Inside Kathy Hilton's Relationship With The Kardashian Family

One of the biggest explosions on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" during the most recent season was a feud between Lisa Rinna and Kathy Hilton. The catalyst for the feud took place at a bar during the cast trip to Aspen, Colorado. At the bar, Rinna elected to sample "her good friend" Kendall Jenner's tequila brand instead of the Casa del Sol that Hilton was promoting in multiple scenes leading up to their visit.

Hilton felt a severe lack of support from Rinna and her sister, Kyle Richards. However, something that has come out since the season aired is Rinna and Jenner are not close friends by any stretch of the imagination. Tensions escalated between Rinna and Hilton, with Rinna accusing Hilton of a slew of things, including badmouthing Kyle and trashing the majority of the cast (via People). Not only did Hilton refute a lot of the claims Rinna was hurling, but she also has a far greater claim to the Kardashians. Hilton has a legitimate rapport with the famous family, having been photographed with them numerous times. 

Hilton's connection to the legendary reality television family goes much deeper than a few Instagram photographs. From connections between her daughter, Paris Hilton, and Kim Kardashian to a longtime friendship with Kris Jenner to reality television superstardom, there's a lot to unpack with Hilton and the most talked about family on TV. 

Kathy Hilton's largest connection to the Kardashian family is through her daughter, Paris Hilton, who has a friendship with Kim Kardashian. Before many people knew who Kardashian was on her own merits, she was widely recognized as Paris' best friend in the early '00s. The general public has heavily scrutinized both women for lacking talent despite their celebrity status, but they're both wildly successful regardless of the criticism. They drifted apart for a period of time, but in recent years, the two women found a way to patch things up. 

Kathy Hilton has also remained close with Kardashian as well, even defending her recent outfit choice for a holiday party. Per TMZ, despite fans bashing Kardashian's all-black attire at the festive event, Hilton isn't standing for it, openly shutting down critics in a recent interview. Kathy said criticisms of the outfit are "ridiculous" since attendees were told to "come as you are." 

Any speculation about Hilton being "jealous" of the Kardashian family was negated following the holiday event that Kim and her mother, Kris Jenner, attended (via Bravo). Not only did Hilton throw her own lavish affair with all of them present, but she also made an appearance at their own Christmas eve soiree. 

Kathy Hilton and Kris Jenner's friendship runs deep, and it's a relationship that has lasted decades. However, the connection has seemingly become deeper since Hilton's arrival on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." Nobody knows the world of reality TV quite like Jenner, so naturally, she would be a good person for Hilton to seek pointers from. According to People, after only appearing in guest cameo roles in the past, Hilton officially signed on to the reality series for Season 11 as a "friend," otherwise known as a part-time role in the Housewives world. 

Per Bravo, Hilton was asked about the possibility of the Kardashian momager joining the fray. She said, "I mean, I would love it if she would, but I think she's so busy, I don't know. You know what? We all play together, so I never say never about anything. But I don't like to be presumptuous. I never thought I would."

The legitimacy of their friendship has never been in question. Still, when Hilton's co-star Lisa Rinna gave the impression that she too was a close friend, throwing in a dig at Hilton in the process, the deep history between Hilton, Jenner, and the Kardashians becomes far more relevant.