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La La and Carmelo's Anthony's marriage has been through a separation, a reconciliation, and years of speculation -- but now they've amicably decided to officially call it quits.

La La filed divorce docs Thursday in New York, 11 years after tying the knot with the NBA star, and cited irreconcilable differences.

Sources close to the former couple tell TMZ ... they've been separated for awhile but remain friends, as always, after 16 years together, and everything about the divorce is amicable.

We're told they both wanted to take time to ensure a private and smooth transition in their relationship for their 14-year-old son, Kiyan -- who's always their top priority -- and they remain fully aligned as parenting partners.

As we reported, Melo and La La split in 2017 after 7 years of marriage amid rumors he cheated on her, but by late 2018 it seemed they were working things out.

We even saw La La in Portland to support Carmelo as he made a transition in his career after getting signed by the Trail Blazers. It appeared things were on track.

Heidi Ferrer -- a Hollywood writer known for her work on the hit WB series "Dawson's Creek" and ABC's "Wasteland" -- has died by suicide following a long battle with COVID-19 ... TMZ has confirmed.

A family member tells us Heidi took her own life after fighting covid for more than a year, she died on May 26.

She contracted the virus when the pandemic was raging in late April 2020, and her symptoms worsened month after month. She was bedridden a couple of months after she first fell ill ... suffering from severe fatigue and neurological tremors.

Heidi wrote a blog post back in September detailing exactly how COVID knocked her down -- she called the recovery process the hardest thing her body's ever had to go through.

She said, "In my darkest moments, I told my husband that if I didn’t get better, I did not want to live like this. I wasn’t suicidal, I just couldn’t see any quality of life long term and there was no end in sight."

Her condition went through a steady decline this year as she battled long-haul COVID symptoms -- and last month, more than a year after contracting the virus, she was bedridden again before her death. Nick called long-haul COVID "a public health crisis that must be addressed quickly."

Heidi made a name for herself as a writer who, without a college degree, sold her first spec, "The C Word," to Oscar-winning producer Arnold Kopelson. She remained a member of the Writer's Guild of America for 24 years.

Heidi's survived by her husband, 13-year-old son, mother and 2 sisters. She was 50.

Congressman Donald Payne Jr. is reporting for duty ... he's just not bothering to get dressed for it.

The U.S. Representative from New Jersey got caught in an embarrassing situation Thursday during a Zoom call with colleagues, as he apparently forgot to turn off his camera as he rolled out of bed in his pajamas for the meeting.

So, instead of seeing a sharp-dressed politician, the legislators on the call who were listening to Rep. Yvette Clarke speak also got an eyeful of Payne's slightly-too-small Captain America t-shirt, his exposed belly ... and what looked like blue striped boxers.

The clip was shared by Texas Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne, who used it to take a shot at all Dems by adding the caption ... "Another reason Democrats should get off Zoom and back to work."

Payne's legislative director tried to defend him from Van Duyne's dig by citing the Congressman's weight struggle and diabetes, but in reality ... the reaction of Rep. Kat Cammack at the bottom of the screen says it all.

Rep. Payne Jr. has addressed his gaffe, telling TMZ ... "As a public servant, my focus has always been the public good and my work to better the lives of my constituents and all Americans, regardless of the circumstances."

President Biden just made it official ... there's now a federal holiday marking a milestone in the abolishment of slavery in the United States.

Biden put pen to paper Thursday, signing a landmark bill establishing June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day. It's a huge deal, and not only because it's the first new federal holiday established since 1983 with Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Juneteenth is the oldest celebration in America commemorating the end of slavery. Prior to Biden signing the bill, the day was marked as a state holiday or observance in 47 states and Washington D.C.

While both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris said the holiday shows how far America's come as a nation, they stressed there's still a long road to go in making good on the promise for equality for all.

Still, Kamala says it's a day of celebration and the party's already starting on Capitol Hill ... the Congressional Black Congress sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing" -- aka the "Black National Anthem" -- after the bill was signed in the House and sent to Biden's desk.

Biden and Harris hope folks understand the history of Juneteenth and learn from it ... so here's a quick lesson.

The name Juneteenth comes from June 19, 1865, the date Union General Gordon Granger rode into Galveston, Texas and informed a group of slaves the Civil War was over and they were free.

