Greenport actress making her TV debut
Greenport's Madison Hilton makes her TV debut in a ghost story Saturday
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Madison Hilton is not related to those other Hiltons, Paris and Nicky, but Greenport's homegrown actress is about to make her television debut on the Biography Channel Saturday at 10 p.m. in "Celebrity Ghost Stories."
She'll portray actress Teri Polo, best known for playing Pamela Martha Byrnes in "Meet the Parents," as a child. The segment was taped in April.
The 9-year-old fourth grader at Greenport Elementary School began her acting career just a year ago after her mother heard a radio advertisement for the John Robert Powers Acting and Modeling School. She thought her daughters, Madison and 13-year-old Victoria, might be prime candidates. But Victoria, who plays the clarinet and has participated in New York State School Music Association competitions, is shy and didn't love the experience.
The very outgoing Madison was enthralled by possibilities and sat for a portfolio of pictures, later winning the attention of agent Jeff Cohen of the Model Management Group. He signed her to a contract and is exploring opportunities for the young actress to develop her talents.
In the last year, when she's not in class earning honor roll grades that enable her to take occasional days off to pursue acting, she is shuttling back and forth to auditions and enduring photo shoots that can last more than 12 hours.
"She likes the attention," said her dad, Thomas Hilton. He works for Brewer Stirling Harbor Marina and is often her driver because his schedule is more flexible than his wife's. Sharon Hilton is employed at Peconic Regional Hematology Oncology in Riverhead.
"It's torture and fun at the same time," an enthusiastic Madison said. When her schoolmates learned of her budding career, "everyone started asking me questions. It's weird."
"We're trying to get her to fulfill her dream," Ms. Hilton said.
Despite the seeming glamour of an acting career, there's a lot of waiting around before the performer gets to film or tape her part. Madison is patient and a real pro, her mother said. She learns lines rapidly and never complains about the long hours.
Her father said she has natural ability to get the dialogue down, a skill she has long demonstrated in the classroom.
"The thing is, it comes so naturally to her," he said.
"She's got that get up and go," her mother added.
When they go into the city they try to make a day of it for the whole family, planning lunches at their favorite restaurant, Bubba Gump's Shrimp Company.
Madison is realistic about the world which she is only beginning to experience. She doesn't get upset if she fails to win a part. Sometimes producers change their minds and want an older or younger child or a blonde instead of a brunette, her mother said.
In the quirky world of show business, Madison isn't putting all her eggs in one basket. Ask her what she wants to do when she grows up and she'll tell you she want to be a doctor for babies as well as an actress.
Back home between auditions, Madison seems a typical 9-year-old, active in Girl Scouts and looking to be cast in Greenport's school play this year.
She'll also be participating with the rest of the family in an upcoming walk to raise money for breast cancer research -- a cause close to her mother's heart.
jlane@timesreview.com
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