Zena C, Flickr

John Mulaney may not yet be a household name. But the 30-year-old stands as good a chance as any young working comedian to get to that place. Mulaney debuted his critically acclaimed one-hour stand-up comedy special New In Town on Comedy Central this year. He also writes for Saturday Night Live, even co-creating beloved character Stefon with Bill Hader. Prepare to hear a lot more from him in 2013.

Photo credit: Zena C, Flickr

SportsAngle.com, Flickr

It’s official: Michael Strahan has replaced Ryan Seacrest in the battle to be named “Hardest Working Man in Show Business.” Strahan’s post-retirement work with the NFL on FOX helped get him the coveted spot replacing Regis Philbin on Live with Kelly. The two jobs basically mean that Strahan is either working or traveling seven days a week. Whether you like his work on both shows or not, you can’t knock the hustle. I bet Tiki Barber would trade at least two of his prestigious flag football gigs for Strahan’s life.

Photo credit: SportsAngle.com, Flickr

YouTube/CBS

Imagine you’ve been jailed for withholding information to protect your employer who has done a fair amount of shady things in the past. Now imagine you come clean and the world says, “Good, we’re glad you learned your lesson,” and you get a $104 million payout as a result. That’s a pretty strong case for the universe being just, right? Such is the story of Bradley Birkenfeld. Granted, he wasn’t exactly squeaky clean during his time recruiting clients for UBS – allegedly smuggling in diamonds to win the business of one potential client – but he did rise to the occasion, resulting in a $780 million fine for the Swiss bank to avoid criminal prosecution. The hope is that Birkenfeld’s story will make more people do the right thing. Nine figures isn’t a bad way to grab the attention of potential do-gooders.

Photo credit: YouTube/CBS

interbeat, Flickr

Spoiler alert: CM Punk isn’t the highest ranked wrestler on this list. But he is the more influential in his industry and, frankly, the cooler of the two. Perhaps his year-plus reign as WWE Champion isn’t as notable an accomplishment in a scripted sport as other athletes on this list. But WWE is a fickle organization with an audience who has a microscopic attention span. Punk being the focal point of the company for such a stretch of time is a testament to his talent as a performer and, yes, the cult of personality he exhibits weekly on the flagship ratings powerhouse Monday Night Raw.

Photo credit: interbeat, Flickr

YouTube/ecorner

The math here is simple: Millions of self-shots + hundreds of thousands of pictures of food and mediocre landscapes / a dozen filters = $1 billion company. But joke all you want about the social and fiscal merits of Instagram, there’s no denying that it’s a cultural phenomenon that isn’t often captured. Cashing out to Facebook this year makes the proposition even sweeter. There’s a good chance these guys will have a big say in how the social mobile Web looks moving forward and, if Instagram is any indication, the future is bright. And perhaps tinted with sepia to make it look deep

Photo credit: YouTube/ecorner

Music News Australia, Flickr

Ignoring their bubble gum music and their inorganic good looks, what’s there to be mad about if you’re actually one of the guys in One Direction? “Oh no, which of us is going to date Taylor Swift this week?” Are you kidding me? You look pretty, have girls scream at you, perform some stuff you didn’t write, go backstage, maybe introduce some (hopefully legal) girl to the art of ineffective boy band love-making and call it a day. Hate all you want but these guys are living the life. More importantly, they’re a decent influence on society; One Direction fans banded together to stop a fellow teen fan from killing herself. It’s the exact opposite of 98 Degrees.

Photo credit: Music News Australia, Flickr

YouTube/ReutersVideo

Greg Smith was just an average Goldman Sachs drone when he decided the world needed to know all about the sordid goings-on in one of the world’s largest investment banks. The reality? Smith didn’t really have a whole lot to say. Goldman Sachs treats clients poorly, they have a secret culture of entitlement that everyone would expect anyway, hardly revelations. But Smith put himself out there as the face of what we all knew. Will Goldman Sachs change because of his book Why I Left Goldman Sachs? Probably not. Will the book matter a month from now, if it’s even relevant now? No. But Smith wrote a book telling us all what we wanted to hear and got paid $1.4 million for it. Seems like a good year to us.

Photo credit: YouTube/ReutersVideo

david_shankbone, Flickr

Channing Tatum spent 2012 being named People’s Sexiest Man Alive and he also had a movie, Magic Mike, that women lined up in droves to see because he played the role of a stripper. Is he the most talented guy in Hollywood? Probably not. Would I kick you in the groin right now to trade spots with him for a day? Yes. Yes I would. And that’s what gets him in at #35.

Photo credit: david_shankbone, Flickr

YouTube/CNN

You won’t know the 33-year-old Ferdowsi by name but you may recall his attention grabbing red, white, and blue Mohawk that appeared during August’s Mars Rover launch. Ferdowsi seems like about the most down-to-earth NASA Flight Director you could hope for. But, more than anything, Ferdowsi’s modest fame from this big moment in American history is what got him on this list. America is finally innovating again, all thanks to the power of one man with a the stars and stripes etched into his hair.