Of course, President Lincoln had actually abolished slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation nearly 3 years earlier, but Texas was the most remote of the slave states and had a low presence of Union soldiers ... so enforcement was beyond slow.

The first Juneteenth celebration traces its roots to 1866 in Texas, with the holiday spreading across the South in the following decades, and in 2020 there was a renewed push to make it a federal holiday.

Usher was spotted at the White House for the historic event.

Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka is pulling out of another Grand Slam ... the #2-ranked player in the world has withdrawn from Wimbledon to spend time with loved ones ahead of the Olympics.

This is the second major tournament 23-year-old Osaka has decided to skip -- she withdrew from the French Open before the second round last month due to her opposition to mandatory media availability.

Now, Osaka will not be making the trip to London, with her agent releasing a statement Thursday.

"Naomi won't be playing Wimbledon this year," the rep said. "She is taking some personal time with friends and family."

It's unclear if Osaka's war with the reporters played a factor -- the All England Club reportedly reached out to the superstar to have a discussion about handling media ops ahead of the tournament.

As we previously reported, Osaka opened up on her battle with depression and social anxiety following her 2018 U.S. Open win ... saying she's struggled with coping with the spotlight.

Osaka has consistently said she has no issue with the journalists who have treated her fairly ... and has apologized to those affected by her decision to avoid talking.

D.L. Hughley's fired up about Juneteenth becoming a federal holiday, but it's got nothing to do with getting a 3-day weekend -- he's fuming at the ironic dilemma it presents.

We got the comedian on "TMZ Live" Thursday and he made a hilarious comparison about President Biden soon signing Juneteenth into law to make it the 12th federal holiday. D.L. says it's like getting the wrong order from Amazon, and keeping it ... but still wondering why the original order's missing in the first place.

His point is Black people have been demanding justice and equality, but instead got a 3-day weekend. Yeah, no one's gonna complain, but what about the justice part?

D.L. says there's another aspect of the new Juneteenth federal holiday that reeks of irony -- the fact that several U.S. Senators who voted for the bill are simultaneously trying to block schools from teaching about the role slavery played in building America. As he put it ... it's kinda hard to explain the holiday if critical race theory is censored.

More than 20 states have introduced legislation that would restrict lessons on racism or any other "divisive" concepts. Hughley says this is the duality of our life in America.

Kelly Dodd may no longer be part of "The Real Housewives of Orange County" cast, but she's kicking the reality TV drama into overdrive anyway ... and directing her ire at Braunwyn Windham-Burke.

As we told you, both ladies will not be returning for the new season of 'RHOC,' and Kelly is placing the blame for that squarely on her former castmate ... and not pulling any punches.

She just shared a recent text exchange with Braunwyn that started with Braunwyn checking in on her -- something Kelly described as "audacity" -- and then Kelly responded by going off on her for their ousting from the show.

According to Kelly ... if Braunwyn "didn't make things so dark and ugly and brought all that political 'woke' BS" to the show, she believes they'd still be on it. Kelly also says Braunwyn calling her a racist and homophobe was "horribly destructive."

Kelly's attack on Braunwyn is apparently in response to Braunwyn going on a podcast and addressing the 2 of them -- along with Elizabeth Lyn Vargas -- not being invited back for the next season.

Kelly wrote ... "She said she was fired from the show because we all didn’t like her because she’s gay. Not because she’s a horrible person. Not because she treated everyone like s**t and made no effort to be friends with us."

Then Kelly went really hard, calling Braunwyn a "terrible mother," "horrible person to her husband" ... and a "f***ing nut job classic narcissist!"

We listened to the podcast, and while Braunwyn did say Kelly has made a lot of controversial comments and admits "the two of us were diametrically opposed on social justice issues" ... she also called her "the most interesting person on the cast" and added, "Kelly does have a good heart underneath it all."

The audacity!!!

We spoke to a production source who was adamant, telling us Dodd was not let go from the show because of the storyline around Braunwyn or her sexuality -- but the source would not specify what did trigger Dodd's departure.

Farrah Abraham has read Chrissy Teigen's apology for cyberbullying, and says it rings hollow until she backs it up with some specific actions -- and yet, she doesn't want Chrissy canceled.

