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Aviation investigators are scratching their heads over a 10-person plane that took off with 2 pilots, but returned with just one ... after one of them fell to his death while they were midair.

An emergency landing went down at Raleigh Durham International Airport after 23-year-old co-pilot Charles Hew Crooks either fell or jumped to his death Friday while they were in the skies, according to federal authorities.

They were trying to get back to the ground as safe as possible after the plane lost its right wheel ... when Crooks exited the small 10-seater.

His body was found roughly 30 miles away, stuck in the trees of someone's backyard -- he had no parachute on him and authorities believe he fell 3,500 feet.

Both the Federal Aviation Authority and the National Transportation Safety Board are investigating whether or not he died before the fall.

The other pilot was taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries, and released the same day.

Crooks' father, Hew Crooks, told WRAL he's unable to process the news ... saying his son "wouldn’t trade places with anybody in the world. He loved where he was.”

Former Univ. of Washington football star Ben Burr-Kirven appears to believe the Pac-12 is toast ... and he tells TMZ Sports he's hoping his alma mater bolts to the Big Ten or Big 12 before it officially collapses.

The ex-Huskie linebacker, who won Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year back in 2018, broke down his thoughts on conference realignment with us out at LAX this week ... and he made it clear, he wouldn't mind seeing UDub leave its current home after USC and UCLA jumped to the Big Ten earlier this year.

"I don't know what they're going to do," Burr-Kirven said of the Pac-12. "It's going to be interesting. I'd imagine -- if I was betting -- more and more teams are probably going to leave because it will be hard to get into big bowl games without competitive games to be playing in."

"So, we will see what happens."

Burr-Kirven isn't sure what Washington's next move will be, but he tells us if he were running the show in Seattle, he'd jump to the Big Ten or Big 12.

MGK fans got double the entertainment value -- well, maybe more like 1.5x -- when a pint-sized, look-alike superfan joined him onstage to perform his set!

Emily Jo Smith tells TMZ ... her 6-year-old son, Mitchell, is a die-hard MGK fan and he wanted to dress up like his rock hero to attend his Seattle concert. Mom and Mitchell scored great seats in the VIP section, and even got to chat with MGK's guitarist before the show.

But, the best part came when the curtain went up -- we're told Mitchell told the guitarist he really wanted to meet MGK, and the musician simply said, "I got you."

Next thing ya know, he worked his magic. After MGK made a grand entrance -- getting airlifted to the stage by a prop helicopter -- he played a few songs, then wandered into the crowd.

He knew what he was doing all along ... MGK beelined it for Mitchell and hauled him up on stage.

It was a hilarious moment for the crowd, because Mitchell looked like a mini-me version of MGK standing next to the rock star.

The duo then launched into 'AY!,' a song MGK recorded with Lil Wayne, showing off their moves to the jam-packed crowd.

Afterward, Mitchell surprised MGK, handing him some Kurt Cobain pins as a gift. MGK was clearly moved. He called the moment "sick" and added ... "Goddamn man, kids are so much cooler nowadays."

The pop rock band 'Hanson' emerged on the music scene back in the early 90s and has continued to captivate their fans for decades. Their 1997 hit song "MMMBop" put the stamp on their success and fame.

'Hanson' consists of brothers Isaac Hanson, Taylor Hanson and Zac Hanson. All three of the bros sing and share instrument duties including guitar, drums, bass and piano. Their 1997 album "Middle of Nowhere," which included the track "MMMBop," scored three Grammy nominations and hit the top of the music charts all over the world.

'Mmmbop, oh yeah!'

Pat Carroll, famous for voicing Ursula in 'The Little Mermaid,' has died.

The longtime actress and comedian passed away at her Cape Cod home Saturday after a bout with pneumonia -- according to her daughter, Kerry Karsian, who confirmed her death to The Hollywood Reporter.

Carroll is perhaps best known for playing Ariel's half-octupus/half-human nemesis in the 1989 hit Disney movie -- and for all the show-stopping numbers she pulled off on her own, doing all of the singing for the film by herself ... and reprising the role throughout the years.

PC had done a lot more before that, though ... she was a veteran in sitcoms well before 'TLM' came along -- having starred in fan favorites such as "The Danny Thomas Show," "The Mickey Rooney Show," "The Red Skelton Hour," "Getting Together," "Busting Loose," "Galaxy High School," "Too Close for Comfort," "Foofur," "She's the Sheriff" and many more.

Carroll also had lots of guest appearances on iconic series, plus regular bookings on variety, game and talk shows throughout the 20th century -- her humor and wacky personality was a hit with audiences and hosts alike.

Her career speaks for herself ... the woman had won a Grammy, an Emmy and accolades from her theatre work as well. As many have rightly said, she was a pioneer in the biz.

