The best and worst of celebrity news in 2014

It was a crazy year for celebrities. (What year isn't?!) But this year seemed extra-busy, with endless ups and downs. Each week as we tracked the news, we also came up with superlatives for star shenanigans. And now, we've scoured, rehashed and paged through our lists to come up with the mother lode of all celeb superlatives, the best of the Hollywood best, the crème de la crème. Think high school yearbook, if Lupita Nyong'o, Amal Alamuddin and Kim Kardashian were classmates.

Dress of the year: Lupita Nyong'o's red Golden Globes gown

The 12 Years a Slave star and Oscar winner took the fashion world by storm at the Golden Globes with a stunning Ralph Lauren dress and cape. Being a fashion star is "wonderful," she told USA TODAY. "It was in no way my agenda when I started."

Obsession of the year: Amal Alamuddin

Is Amal Clooney more influential than British Prime Minister David Cameron? London's Evening Standard says she is. George Clooney's bride made the No. 4 spot on the newspaper's list of the "Most Influential Londoners," ahead of such big names as
Cameron, Prince Harry and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai. And we have to concur. The new Mrs. Clooney's smarts, style and allure have had us following her every move.

Most outrageous personal on-air, um, revelation: Whoopi Goldberg

Live television is tough because anything can go wrong — like letting one rip in the middle of a segment. That's what happened to poor Whoopi Goldberg, who passed gas — for quite a long time, we should add — right in the middle of guest co-host singer Ashanti's sentence. On air. On The View. And she acknowledged it! Whoopi immediately popped out of her chair and took a little walk, while Rosie O'Donnell fanned the air. (Note: They were both quick to point a finger at the lowly, dangerous breakfast burrito as a culprit.)

Worst attempt at burlesque: Kim Kardashian

She didn't break the Internet, although she tried. You know what Kim K. did. She took off her clothes and bared her rear to the world in a photo that hit the Web and left everyone gasping. Then the next day, she turned around and gave everyone a full-frontal view of her naked bod. The gasps, the memes, the jokes all added up to big traffic for Paper magazine. "We know you came just to read the article," she tweeted in jest.

Worst candid camera moment of the year: Jay-Z's elevator fight

Leaked video camera footage showed Solange Knowles attacking Jay Z in an elevator after a party as Beyoncé stood impassively between them. Theories began swirling. The trio eventually released a statement: "We love each other, and above all, we are family. We've put this behind us and hope everyone else will do the same." But the damage was done; Bey and Jay continued to face an onslaught of breakup rumors. Queen B's response? A sassy rap in her new Flawless remix: "Of course sometimes (stuff) goes down when it's a billion dollars on an elevator."

Best transgender breakthrough: Laverne Cox

She plays transgender woman Sophia Burset on Orange Is the New Black, and in real life, Cox is a transgender woman and trailblazer in the LGBT community. This year, Cox became the first openly transgender person to be nominated for an Emmy in an acting category. Her work as an advocate, a star and a voice for transgender people landed her on the cover of Time magazine, which called her an "unlikely icon."

Most secretive procreation: Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling

The cries were heard across Celeb Land. Hottie Gosling not only was taken, but he was fathering a baby Gosling! The lucky mom-to-be? Mendes. The two were super-private about the whole thing. We never even saw her with a bump. Still, she did give birth, and now they're parents to baby girl Esmeralda Amada Gosling.

Most surprising celeb hookup: Zac Efron and Michelle Rodriguez

What do you get when you mix Efron with a beach vacay, a bikini and Rodriguez? The most head-scratching star coupling since Drew Barrymore and Tom Green. Who knew Efron and Rodriguez even knew each other, let alone that they were canoodling? It seemed to only be a summer romance, but we slurped it up like an ice-cold cocktail on a hot sunny beach.

Biggest misfire of a television review: TheNew York Times on Shonda Rhimes

New York Times TV critic Alessandra Stanley referred to the producer of Scandal and How to Get Away With Murder as an "angry black woman," infuriating Rhimes, her actors and her fans. The reaction was so extreme that Times public editor Margaret Sullivan published an apology, saying the story was "astonishingly tone-deaf"; she quoted an editor who said that because "the piece was so largely positive, we as editors weren't sensitive enough to the language."

Coolest self-proclaimed feminist: Emma Watson

As a U.N. women goodwill ambassador, Watson is not afraid to call herself a feminist. In fact, she embraces the word. In a speech that earned her a standing ovation at a U.N. HeForShe event, she said: "I think it is right I am paid the same as my male counterparts. I think it is right that I should make decisions about my own body. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and decisions that affect my life. I think it is right that socially, I am afforded the same respect as men." We used to think Hermione Granger was the coolest and smartest girl in the world. Turns out, Watson is.

