Breaking News

WARNING -- this video of Brian Ortega will make your skin crawl. If you've already had your breakfast, prepare to revisit your eggs and toast ... 'cause this is gnarly.

We're not kidding. This is your last chance to look away.

For some reason, the UFC star thought it would be a great idea to show off what it looked like two pins getting yanked out of his bone and through his flesh on Thursday ... and we wish he hadn't.

Ortega broke his thumb and nose during a bloody fight against Max Holloway at UFC 231 last month ... and despite the nasty vid, the recovery seems to be going okay.

"I didn’t feel a THING," Ortega says ... as the metal pins are clamped with pliers and wrestled out of his hand.

Shockingly, not really any blood ... but it's still hard to watch.

Hope we didn't ruin your Friday.

Here's a cute story to start your Friday off right ... Danny Amendola spotted a little kid wearing his jersey Thursday night -- and surprised the hell outta him in an adorable vid!!!

The Dolphins star was cruisin' around in Miami when all of the sudden a little boy rockin' his No. 80 gear pulled out in front of him.

"Hey bro, bro -- come here," Danny tells the kid ... "You know whose jersey you're wearing??"

The kid -- surprised -- responds matter-of-factly, "Yes. Danny Amendola."

Danny's reaction?? "That's me, how are you brother?!"

The kid lights up immediately ... and the smile is the most adorable thing you'll see today -- and then the two even stopped to pose for a pic together!!!

D.A.'s been killin' it this week ... making little kids' days AND (possibly) getting back with his Miss Universe girlfriend.

Kawhi Leonard's mother reached her boiling point at the Spurs game Thursday night -- going off on a heckler ... calling him an "a**hole" and telling him to "shut up."

It all went down in San Antonio -- where her NBA superstar son returned for the first time with his new team, the Toronto Raptors.

The fans were ruthless to Kawhi during the game, chanting "traitor" and booing him almost every time he touched the ball.

At least one heckler recognized Kawhi's mother, Kim -- wearing a Leonard jersey -- and started running his mouth.

You can see in the video, Kim can't take it and starts yelling back -- "A**hole, shut up!" -- all while continuing to eat her snack ... without spilling a drop!

Unfortunately for Kim, the Raptors ended up losing the game ... 125 to 107. Kawhi put up 21 points and 5 assists.

Cris Cyborg had one helluva shoulder to cry on after she lost to Amanda Nunes on Saturday -- because Halle Berry was waiting for her in the locker room.

The UFC superstar had cameras in her locker room -- capturing the moment Halle visited her friend and gave her a big hug minutes after the brutal knockout.

It was Cyborg's first loss in 12 years ... but it seemed Halle took it harder that Cris -- with Cyborg telling her friend, "Don't cry, Halle."

Halle has been training at Cyborg's gym in Huntington Beach, CA for the past couple of months to get ready for her new MMA movie, "Bruised" ... but the two have struck up a friendship outside of the training center.

In fact, Hall was Cyborg's VIP guest at UFC 232 ... and hung out with her training team before and after the fight.

Cris was obviously sad -- but trying to stay positive ... telling Halle the loss will put "more fire in my heart."

Halle later admitted, "I was shocked [by the loss]. A lot of mixed emotions. But, she's a champion. You'll see ... she'll be back."

She added, "All champions have to face highs and lows. I've faced it in my career. We've all faced it. She'll be back."

Cyborg's friend Clarissa Shields -- a 2-time Olympic gold medalist boxer -- also spoke with Cris after the fight ... telling the UFC star she should have used her jab more often against Nunes.

Officials in Israel believe Bar Refaeli tried to hide more than $6 MILLION from tax authorities ... and now she's been informed prosecutors will hit her with tax evasion and money laundering charges.

Refaeli has been under investigation for years -- authorities believe she tried to get out of paying taxes in Israel by claiming her primary residence was in the U.S. ... and telling U.S. authorities she lived in Israel.

Authorities claim the supermodel was shady with tax officials from 2006 to 2012 -- part of that time was when she was dating Leonardo DiCaprio.

Officials say Bar claimed to be living in the U.S. with Leo at the time when she was really living in Tel Aviv under a family member's name, this according to JPost.com.

Bar's parents, Tzipi and Rafi Refaeli, are also expected to be hit with money laundering and tax evasion charges stemming from the same investigation.

As for Bar, her attorney Moshe Mizrahi told Ynet ... Israeli tax authorities are backing out of a deal she negotiated with them in 2009. He also claims Bar "hasn’t hidden anything."

33-year-old Refaeli is one of the most famous models in the world -- gracing the covers of magazines like the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and GQ.

Stephen Jackson just ripped Darryl Strawberry for saying weed is a gateway drug ... blasting the ex-MLB superstar as a "cokehead" who's "weak-minded."

ICYMI ... Strawberry told TMZ Sports earlier this week that marijuana is SUPER dangerous and is "just the beginning" of the path to way more serious drugs.

Enter Jackson ... a staunch marijuana advocate who heard the comments -- and just had to tear into the former outfielder for making the bold claim.

