Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is a celebrity from the United States and an heir to the Hilton Hotel fortune, as well as her father's real estate fortune. In addition to being a famous socialite, she has also done modeling and acting. She has been described as a "celebutante," a portmanteau of "celebrity" and "debutante.
Paris Hilton BackgroundHilton was born in New York City, the eldest of four children of Richard Hilton and Kathy Richards. Her younger sister is Nicky Hilton, and her younger brothers are Barron Hilton II and Conrad Hilton II.
On the maternal side of her family, Hilton is a niece of two popular child stars of the 1970s, Kim Richards and Kyle Richards, who appeared in the motion picture Escape to Witch Mountain and TV shows like Nanny and the Professor, Little House on the Prairie, and later, ER. By marriage, she also is related to Zsa Zsa Gabor (the Hungarian-born actress who married Paris Hilton's great-grandfather Conrad Hilton) as well as Elizabeth Taylor (the actress's first husband was Paris Hilton's great-uncle, Conrad Nicholson Hilton Jr.).
Her paternal grandparents are hotel chairman Barron Hilton and his wife, the former Marilyn Hawley, and her paternal great-grandparents were Hilton Hotel founder Conrad Hilton and his first wife, Mary Barron. When Conrad Hilton died in 1979, he left nothing in his will to his children or other descendants. Barron Hilton contested this decision and won in 1988. According to Forbes magazine in 2005, the net worth of Barron Hilton is estimated at just over US $1 billion, of which Paris is expected to inherit a little over US $50 million.
Hilton moved between several exclusive homes in her youth, including a suite in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, Beverly Hills, and the Hamptons. Currently, her parents own a $30.5 million mansion in Bel Air, a $12.3 million estate in the Hamptons, as well as $10 million house in the Hollywood Hills in which she and her sister stay to give them privacy and easy access to clubs in Los Angeles.
After attending high school at the Dwight School in New York, but dropping out and eventually earning a GED, Hilton decided not to attend a university. Hilton worked as a fashion model for Catherine Malandrino and Marc Bouwer, and on an ad campaign for Italian label Iceberg. She appeared in cameo roles in Zoolander (2001), The Cat in the Hat (2003) and Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (2004).
Hilton shot to prominence when a sex video of her with then-boyfriend Rick Salomon was leaked onto the Internet shortly after The Simple Life debuted, causing a sensation. On June 9, 2004 it was released as a DVD titled 1 Night in Paris which was presented by Salomon. Hilton sued Salomon for releasing the tape, but the suit was settled. Hilton received US $400,000 and a percentage of the profits, which were donated to charity.
Hilton is often seen with her Chihuahua, Tinkerbell. She has been voted the worst dog owner ever in an online poll by New York Dog and Hollywood Dog, while Joss Stone was named as the best dog owner.
Hilton was engaged to Tommy Hilfiger model Jason Shaw from mid-2002 to early 2003. On May 29, 2005, she announced her engagement to Paris Latsis, a Greek shipping heir. However, on October 1, 2005, Hilton announced that the five month engagement had been called off.
Pari Hilton Model, actress, entrepreneur
Hilton first came into the public eye as one of the more famous New York socialites and heirs. Along with her sister, she would make countless appearance in the party section of New York society magazines. In recent years Hilton has gained recognition by appearing in television, movies, commercials, and modeling photographs. According to Forbes magazine, in 2003-2004 she earned approximately US$7.5 million for her television and movie roles, but in 2004-2005 her earnings from television, movies, modeling, and personal appearances have earned her an additional $15.5 million. During this period Forbes Magazine has ranked Hilton as one of the top 100 celebrities in the world.
She also appeared in the short subjects QIK2JDG and L.A. Knights, as well as minor and supporting roles in the feature movies House of Wax, The Hillz, Wonderland, Uptown Girls, Raising Helen and Nine Lives. Hilton won the 2005 Worst Supporting Actress Razzie for House of Wax. She landed her first lead role in a theatrical release with National Lampoon's Pledge This! (2005).
Hilton and Nicole Richie (daughter of Lionel) starred in the 2003 FOX hit reality series The Simple Life, in which they lived with a family on their farm in rural Altus, Arkansas. Highlights of the show included the girls performing poorly at various jobs, making out with the local boys, and numerous instances of them shown as "fish out of water." It was followed by two more seasons: The Simple Life 2: Road Trip and The Simple Life 3: Interns. In April 2005, Hilton announced that she severed both personal and professional ties with Richie. Neither party fully commented on the reason why, but it's rumored that the feud started when Richie played a copy of the "One night in Paris" sex tape at a party (Richie denied this). Both had been friends since childhood. Kimberly Stewart and Bethany Carkhuff were raised as potential Simple Life replacements for Richie, but FOX eventually dropped the series saying they didn't see a place for it in their schedule. A month later, cable network E! picked up the fourth season with both Hilton and Richie as participants, though both would do tasks separately and not be seen together on screen.
Hilton also guest starred in episodes of teen drama The OC and noir detective show Veronica Mars.
On top of her acting career, she has also helped to design purses for Samantha Thavasa and Toys for Tots, and has created her own jewelry line for Amazon.com. Currently, her design work earns around US$250,000 per year.
In November 2004, Hilton participated in Sean "P. Diddy" Combs' Vote or Die campaign, to encourage youths to vote in the Presidential election. She drew criticism when it was revealed she did not vote, nor had she even registered to do so.
