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Conrad Hilton Jr.

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Conrad Hilton Jr.
Hilton in 1957
Born
Conrad Nicholson Hilton Jr.

(1926-07-06)July 6, 1926
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
DiedFebruary 5, 1969(1969-02-05) (aged 42)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationBusinessman
Spouses
  • ​
    ​
    (m. 1950; div. 1951)​
  • Patricia McClintock
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1958; sep. 1967)​
Children2
Parents
RelativesHilton family

Conrad Nicholson "Nicky" Hilton Jr. (July 6, 1926 – February 5, 1969) was an American socialite, hotel heir, and businessman. He was the eldest son of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton and the first husband of actress Elizabeth Taylor.

Life and career

Conrad Nicholson Hilton Jr. was born in Dallas, Texas. His parents were Conrad Hilton, the founder of Hilton Hotels, and Mary Adelaide Barron. Hilton had three younger siblings: Barron, Eric, and Francesca. He is a grand-uncle of Paris Hilton and Nicky Hilton.[1]

Growing up he did not take interest in the family business and he dropped out of Loyola University in Los Angeles to join the Navy.[2] His father enrolled him at École hôtelière de Lausanne in Lausanne, Switzerland but he was suspended after six months.[3][4] In 1951, he became the vice president of the Hilton Corporation and manager of the Bel Air Hotel.[5][6] In his later years, he was a director and chairman of the executive committee of the Hilton International Company.[7]

Hilton died at the age of 42 from a sudden heart attack due to alcoholism on February 5, 1969.[7] His funeral was held at St. Paul's Church in Los Angeles.[7] He is interred in Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City, California.[8]

Personal life

Hilton dated various Hollywood starlets and gained a reputation for being a playboy.[9]

Hilton had an affair with his stepmother, Zsa Zsa Gabor, according to claims made by Gabor after his death.[10] Gabor stated in her 1991 autobiography One Lifetime Is Not Enough, that their affair began when her marriage to Hilton's father was on the rocks and ended during his marriage to Elizabeth Taylor.[11]

In October 1949, Hilton met Taylor at Mocambo nightclub in Los Angeles.[12] The couple were married in a highly publicized ceremony at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills on May 6, 1950.[13][14] They had a tempestuous 8-month marriage due to his gambling, drinking, heroin addiction, and abusive behavior.[3][15][16] During one of his violent outbursts, Hilton kicked Taylor in the stomach and caused her to have a miscarriage.[17][18][19] Taylor announced their separation in December 1950;[20] she was granted a divorce on grounds of mental cruelty on January 29, 1951.[12]

In September 1951, actress Betsy von Furstenberg announced her engagement to Hilton.[21][22] They planned to marry the following spring but they were never married.[23]

In May 1954, Hilton was arrested on drunk charges and received two years of probation.[24][25][26]

In the 1950s, Hilton dated actresses Terry Moore, Mamie Van Doren, Arlene Solof, and Jeanne Carmen.[27][28] In 1957, he dated actresses Natalie Wood and Joan Collins at the same time.[29][30][31] Shortly after, he dated Mexican actress Silvia Pinal, whom he met at the opening of a hotel in Acapulco.[32]

In 1958, Hilton married Patricia McClintock, an oil heiress from Oklahoma. They had two sons, Conrad Nicholson Hilton III and Michael Otis Hilton.[33] Their marriage deteriorated as Hilton became addicted to the sleeping pill Seconal and mixed it with hard liquor.[3] McClintock sued for divorce on February 10, 1964.[34] She charged Hilton with "causing her extreme mental and physical suffering" but they later reconciled.[35] In August 1967, McClintock filed for divorce again, accusing Hilton of "repeated acts and threats of violence."[36] The divorce was never granted but they were separated at the time of Hilton's death.[37]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Conrad Hilton Jr..

