The wide-open canvas, however, soon became cluttered with
the arrival of scores of British aircraft.
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acrobatic maneuvering—until the action was suddenly halted
with a single command: “Cut!”
The hair-raising scene took place over the skies of northern
California, not battle-torn Europe. And the order wasn’t given
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aviation enthusiast Howard Hughes Jr., shooting his epic World
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and a scandalous performance by an unknown teenage actress,
Jean Harlow. But then and now, the movie is best rememberedfor the stunning aerial sequences that signaled the arrival of
Hughes on the world stage.
Hughes’ interest in flight developed at an early age. His
father, a Houston businessman who made a fortune developing
oil-drilling equipment, treated his son to a short ride aboard a
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of becoming an aviator was soon realized when his father died
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After taking the helm of the Hughes Tool Company and an
arranged marriage to Ella Rice, a wealthy socialite and grand-
niece of the founder of Rice University (where Hughes dropped
out after his freshman year), the ambitious young man headed
west to make a name for himself in the burgeoning movie indus-
\Za ̧\PMÅZ[\WNUIVaWJ[M[[QWV[\PI\LMÅVMLPQ[ZMUIZSIJTM62 AH september 2019
THE MENACING SQUADRON OF FOKKER D.VIIS, LED
BY LEGENDARY ACE MANFRED VON RICHTHOFEN,
PROWLED IN TIGHT FORMATION AGAINST A
TRANQUIL BACKDROP OF THICK, BILLOWY CLOUDS.
AERIAL MELEE
Shot over northern California,
where cloudy weather provided
needed perspective, the film’s
climactic dogfight scene used
a cast of authentic warbirds.