Paris Hilton Nixes More TV Appearances

By Todd Peterson

11/26/2003 at 01:00 PM EST

Perhaps life is not so simple after all.

Hotel heiress Paris Hilton, the subject of the upcoming FOX reality show, "The Simple Life" -- and, more recently, the star of a homemade video detailing her love life -- is coming under fire for ducking the limelight, says the Hollywood Reporter.

The socialite Hilton, who has never shied from the spotlight and was poised to join the Hollywood mainstream with her debut in "The Simple Life" on Dec. 2, had been scheduled to make the usual publicity rounds in advance of the show's debut. Hilton was slated to appear on "The Late Show with David Letterman," MTV's "TRL," Craig Kilborn's late-night show, "Live with Regis and Kelly" and many others -- but that was before a pornographic videotape featuring Hilton and her former boyfriend, Rick Salomon, hit the Internet.

That tape, which sparked a round of lawsuits and finger-pointing between Hilton and Salomon, resulted in Hilton hiring PR mogul Dan Klores to manage the fallout. Klores promptly canceled all of her television appearances, which in turn caused an uproar among TV hosts.

"I'm sorry that interviews were canceled," Klores said, "but I'm here to protect her."

Nonetheless, the entire ordeal seems to be drumming up quite a bit of advance publicity for "The Simple Life," which stars Hilton and Lionel Richie's daughter, Nicole Richie, as the two wealthy, pampered city girls try make do on an Arkansas farm.