Posted on 06/03/2005 10:04:00 PM PDT by FairOpinion
SANTA MONICA, Calif. - A multimillion-dollar family feud over who controls the ailing socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor's will has spilled into the courtroom.
Gabor and her ninth husband are suing her only daughter, accusing Francesca Hilton of stealing $2 million by forging her mother's signature to take out a loan on Gabor's $14 million Bel Air home.
Gabor's husband Frederic Prinz von Anhalt said Friday that Hilton took the money in March because she's worried she won't get enough when her mother dies. Hilton said he actually manipulated the 88-year-old Gabor to get into her will, and she refinanced the home with her mother's permission to protect the money.
The suit filed Wednesday in Superior Court alleges elder abuse, fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress. It seeks to force Hilton to return the money and asks for punitive damages.
Without holding a hearing, a judge on Friday rejected a request for immediate action on the suit and scheduled motions to be heard on June 28.
The inheritance spat involves family names associated with the most lavish of lifestyles. Hilton's father was Gabor's second husband, hotel magnate Conrad Hilton. She's the great-aunt of Paris and Nicky Hilton.
But Francesca Hilton has ignored glamour tips from her mom. She appeared in court Friday wearing a T-shirt and jacket, plain black pants and untied green-and-gold metallic sneakers with no socks. She said she'd been playing pool until 2:30 a.m.
The woman at the center of the case, Gabor, remains partially paralyzed from a 2002 car accident and Hilton said her mental health is suffering. Her husband of 19 years, the 60-year-old Prinz von Anhalt, declined to make her available to speak with an Associated Press reporter.
"She is just furious" at her daughter's actions, said Prinz von Anhalt, who cares for Gabor in the five-bedroom Bel Air home. Built by producer Howard Hughes and once owned by Elvis Presley, it has views of Catalina Island and the downtown Los Angeles skyline.
"Francesca is afraid something is going to happen to her mother one day, and her husband is in the last will. She can't take that," he said. "She always comes for a handout to her mother. She always wants money, money, money, money."
"She is lying her head off about everything."
Hilton called her mother "a manic-depressive" but said she remains close to her and was outraged when she was locked out of Gabor's home last Mother's Day.
"I never in my life thought I'd be going to court against my mother," she said. She said she despises her stepfather and accused him of being "in it for the money."
"You know what elder abuse is? That's what's happening with my mother," she said. Frederic is trying to take everything. I refinanced the house with her permission in order to stop that."
Hilton was not represented by an attorney in court but said she had retained one within the past few days. She couldn't remember his name but said he was in Santa Maria serving as a legal expert for TV stations covering the Michael Jackson trial.
Gabor, a former Miss Hungary, began appearing in movies in the 1950s and then followed with many guest roles in television series, specials and game shows.
She has often played herself, parlaying her larger-than-life, haughty glamour into a half-century stay in the limelight.
But her royal air has gotten her in trouble. In 1989 she slapped a Beverly Hills police officer who stopped her for expired license plates. She was sentenced to 72 hours in jail and 120 hours of community service at a women's shelter.
Gabor, sisters Eva and Magda, and their mother, Jolie, all emigrated to America around the time of World War II. Eva, also a film and TV actress who starred in "Green Acres," died in 1995 at age 74. Mother Jolie died in 1997 at age 97 and sister Magda, who lived largely out of the spotlight, died in 1997 at age 78.
OLD Photo accompanying article: Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor and her husband, Prince Frederick von Anhult, leave court in Beverly Hills, Calif., on July 13, 1989. Gabor faced charges stemming from a confrontation with a police officer during a traffic stop.
What an ungrateful daughter...
IMHO, it is possible that the husband could be the villain in this sad saga.
I hope the truth is exposed, whether the daughter or husband is guilty.
Strife styles of the bitchin' famous.
You may well have a point.
I was rereading the article and it could be the other way around, as you say.
It is really terrible that as people get older, their relatives only care about their money.
Hell, I thought ZZ was already dead. No news since she put the smack down on that cop.
The Prince is not exactly a wealthy player. When he married Gabor (she was 70 at the time)...it was mainly to get his name into the promi listing...mostly in the US. The guy attempts to be a middle man and set up things...and get a cut. Gabor helped introduce him and the Beverly Hills house was a perfect US location for him to set up operations. The daughter in this particular case...knows that she will get virtually nothing in the end from mom...and the house is joint property so the Prince will walk away with it. He has taken care of Zsa Zsa, and paid the medical bills...at least he has given something back on all of his deals. My guess is that the daughter will get stuck with the bill and court fine. The prince will simply walk away at the end...protecting his investment. Funny how we still have Prince "wannabe's" walking around today...selling their name and nothing else.
He's quite a bit younger than ZsaZsa. I saw a clip of him smacking a reporter who got a pic of the aging ZZ as he was wheeling her into a Beverly Hills hair salon. The poor old girl looked awful. In fact, I didn't recognize her.
Francesca on the left and two other people immaterial to this expose'.
Really? I see that same pic is posted at google images, but are you sure she's the one on the right (left as we're viewing)? YIKES.
FOTFLOL! Good one!
NO, wait. It was sister Ava on Green Acres.
And Arianna Huffington.
Eva....who has sadly passed away along now with her Green Acres TV hubbie Eddie Albert.
Yes, Ava who was also Merv Griffin's love and pal.
Hey, watch it... I remember Amos 'n Andy. From radio, no less.
Thanks. Uhhh ... I was very young?
(Looks like I picked a bad week to give up huffing paint)
Thanks. Uhhh ... I was very young?
(Looks like I picked a bad week to give up huffing paint)
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