Paris Hilton

Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American celebrity and businesswoman.

She is best-known through her work in the television series The Simple Life. She has also appeared in several minor film roles, most notably in the horror film House of Wax in 2005. In 2004 she published a tongue-in-cheek autobiography. In 2006, she released her debut album Paris. Hilton's career pursuits have included singing, modeling, acting, writing, and television. As a result of several legal incidents, Hilton served a widely publicized sentence in an L.A. County jail facility in 2007.

Hilton is the oldest of four children of Richard and Kathy Hilton. She has a younger sister, Nicky, and younger brothers Barron and Conrad.

On the maternal side of her family, she is a niece of two child stars of the 1970s, Kim Richards and Kyle Richards. Hilton was related by marriage to Nicole Richie's godmother, Nancy Davis, when Nancy's brother, Greg, was married to Kim Richards.

Hilton's paternal grandparents are hotel chairman Barron Hilton, and his wife, the former Marilyn Hawley; Barron Hilton's parents were Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton and his first wife, Mary Barron.

Hilton moved between several exclusive homes in her youth, including a suite in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, Beverly Hills, and the Hamptons. She attended Marywood-Palm Valley School in Rancho Mirage, California her freshman year of high school; Dwight School in New York for her sophomore and junior years; then a few months at Canterbury School in New Milford, Connecticut before dropping out. Hilton eventually earned a GED.

In December 2007, Hilton's grandfather, hotel magnate Barron Hilton, pledged 97 percent of his estate to a charitable organisation founded by his father, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. An immediate pledge of $1.2 billion was made, and a further $1.1 billion after his death. He cited the actions of his father as the motivation for his pledge. According to reports, the potential inheritance of his grandchildren is sharply diminished.

Career

Hilton has worked as a model, actress, musician, and businesswoman. According to Forbes Magazine, she earned approximately $2 million in 2003–2004, $6.5 million in 2004–2005, and $7 million in 2005–2006.

As a model

Hilton began modeling as a child, appearing first at charity events. At 19, she signed with Donald Trump's modeling agency, T Management. Hilton has also worked with Ford Models in New York, Models 1 Agency in London, Nous Model Management in Los Angeles, and Premier Model Management in London. She has appeared in numerous advertising campaigns, including Iceberg Vodka, GUESS, Tommy Hilfiger, Christian Dior, and Marciano. In 2001, Hilton began to develop a reputation as a socialite, being identified as "New York's leading It Girl" whose fame was beginning to "extend beyond the New York tabloids". She has since appeared in several magazines, including the April 2004 issue of Maxim. In a recent interview in Elle, Hilton exclaimed her happiness at being flat-chested and her puzzlement about women who want bigger breasts.

As an actress

Hilton's co-starred with Nicole Richie, the adopted daughter of Lionel Richie, in the Fox reality series The Simple Life, which premiered on December 2, 2003. The Simple Life ran for three seasons on Fox. The network canceled the show after a dispute between Hilton and Richie, but the show was subsequently aired by E! Entertainment Television for the fourth and fifth seasons, with talks of a sixth season to follow. Hilton has also guest-starred in episodes of The O.C., The George Lopez Show, Las Vegas, American Dreams and Veronica Mars. Furthermore, she appeared in several music videos, including "It Girl" by John Oates and "Just Lose It" by Eminem. Hilton has made cameo appearances in several films, notably Zoolander (2001), Wonderland (2003), and The Cat In The Hat (2003). She landed minor and supporting roles in the feature films Nine Lives (2002), Raising Helen (2004), The Hillz (2004), and House of Wax (2005). Her role as Paige Edwards in House of Wax won the Teen Choice Award for "Best Scream" and earned her a nomination for "Choice Breakout Performance – Female". She also earned a nomination for "Best Frightened Performance" at the 2006 MTV Movie Awards. She landed her first lead roles in 2006 with the straight-to-DVD releases National Lampoon's Pledge This! and Bottom's Up. Hilton is scheduled to appear as the lead in several upcoming theatrical releases, including an as yet untitled superhero movie involving Stan Lee and a romantic comedy called The Hottie and the Nottie. Planning is underway for an eponymous cartoon series following the animated life of Hilton, her sister Nicky, and her dog Tinkerbell. As of August 2007, Hilton is part of the cast of Repo! the Genetic Opera, which began filming in September 2007.

As a recording artist

Hilton founded Heiress Records, a sub-label of Warner Bros. Records, in 2004 and released her self-titled debut album, Paris, under that label on August 22, 2006. Although the album reached number six on the Billboard 200 for a week, its total sales volume has been low. All Music Guide commented that the album was "more fun than anything released by Britney Spears or Jessica Simpson, and a lot fresher, too." On the whole, critical reception was mixed. On July 16, 2007 Hilton confirmed that she was working on a new album with producer Scott Storch.

As an author

n the autumn of 2004, Hilton released an autobiographical book, Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose, co-written by Merle Ginsberg, which includes full color photographs of her and her advice on life as an heiress. Hilton reportedly received a $100,000 advance 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. The book became a New York Times bestseller. Hilton followed it up with a designer diary, also with Ginsberg, called Your Heiress Diary: Confess It All to Me.

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