Eva Mendes crowned "most desirable" in poll

eva mendes, the most desirable woman of the year
eva mendes in massive Calvin Klein campaign lingerie

Jan 21, 2009 7:21PM

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actress Eva Mendes was crowned as the most desirable woman of 2009 on Wednesday in a poll by online men's magazine AskMen.com that organizers swear is not all about looks but overall qualities.

Mendes, 34, topped the online magazine's 9th annual list of "Top 99 Most Desirable Women" after AskMen.com readers cast more than 10 million votes to rank the women with the best qualities for the ideal girlfriend or wife.

She took the top slot from actress Katherine Heigl after placing fourth last year while actress Megan Fox ranked second and Victoria's Secret model Marisa Miller came in third place.

James Bassil, editor-in-chief of AskMen.com, said the list was a "pulse-check" of the women that readers were not only following but also perceived as more than just a pretty face.

"Obviously good looks are one quality but intelligence, ambition and humor also count," Bassil told Reuters.

"There are women in their mid to late 30s on this list who may be old by industry standards but you see more mature women on this list. The younger women getting a lot of play on gossip sites haven't had the time to accumulate the achievements that a lot of these women have."

Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and Nicole Richie were not on the list while Britney Spears, in the midst of staging a comeback, was back after dropping off the list for a couple of years. She was ranked at No. 90.

The list included perennial favorites like Beyonce at No. 50 and Jessica Simpson at 70 but also some newcomers such as Australian actress Isla Fisher (31) and singer Katy Perry

(38).

French singer Carla Bruni, the wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy, made her debut on the list in 76th place while comedian Tina Fey, who was widely praised for her Sarah Palin impression this past election season, made the list at No. 97.

Bassil said readers could have voted for the U.S.'s new First Lady Michelle Obama or Republican vice-presidential contender Sarah Palin but they did not garner enough support to make the list with the poll largely conducted before the U.S. election.

Brooke Burke, a former model-turned-TV personality who won the seventh season of TV show "Dancing with the Stars," rose to No. 14 in the list from No. 32 last year.

Burke, 37, who has four children, said it was a compliment to be included -- and to have jumped a few slots.

"It is great to get that attention. I do think it is more of an intelligence vote and people are looking at who they would like to have as an ideal mate and not just their average pinup," Burke told Reuters.

Rounding out the top 10, in the following order, were:

4. Keeley Hazell

5. Anne Hathaway

6. Alessandra Ambrosio

7. Scarlett Johansson

8. Rihanna

9. Kristen Bell

10. Kate Beckinsale

(Writing by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Latest millionaire music rich list

Lewis and Winehouse join millionaire music rich list

Sunday, Apr 27, 2008 By Paul Majendie

LONDON (Reuters) - Amy Winehouse joined the elite ranks of music millionaires on Friday but she may struggle to reach the dizzy heights of "wrinkly rockers" like Paul McCartney, the editor of an annual rich list said.

The bee-hived soul singer, whose troubled private life and battle against drug addiction have overshadowed her recording success, is now valued at 10 million pounds ($19.72 million).

"Winning Grammys have given her a really good profile in the United States. She has such a smooth voice but let's hope she doesn't blow it all," Sunday Times Rich List editor Philip Beresford said as the latest millionaire tables were published.

Reality TV winner Leona Lewis is another new entry in the Under-30 category. She was valued at six million pounds after topping the singles and album charts in the United States.

Leading the young millionaires thanks to inherited Beatle wealth is the late George Harrison's guitarist son Dhani. His 160 million pound fortune prompted newspaper headlines like "While their bank accounts gently leap..."

But Beresford told Reuters: "None of these young singers will ever make it to the main rich list as they don't have the legs of the wrinkly rockers."

The young guns are dwarfed by the fortunes of veteran stars like Mick Jagger and Sting, he said.

"They have developed this new industry of massive stadium tours around the world full of relatively wealthy middle-aged fans trying to recapture their youth paying extortionate prices for the privilege," Beresford said.

"Their tours are their pension funds," he said.

Beresford did admit to one Beatle miscalculation over Paul McCartney's fortune which was set at 725 million in last year's list.

