The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty - Hardcover

Taraborrelli, J. Randy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1455516694 ISBN 13: 9781455516698

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2014

Synopsis

THE HILTONS is a sweeping saga of the success-and excess-of an iconic American family. Demanding and enigmatic, patriarch Conrad Hilton's visionary ideas and unyielding will established the model for the modern luxury hotel industry. But outside the boardroom, Conrad struggled with emotional detachment, failed marriages, and conflicted Catholicism. Then there were his children: Playboy Nicky Hilton's tragic alcoholism and marriage to Elizabeth Taylor was the stuff of tabloid legend. Barron Hilton, on the other hand, deftly handled his father's legacy, carrying the Hilton brand triumphantly into the new millennium. Eric, raised apart from his older brothers, accepted his supporting role in the Hilton dynasty with calm and quiet-a stark contrast to the boys' much younger half-sister Francesca, whose battle for recognition led her into courtrooms and conflict. The cast of supporting players includes the inimitable Zsa Zsa Gabor, who was married to Conrad briefly and remained a thorn in his side for decades, and a host of other Hollywood and business luminaries with whom the Hiltons crossed paths and swords over the years.

About this title

About the Author:

J. Randy Taraborrelli is a respected journalist, a recognizable entertainment personality, and in-demand guest on many television programs including Today, Good Morning America, The Early Show, Entertainment Tonight, and CNN Headline News. He is the bestselling author of thirteen books.

From Booklist:

Taraborrelli is a journalist and celebrity biographer. His family saga of the Hiltons is filled with enticing gossip as well as well-­documented, if sometimes tawdry, facts about various members. The founder of the hotel empire, Conrad Hilton, was certainly an interesting, in some ways admirable, but enigmatic character. Taraborrelli portrays him as a true visionary capable of thinking and dreaming on a large scale while keeping a firm hold upon economic realities. Yet he seems to have been a tortured soul who lacked a personal touch and, consequently, could not win affection or loyalty from business associates or family members. His successors, however, were not particularly interesting, and the author seems to be straining to make them worthy of his attention. Son Nicky, for example, best known as the first husband of Elizabeth Taylor, was a shallow, self-absorbed alcoholic; the current celebrity Hilton, Paris, seems both the perpetrator and the victim of her thirst for public attention. Taraborrelli is a good writer, who, in this case, would have benefited from more compelling subjects. --Jay Freeman

About this edition

• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 1455516694
• ISBN 13: 9781455516698
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 560