Kathleen Elizabeth Hilton Avanzino might be most notably known for being a fashion designer and appearing on television.
The 62-year-old started her acting career when she was only nine years old and made appearances on TV shows and movies, including Happy Days, The Young and the Restless, The Rockford Files, Bewitched, and more.
Kathy is now on the 11th season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills even though she previously stated that “they caused her to break down in tears” over watching their lives “fall apart.” Her most recent work includes the 2020 documentary film This Is Paris and Netflix’s reality cooking show Cooking with Paris.
Fashion designer Kathy Hilton started her acting career when she was nine and is currently on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 11 (Credit: Avalon / WENN)
Kathy’s mother, Kathleen Mary Dugan, wanted her children to have a better life than she did and marry rich men who would take care of them.
Married four times to Lawrence Avanzino, Kenneth Richards, Jack Catain, and Richard Fenton, Kathleen Mary Dugan passed away from breast cancer in 2002.
She had two more daughters, Kim Erica Richards (born September 19, 1964) and Kyle Richards Umansky (born January 11, 1969), with Kenneth Edwin Richards.
Kathy lived up to her mother’s dream for her by marrying into the extremely wealthy Hilton family, who are notable for their plethora of Hilton Hotels.
Kathy Hilton lived up to her mother’s dream for her as she married Richard Hilton of the wealthy Hilton family (Credit: Avalon / WENN)
Since both her parents remarried, she has a lot of half-siblings. Two of her half-sisters, Kyle Richards, 53, and Kim Richards, 57, are on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. She also has five paternal half-siblings from her father’s remarriage.
| What is Kathy Hilton's net worth? | She is an American actress, fashion designer and philanthropist with an estimated net worth of $350 million. |
|---|---|
| Full Name: | Kathleen Elizabeth Hilton (née Avanzino; formerly Richards) |
| Born: | March 13, 1959, in New York |
| Who is Kathy Hilton richer than her sisters? | Yes, she is much richer than her half-sisters Kim Richards and Kyle Richards. |
| How did Kathy Hilton meet her husband Richard? | They met at a party while attending a private high school. When they met, she was just 15 years old. They married 5 years later, on November 24, 1979, when Kathy was 20. |
| What did Kathy Hilton do to Paris? | No longer able to manage her behavior as a teenager, Kathy and Richard Hilton sent Paris to the Provo Canyon School in Utah, a boarding school which Paris has accused of inflicting physical and emotional abuse upon her and other students. |
Unfortunately, Kathy, Kyle, and Kim had a falling out when Kyle decided to do a TV show that was roughly based on the life of their mother and the other sisters didn’t agree. Although it seems they’ve put any bad blood behind them.
American Woman, an American sitcom that was inspired by the childhood of actress and reality star Kyle Richards, was canceled after one season on September 5, 2018.
Kathy Hilton with her half-sisters Kim Richards and Kyle Richards in 2012 (Credit: WENN)
Interestingly, Kathy was best friends with Michael Jackson while they were growing up, and they were still close with him when he passed in 2009. They attended the same school, Montclair College Preparatory School in Los Angeles, and made a pact that they would name their first daughters Paris—a pact they both upheld. The only daughter of Michael Jackson and Debbie Rowe, Paris-Michael Katherine Jackson, was born in 1998.
In an interview with Pierce Morgan, Kathy stated, “We met when I was 13 and he was 14 and developed a friendship and a bond throughout the years…We always kept in touch. And then when I moved to New York and he would come, and we’d always go to his concerts. And, you know, we started with — we used to make prank phone calls together, and we were little kids. We had a really great time. And then he came and visited when Paris was born.”
About Richard Hilton
Richard “Rick” Hilton is the grandson of the founder of Hilton Hotels, Conrad Hilton. The Hilton Hotel franchise was started when Conrad purchased a hotel in 1919 and later opened the first Dallas Hilton Hotel in 1925. It only expanded from there.
Rick’s father, Barron Hilton, followed in Conrad’s footsteps and became not only the chairman but also the president and chief executive of Hilton Hotels.
Richard Hilton (R) is the son of the late Barron Hilton (L), former president and chief executive of Hilton Hotels (Credit: WENN)
However, Rick decided to choose his own career in life. Instead of joining the family business, Rick co-founded a real estate brokerage, Hilton & Hyland, of which he’s the chairman.
He is the current husband of Kathy Hilton, father of four, and grandfather.
Richard Hilton co-founded a real estate brokerage named Hilton & Hyland (Credit: Mega / WENN)
How did Kathy and Richard meet?
Richard and Kathy Hilton were technically high school sweethearts. They first met when Kathy (then Kathy Avanzino) was only 15 years old and attending a private high school.
