The year is over, and so are these couples
Breakups aren't pleasant or easy, even for the rich and famous. It's also a disappointment for fans when their favorite star couples split. Each year brings its high-profile separations and divorces - some expected, some shockers. Here are 10 of 2010's most prominent celebrity split-ups. (Click the names to see their photo galleries.)
1. SANDRA BULLOCK AND JESSE JAMES
America's Sweetheart and the bad-boy motorcycle customizer made a beauty-and-the-beast couple, but Bullock's fans figured she saw the heart of gold beneath the tattoos of skulls and dragons. Then he cheated on her with a head-to-toe-tatted stripper.
2. CHRISTINA AGUILERA AND JORDAN BRATMAN
The singer and the music executive hit a sour note after a five-year marriage. Aguilera has since taken up with another musician, whom she met on the set when he was a production assistant on her movie "Burlesque."
3. SCARLETT JOHANSSON AND RYAN REYNOLDS
Freud asked, "What does a woman want?" Good question, since just one month after Reynolds was named People magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive," Johansson decided that wasn't enough.
4. EVA LONGORIA AND TONY PARKER
How can we not say it? After learning her NBA-star husband was sending inappropriate texts to a mutual female friend for nearly a year, Longoria decided she'd no longer be a desperate housewife.
5. COURTENEY COX AND DAVID ARQUETTE
When a couple widely considered to be two of the nicest people in Hollywood separate, it's particularly sad. When one of them goes on Howard Stern's radio show to talk in intimate detail about his love life, sex life and emotional life, it's even sadder - for listeners.
6. VANESSA HUDGENS AND ZAC EFRON
They're both very young - Efron's 23 and Hudgens just turned 22 - and were only dating, not married. So why was their breakup notable? Probably because they'd met doing "High School Musical" and stayed together through the sequels and it was cute and romantic. Who doesn't like cute and romantic?
7. MELISSA ETHERIDGE AND TAMMY ETHERIDGE
One (Melissa) is a Grammy- and Oscar-winning singer-songwriter, the other (Tammy) is a successful actress, but they didn't add up to two after nine years together.
8. HALLE BERRY AND GABRIEL AUBRY
After having been divorced from baseball player David Justice and R&B musician Eric Benét, the glamorous actress didn't bother with marriage formalities with Aubry, the French-Canadian model and father of her 2-year-old daughter Nahla. Just as well. Saved a lot of time and legalities at the end.
9. MEL GIBSON AND OKSANA GRIGORIEVA
Think you and your significant other have had screaming matches? The passion of the Mel was a thing to hear - and people did, due to leaked audio of telephone conversations between him and Grigorieva, the mother of his daughter, Lucia.
10. AL GORE AND TIPPER GORE
An inconvenient truth: Even when you and your college sweetheart have weathered everything together, including a run for U.S. president, you can still split up after 40 years of marriage.
