Forbes Announces World’s 100 Most Powerful Celebrities – 2011 Edition

Forbes is known for having its own unique type of clout and power.

They rank not only celebrities, but also powerful business and political figures on their respective top lists.

But this week their focus was on celebrities.

The Celebrity 100, which includes actors, Television personalities, models, athletes, authors, musicians and comedians, is a measure of showbiz related income and media visibility over the last twelve months.

Forbes also measures social media power by looking at each celebrity's presence on Facebook and Twitter. The criteria for being included on the list do NOT fall solely on money.

Today they released their “World’s 100 Most Powerful Celebrity” list and the results… well, aren’t as surprising as you might think - at least for the top 10.

But how powerful are the top 100? The combined earning power of celebs on this elite list tops $4.5 billion in earnings from record sales, concert tours, movies, endorsements, advertising, product sales, playing sports, and modeling.

Lady Gaga came in at #1 with $90 million in earnings and bumped Oprah Winfrey into the #2 spot. But don’t feel bad for Winfrey – she made over $250 million the last 12 months.

Teen pop sensation Justin Bieber came in #3 earning well over $50 million over the last twelve months and an estimated $150 million over the last three years. Bieber’s command of social media like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube pushed him onto the list for the first time in the 17-year-old’s career.

U2 came in as #4. The Bono centric band is well known for their worldwide social awareness and charity work. Singer and AIDS activist Sir Elton John came in #5.

A summary of the top 10 spots is below and you can see the entire list on the Forbes web site.

1 – Lady Gaga - $90 M
2 – Oprah Winfrey - $250 M
3 – Justin Bieber - $53 M
4 – U2 - $195 M
5 – Sir Elton John - $100 M
6 – Tiger Woods - $75 M
7 – Taylor Swift - $45 M
8 – Bon Jovi - $135 M
9 – Simon Cowell - $90
10 – LeBron James - $48 m

A complete list can be seen on the Forbes site here.

There were a few surprises this year including Glenn Beck, Adam Sandler, and Jay Leno. I guess we don’t see exactly how they are among the most powerful, but who are we to argue with Forbes?

And Donald Trump made the list but Charlie Sheen didn’t. Go figure.

It seems the farther down the list you go things become a bit more of a popularity contest, but we congratulate all of them for their efforts and input into the industry.

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Forbes Releases Prime-Time TV's 20 Top-Earning Women List

Things sure have changed in the world of television. Years ago, hot celebrities on hit shows could draw a very large number of viewers. Not so theses days.

With the proliferation of cable channels and the rush away from network television, even the biggest stars, on the biggest shows are making less then their counterparts did ten years ago.

Back in the good old days, "Friends" cast members, as well as folks like Jerry Seinfeld, could command $1 million dollars per episode. Not any more. But there is money to be made from television, and Forbes has just released its Prime-Time TV's 20 Top-Earning Women list.

Tyra Banks was named top earner. The television diva, who hosts her own daytime talk show, and is host of the smash hit series "America's Next Top Model," brought in a reported $23 million between June 2007 and June 2008.

Heidi Klum earned an impressive $14 million, making her the second highest moneymaker on the list thanks to "Project Runway," among other contracts and hosting jobs.

"Grey's Anatomy" star Katherine Heigl banked $13 million for her portrayal of Izzie Stevens in the television series and her movie roles, including "27 Dresses."

Eva Longoria Parker came in fourth, netting $9 million.

Maura Tierney pulled down $7.5 million for her job on "ER".

Mariska Hargitay made $6.5 million for "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"

Jennifer Love Hewitt drew $5 million for "Ghost Whisperer"

Paula Abdul, believe it or not, made only $5 million for being a judge on "American Idol"

Tina Fey made $4.6 million for creating and starring on "30 Rock"

Vanessa Williams made $4.5milion for her role on "Ugly Betty"

The Forbes top earner list ranked the women based on their earnings between June 2007 and June 2008, and included their television salaries, movie earnings, endorsement and fashion deals.
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