Adorable Story #120: Howard Hawks

Hollywood's Maverick

“A good movie is three good scenes and no bad ones.”

— Howard Hawks

American director Howard Hawks (1896 – 1977, right) on the set of his film ‘Land of the Pharaohs’, on location at the Giza Plateau in Egypt, 1955. Behind him is the Great Sphinx of Giza, and the Pyramid of Khafre — Photo (c) by Ernst Haas/Getty Images)

Howard Hawks was the director who could do it all: whether it was comedy, drama, or westerns, he made every movie look easy.

From his early days flying planes in World War I to his years working with Hollywood legends, Howard Hawks always brought excitement and sharp wit to everything he touched. He had a special talent for turning actors into stars and making every scene sparkle with clever dialogue.

Off the movie set, Hawks lived just as boldly. He loved fast cars, flying, and adventure, and he had a knack for making friends with some of Hollywood’s biggest names.

---

Table of Contents: Early Years / WWI / Hollywood Beginnings / Directorial Debut / 1920s / 1930s / 1940s / Later Career (1950s–1960s) / Legacy and Influence / Personal Life

---

If you aren’t subscribed yet, hit the subscribe button below to receive the Adorable Stories every weekend, directly in your inbox:

---

Early Years

Howard Winchester Hawks was born on May 30th, 1896, in Goshen, Indiana.

His father, Frank Winchester Hawks, was a prosperous paper manufacturer.

Even more influential was his mother’s side: her father, C.W. Howard, was a wealthy industrialist who founded the Neenah Paper Company in Wisconsin, which supplied high-quality paper to many industries, including the motion picture business.

Howard was the eldest of five children.

Howard attended Phillips Exeter Academy and, later, Cornell University where he graduated in mechanical engineering.

As a teenager, Hawks developed an interest in cars and flying—interests that would later influence his films.

WWI

Howard Hawks served during World War I as a flight instructor for the U.S. Army Air Service.

He began his service in April 1917, after the United States entered the war: he trained at the Curtiss Flying School in Newport News, Virginia, and then at the University of California’s School of Military Aeronautics in Berkeley.

After qualifying as a pilot, he was assigned to Ellington Field in Houston, Texas, where he worked as an instructor and teaching new pilots to fly.

Albeit he did not serve on the combat front, his experience with aviation during this period had a lasting impact on his later film career, inspiring the realistic flying sequences and themes of camaraderie seen in movies like The Dawn Patrol (1930) and Only Angels Have Wings (1939).

Hollywood Beginnings

After World War I, Howard Hawks returned to California, unsure of what direction his career should take.