"He is now down at 500 million because we over-egged it in the past. But we are not as severe as the judge in his divorce case (against Heather Mills) who put it at 400 million pounds," he said.

Beresford hailed the 300 million pound fortune of Madonna and her film director husband Guy Ritchie as "almost unique."

"She has joined the wrinkly rockers with the big touring income but she also has the record sales which they are not getting anymore," he added.

But Madonna's fortune is dwarfed in Britain's top 50 music millionaires list which is topped, like last year, by Clive Calder, founder of Zomba Records, who is valued at 1.3 billion pounds.

(Editing by Paul Casciato)

Celebrities seen as not aiding causes they promote

Friday, Apr 18, 2008 7:30 NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fifty-one percent of Americans say celebrities make little or no positive difference to the issues they promote while 45 percent say they have a large or some positive influence, according to a new survey.

Oprah Winfrey was seen as the best champion of causes with 49 percent of those surveyed in the Harris Poll saying she was very effective at raising awareness. The others in the top five were Bono (32 percent), Angelina Jolie (31 percent), Brad Pitt (23 percent) and George Clooney (22 percent).

Harris surveyed 2,513 U.S. adults online between March 11 and 18.

Younger people were more likely than older people to believe celebrities make a positive difference, and Democrats (55 percent) more likely than Republicans (36 percent) to feel the same, Harris said in a statement.

Fifteen percent of those surveyed said they have supported a cause because of what they heard an actor, singer or other celebrity say or do.

Forty-seven percent said it was bad for celebrities to endorse political candidates.

Reuters/Nielsen

Britney Spears hospitalised again

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Britney Spears hospitalised again

Friday, Feb 01, 2008

By Jill Serjeant

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Troubled pop star Britney Spears was in a Los Angeles hospital on psychiatric hold for the second time in a month on Thursday after being taken from her home by ambulance under a police escort.

Spears, 26, whose life has grown increasingly erratic in the past 12 months, is being held for a three-day mental evaluation on the orders of her psychiatrist, her self-styled manager, Sam Lutfi, told celebrity news media.

"She went willingly. It was like something in her heart was telling her she should go. She knew something was wrong," Lutfi told People magazine.

News video showed more than a dozen police motorcycles and squad cars leaving Spears' Los Angeles home shortly after midnight on Thursday and taking her to the UCLA Medical Center.

The hospital declined to confirm Spears was a patient, citing confidentiality.

Road blocks were set up in a vain bid to deter paparazzi who have trailed the former pop phenomenon round the clock as her life has spun out of control.

Spears' estranged mother, Lynne, and her father, Jamie, were pictured leaving the hospital on Thursday along with Lutfi. Asked if her daughter was OK, Lynne Spears told a throng of reporters, "Yes."

Celebrity web site TMZ.com said the pop star's psychiatrist felt Spears was a danger to herself because of reckless driving and a recent deterioration in her behaviour.

BIPOLAR DISORDER?

Friends and family have said they believe the former teen pop phenomenon is suffering from bipolar disorder -- which is characterized by abrupt mood swings -- or other psychiatric problems.

In recent days, the Louisiana native has assumed a British accent and has been photographed sitting in the street in tears clutching her dog, and arguing loudly with friends.

An unnamed source told Us Weekly that Spears had not slept since Saturday and that the "intervention" by her family and psychiatrist had been planned for several days.

Spears' personal life went downhill after she filed for divorce from Kevin Federline in November 2006. She was seen out partying without wearing panties. She shaved her head, attacked paparazzi and spent a month in rehab.

Spears lost custody and visiting rights with her two young sons and was ordered last year to undergo random drug and alcohol tests by the court handling her bitter custody dispute with Federline.

She was hospitalised on January 3 after apparently locking herself in a bathroom in hysterics and refusing to hand back her two sons to representatives of Federline. Spears discharged herself after two days.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness on Thursday pleaded for Spears' privacy during her treatment.

Executive director Michael Fitzpatrick condemned the "media circus and reckless speculation" surrounding the health of the singer. He also criticized the professional ethics of mental health experts who are not directly involved in her diagnosis or treatment but speak to the media about her case.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant, editing by Dan Whitcomb and Mohammad Zargham)