Parade.com 2009 Summer Pop Culture Poll Finds: Biggest Trendsetter is Michelle Obama; First Couple Comes in 2nd as 'Sexiest'; Winehouse and Lohan Most in Need of Therapy; Paris Most Promiscuous

NEW YORK, Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Parade.com polled Americans on celebrity pop culture in its annual Summer Pop Culture Poll. Here is a roundup:

-- Forty-one percent felt that Michael Jackson's death was the most gripping headline of 2009. Also shocking: Bernie Madoff swindling investors out of millions (31%) and John Travolta's son Jett's sudden death (18%). -- Amy Winehouse is the celebrity most in need of therapy (38%), followed closely by Lindsay Lohan (37%). -- Paris Hilton took the prize for the most promiscuous (46%), while Pam Anderson (15%), Lindsay Lohan (14%), and Alex Rodriguez (12%) followed. -- The biggest trendsetter in America is First Lady Michelle Obama, with 50% of the vote! Sarah Jessica Parker came in second with 17%, Victoria Beckham came in third (13%). -- Among the beautiful people: -- Sexiest male is Johnny Depp, (49%) -- Sexiest lady is Halle Berry (34%) -- Most natural beauty is Jennifer Garner (27%) -- Most distinguished-looking gentleman is George Clooney (40%), while Barack Obama came in second, with 15%! -- The sexiest couple is Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie (29%); Turns out the Obamas (16%) are sexier than ScarJo and Ryan Reynolds (13%), Sandra Bullock and Jesse James (12%), and Victoria and David Beckham (12%). -- Most alarming couples' chaos this year: the end of Mel Gibson's marriage (57%), Jon and Kate Gosselin's drama (18%), Tony Romo dumping Jessica Simpson (10%) and Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson's breakups and makeups (7%). -- The most "normal" couple is Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner (48%), followed by Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens (14%), Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal (13%), and Heidi Klum and Seal (10%). Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes received 2%. -- Respondents think Fergie and Josh Duhamel (39%) are most likely to succeed as a newly married couple. Next in line: Salma Hayek and Francois Henri-Penault (30%), and Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen (15%).

-- The most realistic reality show is Jon & Kate Plus 8 (39%), compared with Keeping Up With the Kardashians (17%), The Bachelor/The Bachelorette (14%), and The Hills (13%).

The poll was conducted on Parade.com among nearly 5000 Americans. Visit Parade.com for full poll results.

SOURCE Parade.com