References

  1. ^ Gurvis, Sandra (2011). Paris Hilton: A Biography. ABC-CLIO. pp. 5–6. ISBN 978-0-313-37940-6.
  2. ^ Bogle, Donald (June 6, 2017). Elizabeth and Michael: The Queen of Hollywood and the King of Pop—A Love Story. Simon and Schuster. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-4516-7698-3.
  3. ^ a b c Heymann, C. David (Clemens David) (1995). Liz: an intimate biography of Elizabeth Taylor. Internet Archive. New York : Carol Pub. Group. pp. 83–84, 104. ISBN 978-1-55972-267-4.
  4. ^ Taraborrelli, J. Randy (April 1, 2014). The Hiltons: The True Story of an American Dynasty. Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4555-8236-5.
  5. ^ "Liz, Nick Married With All-Star Cast". Daily News. May 7, 1950. p. 56.
  6. ^ Amburn, Ellis (2000). The most beautiful woman in the world : the obsessions, passions, and courage of Elizabeth Taylor. Internet Archive. New York, NY : HarperLargePrint. p. 56. ISBN 978-0-06-019719-3.
  7. ^ a b c "Conrad Hilton Jr., 42, Is Dead; Once Wed to Elizabeth Taylor". The New York Times. February 6, 1969. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  8. ^ The Hiltons
  9. ^ Breen, Jay (July 31, 1952). "Hilton Reveals Plan For Getting Along With Girls". The Daily News. p. 2.
  10. ^ Bennetts, Leslie (September 6, 2007). "It's a Mad, Mad, Zsa Zsa World". Vanity Fair. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
  11. ^ Gábor, Zsa Zsa; Leigh, Wendy (1991). One Lifetime Is Not Enough. Internet Archive. New York, N.Y. : Delacorte Press. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-385-29882-7.
  12. ^ a b Smith, Laura C. (January 26, 1996). "Elizabeth Taylor's divorce from Nicky Hilton". EW.com. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  13. ^ "Hotel Heir Conrad Hilton Weds Elizabeth Taylor". Los Angeles Times. May 7, 1950. p. 1.
  14. ^ "Elizabeth Taylor Weds; 2500 Film Fans Attend". Sunday News. May 7, 1950. p. 1.
  15. ^ Woo, Elaine (March 23, 2011). "Elizabeth Taylor's obituary: outtakes from a 12-year work in progress". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 1, 2011.
  16. ^ Gussow, Mel (March 23, 2011). "Elizabeth Taylor, 1932–2011: A Lustrous Pinnacle of Hollywood Glamour". The New York Times. Retrieved March 23, 2011.
  17. ^ Hadleigh, Boze (October 20, 2017). Elizabeth Taylor: Tribute to a Legend. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 101. ISBN 978-1-4930-3106-1.
  18. ^ Kuczynski, Alex (September 29, 2002). "Good Times and Bum Times, but She's Here". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  19. ^ Mann, William J. (2009). How to be a Movie Star: Elizabeth Taylor in Hollywood. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 120. ISBN 978-0-547-13464-2.
  20. ^ "TO DIVORCE NICK HILTON; Elizabeth Taylor Rules Out Possibility of Reconciliation". The New York Times. December 15, 1950. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 6, 2022.
  21. ^ "Noble Starlet To Wed Hilton". Ogden Standard-Examiner. Utah, Ogden. September 19, 1951. p. 1. Retrieved September 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  22. ^ "Another Gabor". Time. October 15, 1951. p. 104.
  23. ^ "'Betsy Von' Says She'll Wed Nicky in Spring". The Austin American. January 6, 1952. p. 1.
  24. ^ Netbun, Deborah (May 4, 2007). "Seven key dates in Hilton history". Los Angeles Times.
  25. ^ "Nicky, Hilton, Freed From Jail, Threatens 'Expose'". Los Angeles Times. May 14, 1954. p. 2.
  26. ^ "Nicky Hilton Fined and Put on Probation". Los Angeles Times. May 18, 1954. p. 23.
  27. ^ Oppenheimer, Jerry (2006). House of Hilton : from Conrad to Paris: a drama of wealth, power, and privilege. Internet Archive. New York : Crown Publishers. pp. 186, 207–212. ISBN 978-0-307-33722-1.
  28. ^ Mueller, Jim (March 23, 1999). "SEX KITTEN WITH NINE LIVES". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  29. ^ Mosby, Aline (March 1957). "Joan Collins Sets Date Record: Hollywood 'Queen' Is Having a Ball". Press and Sun-Bulletin. p. 16.
  30. ^ Hopper, Hedda (April 14, 1957). "She Grew Up Beautiful". Chicago Sunday Tribune Magazine. p. 26.
  31. ^ "Joan Collins is so tired of falling in love". Sunday Dispatch. April 28, 1957. p. 7.
  32. ^ "La belleza de Silvia Pinal enamoró a un multimillonario de la Época de Oro". El Heraldo de México (in Spanish). Retrieved August 6, 2022.
  33. ^ "Meet the Hiltons: A who's who of May cover star Paris Hilton's famous family". Tatler.com. March 25, 2021. Archived from the original on March 25, 2021. Retrieved April 22, 2021.
  34. ^ "Mrs. Hilton Asks Divorce". The New York Times. February 11, 1964. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 4, 2022.
  35. ^ "Nicky Hilton's Wife Files for Divorce, Custody". Los Angeles Times. February 11, 1964. p. 31.
  36. ^ "'Nicky' Hilton Sued for Divorce". The Boston Globe. August 11, 1967. p. 2.
  37. ^ "Nicky Hilton, Hotel Heir, Playboy, Dies in Sleep at 42". The San Bernardino County Sun. February 6, 1969. p. 5.

Further reading

  • Los Angeles Times, Historical Collection
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