"You a whole cokehead out here, bruh," Jackson says.

"Asking you for advice about weed is like asking somebody who went broke on how to stay rich. You a whole cokehead out here, bruh!!"

Jackson later apologized for the comments ... saying he didn't mean to disrespect the ex-Yankee who's tried to turn around his life after being suspended 3 times for cocaine during his baseball career.

But, Stephen didn't back off his initial opinion at all ... doubling down and saying, "If you think weed is a gateway drug, then you weak-minded."

Johnny Manziel says he's right in the middle of the Kanye West vs. Drake beef -- since it's all going down in Calabasas -- and he's convinced Yeezus is scared.

You already know the backstory ... Kanye went off on Drake publicly this weekend when he realized the rapper still followed Kim Kardashian on IG. He took his gripe to Twitter where he posted about 75 million tweets about the situation.

Since Manziel is friendly with Drake -- and lives around the corner from Kanye and Kim in Calabasas -- he talked about the situation on his Comeback SZN podcast on Barstool Sports.

"It's all happening right around the corner," Manziel said ... "So, I'm in the middle of it right now. I can't wait to see it unfold a little bit more, but [Kanye] is triggered!"

He added, "It sounds like Kanye is a little worried about Drake. Like he's going to call someone to beat him up or something."

Seems Manziel is right ... remember, Kanye suggested that Drake threatened his family during a Twitter spat a few weeks ago.

"You threatened the safety of me and my family," Kanye tweeted on Dec. 13 ... "Never threaten north saint and Chicago's dad bro."

Kanye continued ... "So drake if anything happens to me or anyone from my family you are the first suspect. So cut the tough talk."

11:30 AM PT-- Hopkins just spoke with reporters about the decision to help Jazmine's family ... saying, "The city of Houston is always supportive of me, of this team, so I felt in my heart it's only right that I give back to those who are down."

"It's a tough situation for that to happen."

Houston Texans superstar wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins says every penny from his NFL Wild Card round playoff paycheck will go to the family of a 7-year-old girl who was gunned down this weekend on a Texas highway.

Jazmine Barnes was killed around 7 AM on Sunday morning when a man in a red pickup truck pulled up next to the family car and opened fire for no apparent reason. The family was going on an early morning coffee run at the time of the incident.

Jazmine's mother, LaPorsha Washington, was also struck in the attack -- but she survived. Jazmine's 3 sisters were also in the car during the shooting and suffered cuts from shattered glass.

A manhunt is now underway in Texas -- the suspect has been described as a white man with a beard who appears to be in his 40s.

Officials say it doesn't appear the family did anything to provoke the driver.

Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said, "There was nothing to indicate that the family did anything wrong in any way ... They were simply just driving along the service road when this happened to them."

Clearly, the story has resonated with Hopkins -- who said, "When I see Jazmine Barnes' face, I see my own daughter."

"I'm pledging my playoff check this week to help her family with funeral costs and to support @shaunking @SherriffED_HCSO @SylvesterTurner in bringing this man to justice. On Saturday, I will be playing in your honor, Jazmine."

Social activist Shaun King has announced a $100,000 reward is being offered for info that leads to the arrest of the killer.

Antonio Brown finally got cut Wednesday night ... but it wasn't by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The superstar WR was one of the celebrity performers on "The Masked Singer" -- and while the show was taped months ago, his song choice proved insanely relevant when it aired Wednesday night.

Disguised in a hippo mask, Brown performed Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative" -- which includes the famous lyrics ... "Everybody's talkin' all this stuff about me. Why don't they just let me live?"

It's almost like he knew he was gonna be in the middle of a super nasty public feud with his team when he taped the show.

The judges thought the face under the hippo mask belonged to either Odell Beckham, Deion Sanders or Allen Iverson.

Before he revealed his true identity, the judges had already sealed his fate -- giving him the lowest score among the celebrity singers ... which means he was axed from the show.

New year, same ol' smokin' hot physiques for Karrueche Tran and her ex-NFL player boyfriend, Victor Cruz!

The couple hit the beach in Miami on Wednesday to take in some sun and surf while showing off their insanely toned bods.

KT and VC have been dating since December 2017 and seem to be going strong.

The former New York Giants star wideout announced his retirement back in August after 7 seasons in the NFL ... but the 32-year-old still looks like he's in playing shape.

As for Tran, she's still starring on "Claws" where she plays a former stripper turned manicurist out in Florida. The show just got renewed for a 3rd season on TNT.

But, are you really here for the background info ... or to scroll through the bikini gallery already?

Daryl Dragon, "The Captain" of singing duo Captain and Tennille, died early Wednesday morning ... and love really did keep them together to the very end.

Daryl's publicist says the musician died of renal failure in Arizona, and was in hospice care at the time.

Daryl and Toni Tennille were famous for cranking out huge hits in the '70s, including "Do That to Me One More Time," "Muskrat Love" and "Love Will Keep Us Together." The duo was actually a couple -- they married in 1975. They landed their own TV variety show the next year.