Caroll is survived by her daughters and granddaughter. She was 95 years old.

Sylvester Stallone isn't pulling any punches over his dissatisfaction with where the 'Rocky' franchise is heading -- once again publicly lashing out at one of the OG producers.

Sly went on the attack for a second time this weekend, posting a very scathing message aimed at Irwin Winkler ... who helped get 'Rocky' off the ground way back in the day, and who apparently has an ownership stake in the IP -- while SS has none himself.

That's where Sylvester's beef lies, and he made it clear in yet another critique on Instagram ... throwing up art renderings that depict Irwin and others as animals and evil villains, who are stabbing Sly in the back, etc.

Sylvester writes, "After IRWIN WINKLER And FAMILY SUCK ROCKY DRY ! Presumed to be the most hated , untalented , decrepited , Producer in Hollywood and his cowardly children have found their next meal… Drago , RETURN MY RIGHTS BLOODSUCKERS!"

He's talking about the fact that Dolph Lundgren is reported to be starring in a spin-off film that'll see him reprise his character from 'Rocky IV' -- something Sylvester says he wasn't made aware of, and which he strongly disapproves of ... saying he never meant these precious characters of his to be milked to this degree in future projects.

Sylvester says he sees this as nothing but a greedy money-grab, and even calls out his old costar by name -- asking why he didn't reach out to talk about this before the word was out.

BTW, a couple weeks ago ... Sylvester was also venting frustrations about not owning any of 'Rocky' for himself ... and he pleaded with Irwin to do the right thing and hand over some of the rights, which he feels -- at least in part -- belong to him since he's the creator of 'Rocky.'

Sylvester has been speaking out about this more and more lately -- and it's starting to turn ugly. Some fans side with Sly ... while others are calling him out for acting unprofessionally.

As for Dolph, he's addressed Sly's concerns, writing ... "Just to set the record straight regarding a possible Drago spinoff. There’s no approved script, no deals in place, no director and I was personally under the impression that my friend Sly Stallone was involved as a producer or even as an actor. There was a press leak last week which was unfortunate. In touch with Mr Balboa - just so all the fans can relax…There ya go."

Elizabeth Olsen may or may not be present in the MCU going forward, but she certainly was present this weekend when it came to catching some live tunes ... just take a look!

Here's the 'WandaVision' and 'Avengers' star rocking out Saturday at a Wild Hearts Tour stop in Berkeley, CA -- where she and her husband, and perhaps one friend, attended with some decent seats within the Greek Theatre.

In footage obtained by TMZ, you can see EO chatting with her hubby, Robbie Arnett, before the house lights came down ... as well as her busting a move when they eventually did.

It's pretty cool seeing her cut loose like this -- especially since she portrayed a deadly serious character in one of the last big Marvel flicks, 'Doctor Strange' in the Multiverse of Madness,' where she played a murderous villain that was dead set on getting her way.

BTW, we're told that when Liz was boogying here, it was while singer-songwriter Angel Olsen (no relation) was onstage and performing. She's teamed up with Sharon Van Etten and Julien Baker for this national outing.

Elizabeth and Robbie reportedly live in L.A., but it seems they might've wanted to escape the spotlight a bit to catch this music act -- which was just here a day prior -- up north.

Ana de Armas has gotten buzz over her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe in a forthcoming flick -- but some can't get over her in-character voice ... which still leans very Spanish-sounding.

Here's the deal ... ADA is starring in this Netflix movie that's coming out in September called "Blonde," which is an NC-17 depiction of some of Marilyn's life -- albeit through a hyper-stylized lens (it's based on a fictional book exploring MM's struggles, plus rape/abuse, etc.)

We'll get to the graphic content in a bit -- because there's outrage over that too -- but first, we gotta get into people griping about Ana's still-there accent ... which came to light in Netflix's latest trailer for the movie that came out this past week. It's got Twitter in a tizzy.

As you can see (and hear) for yourself, there are still pretty noticeable traces of Ana's native language coming through in her performance. She's from Cuba and came to the States in adulthood ... and pretty much all of her movies thus far feature her natural accent.

The problem here -- at least for bird app users -- is that it feels somewhat distracting, seeing how Marilyn had a typical American accent. Some say Ana not perfecting it for this Oscar-bait role is strange, especially since so many actors these days (international and otherwise) do accent crossover roles all the time, often to rave reviews and much fanfare.

Plus, Ana said early on that she underwent 9 months of professional dialect training for this part -- but now, a handful of people are wondering what she's got to show for it.

Of course, many are defending Ana as well -- saying any criticism of her accent is misplaced and misguided -- and perhaps teetering on xenophobic territory. Some say that there are tons of examples of American actors butchering foreign accents, but no one minds them.

