Actor / Director Profile

Kim Richards was one of the most popular and adorable star child actresses of the 70s. Kim was born on September 19th, 1964 in Mineola, New York to Kenneth L. "Ken" Richards and Sharon Kathleen "Kathy" Dugan. She made her TV commercial debut at four months in a diaper ad. By age four and a half Kim had already appeared in 20 TV commercials. Richards made her television series debut in 1970 on the show "Nanny and the Professor" (1970). Kim later had substantial recurring roles on the TV programs "James at 16" (1977) and "Hello, Larry" (1979). Richards achieved her greatest enduring fame as spunky psychic alien girl Tia in the terrific Disney family feature Escape to Witch Mountain (1975) and its equally solid sequel Return from Witch Mountain (1978). Kim was likewise memorable as an obnoxious little brat who gets brutally killed in John Carpenter's fantastic urban action cult gem Assault on Precinct 13 (1976). Among the TV shows Richards has done guest spots on are "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color" (1954), "The Rockford Files" (1974), "Police Woman" (1974), "Little House on the Prairie" (1974), "Family" (1976), "Alice" (1976), "CHiPs" (1977), "The Dukes of Hazzard" (1979), "The Love Boat" (1977), "Diff'rent Strokes" (1978), "Project U.F.O." (1978), "Magnum, P.I." (1980) and "Medical Center" (1969). Kim was reunited with her "Witch Mountain" co-star Ike Eisenmann for the hilariously horrible made-for-TV horror howler Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell (1978) (TV) (Richards did a delightful career interview for the recent DVD of this film). A very cute kid, Richards grew up to become a strikingly beautiful woman. Kim played more mature adult roles in the mid 80s movies Meatballs Part II (1984) and Tuff Turf (1985) in which Richards gives an especially sexy performance as a teenage gang leader's brash and enticing girlfriend. Richards took a hiatus from acting to raise her four children Brook, Whitney, Chad and Kimberly. After a regrettably lengthy absence from the big screen, Kim Richards made a welcome and triumphant comeback with a fine portrayal of Christina Ricci's bitter estranged mother in the excellent Black Snake Moan (2006). She's the sister of fellow actress Kyle Richards -- they appeared together in The Car (1977) as James Brolin's daughters -- and Kathy Hilton, who is the mother of Paris Hilton.