Los
Angeles
(Reuters):
Despite
the
jokes
and
sneers
he
drew
for
hopping
on
couches
and
slamming
psychiatry,
actor
Tom
Cruise
yesterday
reclaimed
his
No
1
spot
on
Forbes
magazine's
annual
list
of
the
world's
100
most
powerful
stars.
Forbes
said
its
top
ranking
of
Cruise
hinged
as
much
on
the
''media
onslaught''
he
drew
for
his
pairing
with
actress
Katie
Holmes
as
it
did
to
his
''awesome''
box
office
clout
lending
credence
to
the
adage
there's
no
such
thing
as
bad
publicity.
The
business
magazine
said
the
stars
on
its
''Celebrity
100
Power
List''
were
ranked
according
to
their
earning
power
and
celebrity
''sizzle''
for
the
12
months
beginning
last
June,
and
that
Cruise
has
proven
he
still
possesses
plenty
of
both.
His
big
film
last
summer,
War
of
the
Worlds,
grossed
a
whopping
591
million
dollars
worldwide,
while
this
year's
Mission:
Impossible
III
has
generated
329
million
dollars
and
counting.
''Love
him
or
hate
him,
Cruise
is
Hollywood's
most
bankable
actor,''
the
editors
wrote,
estimating
his
annual
earnings
at
67
million
dollars.
The
new
Forbes
ranking
provides
a
welcome
publicity
boost
for
Cruise,
43,
a
month
after
a
USA
Today/Gallup
poll
showed
that
his
star
wattage
had
dimmed
considerably
in
the
eyes
of
the
public,
with
his
approval
rating
sinking
to
35
per
cent.
More
than
half
of
those
polled
registered
an
''unfavorable''
opinion
of
the
actor.
Many
cited
his
off-screen
behavior
during
the
past
year,
including
his
blunt
criticism
of
psychiatry.
Cruise
also
became
the
butt
of
jokes
for
his
manic,
couch-hopping
appearance
on
The
Oprah
Winfrey
Show
last
May
to
declare
his
love
for
Holmes,
who
recently
gave
birth
to
Cruise's
first
biological
child,
a
daughter
they
named
Suri.
But
Forbes
said
all
the
headlines,
combined
with
Cruise's
box
office
success,
demonstrate
he
still
commands
attention.
Cruise,
who
ranked
No
10
on
the
Power
100
roster
last
year,
also
topped
the
list
in
2001.
Forbes'
top-rated
celebrity
in
2005
was
Winfrey,
who
slipped
two
notches
to
No.
3
this
year
even
as
she
expanded
her
multimedia
empire
with
her
Tony-nominated
Broadway
production
of
The
Color
Purple
and
other
projects.
Two
rock
bands,
the
Rolling
Stones
and
U2,
clinched
spots
on
the
upper
rungs
of
the
list
ranking
No
2
and
4,
respectively
and
golf
champion
Tiger
Woods
hit
No
5.
Rounding
out
the
top
10
were
Oscar-winning
director
Steven
Spielberg,
shock
jock
and
newly
minted
satellite
radio
star
Howard
Stern,
rap
giant
50
Cent,
the
cast
of
HBO's
mob
drama
The
Sopranos
and
The
Da
Vinci
Code
author
Dan
Brown.
Spielberg,
who
ranked
No
6
overall,
had
the
highest
estimated
annual
earnings
on
the
list,
332
million
dollars,
followed
by
Stern
with
302
million
dollars
and
''Star
Wars''
filmmaker
George
Lucas
at
235
million
dollars.
Winfrey
was
fourth
at
225
million
dollars.