen Brewster"

"Alec Baldwin - Juan Trippe"

"John C. Reilly — Noah Dietrich"

"Kate Beckinsale — Ava Gardner"

"Cate Blanchett — Katharine Hepburn"

"Leonardo DiCaprio — Howard Hughes"

"Imagine a life without limits."

"For some men, the sky was the limit. For him, it was just the beginning."

"Some men dream the future. He built it."

"You just placed the largest order for planes in the history of the damned planet, Howard!"

"Now I'm glad Jack is feeling so sunny about this, but I've seen the books. Now, I'm not just crying wolf this time; we're in serious trouble! You've gotta make a choice. You want to be bankrupted by the big plane or by the big airline?"

"Now, it's been a great ride. We've had a hell of a lot of fun. But you're losing $25,000 a day doing this. Every day."

"There's too much Howard Hughes in Howard Hughes. That's the trouble."

"Can't you eat ice cream out of a bowl like everyone else in the world?!"

"Ha! Men can't be friends with women. They must possess them or leave them be. It's a primitive urge from caveman days. It's all in Darwin: Hunt the flesh, kill the flesh, eat the flesh. That's the male sex all over."

"You see, Howard, we're not like everyone else. Too many acute angles. Too many... eccentricities. We have to be very careful not to let people in or they'll make us into freaks."

"Tell Jimmy I want ten chocolate chip cookies, medium chips, none too close to the outside."

"The way of the future. The way of the future. The way of the future. The way of the future. The way of the future."

"[to Katharine Hepburn] You come out of the blue and tell me you’re leavin' me and have you have the nerve to expect graciousness?!"

"I am supposed to be many things that are not complimentary. I am supposed to be capricious, I have been called a playboy, I have even been called an eccentric. But I do not believe I have the reputation of being a liar. Now, 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 is more than a city block! Now I put the sweat of my life into this thing, I got my reputation all rolled up in it, and 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 that I have folded and taken a run-out powder, but, well, I have had just about enough of this nonsense! Good day!"

"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 is 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!"

"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. I need to sleep. I should drink something first. I should have some... some milk. Wait a minute... what if that milk is sour? That milk is bad I shouldn't pick up the bottle with my right hand. And I shouldn't take the top off with my left...put it in my pocket. My left pocket."

"Tell Juan Trippe something for me. Tell him thanks for the flowers. And he can kiss... both sides... of my ass."

"Orange juice has... nutritional value. There's some... flies... outside the window. Little Howard likes... citrus. Don't he just."