Springtime brings many beloved annual traditions: Opening Day for Major League Baseball, the return of the robins and their delightful songs, and most importantly, Maxim’s Hot 100 list. And in 2011, the publication’s list of the planet’s most gorgeous women seemed particularly smoldering. (Click this for Maxim’s Hot 100 List 2012.)
Varied Careers
The women on the 2011 Maxim Hot 100 came from all walks of life. Well, OK, there weren’t any chemists or poets on the list. But even so, various careers were highlighted. For example, Hope Dworaczyk (97), was a “Playboy” Playmate of the Year, and also competed that spring on the NBC reality show “Celebrity Apprentice.” Erin Andrews (91) is a sportscaster, Anna Kournikova (19) a retired tennis player and — in perhaps the list’s most surprising choice — Kate Middleton (26) is Duchess of Cambridge. Hopefully, this latter choice did not cause any friction among the members of England’s royal family.
TV Stars
Television performers, as might be expected, took plenty of “Maxim 100” slots that memorable year. The AMC cable drama “Mad Men” had three of its stars on the list, representing three different hair colors: the redheaded Christina Hendricks (56), the brunette Alison Brie (49), and the blonde January Jones (12). Among the reality TV stars here were JWOWW (78) from MTV’s “Jersey Shore,” Audrina Patridge (57) from MTV’s “The Hills,” and Julianne Hough (48), who twice won ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.” In additionally, TV hostesses among the hundred included Candace Bailey (99), who presided over the now-defunct “Attack of the Show” on the G4 cable channel, and Olivia Munn (2), who preceded Bailey on “Attack”.
Singers
Pop singers must always look their best for concerts and music videos and photo shoots and whatnot, and they also must stay in shape for grueling world tours. Therefore, it’s no surprise that songstresses appear often on Maxim Hot 100’s — and 2011 was no exception. Gracing this list were the beautiful faces of Ciara (67), Miley Cyrus (64) — Miley would go on to top the Maxim 100 in 2013, by the way — Christina Aguilera (58), Britney Spears (25), Rihanna (22), and Taylor Swift (20).
The Top Ten
Then there are those coveted top ten positions. The top ten designation, one supposes, separates the overpoweringly hot from the merely blisteringly hot. Movie stars often reign supreme in Hollywood — they’re among the highest-paid and most-written-about celebrities — and thus it’s no surprise that Maxim’s ten hottest from 2011 included several movie actresses, including Jennifer Lawrence (10), Natalie Portman (8), Anne Hathaway (7), Mila Kunis (5), and Cameron Diaz (4). That Portman and Kunis both cracked the top ten in 2011 was certainly not a shock; the people who compiled this list no doubt had their blazing scenes from the film “Black Swan” in mind.
Number One
Taking the number one, hottest of the hot spot on the 2011 Maxim Hot 100 was Rosie Huntington-Whitely. Huntington-Whitely was a superstar lingerie model for Victoria’s Secret — great training for Maxim hotness. She was born in Plymouth, Devon, England and raised on a farm nearby. In the summer of 2011, Huntington-Whitely appeared in the film “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” the third film in director Michael Bay’s “Transformers” series. She has described her number one designation on this list as a great honor.
The Challenge of the Hot List
Of course, how could any mere mortal decide who’s hottest among this gorgeous crew of 100 talented women? Any of these ladies, really, could have been number one. And there must have been many, many more candidates for this list. Still, even with such a difficult task before them each year, the people at “Maxim” soldier on, for it’s their duty to examine thousands of photos and videos of beautiful women, rank them, and then interview many of their choices. Truly they are heroes.
