TMZ.com Home

Sofia Vergara just won a huge victory in her years-long battle with an ex over their frozen embryos -- a judge permanently blocked Nick Loeb from using them with a surrogate.

The 'Modern Family' star won big in L.A. County Superior Court, where Nick Loeb had been fighting tooth and nail for permission to bring the embryos to term, even going so far as trying to take custody of them through a trust ... and giving the fertilized eggs names in a lawsuit.

Welp, the judge said that ain't gonna happen ... at least not without Sofia's consent. The judge granted a permanent injunction -- saying the contract they both signed with a fertility clinic back in 2013 remains valid.

Because of that, the court said Nick can't try to use the embryos for his own purposes and give them rights -- which he tried to do in a Louisiana court, essentially arguing the embryos should be recognized as people with rights.

He recently got shot down there as well -- and now, he's lost again in L.A., where this whole mess started not too long after he and Sofia split in 2014. With the order in place and the original contract upheld, Nick will have to get Sofia's consent for anything having to do with the embryos.

Donald Trump's got a home outside the GOP if they ditch him in 2024 -- namely the American Independent Party ... which says he's their guy, assuming he runs for POTUS again.

AIP chairman Markham Robinson tells us he and his party cohorts are dead set on nominating Trump to head up their ticket for the next presidential race ... that is, if Trump decides to have another go at it.

There's still a lot of time to see how things officially play out, but Markham made clear he and the AIP leaders were more than enthusiastic at Trump's apparent desire to stay in politics, which he strongly hinted at during his CPAC speech this past weekend.

In Markham's eyes, DT is the perfect guy to lead their party -- for starters, they're notoriously far-right ... and support a limited role in government, tax cuts and are pro-life. Just take a look at his MAGA supporters ... and you can see how some see it as a good fit.

The American Independent Party's first presidential nominee was segregationist George Wallace. Another segregationist, Lester Maddox was also the party's standard-bearer in the '70s.

Of course, the AIP also nominated Trump and Pence in 2016 -- which Republicans obviously didn't support, especially in California ... the only place they're currently recognized on the ballot. Markham says they're working on expanding their reach nationwide, hopefully in time for 2024.

As for whether Trump himself wants any part of Markham and Co. ... probably not. He was firm in his remarks at CPAC about sticking with the GOP, saying he wasn't jumping ship to start his own thing. Presumably, that means he ain't itching to run over to the AIP either.

We've seen this before with these guys ... they can nominate whoever the hell they want, even if that person doesn't publicly agree or acknowledge. Just ask Kanye about that ...

Breonna Taylor's mother is hurt and troubled by a Georgia teacher spreading lies about her daughter's death, but also deeply appreciates the students who pushed back.

Tamika Palmer's attorney, Sam Aguiar, tells TMZ his client saw the video of the Zoom class where Pebblebrook High's Susan McCoy told students Breonna's death was her own fault ... and spread misinformation about the case.

We're told it was disturbing for Tamika to witness, and troubling in that the real facts still aren't quite understood by all ... and that a twisted version of it is being forced onto youths by educators.

The one upside ... the kids themselves, whom Aguiar says Tamika was proud of as they spoke out against McCoy in real-time and fired back with the truth -- namely that Breonna was NOT with a man wanted on charges, but with her current BF at the time, Kenneth Walker.

Of course, you've heard the rest ... Louisville cops insist they knocked and made their presence known before entering. Walker, however, claims the exact opposite ... saying he thought burglars were entering their home.

He says he fired in self-defense, at which point the officers fired back ... killing Breonna in the crossfire. The students in McCoy's class made that known, and for that ... we're told Tamika is grateful, especially as BT's death anniversary looms on March 13.

No word on what Tamika would like to see happen to McCoy, but school district officials say they're reviewing the matter and weighing their options.

Tyrod Taylor says the punctured lung he suffered before a game last September has NOT had any lasting impact on his health ... and now, he tells TMZ Sports he's ready for free agency.

You'll recall ... Taylor was the starting QB for the Chargers until Sept. 20 -- when team doctors botched a painkiller injection and injured his lung just minutes before kickoff against the Chiefs.

31-year-old Taylor was rushed to the hospital ... but the injury put him out for so long, star rookie Justin Herbert took the signal-caller reins and never gave them back.

It was unclear if Taylor was dealing with any long-term damage from the injury ... but when we got the QB out in West Hollywood on Tuesday, he told us he's 100% good to go.