Although they divorced in 2014, they remained friends ... and Toni was by his side when he died. As TMZ first reported ... their divorce docs made specific mention about their health insurance coverage. In 2009, she said Daryl was suffering from Parkinson's Disease. Daryl was blindsided by Toni's filing ... and told us they were still living together at the time.

In a statement, Toni says Daryl "was a brilliant musician with many friends who loved him greatly. I was at my most creative in my life, when I was with him."

Daryl was 76.

Tiffany Haddish has found several silver linings to bombing her NYE show in Miami -- most importantly ... she needs more sleep, and less South Beach.

Tiff was out Wednesday in L.A. when a photog asked her what went wrong. In a nutshell ... she's been burning it at both ends. She said, "I've slept in my bed a grand total of 28 days" for all of 2018. She added she now knows exactly what happens when your brain is fried.

That being said ... she admits going hard on the party scene didn't help either. As Tiff put it, "Miami is a really dope city, and I probably shouldn't turn up before work."

She also found out who her real friends are, and ran down the all-star list of comedians who reached to show love and support.

As for the haters -- Tiffany has a message for them too.

Shareef O'Neal just revealed his heart surgery scar for the first time Wednesday ... and he's already given himself a new nickname, "Zipperboy."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Shareef needed a heart procedure done after UCLA doctors detected an abnormality during a routine check-up.

O'Neal went under the knife on Dec. 13 ... but came out of it just fine -- and when he finally got a look at the scar this week, he was able to joke about it.

"My first time seeing my scar ..... #zipperboy."

The operation doesn't seem like it was a laughing matter though ... the scar runs from the top of his chest to halfway down to his belly button!!!

The good news ... Shaq told us just several days ago his son's doing okay -- and could be back on the basketball court in just a few months.

Shannon Sharpe just went scorched earth on Ben Roethlisberger ... saying the QB is a "terrible leader" who's the problem in Pittsburgh 'cause he's "a finger pointing, divisive, selfish player."

Of course, seems Big Ben would disagree ... 'cause the Steelers superstar said on a radio appearance this week that Le'Veon Bell deserves blame for Pitt's demise this season.

"It hurts you when you don’t have one of the better players in the game,” Roethlisberger said ... “but I think the biggest thing that hurts us was that it was a distraction."

Sharpe couldn't believe the QB went after the team's star running back ... so Sharpe blasted HIM for being the real problem in Pittsburgh.

"Big Ben is terrible leader. He’s a finger pointing, divisive, selfish player. Who constantly looks for someone to blame or throw under the bus for his shortcomings," Sharpe said on Twitter.

"Le’veon situation was the prob now. Le’veon wasn’t the reason 7-2-1, but the problem for missing playoffs. FOH"

Ben does own two Super Bowl rings and is destined for the Hall of Fame -- but Sharpe ain't alone in criticizing the QB's leadership.

Ben has taken heat from many recently -- especially after he seems to be one of the key reasons Antonio Brown is beefing with the team.

The Antonio Brown drama keeps raging on ... 'cause the Steelers WR just called his ex-teammate, Ryan Clark, an "Uncle Tom" after Clark ripped him on TV.

Clark -- an ex-Steelers DB who's now an ESPN NFL analyst -- tore into A.B. after reports surfaced that Brown was benched for blowing up on teammates during practice last week.

"This is where Mike Tomlin has to put his foot down and shop Antonio Brown," Clark said ... "You have to take that stand. You have to. Time for him to go."

Brown -- who played 4 seasons with Clark in Pittsburgh -- didn't take long to fire back, calling Clark an "Uncle Tom" in a comment on an ESPN NFL Instagram post about Clark's criticism.

It's the latest chapter in a drama that's already featured Brown getting benched, requesting trade AND not returning Ben Roethlisberger's phone calls and messages.

For his part ... Brown says a "big interview" with James Harrison is on the way -- so seems we'll get Antonio's side of the story shortly.

4:15 PM -- HBO tells us they had scheduled Bob to part of season 10 of 'Curb,' but his health prevented it.

Larry David says, “Never have I seen an actor enjoy a role the way Bob did playing 'Marty Funkhouser' on 'Curb.' It was an amazing, unforgettable experience knowing and working with him. There was no one like him, as he told us again and again. We’re all in a state of shock.”

Bob Einstein, the Emmy-winning actor from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and creator of Super Dave Osborne, died Wednesday from cancer.

Bob had recently been diagnosed, and he died at his home in Indian Wells, CA.

He famously played Larry David's pal, Marty Funkhouser, on 'Curb,' but he was a very successful comedy writer before that -- winning Emmy awards for being a writer on "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour" back in the '70s and for producing Dick Van Dyke's "Van Dyke and Company."

Bob's character, Super Dave, pulled crazy stunts decades before "Jackass" even existed -- but he would always hilariously fail. Super Dave had his own show on Showtime in the late '80s and early '90s.

Bob didn't start out in showbiz -- standing 6'4", he played college hoops at Chapman University and then got into advertising. He was "discovered" in the comedy world by Tom Smothers who saw Bob on a local cable show.

His younger brother is actor and director Albert Brooks. Deadline first reported Bob's passing.