Pop Culture Moments From December 2008

4.

The month also belonged to iconic albums! Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak, Beyoncé’s I Am… Sasha Fierce, Britney Spears’ Circus, and Taylor Swift’s Fearless were the No. 1 albums.

5.

Zooey Deschanel announced that she was engaged to Ben Gibbard.

6.

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen denied they were engaged after TMZ reported that Tom had proposed to Gisele on a private plane.

7.

Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt announced they had eloped on the cover of Us Weekly, of course.

9.

…while MTV’s The City made its debut.

10.

Paris Hilton was robbed by the then-unknown Bling Ring — they stole $2 million worth of jewelry from her.

11.

Then-president-elect Barack Obama went to Hawaii to attend a memorial service for his grandmother (who had died right before his election).

12.

The iconic Eartha Kitt died at age 81, from colon cancer.

13.

David Beckham was loaned out from the LA Galaxy to AC Milan.

14.

Madonna reached a divorce settlement with Guy Ritchie and it was reported to be around $60 million (although Guy’s team disputed the figure).

15.

It was announced that Hugh Jackman would host the 2009 Oscars.

16.

Rumors began to circulate that Beyoncé had signed on to star in the remake of A Star Is Born — her rep denied it.

17.

Tina Fey appeared on the cover for Vanity Fair (which, like all us, looked forward to 2009).

18.

Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke was unexpectedly fired from directing the rest of the franchise.

19.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, and Gran Torino were among the prestige movies released that month.

20.

And finally, Elmo Live! was among the most popular Christmas gifts that year (proving there was no stopping Elmo!).