George Clooney is Sexiest Man Alive — again

updated 3:50 p.m. ET Nov. 15, 2006

NEW YORK - George Clooney has been named the “sexiest man alive” — for the second time — by People magazine.

The 45-year-old actor is pictured on the cover of People’s annual issue, on newsstands Friday. Clooney, who first took the title in 1997, is now tied with his good friend Brad Pitt.

“This is one that’s going to be hard for Brad since he’s been ‘sexiest man alive’ twice,” Clooney tells the magazine. “I’d say ‘sexiest man alive’ to him and he’d go, ‘two-time.’ So that’s been taken away.”

“Brad’s been working out a lot,” he adds. “After ‘Troy,’ he thought he’d be named it a third time — pull the hat trick, as we called it. But for me, I’ll tell him, ‘This is my last hurrah.”’

People’s “sexiest man alive” list began in 1985 with Mel Gibson. Others on the list: Tom Cruise (1990), Pitt (1995 and 2000), Denzel Washington (1996) and Jude Law (2004).

The magazine also names 12 “men of the year,” including Pitt, Jamie Foxx, Patrick Dempsey, Matt Damon, Justin Timberlake and Daniel Craig.

Clooney won a best supporting actor Oscar this year for his role in “Syriana.” He’ll next be seen opposite Cate Blanchett in “The Good German,” slated for release Dec. 22.

He tells People that his celebrity dream date is Sophia Loren.

“Oh my god. I met her in Milan,” Clooney says. “She’s unbelievably beautiful, unbelievably fun.”

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