Paris Whitney Hilton (born February 17, 1981) is an American socialite, heiress, media personality, model, singer, author, fashion designer and actress . She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton (founder of Hilton Hotels). Hilton is known for her controversial appearance in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood best friend Nicole Richie. She is also known for her 2004 tongue-in-cheek autobiography,[2] several minor film roles (most notably her role in the horror film House of Wax in 2005), her 2006 music album Paris, and her work in modeling. As a result of several legal incidents, Hilton also served a widely publicized sentence in a Los Angeles County jail in 2007. She is an example of the modern phemomenon of the 'celebutante', the celebrity who rises to fame not because of their talent or work but because of their wealth and controversial lifestyle.
Hilton was born in New York City, New York, to Richard, a businessman, and his wife, Kathy Hilton (née Avanzino), a socialite and actress. She is the oldest of four children: she has one sister, Nicholai Olivia "Nicky" Hilton (b. 1983) and two brothers, Barron Nicholas Hilton II (b. 1989) and Conrad Hughes Hilton III (b. 1994). Hilton is of Norwegian, German, English, Irish, and Italian ancestry.[3] She is a niece of two child stars of the 1970s, Kim and Kyle Richards.
Hilton moved between several exclusive homes in her youth, including a suite in the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, Beverly Hills, and the Hamptons. As a child she was good friends with other socialites, including Nicole Richie and Kim Kardashian.[citation needed] She attended her freshman year of high school at the Marywood-Palm Valley School in Rancho Mirage, California followed by a short time at Convent of the Sacred Heart (which she attended with Lady Gaga)[4] and the Dwight School in New York for her sophomore and junior years. She was then transferred to the Canterbury Boarding School, in New Milford, Connecticut where she was a member of the ice hockey team.[5] In February 1999, she was expelled for violating school rules[6] and later earned her GED.[7][8]
In December 2007, Hilton's grandfather Barron Hilton pledged 97 percent of his estate to a charitable organization founded by his father, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. An immediate pledge of $1.2 billion was made, with a further $1.1 billion due after his death. He cited his father's actions as the motivation for his pledge. According to reports, the potential inheritance of his grandchildren is sharply diminished.[9][10]
