ParisHilton become famouse with the leak of a three-year-old home-made sex video of Hilton with her then-boyfriend Rick Salomon a week prior to the premiere of her Fox reality series The Simple Life attracted worldwide attention in late 2003.

The release of the tape led to speculation that it was a deliberate publicity stunt, but Paris Hilton has strongly denied such claims and stated she was "embarrassed" and "humiliated" by the publicity brought by the tape. The sex video, subsequently called 1 Night in Paris (2004) was later released on DVD and Hilton received directorial credit.

The film earned three AVN Awards in 2005, including "Best Selling Title of the Year". Hilton originally sued Salomon over the release of the tape, but settled out of court in July 2005.

ParisHilton was reportedly awarded up to $400,000 and planned to donate a percentage to charity, although in a 2006 interview with GQ magazine she stated that she never received money from the sale of the video. The Simple Life premiered on December 2, 2003, starring Hilton and Nicole Richie, the adopted daughter of Lionel Richie, and it became a mid-season success for Fox.

During the course of the season they lived with a family on their farm in rural Altus, Arkansas. The show featured Hilton and Richie working at a variety of blue collar jobs, making out with local men, and performing menial tasks associated with farm life. The pair's resistance to appreciate and engage in the "simple life" was a central theme on the series. [Source Wikipedia]