In a year when the music industry continued to feel the slide of diminishing sales due to file sharing and creative vision. In a year when the film industry was affected by the power of the independent and foreign film. In a year when television would deal with more rating slides and a viewer-ship loyalty standstill. There were the comebacks. Those famous and infamous celebrities who reappeared to grace us with their talent and continue to feed the fandom that made them so popular in the first place.

Here is a list of 2008 Celebrity Comebacks:

1. Britney Spears. Hair back, children back and a career back on track. Her new release, Circus was welcomed by fans and critics alike. She had a dance hit with Womanizer and a controversial hit with If You Seek Amy (an R rated play on words). She is preparing for a tour and seems to be focused on her career instead of her place in the press.

2. Madonna. She survived the divorce papers and media scrutiny around the spilt with hubby Guy Ritchie. She was attacked for breaking up NY Yankee Alex Rodriguez's marriage. She had a "4 Minute" hit with Justin Timberlake. And she proved again that it is hard to keep a hard nosed business woman and celebrity down.

3. Cloris Leachman. What was this star of the 1970s making a mark 30 years later? She blasted back in the limelight through ABC's Dancing With the Stars. The Academy Award winning actress and nine time Emmy winner has always been unflappable and her reign as a ballroom queen wannabee was nothing short of brilliant. You can't keep the unflappable under wraps for long.

4. Mickey Rourke. Rourke actually stole the film, Sin City as his start on the comeback trail. His tour de force encore in The Wrestler has taken him back to the top. Once thought down and out, he may soon solidify his place as an A Lister barring any fall from grace. Anyone who saw his light shine in Diner back in the early 80s knew he had it. His performance in The Wrestler reinforces taht all over again.

5. Robert Downey Jr. The misguided bad boy of Generation X returned in 2008 with a vengeance and his acting talent (as seen in Chaplin) had not missed a step. He was reason for the success of Iron Man, a B Marvel movie that found a heart in Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark portrayal. Stand offish, yet endearing he won new fans and old fans back with that film. In Tropic Thunder, he revealed he still had a playful side and could devise a characterization for a character who buries himself in character. Downey, Jr. is funny, witty and at worst self destructive. And just like Rourke, if he can master his demons, he will remain on top for quite some time.

6. Ben Stiller. Known for some witty comedies and then a plethora of banal appearances in mediocre films, Stiller has hit his mark again with Tropic Thunder. More a dig at Hollywood than anything else, Stiller's direction made the whole thing work. And who else could get Tom Cruise to turn into a cheesy, bald agent and dance the credits away. Stiller is brilliant and his stellar friends know it.

7. Tom Cruise. Valkrye may have not wowed the critics and his appearance in Tropic Thunder was offbeat, but here was the new Tom Cruise. He seemed gentler and more attune to finding peace in his career, home life and no more feuds with Matt Lauer or sofa jumping on Oprah. He is a producer, an actor, a father and for 2008 a celebrity back on track.

8. Tina Fey. This talented writer, producer and performer all but sank vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin. The ratings for her 30 Rock TV series are still mediocre, but she became an A lister again thanks to her personna and some pretty recognizable galsses. This was her best year since before her departure from Saturday Night Live.

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This post is guest blogged by Michael J. Ferruzza. Professional actor/writer/director Michael J. Ferruzza has over 1300 professional credits in the entertainment industry.