There's also some who feel like the accent isn't make or break -- arguing it shouldn't be the single element that snaps folks out of their suspension of disbelief, especially since we do it all the time for superhero movies. In other words, Film Twitter is divided over this one.

While that debate rages, there's also a convo about this film potentially exploiting Marilyn's story and legacy ... all for the sake of shock value in depicting her suffering tremendously on camera, which many see as gross -- especially with the free reign of an NC-17 rating.

Nichelle Nichols, who famously played Lt. Uhura on 'Star Trek,' has died ... this according to her family.

Nichols' son, Kyle Johnson, confirmed the news on Sunday with an update posted to a website dedicated to the life and career of his mother ... writing, "I regret to inform you that a great light in the firmament no longer shines for us as it has for so many years."

He adds, "Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away. Her light, however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from, and draw inspiration. Hers was a life well lived and as such a model for us all."

Kyle ends by saying this ... "I, and the rest of our family, would appreciate your patience and forbearance as we grieve her loss until we can recover sufficiently to speak further. Her services will be for family members and the closest of her friends and we request that her and our privacy be respected." He also sent a "Live long and prosper" shout out.

Nichols made history as the first African-American woman to play a lead role on television. And with "Star Trek: The Original Series" costar William Shatner ... she also shared the first on-screen kiss between a Black woman and white man on American television.

She played the role for a handful of years and starred in dozens of 'Star Trek' episodes between '66 and '69. However, her acting career went far beyond just the Galactic Barrier.

With 69 acting credits to her name, NN has appeared on several hit shows and movies over the years, including notable voice-over roles, such as ... 'The Lieutenant,' 'Peyton Place,' 'Tarzan,' 'Truck Turner,' 'The Supernaturals,' 'Batman: The Animated Series,' 'Gargoyles,' 'Spider-Man: The Animated Series,' 'Futurama,' 'Buzz Lightyear of Star Command,' 'The Simpsons,' 'Snow Dogs,' 'Are We There Yet?' 'Heroes,' 'The Young and the Restless,' and so many others.

Toward the end of her life, Nichols was in an often bitter conservatorship battle with her son -- this after he was granted control of the apparatus once she'd been diagnosed with dementia ... a legal fight that went on for some years, and, at times, got pretty ugly.

Nichelle Nichols was 89.

Amber Heard is leaving the desert -- at least the Southern California part of it, anyway -- as she just offloaded her secluded home for quite a bundle ... TMZ has learned.

The Yucca Valley home that was long rumored to belong to AH since the trial earlier this year was recently sold for $1,050,000, with a closing date of July 18 ... this according to Zillow property records. The crib had been purchased in 2019 through an anonymous trust that reportedly has ties to Amber ... getting quietly snapped at the time for just over $570k.

Well, the speculation is over ... TMZ got a hold of the new owner of this pad, and he tells us yes -- he'd, in fact, been dealing with Amber's people on this deal, but never Amber herself.

With the parcel having changed hands, Amber walks away here with almost double what she paid for it 3 years ago ... a rough profit of about $480k, which is nothing to sneeze at. She'd bought it pre-pandemic, and since then -- property values have mostly gone up.

Of course, things are supposedly tight for her ... especially with this $8.3M judgment to benefit Johnny looming, even though she's trying to appeal it, officially. Her attorneys said she can't afford to pay it ... but, frankly, her financial sitch is ill-defined these days.

Bill Russell -- one of the greatest and most accomplished NBA players of all time -- has died.

The announcement came courtesy of Bill's own official social media page, which posted Sunday with a sad update. The text says BR passed away peacefully with his wife, Jeannine, by his side. The exact circumstances of his death weren't discussed further.

Bill's post goes on to list his many accomplishments, dating back to his high school days. He'd won two state championships on that level, two NCAA titles, a gold medal in the Olympics ... and, of course, 11 NBA championship titles with the Boston Celtics -- plus two titles with that same organization with him as head coach and a player simultaneously, a historic feat at the time ... on several levels, obviously.

His obit here touches on the fact that he was a civil rights activist during his playing time, with boycotts of certain events and public remarks that spoke out against racism and discrimination that was prevalent throughout the U.S. at the time.

Bill is by far one of the GOATs in league history -- evidenced in the fact that the current NBA Finals MVP award is named after him ... something that was instated in 2009.

He's been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame twice ... once as a player in 1975, and again as a coach just last year. His career is memorable, especially since he broke into the NBA when it was just being expanded as an organization and getting integrated with Black and white players alike, during a time of segregation in the country.

