'I want my son to be proud'

PARIS GETS REAL ABOUT THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF HER SPOT-LIT LIFE

- Jennie Noonan

For purveyors of pop culture, Paris Hilton has played several parts. In the early 2000s, she was a walking tabloid headline – a party girl, an heiress, a reality show star and a sex-tape punchline. She later morphed into an international DJ, perfume pusher and business mogul. Her latest act, as a wife and new mother, has been her favourite so far. “Being a mum is the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m obsessed with my little boy,” says Hilton, who welcomed Phoenix with her new husband, Carter Reum, in January. “He’s amazing. I’m so happy.”

In recent years, Hilton, 42, whose great-grandfather, Conrad Hilton, founded Hilton Hotels, has become more vulnerable and open about her challenging path. She outlined the physical, sexual and emotional abuse she suffered as a teenager in the intensely personal YouTube documentary, This is Paris. The trauma, Hilton says, contributed to her decision to welcome her baby via surrogate because she was left terrified of invasive medical procedures following the abuse she suffered at the Provo Canyon School in Utah. “I’ve always wanted a family of my own and yes, Phoenix really does feel like a happily-ever-after moment,” she tells WHO. “He’s my dream come true.”