US:Barron Hilton, the son of the man who founded the hotel chain and made the family fortune, is to give all but a fraction of his $2.3 billion to charity, in the latest philanthropic gesture by the dynasty.
His son, Steven Hilton, announced that his father would give 97 per cent of his $2.3 billion (€1.57 billion) net worth to the Conrad N Hilton Foundation, the charitable organisation named after the dynasty's founder.
"Speaking for the family as well as the foundation, we are all exceedingly proud and grateful for this extraordinary commitment," said Steven Hilton, the foundation's head as well as one of Barron's six sons and an uncle to Paris Hilton.
Barron Hilton (80) follows in the footsteps of his father, who left his entire estate, including his 27 per cent controlling stake in the hotel group, to the foundation on his death in 1979.
Barron Hilton's wealth has grown in recent months thanks both to the sale of Hilton hotels to the Blackstone Group, and the pending acquisition of the casino and hotel corporation Harrah's Entertainment, in which Hilton owns a stake, for $17 billion.
He pledged an immediate $1.2 billion donation to the foundation, with the balance to follow after his death.
Barron Hilton is said to have been increasingly dismayed by the recent behaviour of his granddaughter Paris, who initially achieved fame thanks to an internet sex tape and has since used that notoriety to advance a career that thrives on public exposure, whether as a pop star, a reality TV star or simply someone who likes to go to nightclubs.
Her incarceration earlier this year on a drink-driving charge, and the subsequent media ballyhoo that surrounded her premature release and ensuing reimprisonment, are thought to have strained already fraught relations within the Hilton dynasty.
Jerry Oppenheimer, author of House of Hilton, said Barron Hilton "was, and is, extremely embarrassed by how the Hilton name has been sullied by Paris. He now doesn't want to leave unearned wealth to his family". The gift will increase the wealth of the Hilton foundation to $4.3 billion and turn it into one of the top philanthropic bodies in the US. The foundation, which describes its mission as "to relieve the suffering, the distressed and the destitute", provides funding for clean water, education, housing and drug projects. It also funds a project for Roman Catholic nuns in Los Angeles.
Barron Hilton is a noted society host, welcoming guests to his lavish Flying M ranch in Nevada, a million-acre property near Reno renowned for its hunting and fishing. Earlier this year the ranch was in the news when the businessman and adventurer Steve Fossett went missing after leaving the property in a small aircraft. He was never found, despite an extensive search of the surrounding desert.
Conrad Hilton was born in a small adobe house on Christmas Day, 1887, in what would later become the state of New Mexico. He was one of seven children born to a Norwegian immigrant father and a German-American mother. He began working in his father's general store and bought his first hotel, the 40-room Mobley hotel in Cisco, Texas, in 1919, before going on to create the largest and most profitable international hotel chain in the world.