Celebrity Death

John Witherspoon was a magnetic figure ... so it's no surprise most of Hollywood showed up to bid him one last goodbye.

The late comedian's open-casket celebration of life went down Tuesday in L.A. in front of a huge gathering of friends, family and celebs alike. David Letterman commenced the celebration. He and John went way back ... they honed their craft together at The Comedy Store in Hollywood alongside Richard Pryor, Robin Williams and Jay Leno.

Ice Cube was one of several speakers and he paid a touching tribute ... saying he enjoyed the hell outta John for as long as he could remember.

Some other celebrity guest speakers included Cedric the Entertainer, George Wallace, Angela Gibbs and Bill Bellamy. Regina King couldn't make it but she did send along a video message that was played on the big screen.

Guests at the celebration of life received a colorful program adorned with John's infectious smile. The back-page included one of his most famous lines from "Boomerang" ... "BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!"

As we reported ... John died suddenly last week, at the age of 77, after he went into cardiac arrest at his home in Sherman Oaks, CA.

His career -- which started in stand-up comedy -- spanned more than 5 decades ... and included his unforgettable roles as Ice Cube's father in the "Friday" movies, Granddad on "The Boondocks" and Pops on "The Wayans Bros."

Jessi Combs -- the "Fastest Woman on Four Wheels" -- crashed her jet-car because her front wheel gave out.

According to the Harney County Sheriff's Office ... the front wheel of Jessi's jet-powered car suffered a mechanical failure before her fatal crash, and the front wheel assembly most likely collapsed as a result of hitting an object during her attempt at breaking her own land-speed record.

The Sheriff released the findings Monday after completing an investigation into the crash ... and they say the front wheel failed when Jessi's jet-car reached around 550 miles per hour.

Jessi's cause of death was also determined to be blunt force trauma to the head, which the Sheriff says occurred before her race vehicle was engulfed in flames following the crash.

As we reported ... Jessi's jet-powered car crashed and killed her in August in the Alvord Desert in Oregon. Photos of the wreckage showed her 56-foot-long jet-car -- the North American Eagle -- completely destroyed, and the footage we obtained shows her traveling at incredible speeds before the crash.

John Witherspoon would've loved this ...

New England Patriots star Mohamed Sanu showed love to the late "Friday" star on Sunday -- with custom cleats and a TD celebration inspired by "Pops."

As we previously reported, Witherspoon passed away on Oct. 29 at his home in L.A. He was 77.

Clearly, he meant a lot to Sanu who reached out to famed cleat artist Dez Customs and asked for something special to honor the legendary actor.

Check out the final product -- it's an image of Witherspoon from his 2008 comedy special 'You Got To Coordinate' with the title written across in the inside of the shoe.

"RIP to a Legend," Sanu posted on social media ... "You were great in everything you starred in. #bangbangbangbang #Yitty."

The cleats definitely gave Sanu a boost -- he WENT OFF on Sunday, hauling in 10 catches for 89 yards and a TD.

In fact, when Sanu scored ... he busted out John's "Don't tell noooobody" moves to celebrate. Cool little tribute to the legend.

The Pats ultimately lost to the Baltimore Ravens, but ya gotta think Witherspoon was smiling when he saw this.

Walter Mercado -- a Spanish TV icon who served as an eccentric astrologist with his own syndicated segments -- has died.

Mercado passed away late Saturday at a hospital in San Juan, Puerto Rico due to kidney failure, according to the facility's spokesperson, Sofia Luquis, who told AP. It's unclear how long he'd been hospitalized there and what exact ailment he'd been battling.

Nonetheless, a major loss in the Spanish community -- as Mercado was a staple in many Latino homes through the '80s, '90s and onward. He got his start on TV in his native land of Puerto Rico, establishing himself with daily horoscopes, advice and predictions.

Eventually, he got his own show on Univision, where he had a home for years before parting ways in 2010 and moving on to other Spanish networks. He was known for his lavish outfits, which often included robes, capes, jewelry, makeup and other extravagant accessories.

While he never came out and announced his sexual preferences, Mercado was a bit of a hero in the LGBTQ community ... with many viewing him as a trend-setter on Spanish TV, which had often leaned more conservative. He had no children,  and no known partners.

In 2012, Mercado was rushed to a Cleveland area hospital for cardiac problems -- after which, he claimed he'd seen death ...  wanting to devote himself to philanthropic causes.

Mercado had a known catchphrase he'd always end his horoscope segments with. It went like ... "Que reciban de mi siempre pas, mucha pas. Pero sobre todo, mucho, mucho, mucho amor." It translates to, "May you always receive peace from me, but above all else ... lots and lots of love."

