Kim Richards was one of the most popular and adorable star child actresses of the 70s.
Kim was born September 19, 1964 in Mineola, New York, to Kathleen Mary (Dugan) and Kenneth Edwin Richards, a business executive. She is of Irish, English, and Welsh descent. Kim 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 et le professeur (1970). Kim later had substantial recurring roles on the TV programs James at 15 (1977) and Hello, Larry (1979). Richards achieved her greatest enduring fame as spunky psychic alien girl Tia in the terrific Disney family feature La montagne ensorcelée (1975) and its equally solid sequel Les visiteurs d'un autre monde (1978). Kim was likewise memorable as an obnoxious little brat who gets brutally killed in John Carpenter's fantastic urban action cult gem Assaut (1976). Among the TV shows Richards has done guest spots on are Disney Parade (1954), Deux cent dollars plus les frais (1974), Sergent Anderson (1974), La petite maison dans la prairie (1974), Family (1976), Alice (1976), Chips (1977), Shérif, fais-moi peur! (1979), La croisière s'amuse (1977), Arnold et Willy (1978), Project U.F.O. (1978), Magnum (1980) and Médecins d'aujourd'hui (1969). Kim was reunited with her "Witch Mountain" co-star Ike Eisenmann for the hilariously horrible made-for-TV horror howler Les chiens de l'enfer (1978) (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 Enfer mécanique (1977) as James Brolin's daughters -- and Kathy Hilton, who is the mother of Paris Hilton.
