Why the memory of this particular evening at Casa Encantada? What was so distinctive about this time and place in the storied lives of the Hilton family? Not much, really. Judging from photographs taken that evening and the memories of some of those who were present, everyone seemed to get along just fine. There were no serious discussions, no arguments, no high-stakes drama. Father and sons talked about politics, sports, current events, and, of course, the hotel business. Sisters-in-law seemed happy to be with one other, gossiping about current fashion trends, joking about their husbands. Not one person stormed out of the house in a fit of fury—not even Zsa Zsa. It was just a lovely meal enjoyed by a large, complicated, and, yes, wealthy family. “Sometimes, it was just that simple,” recalled Trish Hilton, “and those were the good times, the truly memorable times, the times when it was about celebrating family and only family.” Pat Hilton added, “Those were the moments I think I hold closest to my heart, when it was just simple and easy and fun. When we were truly a family.”
Just before dessert was to be served, Conrad raised a glass. “I would like to make a toast,” he announced. As he rose, everyone quieted down and looked his way. He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. “No matter our differences, past or present,” he finally said, “or future, for that matter, and I suppose we shall have them, as well,” he added, glancing at Zsa Zsa, “we are still and always will be family. Maybe Oscar Wilde put it best,” he added with a chuckle, “when he said, ‘After a good dinner, one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relations.’ ” The quote got a good laugh. “And so,” he finished proudly, “here’s to all of us, here’s to the Hilton family.”
“Hear, hear,” said Nicky.
“To the Hiltons,” added Eric.
“The Hilton family,” Barron repeated, as everyone clinked glasses all around the table.
“Yes, and I would like to add just one thing, if you don’t mind,” someone said. It was Zsa Zsa. Of course. All eyes turned to her.
While it probably would have been appropriate that Conrad Hilton have the final word, that any toast of the evening be his and his alone since he was lord of the manor, it had long ago been accepted that if anyone was to break with tradition, it would be Zsa Zsa. Shaking his head and smiling to himself, Conrad sat down and extended both arms gamely to his ex-wife as if to say, “The floor is all yours, my dear.”
Zsa Zsa stood up. “You know, in Hungary,” she began, “at the end of the meal, someone always toasts the host in appreciation of his hospitality. And that someone tonight shall be… me,” she announced grandly while gazing at Conrad. “So, to our host, I would like to say”—she paused for dramatic affect before continuing—“you have driven each and every one of us at this table mad at one time or another, and…” They all waited with apprehension for what was coming next because, after all, this was Zsa Zsa Gabor speaking. “… we love you for it,” she concluded, much to the relief of all. “We really do.” Then, with a dazzling smile, she added, “In America, you say ‘good health.’ But in Hungary, we say ‘Egészségére!’ Now,” she continued with a flourish of her hand, “unfortunately, Americans tend to mispronounce this beautiful Hungarian word. And when they do mispronounce it, the toast they end up saying means, in Hungarian, ‘Here’s to your ass.’ ” At that, everyone at the table roared with laughter. “Luckily,” Zsa Zsa concluded, “I am not American.” She raised her glass. “So, as a proud Hungarian, I would like to say to all of you, my dah-lings… Egészségére!”
“Yes! Egészségére!” Nicky repeated, terribly mangling the pronunciation of the word.
“Egészségére, indeed,” Barron added, also mispronouncing it.
Zsa Zsa took her seat while everyone around her applauded.
“Well,” Conrad admitted, laughing, “I don’t think I can top that, can I? I will say this, though,” he added with a smile. “Whether it’s ‘here’s to your health’ or ‘here’s to your ass,’ either way, you have to admit,” he concluded with a chuckle, “that is still one hell of a good toast!”