Brian Tarantina has died ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us that the veteran actor was found dead early Saturday morning in his Manhattan apartment from what we're told appeared to be a fatal drug overdose to the officers and first-responders who came out.

Our sources say Brian's niece went to check in on him at his Hell's Kitchen residence at around 12:30 AM, and discovered her uncle unresponsive on the couch. We're told the niece told cops she'd last talked to him late Tuesday night. Upon finding him, she called 911, and we're told when officers and paramedics arrived ... they found a white powdery substance near his body, believed to be alleged narcotics. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

It's unclear at this point what the white substance might've been. We're told the NYC medical examiner's office will conduct an autopsy to determine an official cause of death.

Brian has been working in the biz for a long time, often playing supporting characters through the '80s and '90s, and even into the 2000s and onward. He's perhaps best known for tough guy roles in flicks like "Jacob's Ladder," "Uncle Buck," "The Jerky Boys," "Summer of Sam," "Knight and Day," "Carlito's Way," "Donnie Brasco," "City By the Sea" and others.

He's got a much more extensive resume than that though. The guy's been in tons of stuff over the years ... shows like "Law & Order," "Miami Vice," "Spin City," "Oz," "NYPD Blue," "ER," "The Sopranos," "Gilmore Girls," "Heroes," "The Black Donnellys," "The Blacklist," "Madame Secretary," "Blue Bloods" and most recently in "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" playing Jackie.

He was 60 years old.

RIP

Rudy Boesch, who was on the debut season of 'Survivor' has died ... TMZ has learned.

Rudy was the retired Navy SEAL who had an alliance with the ultimate winner, Richard Hatch. A member of Rudy's family tells us he died Friday night of complications from Alzheimer's Disease.

During his time on the show, Rudy was 72 ... the oldest contestant by far.

The show was called "Survivor: Borneo" and was a ratings smash hit and was the trigger for a number of similar shows, including "The Amazing Race." 'Survivor' is now in season 38.

As for Rudy ... he joined the Navy in 1945 and quickly volunteered for "secret hazardous duty." In 1962 Rudy became one of the first 50 officers of the original SEAL Team Two.

Rudy served in Vietnam and earned the Bronze Star Medal for heroic action. He retired from the military in 1990 ... 10 years before making his debut on 'Survivor.'

After the debut season of 'Survivor,' Rudy made an encore on "Survivor: All-Stars" in 2004.

Rudy's wife, Marge, passed away in 2008. He is survived by 3 kids.

Bridget Marquardt and Holly Madison were able to reach Hugh Hefner from the great beyond ... and Bridget says Holly's finally made peace with her famous ex.

Bridget came on "TMZ Live" this Halloween, breaking down her séance at Holly's house -- which she claims is haunted -- and telling us about the girls' paranormal chat with the late Playboy founder.

As we first told you ... the former 'Girls Next Door' stars planned to contact Hef the night before Halloween with the help of "Ghost Adventures" star and Hollywood psychic medium Patti Negri.

The girls accomplished their metaphysical mission, contacting Hef and several other spirits from beyond the grave.

Holly and Hugh had a rocky history before his death -- she claimed he abused her emotionally and verbally while she was in the Playboy Mansion -- but Bridget says Holly was totally okay with getting in touch with Hef's spirit.

It's kinda spooky ... Bridget says during the séance, Holly learned Hef periodically checks in on her from the spirit world, but Holly's happy to know he still cares about her.

Jeffrey Epstein's family is still waiting to hear about DNA evidence to prove he wasn't murdered -- evidence they've been demanding for more than 2 months, according to the family's forensic expert.

Dr. Michael Baden, a pioneer in forensics, says the family hired him to observe the autopsy that was conducted on August 11 ... the day after Epstein was found dead in his prison cell. Dr. Baden was on FOX News Wednesday, and he confirmed something TMZ first reported more than 2 months ago.

Baden says fractures in Epstein's neck are more consistent with homicide than suicide by hanging. Specifically, he says the hyoid bone (in the Adam's apple area) and 2 bones next to his thyroid cartilage were broken ... fractures common in strangulation. As we told you, those breaks are extremely rare in hangings.

Beyond the bones, Baden says the family had asked for DNA testing results from Epstein's fingernails -- which could show if he fought back against someone choking him to death -- and from the sheets he allegedly used to hang himself. Baden says the family wants to know if someone else tied the sheets together.

Baden says, immediately after the autopsy, the Medical Examiner said more information was needed to determine the cause of death -- presumably including that DNA testing.

He says the family doesn't understand why the ME suddenly announced, just 4 days later, it was suicide by hanging -- especially because the family never got the requested DNA results.

John Witherspoon, who made his mark in comedy and in films like "Friday" has died.

Witherspoon's family announced he died suddenly Tuesday at his home in Sherman Oaks, California. The statement reads, "It is with deep sadness we have to tweet this, but our husband & father John Witherspoon has passed away."