Photo credit: YouTube/CNN

YouTube/PBS

Sepinwall has been a TV critic and recapper for over a decade. He’s currently one of the key personalities on entertainment site Hitfix.com where his blog, “What’s Alan Watching,” is among the most active sections. His timely reactions to popular TV shows are often a crucial part of digesting the latest happenings on popular TV shows like Mad Men, Game of Thrones, and The Walking Dead. Sepinwall’s years of experience covering TV for Hitfix and the Star-Ledger led him to self-publish his second book, The Revolution Was Televised, a fantastic read about the evolution of modern television dramas. Sepinwall’s influence is obvious across almost every TV recap you’ll read online – including those on this site – for good reason.

Photo credit: YouTube/PBS

Gage Skidmore, Flickr

No, this isn’t a lifetime achievement award for Pattinson’s work in sexy vampirism. But rather a tribute to what he can now do. Pattinson’s work in Twilight — a movie franchise Pattinson could barely hide his contempt for – is now fully completed and he’s free to seek more meaningful employment. The whole Kristen Stewart cheating fiasco this summer probably sucked but something tells me ol’ Bobby Pattinson could have rebounded from that effortlessly if he wanted to. I’m curious to see what’s next for him and I bet Pattinson is too.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore, Flickr

Xander Corvus, Twitter

Don’t know Xander Corvus? There’s no shame there; adult film acting is dominated by its female performers, obviously. But it can’t be bad to be Corvus. Corvus was named AVN’s Best New Male Performer in January and is frequently referred to as “stud” during articles about his work. Corvus also got married this year and subsequently “retired” from adult films, a fact that made women – yes, women – sad across the land. There are certainly worse things to be known for.

Photo credit: Xander Corvus, Twitter

Adam Glanzman, Flickr

How can you top being a multi-millionaire, multi-platinum recording artist and cultural magnate who’s married to one of the most attractive women on Earth? By somehow making the borough you grew up in one of the most famous in the country. Beyond just selling out a week’s worth of shows to kick off Brooklyn’s new Barclays Center stadium, Jay-Z has made headlines for his role as a minority owner of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets. He may lack the billions of the Nets’ majority owner Mikhail Prokhorov, but Jay-Z’s presence has been felt more than any other person in the organization.

Photo credit: Adam Glanzman, Flickr

Vivanista1, Flickr

Zack Bogue is no slouch in his career, previously working as a lawyer of note and currently serving as a managing partner at Bay Area venture capital firm Data Collective. But even better? He’s married to possibly the most powerful woman in tech — former Googler turned new Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer. It takes a strong man to marry a strong woman, let alone one whose accomplishments would dwarf those of 90% of society. The two also had their first son in 2012, baby boy Macallister Bogue. Sounds like a good year for anyone. Zack Bogue, we salute and envy you.

Photo credit: Vivanista1, Flickr

Pop Culture Geek, Flickr

The Dark Knight Rises may not have been the most beloved of Nolan’s three-film series of Batman films. But with over $1 billion in box office receipts and a fitting capper to a decade of bringing his vision to the previously stagnant Batman franchise, you’ve just got to tip your cap and give him his moment in the sun. Nolan’s next project is work as a producer on 2013’s Man of Steel. Call it a hunch, but I bet that one could get some attention.

Photo credit: Pop Culture Geek, Flickr

RavenU, Flickr

When you’re the creative force behind one of the biggest grossing films of all-time, it’s hard not to make this list. But Whedon goes one step beyond: He lives and breathes the material he brought to the screen. After years of slogging it out with beloved shows and movies that never completely found mass appeal, Whedon struck it big with The Avengers, a comic book geek’s wet dream. An orgy of visual mastery, the film also packs a surprising amount of heart. More importantly, with the film’s +$1 billion haul, Whedon can now control his own future and continue doing work that speaks to him. That’s something we all dream of.

Photo credit: RavenU, Flickr

YouTube/Paley Center

McFarlane spent years working on FOX’s Family Guy, a show that went from cult hit to bonafide money maker and pop culture staple. He’s also the creator and producer of semi-hit American Dad. But 2012 saw McFarlane turn Ted,a movie about a talking teddy bear, into the highest grossing R-rated comedy film of all-time. McFarlane hosted SNL and was named the host of the Oscars in late 2012, capping off a year that not only made McFarlane an even richer man but cemented his place amongst Hollywood’s elite.

Photo credit: YouTube/Paley Center

YouTube/Pop Spot

When Alan Schaaf founded Imgur, he was just a regular Reddit user who wanted an easy way to browse images uploaded by users of the site. Now, three years later, Schaaf is the CEO of a company that clocks over one billion pageviews a day and serves as one of the centers of the Internet. It’d be an amazing accomplishment for an entrepreneur of any age but it’s even more impressive given that Schaaf started the company while an undergrad at Ohio University, all without raising a dime from investors.

