Celebrity Women & Models

These are the ladies who have dominated the 2008 headlines — with more to come in the next few days.
By James Montgomery

Beyoncé
Photo: Getty Images

Who was the biggest star of 2008? Who had the most impact on the year that was, who inspired the most headlines or generated the biggest amount of buzz? It's really tough to say ... yet, for decades now, plenty of magazines have been doing just that (we're looking at you, Time). And so, after years of sitting on the sidelines, we here at MTV News have decided to get in on the act too.

Over the next few days, we'll be unveiling our list of the most fascinating, controversial and, well, BRITNEY!!! women of the year. These are the artists, actors and pop-culture heavyweights who dominated the headlines here at MTVNews.com (and no, Sarah Palin didn't make the cut ... we'll leave that to the folks at Time).

Today, we present picks 10 to 6. On Tuesday, we'll reveal numbers 5 to 2. And then, on Thursday, we'll unveil our 2008 MTV News Woman of the Year. And, of course, we'd love to hear what you've got to say — we'll even publish some of the best comments later this week — so if you agree with us (or if you don't), let us know in the comments below.

(For our first list of picks for the Top 10 Men of the Year, click here.)

And now, let the debate begin ...

10. Beyoncé

2008 Highlights: Spent the majority of the year putting the finishing touches on her much-discussed double-album, I Am ... Sasha Fierce ... Played legendary blues singer Etta James in "Cadillac Records" ... Married longtime beau Jay-Z ... Applauded by PETA for her fur-free outfits ... Released a pair of singles, "If I Were a Boy" and "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," the latter of which ended up being our second-best song of 2008 ... Donated $100,000 to victims of Hurricane Ike ... Volunteered her services for Barack Obama's inauguration ... Snagged her third-consecutive #1 album, selling more than 482,000 copies of I Am in one week ... Parodied the "Single Ladies" video to hilarious effect on "Saturday Night Live" ... Landed a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song. To anyone else, this is a lifetime's worth of résumé fodder. To B, it was just another year.

9. Hayley Williams

2008 Highlights: Penned a cryptic blog post that kicked off rumors that she and her band, Paramore, were calling it quits ... Addressed those rumors (and whispers that she was pregnant) in an equally cryptic blog post that used the phrase "My Eggo is not preggo" less than 24 hours later ... Sat down with MTV News for an "everything's fine" interview in Austin, Texas, during South by Southwest ... Defended "family friend" Miley Cyrus ... Played the Warped Tour ... Battled her stepfather over unscrupulous eBaying ... Got (then later removed) bull-ring piercing in septum ... Admired by John Mayer ... Performed in a virtual Whisky A Go Go during the MTV Video Music Awards ... Contributed a pair of songs to the "Twilight" soundtrack ... Copped to being a huge "Twilight" fan and a member of Team Jacob ... Began work on new Paramore album ... Is seriously, like, 4 feet tall.

8. Rihanna

2008 Highlights: Won her first-ever Grammy in early February ... Followed up on that momentum by landing an opening slot on Kanye West's Glow in the Dark Tour ... Re-released her hugely successful Good Girl Gone Bad album with the hugely successful single "Take a Bow" ... Denied reports that she and Chris Brown were an item (despite mounting evidence to the contrary) ... Performed a freaky version of "Disturbia" (another one of her hugely successful singles) at the Video Music Awards ... Collapsed onstage in Australia while performing a duet with Brown, sparking rumors she was pregnant ... Inspired a fan revolt when none of the aforementioned "hugely successful singles" are named in James Montgomery's Best Songs of 2008 list ... Did, at some juncture during the year, get a fairly awesome neck tattoo.

7. Aubrey O'Day

2008 Highlights: Rolled into the year fresh off reports that she was leaving Danity Kane to join the Pussycat Dolls ... Appeared to put all the drama behind her when DK's Welcome to the Dollhouse debuted at #1 on the Billboard charts ... Launched DK/Day26 tour in May ... Landed the role of Amber Von Tussle in the Broadway version of "Hairspray," which causes her to miss Danity Kane's appearance on "FNMTV" ... Boasted about her breasts during an interview with former WWE announcer Paul Heyman ... Shot a rather eye-opening photo spread for Complex magazine ... Booted from Danity Kane during live finale of MTV's "Making the Band" due to concerns over her "image" and despite the fact she was one of only two interesting members in the group ... Reportedly posed for Playboy ... May have had the most turbulent 12 months of anyone not named " Britney Spears" or "Amy Winehouse."

6: Sasha Fierce

2008 Highlights: Created by Beyoncé as a marketing tool/ psychological id for her I Am ... Sasha Fierce album ... Despite being completely fictional, may actually be more interesting than the actual Beyoncé ... Starred in the "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" video, which managed to "out-crazy even 'Ring the Alarm' " ... Definitive proof that Beyoncé is nuts ... Signified by a futuristic metallic glove worn on the left hand ... Is probably steampunk ... Quite possibly the most interesting alter-ego ever created by a musical superstar (sorry, Chris Gaines).