Richard Hilton was 18 years old at the time, and they met each other at a party. They got married when Kathy was 20 years old, in 1979.
Kathy and Richard Hilton met at a party when Kathy was 15 and Richard was 18 (Credit: Avalon / WENN)
Kathy said in an interview with Bravo, “We don’t buy each other gifts like that anymore. For our big anniversary, you’re not gonna believe what I got. It was a sterling silver shell. But [Rick] collects shells. It was for him. I buy him a sweater for Christmas and his anniversary, always.”
Although they may not lavish expensive gifts on one another every chance they get, they’ve obviously had a long, happy marriage so far.
How Long Have Kathy and Richard Hilton been married?
While many celebrity couples have multiple divorces and marriages, Kathy and Richard Hilton are actually still together. The couple has been happily married and just celebrated 42 years in December after Paris’ wedding in November.
Kathy and Richard Hilton married in 1979 and marked their 42nd anniversary in November 2021 (Credit: Kathy Hilton / Instagram)
Not too much is publicly known about their wedding day, but Kathy did share a beautiful photo on Instagram of her posing in her stunning lacy dress with a bouquet, flower crown, and veil.
Net worth
Kathy and Rick have a net worth of approximately $350 million. Even though Kathy stopped acting for a while at 15 years old, she has since resumed her acting career and is also an extremely successful fashion designer and business owner.
She owned and ran a store called The Staircase on Sunset Plaza that sold signature gifts and antiques.
Richard and Kathy Hilton have an estimated net worth of $350 million (Credit: Avalon / WENN)
Rick’s wealth stems from his Hilton & Hyland business. Rick and Kathy currently own a home estimated to be worth 55 million dollars!
How Many Children Do They Have?
Kathy and Rick had their first child, Paris Whitney Hilton, in 1981, two years after they got married. They have four children together: Paris Hilton, 40, The richest and most famous child of Kathy and Rick is their oldest child, Paris Hilton. Paris currently has nearly 18 million Instagram followers and almost 17 million on Twitter. Plus, her net worth is $300 million. This is due to her work as a model, DJ, singer, entrepreneur, actress, and, of course, being an heiress of a wealthy family. She’s also an author and published her first book in 2004, Confessions of an Heiress. In 2011, she was named “Billion Dollar Entrepreneur” by Variety. Paris is currently still working in the entertainment industry and hosts a podcast called This is Paris. Additionally, she married her boyfriend of about one year, Carter Reum, on November 11, 2021. Nicholai Olivia Hilton also dove into the world of business, modeling, and became a fashion designer by launching her first clothing line in 2004, following in her mother’s footsteps. Also, in 2004, Nicky and Todd Meister impulsively decided to get married in Las Vegas, but it only lasted about three months before they got an annulment, claiming their careers and impulse decision making as the reasons it didn’t work out. In 2015, Nicky married James Rothschild after they dated for about four years. They are still together and have two daughters, Lily Grace Victoria Rothschild and Theodora Marilyn Rothschild. Nicky has 1.3 million followers on Instagram, about 670k Twitter followers, and a net worth of $40 million. Barron Nicholas Hilton II, named after his grandfather, is the first son and third child of Kathy and Rick Hilton. Although he’s not as famous as his sisters, he doesn’t seem to mind since he’s happily married to Tessa Grafin von Walderdorff, a countess. He became a father in 2020 when they welcomed their first child and daughter, Milou Alizee Hilton. Barron has 397k followers on Instagram and nearly 44k on Twitter. His net worth is approximately 5 million dollars. While the older Hilton siblings seem to be happy in life, their relationships, and their careers, Conrad Hughes Hilton has struggled for years with drug and alcohol use. He’s been arrested multiple times and spent time in jail, although he’s not the only one since Paris also did jail time in 2007. Although he is presumed to be a millionaire like his siblings, his net worth is not known. He’s not currently in a relationship, and his last one ended poorly with Hunter Salomon, who filed for a restraining order that Conrad violated. Even though he has no posts on Instagram, Conrad has 124k followers.
The eldest child of Kathy and Richard Hilton, Paris Hilton married Carter Reum in November 2021 (Credit: Avalon / WENN)Nicky Hilton
Fashion designer and hotel heiress Nicky Hilton is married to banking heir James Rothschild (Credit: Sheri Determan / WENN)Barron Hilton II
Barron Hilton II married countess Tessa Gräfin von Walderdorff in 2018 (Credit: Mega / WENN)Conrad Hughes Hilton
Conrad Hughes Hilton is the youngest child of Kathy and Richard Hilton (Credit: Winston Burris / WENN)