What Brad and Angelina Gave ...

The spirit of giving was strong with megastars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in 2008. Pitt and Jolie established the Jolie-Pitt Foundation in 2006 to assist with humanitarian crises around the world. According to a report on the Hollywood Reporter's Showbiz 411, the stars put more than $13 million into their own foundation last year, giving away half of that total to charity. That's actually more than double what they gave in 2007. It's no surprise who stood the most to gain from the gifts: human rights organizations.

The majority of the monies were given to charities that are an important component of the stars' philanthropic endeavors. Global Health received $2 million, while Human Rights Watch and Pitt's own Make it Right Foundation each got $1 million. Other organizations that benefited were near and dear to the powerful pair: Brad gave to the school district in Springfield, Missouri (where he was born and raised), as well as to projects in Cambodia (where they adopted their first child) and the Armed Services YMCA of the US Army.

While the couple continue to fight the same ol' stories week in and week out in the tabloids, whether it's whispers of strains in their relationship (and let's face it, they wouldn't be human if the parents of six weren't occasionally stressed) or musings on the ghost of Jennifer Aniston haunting them, they fly very high above the criticism and stick to their word. The fact that they gave more than previously recognizes their ability to see the plight and take action.

Photo courtesy of World Economic Forum, via Wikimedia Commons