We'll be rolling out our Top 10 Men and Women of the Year all week! Today you've got 10 through 6, tomorrow you'll see 5 through 2, on Wednesday we'll be recapping your reactions and opinions, and on Thursday the winners will be revealed! Who do you think the Man and Woman of the Year should be? Tell us now!

• MTV News' Women And Men Of The Year

• MTV News' 2008 Men And Women Of The Year

• Britney Spears
• Beyoncé

Not exactly celebrity love - but a love of celebrity inspired handbags…

Hayden Panettiere along with Dooney & Bourke’s Italian design team have designed the new Hayden Clutch.

The clutch is crafted of soft supple Italian calfskin and trimmed with gold leather piping. It’s 24 carat gold-plated lion head closure offers a dramatic effect. This clutch is inspired by Hayden’s astrological sign Leo. With it’s fresh style and compact size, the Hayden Clutch is the perfect accessory for a night out on the town.

Being a Dooney and Bourke fan - I’m going to add this one to my Christmas Wish List.

The clutch comes in a variety of colors vibrant colors and is available for delivery in December. Retail: $295

Image Credit: Dooney and Bourke - Source: Hayden Rocks

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Image used with permission from splashnewsonline.com.

Jennifer Lopez looks absolutely gorgeous hot on the October cover of Elle. She also gives an interview where she talks about pregnancy, her hubby, and when she first realized she was going to have a baby.

On being selfish towards the end of her pregancy she said:

“We came off tour and I said ‘I did the superwoman thing, I finished the tour—now I need you to take care of me. I love doing things for you; if I’m not cooking, then I’m picking out a shirt. But this is the first time in my life where I’m just going to be a little bit selfish. I don’t know if I’m going to have kids again, so I want it to be a beautiful experience. I don’t want to have any drama. I want to just be smiling every day.”

Personally, I can’t believe she was on tour as long as she was with being pregnant with twins. That had to be exhausting.

Jennifer also talked about how she first felt a flutter in her belly one day and had a quiet moment of excitement when she realized there was life inside of her. She also had someone take a book of photos of herself as a present for hubby Marc Anthony and a way to remember this special time in her life.

Here’s a montage of the photos in the mag:

Doesn’t J-Lo look absolutely awesome? Watch for Elle on newstands September 10th.

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It looks like the World’s love affair with the domestic comedy-drama staring Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria begins its fifth season this fall.  Creator and executive producer, Marc Cherry told a group from Television Critics Association that he plans to end the series, Desperate Housewives after it’s seventh season.

It sounds to me like it will be another Seinfeld - go out while ratings are still high.

While it’s sad to see such a popular series end, I’d much rather see them end on a high note then to play out to the point of dread.

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Jessica Simpson has taken oodles of heat these days for wearing that imfamous “Real Girls Eat Meat” shit. PETA’s been all over her hide, Pam Anderson called her a BLEEP!, and now one writer says, “Real Girls Don’t Get Sassy on T-Shirts.”

I was wondering when it would come to this.

Because while I like a little sass in the Simpson girls, now that Jessica has decided to go into country music, she needs all the country friends she can find. The writer of this one particular story bascially says Jess should be nice to Carrie Underwood because you should be nice to everyone.

Can’t argue with that.

Even though Carrie is clearly the type of chick to do her snippiness behind people’s back (emailing your ex-beau to the point of distraction while he’s dating another gal, for example)…. she hasn’t said or done anything in public. It’s got to be hard to swallow, to be sure, and I blame Tony Romo in all this the most. Why can’t he be a stand up guy, turn down the ex-girlfriend chats, and pay attention to the one he has now? Why can’t he either break up with Jess for good, or commit to her? Perhaps he likes the drama.

Either way, this just reinforces my belief that Jess should dump this dude while the dumping is good. And not piss off anymore country pals, either, thanks very much.

Image from splashnewsonline.com.

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Rihanna shined in yellow at the BET Awards on June 24th where she was nominated for Best Female R&B Artist. She also performed her newest hit “Take a Bow.”

Rihanna definitely stood out in the crowd by dropping her rocker threads for the night and glided down the red carpet with her Giambattista Valli yellow ruffle maxi dress. She does keep with her trend of being bold with the summery bright color and teaming it with a dramatic lavender lip.

Despite walking the red carpet separately, Chris Brown and sat right next to her through out the show, even singing along as she performed. She also sheered him on as he performed his hit “Take You Down” which feature a steamy dance break with mutual friend and R&B starlet Ciara.

Continue reading to see more arrival pictures and stills from the show…

Image provided by SplashNewsOnline

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So, I am a cheapskate when it comes to going to the movie theater. I add up the cost of the tickets, the coke, the popcorn and it just makes me nauseous. A movie has to look REALLY good for me to go see it and pay out the whazzoo.