We got the former 'Teen Mom' star Wednesday in L.A., and asked her if she'd gotten an apology from Chrissy. Remember, the former SI swimsuit model didn't name names when she said she was going to reach out to people she's hurt in the past.

Farrah -- who responded to Chrissy's apology with her own post -- tells us Chrissy has NOT reached out, and she thinks she has an idea why: Farrah says she doesn't think Chrissy "has the emotional or mental capability at this time to apologize properly to anyone."

In fact ... Farrah scoffs at Chrissy's posted apology and says it's just her way out of having to deal with the real problem at hand ... making serious amends.

Farrah's advice ... don't ignore the obvious task at hand and reach out. Farrah says if Chrissy actually did have a breakthrough, she'd do exactly that.

Farrah was one of Chrissy's targets back in the day ... calling her a "w****" in a 2013 tweet while taking shots at her about her sex tape and saying everyone hates her.

Frank Bonner, famous for playing Herb Tarlek on the TV sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati," has died ... TMZ has learned.

Frank died Wednesday as a result of complications from Lewy body dementia ... according to his family. We're told his loved ones are heartbroken, and they were with him when he passed away peacefully.

An actor and director, Frank was best known for his work on 'WKRP' in the late 1970s and early '80s ... playing Herb, the radio station sales manager who could never land the big account.

Frank's character was also known for wearing loud, plaid suits on the show plus white shoes and a matching belt.

He directed a handful of episodes on the OG 'WKRP' and reprised his role as Herb in the 1990s spinoff, "The New WKRP in Cincinnati" ... and also acted and directed in "Saved By The Bell: The New Class."

Frank made headlines in October 1979 when he was hospitalized following a parachute accident. He was injured after falling about 20 feet when his ascendency chute collapsed in a freak wind while he was being towed by a four-wheel drive vehicle over a dry lake bed near Los Angeles.

He was 79.

This is NOT the replacement co-host Sheryl Underwood or anyone else at "The Talk" had in mind, and yet, there he is ... Mr. Cockroach hogging the spotlight!!!

It all went down during Monday's episode as Sheryl was introducing a segment about an unruly Delta Air Lines passenger on a flight from LAX to the ATL. Little did she know there was an unruly guest in the studio ... slowly creeping in her background.

It didn't seem to bug Sheryl ... but probably only because she didn't see it. La Cucaracha was several feet behind her, silently climbing a wall on set.

"The Talk" films in the massive CBS Studio Center in Studio City, so let's be real ... there's gonna be an invading critter every now and then. This one just happened to find his key light.

Could have been much worse ... just ask former VP Mike Pence.

Then again, Sheryl might have handled it like a boss ... a la President Biden fending off that cicada last week.

A notorious piece of ATL real estate is changing hands ... the home where R. Kelly allegedly held women against their will has a new owner.

According to new legal docs obtained by TMZ ... the mansion the singer used to rent in Metro Atlanta sold June 3. Folks who work for Fulton County, where the home is located, tell us the sale closed at a cool $1,785,000.

The property is infamously known as the place where Kelly allegedly kept women as part of his reputed sex cult. As the docuseries "Surviving R. Kelly" detailed ... some of the women claim they were forced to call him "Daddy," and had to ask permission for everything from bathroom breaks to meals.

Kelly, who is in custody in Chicago awaiting a federal trial, has denied the allegations.

The new owner clearly looked beyond the home's bad rep, and saw the value of its 11,455 sq. ft., 7-bedrooms, 12-foot ceilings and 2 kitchens.

Powerful moment from NBA player Meyers Leonard ... who choked backed tears while addressing a group of Jewish kids at a temple in Florida, as he explained his regret for using an anti-Semitic slur back in March.

The 29-year-old took the mic at Boca Raton Synagogue over the weekend ... and began by saying, "I owe everybody, truly, a sincere apology."

As we previously reported, the former Miami Heat player was playing "Call of Duty" on March 9 when he hurled the K-word at an opposing player. The session was being live-streamed on Twitch at the time.

Twitch immediately blocked Leonard from the platform -- and the NBA hit Meyers with a $50k fine and a 1-week suspension.

Leonard apologized and vowed to educate himself about why the slur is dangerous and offensive ... and it's pretty obvious he's been putting in the work.