His accolades go well beyond what was mentioned above -- Bill has an enormous amount of NBA honors, including several All-Star appearances, NBA First-Team mentions, lifetime achievement awards and on and on. He retired from the sport in 1988, playing for 3 decades.

As you can imagine ... the tributes are absolutely pouring in right now. Bill Russell was beloved by just about everyone in and around the league ... players, coaches, owners and media members alike. He would come to games quite often, and was very visible in the basketball community.

Arrangements for his memorial and funeral are being made now by the family. Bill is survived by his wife, three children and other extended family. He was 88.

Popular Louisiana rapper JayDaYoungan was fatally ambushed by 5 gunmen ... according to his father, who was there when his son was gunned down.

The slain rapper's dad, Kenyatta Scott, tells TMZ ... he and JayDaYoungan were sitting in the front yard of their Louisiana home Wednesday evening when a black truck pulled up and 3 people hopped out with guns.

Scott says he and his son tried running inside the house, but 2 more people with guns approached from the side of the property ... and then shots rang out.

JDY's father says he was armed too and shot back to defend himself and his son. Scott was shot twice in the arm, while JayDaYoungan was struck at least 8 times. Scott remains in the hospital.

TMZ broke the story ... JDY lost a lot of blood in the shooting and underwent surgery, but died in the hospital.

The rapper's dad believes his son's murder was the result of jealousy ... that he made it out of Bogalusa ... he thinks whoever was behind the shooting was envious of JDY's success.

Scott says his son didn't have beef with anyone, and he doesn't think it was gang-related. He does not think JDY knew the gunmen.

Bogalusa Police Chief Kendall Bullen tells TMZ ... cops are looking at all possibilities for a motive, including gangs and/or retaliation.

For some reason, cops think there was only one shooter ... police have not ID'd the suspect or made any arrests.

Jennifer Lopez has bounced from honeymoon to freedom fighter, headlining a UNICEF concert to help in the Ukrainian relief effort.

J Lo took the stage at a 14th-century monastery in Capri, and she looked pretty incredible in a zebra-print getup with feathers and glitz. And this is a shocker ... she showed off her abs, which is always a gift!

Jen wasn't done ... the next outfit was a nude thong bodysuit ... again, pretty incredible.

JLo was the headliner, following Diplo, Sofia Carson and DJ Cruz.

There were tons of celebs on hand ... Leo DiCaprio, Naomi Campbell, Jamie Foxx, Jared Leto, Vanessa Hudgens and Maye Musk. Jennifer's bro-in-law, Casey Affleck, was also there with his gf Caylee Cowan.

Chris Rock made a joke of that slap during his stand-up show, but was mum on Will Smith's apology.

Chris took the stage in Atlanta at the Fox Theatre this weekend ... his first appearance since Will's apology, and his jokes were on point.

He kinda brilliantly took a big issue in our country and weaved it into Oscar's greatest hit ... "Everybody is trying to be a f---ing victim. If everybody claims to be a victim, then nobody will hear the real victims. Even me getting smacked by Suge Smith -- I went to work the next day, I got kids."

Chris wasn't done ... "Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face!"

As you know, Will apologized to Chris during his video apology, saying Chris wasn't ready to have a chit-chat with him. As we reported, our Chris Rock sources told us -- pre-Will Smith vid -- Chris was not going to talk to Will or accept his apology. We don't know if the video softened his position, but based on what we've been hearing ... Chris has moved on.

One of the Ying Yang Twins collapsed at a concert over the weekend, and had to be carried off the stage.

The Twins were performing at a show in Springfield, MO at the Ozark Empire Fair, when 30 minutes into their set, D-Roc just crashed to the floor of the stage. Security rushed up to him and got him off the stage ... presumably for help.

The Ying Yang Twins were special guests at the concert, headlined by Vanilla Ice.

It's unclear what happened to him ... temps were in the 80s so it doesn't seem like heat exhaustion. We don't know if he was taken to the hospital nor do we know his condition.

Billy Porter thinks the Supreme Court is going to strike down gay marriage just like abortion rights ... but he's got a feeling SCOTUS might stop short at Justice Clarence Thomas' interracial marriage.

We got Billy in NYC and asked how likely he thinks it is SCOTUS will keep rolling back the clock, and he believes nothing is safe when it comes to the highest court in the land.

Billy says SCOTUS is coming for pretty much everything and everybody, not just gays ... and the only thing not on the list is interracial marriage, for one specific reason.

BP's basically saying the fact Justice Thomas is married to a white woman, Ginni Thomas, is the only thing keeping interracial marriage from going the way of the dodo. Still, Billy's got a warning for Clarence.

We also asked Billy about GOP Congressman Glenn Thompson, who voted against protecting same-sex marriage ... then turned around and attended his gay son's wedding.