Celebrities

The Duchess of Cambridge is kicking off the new year by doing some good — the palace announced Wednesday that she has taken on four new charity patronages.

The former Kate Middleton has accepted honorary positions as patron of Actions on Addiction, royal patron of East Anglia's Children's Hospices, royal patron of The Art Room and patron of the National Portrait Gallery in London. She will also become a volunteer for the Scout Association.

Less than two weeks after Louis C.K. released his new stand-up comedy special “Live at the Beacon Theater” to download online for just $5, the comedian had already raked in more than $1 million in profits. He donated $280,000 to several charities, which he chose based on them reaching out to him on Twitter.

The donation was divied up to five organizations: the Fistula Foundation, Pablove Foundation, charity: water, Kiva and Green Chimneys.

For the second consecutive year, Lady Gaga tops the Celebs Gone Good Top 20 list, courtesy of DoSomething.org. Hot on her heels is another pop superstar, Justin Bieber, who jumps to the No. 2 spot from last year's position at No. 10, with George Clooney rounding out the top 3.

Known for supporting gay rights, AIDS and poverty, Gaga focused much of her effort in 2011 on putting an end to bullying, even bringing her fight to the White House. This year, she also set up the Born This Way Foundation, which aims to empower youth.

World number one ranked tennis player and UNICEF National Ambassador to Serbia, Novak Djokovic, is marking the holiday season by lending his voice and financial support for vulnerable children in Serbia — and around the world.

“I hope my donation and support will help make a difference in the lives of young children throughout Serbia, especially those who have fewer opportunities to reach their full potential,” said Djokovic, who made a $100,000 donation in December to support early childhood education in Serbia.

The first annual Hilarity for Charity will be Jan. 13 in Los Angeles. As co-hosts of the evening, Seth Rogen and Lauren Miller along with friends will bring together stand up, sketch comedy, musical performances, food trucks and a chance to buy your way into heaven — all in the name of Alzheimer’s research and awareness.

Starkey Hearing Foundation, which strives to change the social consciousness of hearing and hearing health care, wrapped up its hearing mission in Manila on Monday, December 5, 2011 with the help of Filipino Professional Boxer Manny Pacquiao, who assisted in fitting more than 150 children and adults with hearing aids over the course of the mission’s final day.

Philadelphia Phillies star Ryan Howard is helping local students dress for success, in athletics. The first baseman announced Thursday that his Ryan Howard Family Foundation will donate Adidas sportswear valued at nearly $1.2 million to the cash-strapped Philadelphia school district.

The gift will enable 57 city high schools to select athletic shoes and apparel to match the schools' colors. Four middle school athletic programs will receive shoes.

While NFL star Adrian Peterson continues to commit $5,000 to charity for every touchdown he makes, the Minnesota Vikings' running back has found a way to amp up his giving dollars off the field too.

Peterson's All Day Foundation, a nonprofit that supports programming for at-risk kids worldwide, has joined forces with a socially conscious browser app, the Football For Good Giving Assistant, for the holiday season. The duo connects online shoppers with 1,000 partners, including Gap, Hotels.com and Best Buy, that give a portion of their sales to Peterson's nonprofit, the organization announced.

eBay launched a new landing page, eBay.com/celebrity, calling it a "unique shopping destination that combines celebrity experiences, memorabilia and merchandise with philanthropic causes." The page aggregates celebrity content, charity auctions, and the breadth and selection of related products unique to eBay.

eBay Celebrity will offer exclusive charity auction items for consumers to get up close and personal with their favorite celebrities through the purchase of one-of-a-kind merchandise, concert tickets, and meet and greet opportunities.

Ashton Kutcher, Kanye West and other big-name celebrities don’t do as much good for charity on Twitter, Facebook or other social networks as less-famous people, a new study finds. Actors, comics, singers and bloggers with deep personal ties to causes and potential donors raise far more money for charities.

The report, released this week by the consulting firm Zoetica Media and PayPal, the online donations portal, studied six major online fundraising campaigns.