Paula Deen among the top 100 celebs

Savannah Morning News - Savannah, GA, USA - Oprah Winfrey still reigns as queen on Forbes' 2007 list of the 100 Most Powerful Celebrities, but Savannah's butter-loving restaurateur and chef, Paula Deen, is gaining ground.

Deen made the list for the first time, ranked No. 99 in power and 96th in wealth.

The rankings are based mostly on the prior year's income. Deen's earnings equalled about $4 million, according to Forbes.

That put her ahead of fellow Food Network chef Bobby Flay, who was No. 100, but behind cooking phenom Rachael Ray (No. 66) and "Bam!" man Emeril Lagasse (No. 87).

Lea Goldman, editor of the Celebrity 100 list, said Deen was an unlikely addition.

"Let's face it: She's older, and the list trends younger," Goldman said. "She's the anti-Rachael Ray and Martha Stewart, and she doesn't apologize for it. She's not into health foods or organics, and that has an appeal."

Goldman said the Forbes editors were surprised to learn Deen had a magazine and that she was one of the top-rated chefs on the Food Network.

In May, the New York Times reported that "Paula Deen: It Ain't All About The Cookin' " was No. 3 on its hardcover, nonfiction bestseller list.

In February, Cooking with Paula Deen, a magazine launched just over a year ago, was the No. 1 selling magazine in Barnes & Noble Inc.'s current category sales ranks.

Goldman said Deen outperformed Bobby Flay, who has been on the national scene longer, because of the diversity of her media holdings.

Forbes' power ranking gives the most weight to a celebrity's earnings over the past 12 months but also bases it on factors such as Internet presence, press clippings, magazine cover stories and the number of mentions on television and radio.

"Bobby Flay doesn't have a magazine. Paula Deen does," Goldman said. "Flay has a very New York-centric appeal, and Paula Deen started with a regional appeal that grew national."

Because Deen has diversified her media presence, she stands to move up on the list, Goldman said.

"When we started to look at the chefs, we were shocked to see how well she's doing. We're excited to have her on the list."

Deen's media representatives could not be reached for comment Thursday.