American Female Socialites

Paris Hilton comes from an affluent family and is the great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton, the founder of Hilton Hotels. A leaked 2001 sex tape with her then boyfriend, Rick Salomon, had created quite a scandal in 2003, which led her to act in the reality television series, The Simple Life. She’s also an actress, singer, model, author, socialite and businesswomen.

One of the most popular social media celebrities in the US, Kourtney Kardashian is best known for her appearance in the TV series Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Along with her sisters, she endorses products like prescription drugs, Coca-Cola, and waist slimming pants, for which she gets paid between $75,000 and $300,000 per post on social media.

Like many of her other family members, Kendall Jenner gained fame after starring in the American reality television show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which focuses on the personal and professional lives of the Kardashian-Jenner family. She is also a fashion model, co-designs a clothing line and was named the world's highest-paid model of 2018 in the Forbes top-earning models list.

Best known for playing a key role in the popular TV series Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Khloé Kardashian is one of the most popular American celebrities on the internet. Having launched many clothing collections, she is also involved in the fashion industry. After suffering a traumatic brain injury, Khloé had a long-term memory loss but has recovered since.

The better half of one of America’s founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton was involved in her husband’s political career during his lifetime and worked towards protecting his legacy after his death. A social worker, she lent support to multiple charitable causes including establishing New York’s first private orphanage.

Zelda Fitzgerald was a painter, socialite, and novelist. Along with her husband Scott Fitzgerald, Zelda became a prominent personality of the Jazz Age. Renowned for her high spirits and beauty, she was named the first American flapper by Scott. For her work as a novelist and painter, Fitzgerald was posthumously made an inductee to the Alabama Women's Hall of Fame.

Florence Foster Jenkins was an American socialite who was often ridiculed and mocked for her poor singing ability, which in turn made her popular. Known as the world's worst opera singer, Jenkins became a musical cult-figure in New York City due to her technical incompetence as an amateur soprano. Her life inspired several plays and films, including Florence Foster Jenkins.

Molly Brown was an American philanthropist and socialite. She is often referred to as the Unsinkable Molly Brown for surviving the 1912 sinking of Titanic and for unsuccessfully encouraging the crew members of Lifeboat No. 6 to look for survivors by returning to the debris field. Her life and work inspired the 1960 musical, The Unsinkable Molly Brown.

A charming socialite, Angelica Schuyler Church was the daughter of Continental Army General, Philip Schuyler, and wife of British MP, John Barker Church. During her lifetime, she interacted with and created lasting friendship with numerous personalities, from revolutionaries to artists and politicians, like Edmund Burke, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. She has been portrayed in the acclaimed Broadway musical Hamilton.

Lee Radziwill was an American interior decorator and public-relations executive. The younger sister of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy, Radziwill was a well-known socialite and often featured in lists, such as The Guardian's 50 best-dressed people over 50. Despite an unsuccessful attempt to forge an acting career, Radziwill managed to hog the limelight due to her fashion sense.

Gloria Vanderbilt was an American fashion designer, actress, author, and socialite. As a child, she was subjected to a child custody trial, which the press named trial of the century due to its high-profile nature. As a designer, Vanderbilt is credited with developing and popularizing designer blue jeans. She also launched a line of household goods and perfumes.

Wallis Simpson was an American socialite. She remains a controversial figure in the history of British politics as she played a major role in causing a constitutional crisis that eventually led to the abdication of British King Edward VIII. Edward VIII abdicated in order to marry Wallis as he could not marry Wallis, a divorcée, while remaining on the throne.

Daughter of publishing tycoon, late Robert Maxwell, Ghislaine Maxwell is a socialite infamous for her involvement with the convicted sex offender, Jeffrey Epstein. Charged with sex trafficking of minor girls, she is under investigation by the US Virgin Islands Department of Justice.

Socialite Barbara Daly Baekeland, former wife of Bakelite heir Brooks Baekeland, was killed by her son, Antony. She was apparently stabbed with a kitchen knife. Antony was found at the crime scene and confessed to the murder. She had reportedly tried treating Antony’s queer orientation and had even raped him.

Socialite, art collector, and reality TV personality, Patricia Altschul, is the widow of former Goldman Sachs partner Arthur G. Altschul. She has been a trustee of several nonprofit organizations including the Historic Hudson Valley and the New York Historical Society. She received a Carolopolis Award from the Preservation Society of Charleston in 2013.