Conrad Hilton: a true, rags-to-riches, American success story. Here he poses with the monolithic Stevens Hotel in Chicago which, after he bought it, he renamed—what else?—the Conrad Hilton. (Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)
Zsa Zsa Gabor upon her arrival from Europe in 1941. At the time, she was married to Burhan Belge, press director for the Foreign Ministry of Turkey in Ankara. By the end of that year, however, she would find romance in America with Conrad Hilton. (Bettmann/Corbis/AP Images)
Conrad simply had to have Zsa Zsa, so much so that he married her without the sanctioning of the Catholic Church. He was fifty-five and she was twenty-five when they wed in April of 1942, having known each other less than four months. (Globe Photos)
Though Conrad and Zsa Zsa are seen in happier times here, their divorce in 1946 was difficult. Shortly after, Zsa Zsa would give birth to a daughter, Constance Francesca. It was because of Francesca that Conrad would accept Zsa Zsa in his world for the rest of his life. (Globe Photos)
William Barron Hilton was the first of Conrad’s sons to marry, at the age of twenty, to Marilyn June Hawley. Here they are (far right) on March 19, 1958, embarking from Burbank Airport for a celebration for the new Habana Hilton Hotel. On the left is Conrad Hilton and Dorothy Johnson, a pioneer of nursing at UCLA. (AP Photo)
In October of 1949, Conrad purchased what most people considered the biggest and grandest of all hotels, the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. It was most certainly the crown jewel of Hilton’s international hotel collection. (Photo by Martha Holmes//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Nicky Hilton—Conrad Jr.—believed he had found the love of his life in actress Elizabeth Taylor when he met her in September of 1949. He was twenty-three, she was seventeen. (Photo by Murray Garrett / Getty Images)
It wasn’t long before Nicky decided to marry Elizabeth, despite overwhelming evidence that she wasn’t ready for marriage. Here, the couple poses on Mother’s Day in 1950 with Nicky’s mom, Mary (Conrad’s first wife, left) and Elizabeth’s mother, Sara (right.) (AP Photo)
Best Man Barron (left) adjusts Nicky’s boutonniere on his wedding day, May 6, 1950. (AP Photo/HF)
Nicky and Elizabeth leave the church after their wedding in Los Angeles. (Everett Collection/Rex Features)
Sisters-in-laws Elizabeth Taylor Hilton and Marilyn Hilton were very close. Here, Marilyn delights at a gift received during a baby shower hosted for her by Elizabeth (bottom right) in 1950. Marilyn was pregnant with her son, Steven, at the time. (© 1978 Bob Willoughby/mptvimages.com)
In years to come, Marilyn would appeal to Elizabeth to give Nicky Hilton an annulment in order that he might be able to marry in the Catholic Church. (© 1978 Bob Willoughby/mptvimages.com)
A joyous Elizabeth Taylor dances with Conrad Hilton in October of 1952 in the Cotillion Room of the Hotel Pierre in New York. The two remained friends after Elizabeth divorced Conrad’s son Nicky. (AP Photo)
Eric was the third Hilton son to marry, on August 14, 1954, at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, to Patricia Skipworth. Here, the bride and groom pose with Eric’s mother, Mary Saxon, and his dad, Conrad Hilton. (Retro Photo)
For her daughter Francesca’s eleventh birthday, Zsa Zsa (seen here with her mother, Jolie) hosted a party requiring that boys and girls dress in formal wear. It was at this party that Zsa Zsa learned through an attorney that Conrad had suspicions about the paternity of Francesca. (Leonard Mccombe//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)
The press junkets for the opening of Conrad’s hotels were always star-studded, elaborate affairs. Money was never an object when it came to celebrating a new hotel acquisition. Here, the new Caribe Hilton pool and terrace are seen during the opening aquacade in San Juan, on December 12, 1949. (AP Photo/Puerto Rico News Service)
July 14, 1953: An army of waiters bring forth desserts for guests at the opening of the Castellana Hilton in Madrid, the first Hilton International hotel in Europe. (Time & Life Pictures/Getty
