Socialite mountaineer portrayed by Into Thin Air author John Krakauer as a 'privileged villain' breaks silence ahead of Everest blockbuster based on 1996 mountain tragedy and says 'I was an easy target'

• Sandy Pittman, now known by her maiden name, Hill, survived the deadly blizzard that lashed Mount Everest 
• Eight people died in the tragedy including two expedition leaders
• Hill became the second American woman to ascend all of the Seven Summits 
• After the tragedy, Hill was depicted as a wealthy woman who paid her way up the peak in Krakauer's book Into Thin Air
• She's now breaking her silence ahead of the 'Everest' film that's based on the mountain tragedy 

By Regina F. Graham For Dailymail.com

Published: 22:25 EST, 17 September 2015 | Updated: 02:42 EST, 18 September 2015

The socialite mountaineer who was lambasted in a book nearly 10 years ago is breaking her silence ahead of the blockbuster film release of Everest, which is based on the 1996 mountain tragedy she survived.

Sandy Pittman, now known by her maiden name, Hill, survived the deadly blizzard that lashed Mount Everest and left eight people dead, including two expedition leaders considered the best in their field. 

The former fashion editor was in the process of becoming the second American woman to ascend all of the Seven Summits during the dangerous climb. 

Numerous publications, including the New York Times and Vanity Fair, depicted Hill as a wealthy woman who paid her way up the peak. 

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Survivor: Above, Sandy Pittman, now known by her maiden name, Hill, is pictured during the deadly 1996 Mount Everest climb that killed eight people during a deadly blizzard

History: The former fashion editor was in the process of becoming the second American woman to ascend all of the Seven Summits during the dangerous climb in 1996. Above, Sandy Hill is pictured in Ecuador

Villain: Numerous publications, including the New York Times and Vanity Fair, depicted Hill as a wealthy woman who paid her way up the peak. Above she is pictured fishing in Peru

In the film 2015 Everest, actress Vanessa Kirby (above) portrays Sandy Hill, one of the survivors in the disaster 

Even worse for Hill was the depiction that journalist and fellow mountaineer Jon Krakauer wrote of her in his best-selling book, Into Thin Air, about the incident.

Krakauer was on assignment for Outside magazine during the disaster and implied in his controversial book that Hill endangered herself and others by behaving like a 'diva.' 

'This came from a source who had a vested interest in crafting a dramatic story,' Hill told The New York Post.  

'I guess it served a purpose for him to bury me.

'I was an easy target. Back in those days you could get away with destroying someone's life and flogging them with innuendo.'

Hill says that she was an 'easy target' and it served 'a purpose' for Jon Krakauer to bury her in his book about the tragedy Into Thin Air. Above, she is pictured near the summit of the Cotopaxi volcano in Ecuador

In the weeks after the disaster, it was reported by Krakauer and other media that Hill brought a cappuccino machine to the Himalayas, along with her favorite Dean & DeLuca coffee beans. 

Those luxuries allegedly came to symbolize the then-41-year-old's privileged position, since she paid around $65,000 like the rest of her team for a place in the group to climb the 29,000-foot peak. 

'It conjures up this image of a giant professional espresso maker, when in fact it was a little coffee pot that percolates from the bottom, and just 8 inches tall,' Hill told The Post.

'You hear climbers pat each other on the back joking about so-and-so not being able to get out of his tent without his strong cup of coffee and he's considered this macho guy. 

'But I'm at base camp, where a yak has carried up this coffee pot weighing less than a pound, and I'm making this frothy milk by putting powder in a jar and shaking it up and imagining that it's foaming.

'It's really easy to attempt stereotyping. That was his [Krakauer's] tactic.'

In addition, Krakauer implied in his book that Hill, who is now 60 years old, was carried up the summit.

'The Sherpa, huffing and puffing loudly, was hauling the assertive New Yorker up the steep slope like a horse pulling a plow,' he wrote. 

When her team successfully reached the summit of the mountain on May 10, 1996, a blizzard hit and they became stranded on the slope.

The climbers, who were starved of oxygen and unable to see because of the white-out conditions, waited to be rescued in the hazardous 'Death Zone.' 

In addition, Krakauer implied in his book that Hill, who is now 60 years old, was carried up the summit. Above, Hill is pictured in Colorado

'We were stranded a quarter of a mile from our tents, but we were blinded when the storm struck,' Hill said to The Post. 

'It was like swimming in a glass of milk — a very turbulent glass of milk — for another eight to 10 hours.

'I felt close to dying, but then hypoxia [oxygen deprivation] took over my brain and I started hallucinating I was in a tea house with a warm fire in it, so I stopped being afraid. 

'I started waving my arms and calling out to catch the eye of the waiter.'

Initially, her survival story was celebrated until the release of Krakauer's article, in which he portrayed her as a 'privileged villain,' according to The Post. 

Initially, her survival story was celebrated until the release of Krakauer's article, in which he portrayed her as a 'privileged villain.' The photo above shows Hill lifting weights during a CrossFit competition

Since surviving the disaster, Hill is now a competitive athlete who wrote two books and has contributed to a number of sports and outdoors magazines

At the time, Hill was married to one of the richest and most powerful men in New York City, Bob Pittman, and they as a couple epitomized 'nouvelle society.' 

Since surviving the disaster, Hill is now a competitive athlete who wrote two books and has contributed to a number of sports and outdoors magazines. 

The divorcee now lives in Venice, California with her two dogs and a bird and continues to be an adventurer who surfs and climbs volcanoes. 

In the film 2015 Everest, English actress Vanessa Kirby portrays Hill in the film.

Hill shared that she isn't sure she will see the new film 'Everest' that's also staring actor Jake Gyllenhaal, but said 'it would be thrilling to see those big mountain vistas.'

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