The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty (73 page)

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
.