"Everything good," Taylor said ... adding, "I'm healthy, bro!"

As for his football future, Taylor's a free agent this offseason ... and when he talked to us outside of Toast in WeHo, he didn't appear to be a man gearing up to head back to the Bolts.

But, Tyrod did say he won't be picky when it comes to his next football destination ... saying, "I'm ready either way."

Hollywood sex symbol Mamie Van Doren was in her '20s when she became a household name -- with her platinum blonde hairdo and provocative figure -- MVD could be spotted on a long list of classic films in the '50s and '60s ... most notably her roles as Peggy DeFore in "Teacher's Pet," Jackie Adams in "Born Reckless" and Silver Morgan in "Girls Town."

Mamie shared the big screen with some serious A-list actors during her career including Tony Curtis in the 1953 film "All American," Mickey Rooney in "The Big Operator," Clark Gable in "Teacher's Pet" and Clint Eastwood in "Star in the Dust."

Dolly Parton's employing her enormous talent and wealth to encourage folks to follow in her awesome footsteps, and get the COVID-19 vaccine.

The beloved "9 to 5" singer got her first dose of the Moderna vaccine Tuesday at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, and shared a vid of the process, saying ... "Dolly gets a dose of her own medicine."

Clever headline, Dolly ... because as you may recall, she donated $1 million last year to coronavirus research, which she later learned was used to fund Moderna's vaccine.

The country music icon even changed the words to her famous song, "Jolene" ... busting out a hilarious -- and slightly dark -- parody version to hammer home her wish for everyone to get vaccinated.

Dolly's also playfully calling out the "cowards" and "chicken squats" afraid to get their shot by showing herself getting injected ... and she says it didn't even hurt.

As for why the 75-year-old waited so long to be vaccinated, she's previously stated she wanted to wait her turn. Dolly said, "I don’t want it to look like I’m jumping the line just because I donated money."

Joe Exotic is getting the best revenge he can against Carole Baskin -- hiring the attorney who recently repped the family of her missing husband ... who's now working to free him.

John M. Phillips of the Phillips & Hunt firm broke the news Tuesday, saying he'd been retained by the 'Tiger King' himself in a bid to get a new trial arranged so Joe can plead his case in front of a new set of 12 jurors.

Phillips writes, "Work has already begun on @joe_exotic's New Trial Motion. We are proud to be leading his team. I was sworn into the Western District of Oklahoma this morning. This isn't about tigers, television or tomfoolery, it's about justice and evidence. More soon."

He also posted a video ... which took some shots at Joe's former legal team, who Phillips characterized as engaging in "buffoonery" in their bid to get JE pardoned by Prez Trump.

Doesn't sound like Joe disagrees -- at least that's how Phillips makes it sound. He says shortly after the failed attempt, the man himself reached out and asked about his services. One thing led to another, and now Phillips is on the case -- and he ain't looking to Joe Biden for a bail-out either.

Remember, Phillips was also brought on by Don Lewis' surviving family members -- who seem to believe Carole knows more about his mysterious vanishing than she's let on. They even bought air time during her debut appearance on 'DWTS' which aired mid-broadcast.

Chris D'Elia had sex with a 17-year-old high school student and she says when she told him her age, he said it was "hot" ... this according to a new lawsuit and Chris denies the allegations.

The comedian is being sued by a Jane Doe for allegedly violating federal child sexual exploitation and child pornography laws. She is not suing because the two allegedly had sex when they met in Connecticut. The age of consent in CT is 16.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Chris' alleged victim claims she started communicating with him over social media in 2014 when she was just 17 and he quickly started demanding nudes. She says two months later he invited her to his hotel room before one of his shows, where they had sex.

The woman claims Chris D'Elia demanded eye contact when they had sex and says when she told him she was 17 and still in high school, Chris responded by saying it was "hot."

As you know ... Chris recently got emotional addressing allegations he was grooming underage girls online and allegedly exposing himself to several women, saying sex controlled his life.

A spokesperson for Chris, in addressing the new lawsuit, tells us, "Chris denies these allegations and will vigorously defend himself against them in court."

According to the docs, the girl says she was a virgin before having sex with Chris, who also asked her to send him pornographic videos of her having sex with other boys her age. She also claims he asked her to meet and have sex with his friends.

Years after the alleged hotel encounter, the woman claims she was disturbed to see Chris' character in the Netflix series, "You," as he plays a comic who preys on underaged girls.