She is the founder of Heiress Records, a label on which she plans to release her debut album in 2006, tentatively titled Paris is Burning. Her planned first single entitled 'Screwed' was leaked to the Internet and has been remixed by Alex G. Her producers for the album include Jane Wiedlin from The Go-Go's and Scott Storch. She will be covering Blondie's hit "Heart of Glass" for her album. She describes the album as pop, rock and hip hop, she says it sounds like Blondie and Madonna. Hilton has announced in some interviews that her album is due in April 2006. Paris also has a single out "Caught Up In The Rapture" with Wong-G and Gizelle.
In early May of 2004, Parlux Fragrances (who have made fragrances for Guess, Perry Ellis, XOXO) announced that they would be releasing a fragrance line created by Hilton. The perfume would be aptly named "Paris Hilton". The scent was described as "a brilliant flirtatious charm, this head-turning fragrance can be dressed up or down for both day and evening wear." The scent consists of "an ethereal halo with delicious notes of frozen Apple and juicy Peach Nectar wrapped with sparkling Muguet and a splash of wet Ozone. A luminous bouquet of sensual floralcy is at the heart of this fragrance. Delicate Mimosa Blossoms are entwined with sheer Freesia and Night-Blooming Jasmine petals, while heady, rich Tuberose provides depth and texture."
The perfume launch was a success. Originally set to be a small release, demand became popular and they had a wide release before Christmas of 2004. The launch was a big part of the Parlux stock increasing 30%. Ilia Lekach, a CEO at Parlux, said "I am delighted with our record performance and I'm optimistic regarding results through the end of our fiscal year. We have recently commenced shipments of our Paris Hilton fragrance which has surpassed our expectations."
After the success of Hilton's perfume, Parlux Fragrances had her create Paris Hilton for Men, a cologne that has a "sensual aura." The packaging states: "Paris Hilton knows how she likes a man to smell, so she has created a scent to share with her male admirers around the world." The cologne is available at Lazarus-Macy's. Sales reports are not available. Hilton's latest perfume is called Just Me by Paris Hilton. She claims there will be more to follow.
On February 16, 2006, the Internet site IMDb reported:
* "Socialite Paris Hilton has reportedly been asked to play a young version of celebrated humanitarian Mother Teresa in a movie biopic. Indian director T. Rajeevnath has contacted the hotel heiress about taking the lead role in his new film, which will chronicle the late nun's early life. He tells MTV.co.uk, "My agents in California have contacted Paris Hilton."
Paris Hilton Celebrity and sex symbolHilton and her sister, Nicky, are known for their jet-set lifestyles. Paris in particular has been trying to build herself into a marketable brand much like Donald Trump, claiming she must be regarded as a role model.
She has been widely discussed by tabloids. In 2000, the National Enquirer reported a casual friendship with Leonardo DiCaprio as something far more intimate. She has also been linked with other young celebrities, including actor Edward Furlong, boxer Oscar De La Hoya, model Jason Shaw, Chicago Bears football player Brian Urlacher, and singers Rob Mills, Deryck Whibley, and Backstreet Boy Nick Carter.
In the fall of 2004, Hilton released a book, Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose, which brings full color photographs of her and gives her tips on the dos and don'ts of living as an heiress. Hilton was reportedly given a $100,000 advanced payment for this book. Some in the media panned the writing as amateurish, and the book was parodied by Robert Mundell on The Late Show with David Letterman. Still, it became a New York Times bestseller.
In the March 2005 issue of Playboy, she was named the "Sex Star of the Year" in their list of the 25 Sexiest Celebrities. Someone appearing to be her was on the cover of the issue, but she did not pose for it; she says she does not know where Playboy got that picture.
Hilton has also received some gossip attention for a variety of other incidents, mainly party antics. She has been said to have cut in front of others in line for a public bathroom, saying she only wanted to look at herself in the mirror. She has reportedly danced on bar tops, worn shirts reading "Got Blow?," Her most famous quote is probably "That's hot!" as she has used it in many situations.
Hilton received an offer from the U.S. version of the reality TV show "Big Brother" to participate in their show. Rumors said she has been offered more than US$1.8 million. If she will agree to be in the reality-show, "she will join a bizarre band of ex-strippers, beauty queens, a married couple and a virgin, who are living under 24 hour scrutiny on the set".
Hilton has also been featured in several television commercials including a T-Mobile commercial for which she was paid $250,000 and her Carl's Jr. commercial (see more below) for which she was paid $400,000 according to Forbes Magazine. She has also been a spokeswoman for the products of GUESS clothing.
Korn (sometimes typed KoЯn to imitate the band's logo) is a heavy metal/alternative metal band from Bakersfield, California, currently signed to EMI/Virgin Records. They are often credited with creating the nu metal genre and inspiring a wave of nu metal, alternative metal, and rap metal bands in the mid 1990s and early 2000s, assisting, in particular, Limp Bizkit (who were discovered by Korn themselves).
The band followed up their debut album with their second album, Life Is Peachy, in October, 1996. The album was more successful than their first, debuting at No.3 on The Billboard 200. It spawned a Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance in the song "No Place to Hide." The album's release featured the first live internet broadcast by the band. KoRn performed songs from the new album and took calls from internet fans watching at home. The event was hosted by longtime KoRn friend, Adam Carolla, known best for his hosting of Loveline. The online performance was one of the first of its kind and helped launch KoRn's internet presence which soon became a predominant part of their marketing and availability to fans.