I knew that Mad Money was a movie I wouldn’t go see in the theater. No offense to Katie Holmes what-so-ever, but I could tell it was a renter.

I finally rented it the other night, and I know you all have already discussed this movie thoroughly, but I thought I would give my two cents. I convinced my husband to watch it with me and well, I thought it was cute. Katie’s part was interesting though and I am very curious to see if she ever plays a part like that again. She was a bit, okay a lot, dingy and out in left field. But that was the part she was supposed to play and she did it well.

Read the rest below. 

I was a little surprised by the ending of the movie. Here I was, thinking they had all learned their lesson about wanting more than they could have and the whole stealing thing, and then at the very end they are swimming in barrels of money. :D Pretty funny.

Now, I am the kind of gal that can watch a great movie over and over again, but seeing this movie once is enough for me.

It will be interesting to see what, if any, movie roles Katie takes down the road. If she is as good as everyone is saying she will be in “All My Sons“, then I think maybe some better roles will come her direction. I like Katie in dramas, or maybe a romantic comedy. I can’t wait to see what twists and turns her career takes over the years.

If you care to discuss again, what did you think of the movie? If you are bored with this topic…then carry on. :D

Image Source: Amazon.com

Paris Hilton caused quite the drama at her latest photo shoot - because it was a bit chilly.

Paris was supposed to pose by the pool at New York’s Hotel Gansevoort, but the cold was too much for her.

“Paris insisted on moving to the terrace,” an insider said. “But even then she wasn’t happy and had a flunky bring a space heater and place it directly in front of her.”

Image used with permission from Newscom
Source: Thaindian

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The big news out of Sao Paulo fashion week last season was the formation of the IM group, a fashion conglomerate that was (supposedly) buying brands and pumping them full of cash. Fast forward a few months later, and it turns out that all wasn't as it appeared. Headlines have trumpeted Alexandre Herchcovitch's claim that "I was lied to!" and the buzz is all about what's going to happen next. Apparently, IM's pockets weren't quite as deep as they claimed and Herchcovitch had never actually signed a deal selling his company. Which was probably a smart move, considering that of two brands that did sign, Fause Haten still hasn't received full payment and Zoomp, one of the country's biggest and most-beloved brands, has seen cash flow problems and isn't staging a show for the first time. Still, life goes on. Haten staged a dramatic show and was showered with roses as he took his bow. Herchcovitch's tightly focused men's collection didn't appear any worse for all the melodramatic wear, while his women's ranks among the best in his career. Stay tuned for a new set of twists and turns, sure to come by next season.

Paris Hilton updated her blog today, giving us details on her upcoming BFF show and her fab relationship with Benji Madden.

My New BFF MTV Show

Hey everyone! It’s been a little while since I last checked in. I’ve been so busy shooting my new show. It’s been quite the experience, these people are amazing! Everyone of the contestants is very special in there own way. We are having the best time, it’s been so much fun to meet such interesting characters. We’ve gone on some crazy adventures together. I even brought some of the contestants on trips with me to Japan and Las Vegas within the past 2 weeks. It’s been a blast! It’s so much fun to take your friends to places they’ve never been and show them experiences they’d never even think of. It’s quite a site and its going to be an amazing show and I’m so happy and thrilled with what’s happening everyday. But not everything is all fun and games, they’ve been through some very brutal challenges ,so I give them major props!! I still can’t believe some of the things I’ve seen them do, quite shocking! But also very entertaining. And yes of course there’s drama sometimes, but that’s what happens when you stick a bunch of fun, crazy girls together in a house together. The only part I hate about the show is doing the eliminations, it is so hard for me. And it gets harder every time cause these past few weeks I’ve really became close with all of them and it’s hard to have to let them go. It’s actually very emotional, everyone is pretty upset every time we have to do one. But even though at the end of this I can only choose one of these people to be my best friend, I know in my heart that I’ve met some people on the show that I’ll be friends with for a lifetime. I love them all and I can’t wait for you all to see the madness!! But you’ll have to wait till September when it airs on MTV.

In my personal life, I am still very much in love and happy. He has been so supportive throughout the show, coming to visit me at set everyday. Life is good. Check out Benji’s blog at www.GoodCharlotte.com He took some pictures of our fun lil trip to vegas this weekend with some of the potential BFF’s, it was such a fun weekend!! I hosted a party at Tao, it was a great night there. Some of the girls had never even been to Vegas before, so it was fun to show them vegas my way. They had the time of there lives. Also my friend Jeff Beacher threw us one of his infamous Beacher’s Madhouse After parties over at the Mirage Hotel Mansions. There were some pretty hilarious performances and I even got cut in half by a magician. Such a great weekend! Hope your all having a great summer! Speak soon, love you all!!
Xoxo Paris :)

Image used with permission from Newscom

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