Grindr founder Joel Simkhai just matched with the perfect penthouse ... scooping up a beaut in NYC's Gramercy Park.

Joel's reportedly the proud new owner of a 7,000-square-foot penthouse with 5 bedrooms and 6.5 bathrooms ... but the crown jewel's definitely the gigantic private, landscaped roof terrace that, on its own, is a whopping 5,680 square feet.

As if things couldn't get any better up there ... the terrace also includes a full outdoor kitchen, BBQ grill, wet bar, fireplace and lounge. When the party moves back inside, the unit features 18-foot ceilings and a kitchen worthy of any celeb chef. There are other amenities ... like a gym, spa and pool.

Dr. Seuss' books should NOT be yanked from shelves -- because all they need is a little context on page 1 ... so says a woman who was raised by the man himself.

Leagrey Dimond -- one of Dr. Seuss' stepdaughters -- tells TMZ she doesn't think his work needs to be censored or stored away from public view ... which is essentially what Dr. Seuss Enterprises did on Monday.

Instead, Dimond suggests adding a disclaimer to the 6 books in question ... something a lot of media companies have been opting for lately for questionable or outdated material with racist depictions. The same thing should happen here, in Dimond's eyes anyway.

She also has this to say about Seuss' work -- yes, some of his earlier publications and illustrations DID feature racist imagery, but his legacy shouldn't hinge on that alone ... as she insists the full breadth of his literature shows he's a good guy and evolved over time.

Dimond says Seuss publicly regretted some of his earlier work -- such as ads, comic strips and political cartoons he helped craft during the WWII era -- which featured blatantly racist drawings of Black people and Asian people.

But, there's a bigger reason the org bearing his name should hold off, per LD ... nobody who runs the place knew him personally.

Dimond says since coming into Seuss' care at age 9, she never once experienced any hatred, hate speech or bigotry of any kind ... which she says was emblematic of his character at large. The fact people are judging him in death, she says, doesn't sit right with her.

You'll recall -- the Enterprise announced it was ceasing further sales of 6 Seuss children's books -- including "And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street," "Scrambled Eggs Super!" "If I Ran the Zoo," "McElligot’s Pool," "On Beyond Zebra!" and "The Cat’s Quizzer"

Some examples of the problematic imagery -- from 'Mulberry' and 'Zoo' -- feature Asian stereotypes ... like referring to one character as a "Chinaman ... with sticks."

Tamar Braxton no longer has to keep her distance from her ex-boyfriend ... because we’ve learned his restraining order's been dissolved after neither one of them showed up in court.

Neither Tamar nor the singer's ex, David Adefeso, appeared for their court hearing on the matter Tuesday, so the judge dismissed the case and dissolved the restraining order.

We broke the story ... Adefeso filed for a domestic violence restraining order against Tamar in September and was temporarily granted one. David claimed Tamar attacked him while he was driving his car and threatened to have him killed.

Tamar denied the allegations the following month on "The Tamron Hall Show."

As you'll recall ... David was the one who called 911 last summer when he was dating Tamar and reported her alleged suicide attempt. He claimed at the time, her WeTV beef was the reason she wanted to kill herself.

J.J. Watt might not have to find a new number in Arizona after all ...

Marshall Goldberg's daughter, Ellen Goldberg Tullos, tells TMZ Sports ... she would have no issue unretiring the #99 for the newest Cardinals star.

In fact, Tullos says she believes her dad would have been honored for Watt to wear his old digits in Arizona.

"He has my blessings," Tullos said of Watt, "and I'm sure my father would be more than delighted for him to carry it on."

If you're unfamiliar ... Goldberg -- who was drafted in the 2nd round of the 1939 NFL Draft by the then-Chicago Cardinals -- was a superstar in the league in the 1940s.

He played both ways ... and was considered such a legend by the Cards, they retired his #99 decades after he hung up his spikes.

He was later inducted into the team's ring of honor in 2006 ... just months after he died at age 88.

Many believed because of all that, Watt would not have the opportunity to stick with his old Texans digits in AZ ... but Tullos tells us if the 5-time All-Pro wants to keep the number, the Goldberg family would be all for it.

"Well, I know dad was really honored when they retired his number but also he's always respected other players," Tullos said. "And, if J.J. Watt had the number 99 with him for a long time and it meant something to him, I think he'd be delighted to let him use the number and unretire or whatever the proper word would be."

Tullos continued, "He would be fine with that. It's just the type of guy he was, you know? I think he would be happy to let him use his number and honored with that as well."

