Five years ago she had the haircut everyone wanted; this year she got the husband—or should we say he got her? Sweet, smart and still endearingly vulnerable, Friends actress Jennifer Aniston remains one of America's favorite TV archetypes. Her currency is so valuable that she (along with each of her castmates) negotiated a $750,000-per-episode salary to return to the set this season.

But it was that other milestone that made her the Most Envied Woman in Hollywood this year. On July 29 the 31-year-old daughter of soap star John Aniston became Mrs. Brad Pitt. "People really relate to her. She's just like a normal girl, you know what I mean?" says her hairdresser Chris McMillan. "She's quirky and funny, and she doesn't take things too seriously."

Since taking on the role of the loopy but lovable Rachel in 1994, Aniston has blossomed into a woman who knows what she wants and what truly matters in life: honesty in love, loyalty to old pals, tickets to Lakers games and, most of all, waking up next to a guy who adores her. Pitt, 37, spent seven months working on a design for his bride's diamond-and-plainum engagement ring so that, as he told her before 200 guests at the altar in Malibu, "all the world may know my love for you." He has also reportedly declared himself eager to guest-star on Friends as (think hard here) a man madly in love with Rachel. No wonder Aniston—now Jennifer Joanne Pitt on her driver's license—vowed to make her beloved's "favorite banana milk shake" till death do them part. "It has been a huge year for her," says her dad. "She is very happy."

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