At least, according to Rabbi Efrem Goldberg ... who spoke glowingly about Meyers at Sunday's event -- praising him as a good dude and a "great friend of the Jewish community."

Rabbi Goldberg told the crowd, "Over the last 3 months, I’ve gotten to know Meyers off camera and off the court … I've gotten to know what's in his heart and who he is."

"Meyers has learned a lot about the Jewish community ... meeting with Holocaust survivors and reading books about Jewish history."

Leonard also opened up about life after the incident -- saying, "I've had a lot of really good moments and some pretty dark emotional moments but I just like to say, again, I'm so, so thankful for the people in the Jewish community whether it's a little kid, a teenager, a high schooler or a rabbi."

President Biden got testy with a reporter over a question about his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but he was quick to say sorry ... even if it was a little backhanded.

Here's what happened -- CNN's Kaitlan Collins asked Biden why he was confident Putin would change his behavior following the Geneva summit, and the Prez took serious issue with the word "confident."

Biden was so miffed at the question, he actually walked back out at the end of his Wednesday press conference to address Collins and explain what he meant ... ultimately telling her she's "in the wrong business" when she asked a follow-up question.

Moments later though, Biden walked over to other reporters on the tarmac in Geneva -- as he was preparing to depart Switzerland -- and issued an apology to Collins for being short with her.

POTUS said, "I shouldn’t have been such a wise guy with the last answer I gave."

However, he later continued ... "To be a good reporter you gotta be negative; you gotta have a negative view of life ... you never ask a positive question." He also said reporters are the brightest people in the country so it makes no sense for him to negotiate with them.

Big Boi is opening the doors to "The Dungeon" ... he's hosting a few lucky folks for sleepovers in the iconic home where he recorded some of his biggest hits with Andre 3000!!!

TMZ has learned Big Boi's hosting 3 overnight stays at the Atlanta home in June and July for only $25 a night via Airbnb, but ya gotta be quick on the trigger ... once the listing goes live next week, it's first come first serve.

For those lucky few who snag a spot, it'll be like a hip hop fantasy come true -- including guided access to the home's legendary basement where Outkast and Goodie Mob recorded some of their breakout hits, and where signatures from the artists still remain on the walls.

Guests are also invited to kick back and play records in rooms styled to pay homage to important Atlanta locations that inspired The Dungeon Family's music ... oh and feel free to check out a new state-of-the-art studio decked out with Yamaha audio equipment.

Yes, they've made some upgrades over their 2 decades of mega-success.

Anyone in the U.S. can cross their fingers and hope to score a booking when the application goes live on June 25 at 1 PM ET. Winners who live within 30 miles of Atlanta will get a bonus -- transport to and from the house in an Escalade. Otherwise, the travel part's on your tab.

Big Boi, who purchased the home 2 years ago, is partnering with Airbnb for the overnight stays ... and Airbnb's making a donation to the Atlanta Public Schools Music Department to expand resources and increase access to music education for K-12 students.

The $25 price tag sounds too good to be true, but it's legit ... we're told it's in honor of the 25th anniversary of Outkast's 1996 album "ATLiens."

The whole experience sounds cool as hell -- Big Boi remembers spending hours back in the day hanging out in the basement, writing rhymes and making beats at all hours of the night with Andre and other ATL hip hop pioneers.

The Florida principal who paddled a 6-year-old will be punished after all, after getting prematurely reinstated, and the child's family couldn't be happier ... despite the fact she's still reeling from the beating.

The family's attorney, Brent Probinsky, tells TMZ ... the principal in question, Melissa Carter, recently received a letter from the Florida Department of Education -- notifying her its investigation found probable cause for sanctions ... which could include a fine, probation, suspension or revocation of her teaching license (AKA, termination).

While a decision on what exactly her punishment will be is still to be handed down, Probinsky says the family is happy Carter will feel some repercussions ... and they hope it helps spread awareness to avoid a repeat situation with another kid.

Even though Carter will get hers, she was oddly reinstated to her position as principal this week by the local school district -- seemingly jumping the gun ahead of the FDOE findings.

As for the child who got paddled ... she's still dealing with the fallout, both physically and emotionally. Probinsky tells us she has been experiencing severe pain in her back and hips, not to mention numbness in her legs ... for which she's in physical therapy. The kid's also seeing a therapist due to the trauma we're told she's been through.