Images)
Conrad poses on the construction site for his new Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles on August 1, 1954. (Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
The completed Beverly Hilton Hotel—another of Conrad’s architectural masterpieces—opened on August 10, 1955. (Bettmann/Corbis/AP Images)
Conrad Hilton worked very closely with the leading politicians of his day to further patriotism and religious values during the Cold War. He is seen here with President Dwight Eisenhower at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington on February 2, 1956. The occasion was the fourth annual prayer breakfast for members of Congress, the Cabinet, and other officials. From left to right are Hilton; Senator John Stennis, the president; Texas businessman and evangelist Howard E. Butt Jr., Senator Frank Carlson, and Senator Price Daniel. (AP Photo)
In a heated telegram, Zsa Zsa insisted to Conrad that only three people ever loved him—she herself, his son Nicky, and his secretary Olive Wakeman. “Please take yourself off this list,” Conrad shot back. (Globe Photos)
Nicky Hilton finally found the love of his life when he met Patricia McClintock, better known as “Trish.” They were married on November 26, 1958. (AP Photo)
Not only was Trish Hilton a knockout, she was a formidable woman who would do anything to love and protect her husband. (© 1978 Bob Willoughby/mptvimages.com)
Nicky and Trish with their two sons, Conrad III and Michael Otis, in April of 1962. (Allan Grant//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Rat Pack Cool, father and sons: (left to right) Barron, Conrad, Nicky, and Barron Hilton at the Aurora Hilton Inn in March 1960. (Hospitality Industry Archives, Conrad N. Hilton College, University of Houston.)
Zsa Zsa and Francesca (with their Spaniel puppy, Paul McCartney) at London’s Heathrow Airport, September 1968. (Tony Wallace/Associated Newspapers/Rex Features)
Nicky Hilton—seen here with his staff—became head of the international division of the Hilton chain in 1966. (Bettmann/Corbis / AP Images)
As bellhops and a desk clerk look on, Nicky greets guests at the Bel-Air hotel. (Bettman/ Corbis/AP Images)
Barron Hilton and his lovely wife, Marilyn, always made such a stunning couple. Here they pose at a party for opera star (and, later, gossip columnist) Cobina Wright. Nicky Hilton is in the background. (© 1978 Wallace Seawell/mptvimages.com)
Nicky and Conrad, formally dressed for another hotel opening. When Conrad made the decision to sell the company’s international division, it caused a serious breach with Nicky. However, the two reconciled before Nicky’s sudden death, in 1969. (Photo by Donald Uhrbrock//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Conrad fell in love and took a third wife, Mary Frances Kelly—better known as “Frannie”—on December 21, 1976, four days before his eighty-eighth birthday. Frances was sixty-one. (Stella Kelly)
Zsa Zsa and Conrad. There may have been years of tension between them having to do with money and power, but they did share many laughs. (© 1978 Wallace Seawell/mptvimages.com)
Chip off the ol’ block: Conrad shortly before his death, with his son Barron. (© 1978 Gunther/mptvimages.com)
Conrad Hilton died on January 3, 1979, at the age of ninety-one. He had led an incredible life, there was no doubt about it. However, years of turmoil would follow his death, caused mostly by his last wishes that family members not prosper from his wealth. (AP Photo/Wally Fong)
The first to contest Conrad’s will was Francesca Hilton. (Bill Howard/Associated Newspapers/Rex Features)
Aligned with Francesca in her fight against the estate, Zsa Zsa would give three lengthy legal depositions. Shattering her enigmatic facade, she exposed her most private secrets in the hope that Conrad’s will might be overturned. (© 1978 John Engstead/mptvimages.com)
Zsa Zsa and Francesca on August 16, 1983. By this time Francesca had lost her case against the Hilton estate. Mother and daughter had been through a lot—but they still had each other. (Ron Galella/Wire Image.)
