The Seven Faces of Kathy Hilton

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Vulture is giving Kathy Hilton its first-ever Forever Icon award as part of our yearly “Masterminds” event. This award recognizes a television personality with a lasting impact that goes beyond just recent successes. To explain why Kathy Hilton is so important to reality TV, we asked Jennifer Tilly, her co-star on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and an Academy Award-nominated actress and poker player, to share her thoughts.

People say Kathy Hilton has many different sides to her personality. It’s like she has multiple personalities, similar to the story of Sybil, who had sixteen distinct identities.

She’s incredibly funny, with a really dark and edgy sense of humor – think Chris Rock level. When she’s at her best, she’s a force, and nobody can compete. However, she often hides this intelligence behind a more confused persona on stage. I think many smart women do this, including myself. It’s easier to be perceived as light and airy. Audiences seem to prefer that. If you’re a truly insightful comedian and show your intelligence, you risk making enemies. So, she likely reserves that side of herself – which might be her true personality, who knows? – for those closest to her.

Kathy frequently asks about odd phrases when things get tense, like when someone says ‘hunky-dory’ or ‘address the elephant in the room.’ She does this because she thinks it will lighten the mood. I, on the other hand, find drama fascinating – I want to be close to it, even if I know I won’t get a chance to speak. Kathy, though, completely avoids conflict. When she senses trouble brewing, she tries to disappear, almost like a character retreating to safety. But since she can’t leave our dinners, she’ll often respond with a confused question, like asking if there really is an elephant.

Kathy genuinely tries to create harmony and happiness among everyone. She’s friendly to all, even those she doesn’t particularly like. Unlike many others, she contacted Amanda after filming to check in. When fans began criticizing Amanda, Kathy reached out to see how she was doing. Natalie struggled to fit in, and Kathy consciously made an effort to befriend her and help her feel accepted and valued, despite Natalie’s feelings of being an outsider.

Kathy throws parties every two weeks, and they’re famously over-the-top. Her biggest party, usually right after Halloween, is like a celebrity gift lounge – think Oprah’s Favorite Things, but curated by Kathy Hilton. Guests are asked to change into pajamas upon arrival and receive a large tote bag to collect gifts as they move between various stations. These stations offer everything from Christmas wreaths and flowers to cosmetics, plus treats like caviar and cookies. The parties are filled with socialites, reality stars, and even elves dressed in… well, let’s just say festive attire.

She often hosts parties for work, promoting different products, but she’s also very dedicated to supporting LGBTQ+ rights and frequently opens her home for related events, like the GLAAD Awards. She’s a true philanthropist. I’ve volunteered with Project Angel Food for three decades, and they were honoring me with an award. I usually don’t invite friends to these ceremonies because they can be a bit dull. However, Project Angel Food is a wonderful organization, and they specifically requested a cast member from ‘The Housewives’ present the award to me. Sutton wasn’t available, so I asked Kathy, and she immediately agreed. She didn’t hesitate at all, saying she already worked with Project Angel Food and was happy to help, and she really went all out when she showed up.

What really got me laughing was finding out Lisa Rinna also supports Project Angel Food. During their event, a lunch with Lisa at the Polo Lounge was auctioned off and went for a lot of money – Lisa’s very popular with the LGBTQ+ community, and deservedly so! On stage, she jokingly offered to do two lunches if people bid enough. I think those two lunches ended up raising around $45,000. Then, Kathy Hilton stepped up, went to the front of the auction, and suggested a new item: she’d host a dinner party for 12 to 24 people at her house, and she’d be there herself! Naturally, the bidding went wild.

Kathy, when provoked, is fiercely protective and incredibly tenacious. She might seem unassuming – perhaps even a little helpless with everyday technology – but when she or her children feel threatened, she becomes an unstoppable force. A perfect example is from the season twelve reunion, where she appeared sweet and sparkly in a pink dress, but immediately became incredibly assertive and intimidating, completely surprising everyone present. It was a shocking transformation – nobody anticipated that side of her.

Kathy is a nervous traveler who always overpacks. She brings a lot of small containers, toiletries, and several large, decorative pillows – not the small neck pillows you often see. She’s quite posh! Once, while going through customs with her pillows, I noticed she was walking awkwardly. I caught up to her and realized she was wearing one high-heeled shoe and one hotel slipper. I asked if she’d lost her other shoe, and she insisted it was a foot exercise! It turned out she either couldn’t find the shoe or the strap had broken. Most people would have just worn two slippers, but Kathy is different. She has a knack for convincing everyone to agree with her perspective.

Everyone would love to vacation with Kathy! She’s incredibly glamorous in her everyday life, like a classic socialite. But on trips with us, she surprisingly shows up in simple, comfortable cotton dresses – the kind you’d wear on a school trip. Meanwhile, the rest of us are dressed to the nines, anticipating drama and knowing people are watching. It’s almost as if she does it to playfully bother Kyle, but I think she genuinely just wants to relax and be comfortable on vacation. And she definitely achieves that! She sleeps in until the afternoon and even wanders the beaches at night, playfully ‘howling’ at the sea.

The show occasionally feels a bit forced, like a poorly made soap opera. This is often because the producers are pushing the narrative forward, sometimes even directing specific conversations. However, the most compelling moments happen when all the women are together. There’s genuine animosity between some of them, creating a volatile, unpredictable energy – it feels like an unscripted scene where anything could happen. It can get chaotic, like being caught in the middle of a food fight! When Kathy isn’t around, something crucial is missing – it’s like a cake without vanilla. Without her presence, the dynamic becomes noticeably more intense and confrontational.

Let me tell you, everyone loves having Kathy Hilton around, and honestly, she’s the person I most want to share a drink with after a long day of filming. She just adds something to the show simply by being herself. I’m always running around trying to maximize my screen time, knowing they edit so much, but Kathy? She doesn’t seem to care about any of that. She’s not chasing drama or angling for big moments. She genuinely just enjoys being there, and it’s refreshing. When I was deciding whether to be a full Housewife or a ‘friend of,’ she gave me the best advice: being a ‘friend of’ is the sweet spot – you avoid all the unnecessary conflict. Now I totally get it. She’s not interested in self-destruction for entertainment. She wants to have a good time, crack jokes, and spend time with her sister. It’s really that simple, and honestly, it’s brilliant.

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2026-05-04 15:57