CNN Readers Pick the Best of 2012
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Readers Favorites 2012: The results – Earlier this month, we asked CNN's readers to vote for what they loved the most in entertainment this year, and also what they'd rather see stay in 2012. The results are in, so stay tuned for a new list to be revealed each day starting December 17. Thanks to all who voted!
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Readers' Favorites: Top 10 songs of 2012 – From the Carly Rae Jepsen earworm "Call Me Maybe" to fun.'s "We Are Young," 2012 boasts a plethora of catchy tunes. To get an idea of which songs stood out the most for our readers, we asked them to choose their 10 favorites from a list of 20 hits. Though some of these tracks made their debut before the start of the year, they didn't quite peak until after the ball dropped. Here are the results:
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No. 10: 'What Makes You Beautiful' – No. 10 on the list is One Direction's "What Makes You Beautiful." The track is the first single off the English-Irish boy band's debut studio album, "Up All Night." Their second studio album, "Take Me Home," was released in November 2012.
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No. 9: 'Ho Hey' – "Ho Hey," the first single off The Lumineers' self-titled debut album, was released in June. It has spent 27 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100, peaking at No. 4; and it's currently the No. 1 tune on Billboard's Rock Songs chart.
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No. 8: 'Gangnam Style' – South Korean artist Psy's "Gangnam Style" music video became the most-watched YouTube video of all time in November. Psy recently apologized for rapping anti-American lyrics during a 2004 performance that surfaced on CNN's iReport, among other outlets.
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No. 7: 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together' – "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is the first single off Taylor Swift's "Red," which was released in October. The tune is the country-pop princess's first to hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; it also earned Swift a Grammy nod for record of the year.
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No. 6: 'Home' – "American Idol" winner Phillip Phillips' song "Home" is another 2012 reader favorite. "Home" is the Georgia native's debut single and coronation song from the reality show's 11th season.
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No. 5: 'Blow Me (One Last Kiss)' – Pink released "Blow Me (One Last Kiss)," the first single off her sixth studio album, "The Truth About Love," in July. She performed the song at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards in September with help from some dancing lips.
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No. 4: 'Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)' – The newly engaged Kelly Clarkson's single "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)" was released in January. It's the artist's third single to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, following "A Moment Like This" and "My Life Would Suck Without You."
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No. 3: 'We Are Young' – "We Are Young," which spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, is the first single off fun.'s second studio album, "Some Nights." The indie band, made up of Nate Ruess, Andrew Dost and Jack Antonoff, was recently nominated for six Grammy Awards, including song of the year.
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No. 2: 'Call Me Maybe' – Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The single became an earworm in the United States shortly after Justin Bieber and friends uploaded their homemade music video featuring the tune on YouTube.
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No. 1: 'Somebody That I Used to Know' – "Somebody That I Used to Know" spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Gotye's track, which features New Zealand singer-songwriter Kimbra, debuted in the summer of 2011 on his third studio album, "Making Mirrors." The Belgian-Australian artist's real name is Wouter "Wally" De Backer.
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Readers' Favorites: Top 10 movies of 2012 – Much has been said about sluggish box office weekends this year, but there's no denying that we had an abundance of great movies to choose from. To get an idea of which films stood out the most for our readers, we asked them to choose their favorite 10 pictures out of a mix of 20 major releases that arrived in theaters between January and December 7, 2012. Here are the results:
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No. 10: 'The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn -- Part 2' – The final installment of "The Twilight Saga" isn't a surprising entry on the list, but what might surprise you is how close it came to getting knocked off entirely. "Breaking Dawn -- Part 2" just barely edged out "The Amazing Spider-Man" to make it to No. 10 on our list. Here's a review of "Breaking Dawn -- Part 2," and here's a refresher course on the "Twilight Saga" in case you need it.
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No. 9: '21 Jump Street' – Of the three films Channing Tatum, left, starred in this year, "21 Jump Street" was widely received as a defining moment for the 32-year-old star, who's since been named People magazine's sexiest man. We saw the writing on the wall after this comedy with Jonah Hill arrived, and called 2012 a standout year for the actor.
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No. 8: 'Brave' – Disney/Pixar's summer animated feature "Brave" was on trend with a strong heroine at the center of its story in addition to featuring oh-so-hot archery. The movie was praised for its independent protagonist, and has been nominated for a Golden Globe award in the best animated feature category.
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No. 7: 'Ted' – The premise behind Seth MacFarlane's "Ted" had the potential to be either hilarious or hilariously awful, but the movie became one of the summer box office's best. Starring Mark Wahlberg as a man who still hasn't let go of his relationship with his (raunchy) teddy bear, voiced by MacFarlane, "Ted" was a risk that paid off well.
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No. 6: 'Argo' – The positive buzz was huge for "Argo" and actor/director Ben Affleck, right, after his success with "The Town." "Argo" still stands out among December's heavy hitters, as it hasn't been forgotten by the SAG or Golden Globe Awards.
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No. 5: 'Lincoln' – What Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" has lacked in box office receipts it's made up for in critical praise. The lengthy examination of Abraham Lincoln's presidency and his pivotal push to end slavery and the Civil War is considered one of the best films of the year.
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No. 3: 'Skyfall' – The release of the 23rd James Bond film, "Skyfall," just happened to coincide with this year's 50th anniversary of the Bond franchise. Such perfect timing undoubtedly helped propel what some have hailed as the best "Bond" movie in years to the top of the box office. In fact, it had the biggest opening for a "Bond" movie ever. Having a theme song from the singer with the Midas touch, Adele, probably didn't hurt either.
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No. 2: 'The Dark Knight Rises' – The final installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, "The Dark Knight Rises," was one of the year's most highly anticipated and widely praised films, but it will also be forever linked in our minds with the horrific movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado.
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No. 1: 'The Avengers' – No surprise here: If you paid any attention at all to "The Avengers'" box office reign after it opened in May, you knew it had to show up on a public-voted "best" list. It's the highest-grossing film this year, according to BoxOfficeMojo.com, earning $623 million domestically to date. The sequel is on its way.
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