NEW YORK, April 26 -- People magazine's annual issue featuring the 50 'most beautiful people in the world,' released Friday, has many obvious choices and a few less apparent ones. In addition to Oscar-winning cover guy Mel Gibson and fellow movie stars Brad Pitt, Michelle Pfeiffer and Demi Moore, the magazine features 'The Nanny' star, comedian Fran Drescher, 'America's Most Wanted' host John Walsh, Ohio zookeeper Jack Hanna and arts-and-crafts maven Martha Stewart. As the magazine noted in its introduction to the 1996 roster, 'charisma counts as much as comeliness.' Some of the honorees are widely believed to have both, such as actors Pierce Brosnan, George Clooney and Johnny Depp and actress Nicole Kidman. Some are heavier on the charisma factor than traditional beauty, such as actress Sandra Bullock who, People noted, was voted 'most likely to brighten your day' by her classmates at Washington-Lee High School in Arlington, Va. As for 54-year-old Stewart, a former model, she was noted for her 'prim, Doris Day-like sensuality' and thankfully was photographed without gardening gloves or glue gun. The issue gives the celebrity-oriented magazine an opportunity to shine a light on some up-and-comers, such as 17-year-old violin prodigy Vanessa-Mae Nicholson, models Kirsty Hume and Navia Nguyen, figure skater Lu Chen, and Christian singer Patty Cabrera. The rest of the list:
Model Tyra Banks, actress Brooke Shields, singer Chilli of R&B trio TLC, actress Shannon Sturges of 'Savannah,' actor Matthew Fox of 'Party of Five,' Jenny McCarthy of the MTV show 'Singled Out,' actress Mira Sorvino, football player Steve Largent, surfer Laird Hamilton, rocker Jon Bon Jovi, actress Gloria Reuben of 'ER,' actor David Duchovny of 'The X-Files,' actor Chris O'Donnell, actress Josie Bissett of 'Melrose Place,' actress Lela Rochon of 'Waiting to Exhale,' actor Antonio Banderas, actor Keith Hamilton Cobb of 'All My Children,' actress Ashley Judd, author David Guterson, BET reporter Ed Gordon, actress Gail O'Grady of 'NYPD Blue,' actor Patrick Muldoon of 'Melrose Place,' singer Brandy, diver Kent Ferguson, rocker Tori Amos, acting brothers Jason and Jeremy London, actress Susan Sarandon, actress Salma Hayek, composer-producer Quincy Jones, actress Kate Winslet of 'Sense and Sensibility,' and actor David James Elliott of 'JAG.'