Barron Hilton—seen here on Capitol Hill with President Ronald Reagan in January 1985—would fare much better than Francesca in his own claim over Conrad’s will. (AP Photo/Budd Gray)
The Hiltons—the Next Generation—at the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo in May 2010: Barron’s son Rick Hilton (far right) and his wife, Kathy, are seen here with three of their children: Barron, Paris, and Nicky. (Anthony Harvey/ Picture Group via AP Images)
Paris Hilton launches her fragrance, Tease, dressed as Marilyn Monroe, in Los Angeles in August 2010. (Picture Perfect/Rex Features)
Three generations of Hilton men: Barron (far left) with his son Rick (far right), with Rick’s son—Barron’s grandson—also named Barron. (Amanda Edwards/ Getty Images)
Sisters Paris and Nicky Hilton pose at a gala on December 5, 2012. (Mitch Levy/ Globe Photos)
The most famous Hilton today is socialite and fashionista Paris Hilton, photographed here with her grandfather Barron Hilton, at Dan Tana’s restaurant on April 14, 2010, in Los Angeles. Many people have said that Paris has the entrepreneurial spirit of her great-grandfather, Conrad Hilton. (Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage)
Conrad Hilton, 1887–1979. (Bachrach/Getty Images)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
J. Randy Taraborrelli is the New York Times bestselling author of After Camelot; The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe; Elizabeth; Jackie, Ethel, Joan: Women of Camelot; Sinatra: A Complete Life; Call Her Miss Ross; and Michael Jackson: The Magic, the Madness, the Whole Story, among other titles. He is also a CBS News consultant. He lives in Los Angeles. For more information, you can visit HiltonDynasty.com.
Acknowledgments and Source Notes
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THE AUTHOR’S SUPPORT TEAM
The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty was a collaborative effort on many levels, from inception to publication. Here, I would like to acknowledge those who assisted me in this endeavor.
It’s been my great honor for the last sixteen years to call Grand Central Publishing my home, and I am deeply indebted to my publisher, Jamie Raab, for creating such a nurturing environment. I would like to also thank Jamie’s dependable assistant, Deb Withey.
I was so excited to work for the first time with the capable Gretchen Young as my editor on this book. I would like to thank her for the many hours she invested in this project. Working with her has been a real honor. As always, I would like to thank managing editor Bob Castillo for his invaluable contributions. Special thanks to Anne Twomey for her excellent cover design. I would also like to thank Claire Brown in art, Sara Weiss in editorial, and Tom Whatley and Giraud Lorber in production. A special thanks to my copy editor, Roland Ottewell.
I would like to thank Louise Sommers from Miller Korzenik Sommers LLP for her very thorough legal review of this work.
Also, I would like to acknowledge my domestic agent, Mitch Douglas, for sixteen years of excellent representation, and my foreign agent, Dorie Simmonds of the Dorie Simmonds Agency in London, who has been with me for almost twenty years.
I am fortunate to have been associated with the same private investigator and chief researcher for more than twenty years, Cathy Griffin. For The Hiltons, I think Cathy outdid herself by locating and then conducting scores of interviews with people who have never before thought of telling their stories.
My personal copy editor, James Pinkston, spent many hours with The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty, perhaps more than with any other book I have written because some of the subject matter was so complex and unique, much having to do with the hotel business. As always, his work was top-notch and I am indebted to him.
I am also deeply indebted to Charles Casillo for his editorial work on this book. He understood these characters so well from the beginning and helped me shape their portrayals. This would be a different book if not for his work on it.
Special thanks go to Maryanne Reed for helping me organize all of the tape-recorded interviews and transcripts that were pivotal to the research behind this book. It was not an easy task, but she di
d an incredible job and I am indebted to her for it. Thank you also to Jane Maxwell, a terrific pop culture historian who allowed me access to all of her files of magazine and newspaper articles relating to the Hilton family, and also access to scores of videos, particularly television broadcasts of Zsa Zsa Gabor over the years. I would also like to thank Cloe Basiline, Suzalie Rose, Mary Whitaker, and Patrick McKenzie in London, who assisted with European research. Also, Marybeth Evans in London did a wonderful job at the Manchester Central Library where she reviewed stacks and stacks of documents about the Hilton hotels worldwide. Thanks also to Suzalie Rose and Carl Mathers, who handled research for me in libraries in Paris relating to this subject matter. Kudos to Dale Manesis for all of his help with the vast collection of Hilton family memorabilia that I would never otherwise have had access to.
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