The movie The Aviator was sloppy around the edges (what the hell were they thinking with those bizarre Wainwright cameos in the Cocoanut Grove scenes?) in spite of some excellent acting. But, one thing I am left with after viewing the film is a lingering fascination with Howard Hughes. His innovation and ability to execute on his vision were staggering. I can't get through the film without searching on my iPhone for photos of Hughes with any number of starlettes, the spectacle of the Hell's Angels premiere, or the morbid glimpses of Hughes on a stretcher being loaded into an ambulance after crashing his plane into a Beverly Hills house.

There's a wonderful unofficial collection of Hughes images (and a few videos) on Flickr. A former Hughes employee chimes in from time to time in the comments to correct details (see more from Paul B. WInn, Hughes' former personal secretary, on this sprawling Facebook thread.)

Don't you just love the web? It makes stalking so easy and media-rich.