Most blatant display of sexism: Emmys bit featuring Sofia Vergara

This year's Emmy producers attempted to spice up a lackluster segment by having Vergara stand on a spinning platform, center stage, while the CEO and chairman of the Television Academy, Bruce Rosenblum, talked next to her. He mentioned the lengths TV goes to in order to draw viewers, and as he continued, the segment drew backlash from some Twitter users, who called
it sexist and misogynistic. Yet the Modern Family actress and four-time Emmy nominee brushed it all off, telling Entertainment Weekly the only thing the stunt meant is "that somebody can be hot and also be funny and make fun of herself."

Most drawn-out downfall of an icon: Bill Cosby

The entertainment icon went from "America's Favorite Dad" to toxic toast as accusations by multiple women that he drugged and raped them in decades past piled up around him, forcing an LAPD investigation, the cancellation of many comedy shows, at least one lawsuit, and the revocation of an honorary title from the U.S. Navy. Aside from angry denunciations of the accusers
by Cosby's lawyer, Cosby himself has said little. But his wife, Camille, and daughter, Evin, have issued statements saying they stand by him. The story seems far from over.

Biggest reality show shocker: Mama June Shannon

Since 2012, Here Comes Honey Boo Boo has risen through the reality-show ranks to take a spot in our pop-culture universe. But it's all over now. TLC canceled the show after reports surfaced that Mama June Shannon, little Alana "Honey Boo Boo" Thompson's mom, had begun dating convicted sex offender Mark McDaniel. Shannon denied the reports, saying she had known him in the past before he spent 10 years in prison. Adding to the sordid tale, Shannon's oldest daughter, Anna Cardwell, told Radar Online that McDaniel, 53, molested her 12 years ago, when she was 8. It's probably best that the spotlight is not on this family anymore.

Most controversial new look: Renee Zellweger

The actress probably thought she was going to make a nice appearance at Elle's Women in Hollywood event and go home. But no: Zellweger, 45, started a conversation that went on for days because she looked ... different. Two plastic surgeons told USA TODAY she appeared to have had cosmetic surgery on her upper eyelids. There was so much chatter that Zellweger decided to address it, chalking up her new face not to cosmetic surgery or Botox but to happiness. She told People magazine in a statement: "I'm glad folks think I look different! I'm living a different, happy, more fulfilling life, and I'm thrilled that perhaps it shows."

Most spoofed ad star: Matthew McConaughey

Early in 2014, McConaughey took home his first Oscar for Dallas Buyers Club. He also was nominated for an Emmy for his role in HBO's True Detective. So how did he follow up the success? By appearing in ads touting Lincoln cars!? Ellen DeGeneres spoofed them in September. Then Jim Carrey spoofed McConaughey on Saturday Night Live: In talking about why he did the commercial: "My agent was like, 'I could understand if you did this right after The Lincoln Lawyer. That woulda made sense.'"

Most overpriced piece of disgusting cake: Slice from Prince Charles and Princess Diana's wedding

Unless it's diamond-encrusted, we're not sure there's any slice of cake in the world that could be worth $1,375. But that's what someone paid for a piece from Prince Charles and Princess Diana's wedding cake — which is more than three decades old. Gross. Hollywood auction house Nate D. Sanders Auctions of Los Angeles won't say who won the auction, but they do have details about the cake: The slice comes in the original white and silver presentation box marked "Buckingham Palace, 29 July 1981." We hope this makes the person who dropped that cash very happy.

Family moment that most stole our hearts: The Carters at the VMAs

Buzz of trouble in their superstar marriage? What buzz? Beyoncé and Jay Z displayed a united front at the MTV VMAs. As Bey delivered a 15-minute medley of her songs, the camera frequently cut away to toddler Blue Ivy, balanced on Dad's lap. After the performance, Jay Z presented his wife with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. As he held little Blue, she clapped and said, "Yeah, Mommy," melting the hearts of viewers — and, most notably, her mom, who replied: "Blue, I love you. My beloved, I love you. My fans, I love you. MTV, I love you!"

Most 'What was she thinking?' red-carpet look: Lena Dunham

The Girls star caused a stir when she showed up on the Emmy red carpet in a long, feathery skirt and a collared shirt, prompting the fashion police to invoke Little Bo Peep — gone baaaad. Sorry, Lena. That tiered ombré outfit may have been cake-like, but it did not take the cake.

Contributing: Cindy Clark, Kelly Lawler, Carly Mallenbaum, Andrea Mandell, Maria Puente, Arienne Thompson ,