Photo credit: YouTube/Pop Spot

Oren Alexander, Instagram

Do you remember your 25th birthday party? If it’s not a whiskey-infused haze, your memories probably don’t involve selling a record-setting $47 million mansion in Miami. But that’s the life of Oren Alexander, a hot shot real estate agent with wealthy clients and a portfolio of exclusive properties worth over $130 million. But what does he do that others don’t? Alexander lives like his clients do, spending “New Years in St. Barts, goes to the clubs his clients frequent, and dresses like them, too.” Sounds rough.

Photo credit: Oren Alexander, Instagram

brava_67, Flickr

Maybe Daniel Craig’s interpretation of James Bond can’t universally be called the best performance (though it’s certainly one of the two or three best). But Craig does have one honor the others don’t: 2012’s Skyfall is the highest grossing Bond film in UK history as well as one of the top 20 grossing films of all-time. While the Bond name carries weight, Craig’s interpretation of the character puts butts in the seats, too. Craig’s an A-list actor bringing new life into a beloved character that represents a lot of the tenets of manliness.

Photo credit: brava_67, Flickr

YouTube/Lakeland PTV

Joe Lueken is a 70-year-old grocery store owner in Minnesota. What could possibly earn him a top 10 spot on this list? It’s simple: Joe Lueken is a better man than you or I. Lueken has donated to charity throughout his entire life, including large donations to the Sanford Health Foundation and local Bemidji State University Foundation. But Lueken’s final act for his employees is his biggest: Lueken and his family are turning over control of his Village Foods company, which includes three stores, to its employees. Stock will be given to employees based on time spent in the company as of January 1, 2013, and a former janitor who rose through the ranks since 1998 will take the helm of the company as its new CEO. It’s a beautiful thing by a good guy that should inspire us all to be just a little better.

Photo credit: YouTube/Lakeland PTV

Guillaume Paumier, Flickr

Facebook went public in 2012, making a lot of people rich beyond their wildest dreams. One person who didn’t cash out is Mark Zuckerberg, the leader of the company who saw its price drop almost 50% from its IPO to today. After months being raked over the coals for items ranging from not treating investors with enough respect to not wearing a suit to meetings, Zuckerberg has done the one thing he wants to do: His job. Facebook is what it is…it’s fashionable to hate it but it’s a connecting fiber between so many segments of society. But regardless of the changes the company makes or the moves it undertakes, Zuckerberg is on the front line doing what he thinks is best not just for short-term financial windfalls. He could walk away tomorrow and live out the rest of years in luxury. But he’s there, grinding every day. Be angry at the new algorithms or stupid apps. But you have to respect this man.

Photo credit: Guillaume Paumier, Flickr

MDGovpics, Flickr

Michael Phelps looked to be dead in the water going into the 2012 London Olympics. And while his doucheful teammate Ryan Lochte looked to seize the spotlight from a moribund Phelps, Phelps did what the great ones ranging from Michael Jordan to Jay-Z did when challenged: Crushed the opposition. Four gold medals and two silvers in London along with a total of 22 medals overall in his Olympic career cemented Phelps place in history. And now, he’s retired; a conquering hero at age 27. Maybe you won’t remember his accomplishments any time when the torch isn’t lit. But Phelps personified greatness in 2012 in a way that few have ever experienced.

Photo credit: MDGovpics, Flickr

PunkToad, Flickr

Joseph Gordon-Levitt was on the cusp last year but 2012 was the year he really blew up. Between his big part (no spoilers) in The Dark Knight Rises — and potential future movies – an interesting and financially successful turn in sci-fi hit Looper, a part in Lincoln, and every actor’s dream of playing a bike messenger in Premium Rush (maybe not that one), Gordon-Levitt was prolific this year. He’s also probably the most universally lusted after actor currently working today, just ask your girlfriend. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is like a Ryan Gosling for all of us, not just women. And that’s why he’s in the top 3.

Photo credit: PunkToad, Flickr

DVIDSHUB, Flickr

Republicans and Democrats alike should be able to agree that there’s no man you’d rather be in 2012 than President Barack Obama. The job isn’t easy – his speech at Sandy Hook is an example of that – but someone has to do it. And with a resounding victory in 2012, even with a lot of the “Hope” of 2008 long forgotten, President Obama had a lot to be proud of. But the reason we all should want to President Obama in 2012 isn’t because of what he’s done but more because of what he can now do. The gloves are off for his next four years as he stands to dictate the immediate future of our nation. The most powerful man in the world, always unflinchingly cool or poignant, with a world of opportunity before him. That’s why he’s the man we most wish we were in 2012.

Photo credit: DVIDSHUB, Flickr