Watt agreed to a two-year deal with the Cardinals worth a reported $31 million on Monday morning. The 5-time Pro Bowler is expected to be introduced by the team later this month, though it's unclear when the team will officially assign him his number for the 2021 season.

Dr. Oz saved a life at the Newark airport after a man collapsed face down at baggage claim ... and the good doc was in the right place at the right time.

Sources close to Dr. Oz tells TMZ ... Oz rolled the man over Monday night, cleared his airway and began giving him CPR before using a defibrillator. We're told the guy flatlined and Oz shocked him back to life as a huge crowd watched.

We're told there were no other doctors there, but a Port Authority police officer was there who helped Oz continue CPR while he cleared the man's airway.

It appears the man might have suffered a heart attack ... he's recovering at a New Jersey hospital and doing "okay" as he awaits test results. We're told Oz is in touch with the man's wife, who was traveling with him at the time.

Snooki's retirement from "Jersey Shore" was short-lived ... 'cause TMZ's learned she's filming again and we have some of the first images.

TMZ's obtained a picture that shows Snooki grabbing lunch with co-star Angelina last week at Lucco Cucina + Bar in Florham Park, New Jersey. You can see a producer -- wearing a mask -- at a table next to them and we're told the restaurant was fully lit (for TV, not a party) as cameras rolled on their convo.

It's unclear how involved Snooki's gonna be in the MTV reality series -- guest appearance or full cast member -- but her shooting any scenes at all is significant because she swore off all things 'Jersey Shore' back in December 2019. She told us as much back then when she even shot down a possible spin-off.

Also interesting is the pairing with Angelina -- true GTLers know they've almost always been at each other's throats since Day 1. That tension really amped up when Snooki, Deena and JWOWW took shots at Angelina during what was supposed to be a toast to her ... at her wedding!!!

One theory ... Angelina recently made up with Jenni and Deena following the wedding fiasco. That backlash, btw, is part of the reason why Snooki quit the show -- so, it's possible the lunch was them squashing that beef.

Bunny Wailer -- the reggae icon and founding member of the original Wailers trio with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh -- has died in Jamaica.

Bunny, real name Neville Livingston, died Tuesday at the Medical Associates Hospital in Kingston ... according to his manager, Maxine Stowe. His cause of death's not been given, but he'd been dealing with serious medical issues since suffering his second stroke in 2020.

Born in Jamaica, Livingston befriended Marley at a young age and they'd go on to form the legendary reggae group with Tosh. Though Marley and Tosh were the primary singers and songwriters ... Bunny was known for his incredible harmonies on their songs.

In 1965 the trio released their debut album, "The Wailing Wailers," before going on hiatus and reuniting again in the '70s. Around that time, Bunny wrote and recorded one of his most famous songs, "Dreamland" ... which he later released on his solo album, "Blackheart Man," in 1976.

The Wailers achieved international fame in 1973 with the release of "Catch a Fire" and follow-up album "Burnin'" ... but this would ultimately lead to the group splitting up.

Bunny and Tosh both left the band in 1974, but Bunny would be forever linked to the rise of reggae along with Marley ... and had a successful solo career himself. He'd go on to work with Jamaican musicians, Sly and Robbie, and produce albums of several other artists.

Bunny won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album in 1991 for "Time Will Tell: A Tribute to Bob Marley," and would go on to win 2 more ... including another tribute album in 1997.

As for other awards ... he received the Order of Merit from the Jamaican government in 2017 for his contributions and achievements. Bunny last toured in 2016 for the 40th anniversary of "Blackheart Man."

He was the last remaining member of the OG Wailers. Marley died of cancer in 1981, and Tosh was murdered by gunmen in an attempted robbery at his home in 1987.

Bunny was 73.

Kodak Black is on the move -- or he's about to be anyway, because a judge just signed off on him being able to pack up and hit the road ... with limitations, of course.

A federal judge just approved Kodak's motion to travel for work purposes only -- giving him the green light to go out of state ... so long as he lets 'em know exactly where he's going.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the judge says KB has to provide a full itinerary to his probation officer, including where he'll be staying during the travel. Naturally, he'll also have to keep his nose clean while out and about.

In his original filing seeking the OK for this, Kodak's attorneys said his plans were to continue the charitable work he's been engaged in lately -- specifically citing the scholarship he set up in the name of one of the Parkland victims, Meadow Pollack, which he recently commemorated with a public service.