The statement continues, "He was a Legend in the entertainment industry, and a father figure to all who watched him over the years. We love you 'POPS' always & forever."

Witherspoon's career -- which started in stand-up comedy -- spanned for more than 5 decades, with his most notable role being Willie Jones, father of Ice Cube's character, Craig ... in all of the "Friday" movies.

John did voice work as Gramps on the animated series "The Boondocks," which is being revived for HBO. He also played Pops on "The Wayans Bros." and made appearances on "The Tracy Morgan Show" and "Black Jesus."

We last spoke to Witherspoon earlier this month at LAX where he told us he was excited about Eddie Murphy getting back into comedy and hoped to see him doing stand-up soon.

He is survived by his wife, Angela, and sons JD and Alexander.

John was 77.

RIP

The son of "Tarzan" star Ron Ely said he had a gun and pretended to draw the weapon before 4 deputies fired a total of 24 rounds, ultimately killing the actor's son ... this according to law enforcement.

According to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office ... Ron's 30-year-old son, Cameron Ely, was found outside the couple's Hope Ranch property where he fatally stabbed his mother, Valerie Lundeen Ely. Cops say Cameron then approached deputies and motioned with his hands as if he were drawing a weapon.

Cops later concluded Cameron was not actually armed at all, and only faked it. Cops aren't saying how many rounds actually hit Cameron. No deputies were injured

The 4 deputies involved in the shooting have 40 years total on the force. As we reported ... cops rushed to Ron's home after Cameron called 911 sometime after killing his mother. The operator had said Cameron was out of breath and crying.

Ron played "Tarzan" on the 1960s TV series, and had several other appearances on other hit shows. He married Valerie (a former Miss Florida) in 1984. They had 3 children together.

John Singleton's estate and the fortune it claims is aboutta get little more flush -- because the studio that distributed one of his biggest films is ponying up some belated cash.

According to court docs, obtained by TMZ, Sony Pictures has agreed to fork over a little more than half a mil to the late director's film company, New Deal Productions. The money -- $515,472 -- is tied to John's 2001 flick, "Baby Boy." Unleash the behind-the-door Rodney memes!!!

In case you haven't seen it, 'BB' stars Tyrese Gibson, Taraji P. Henson, Ving Rhames ... and, of course, Snoop Dogg playing a gangster who's out to square things with Tyrese's character, Jody, who's got a kid with Taraji's character, but still lives at home with his mom.

It made $29.3 million in the U.S. box office, with a budget of around $16 mil. Sony and its subsidiary, TriStar Pictures, were the primary distributors.

Based on the docs, it appears John had requested a formal audit for money the film made a while back, and now in wake of his death ... Sony is settling up with this dough. The company says the settlement was agreed to prior to John's death in April.

Robert Evans -- one of the most successful producers in Hollywood history -- is dead. Evans, who produced such iconic films as "The Godfather," "Chinatown" and "Urban Cowboy," died Saturday.

His credits are crazy ... "Rosemary's Baby," "Romeo and Juliet," "Goodbye Columbus" and "Love Story." These movies were shot under his watch as the head of Paramount productions.

Evans actually had issues with "The Godfather" and some say it was produced over his objections.

Evans started out as an actor, appearing as a bullfighter in Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises." He later wrote his memoir, "The Kid Stays in the Picture," which later became a documentary film.

One of the biggest challenges for Evans was filming "The Cotton Club," which was considered a nightmare, taking several years to shoot and going way over budget before coming out in 1984 and bombing big.

His last big hit was Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey's romantic comedy, "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" in 2003.

Evans was super close to Jack Nicholson, whom he often partied with in Hollywood and at his home.

His only Oscar nom was "Chinatown" back in 1975.

He suffered a stroke in 1998 that left him partially paralyzed and he recovered. It was the first of 3 strokes that same year, but he was able to bounce back.

Evans was married and divorced 7 times, including to Ali MacGraw, with whom he had a son, Josh. One of his marriages lasted a grand total of 10 days.

Former congressman Rep. John Conyers has died.

Conyers passed away in his sleep Sunday, per his son, John Conyers III. A longtime representative of Detroit and the longest-serving member of the House prior to stepping down in 2017, Conyers was instrumental in establishing the Congressional Black Caucus.

He was elected into office in the '60s and continued to serve in his capacity for decades to come ... working tirelessly toward civil rights for African-Americans and minorities along the way, helping to boost voter registration in the community while also securing legal representation for countless people who were wrongly arrested.

He co-sponsored the original Voting Rights Act of 1965, and shortly after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968 ... Conyers introduced a bill that would honor Dr. King with a federal holiday, which President Reagan signed into law years later.

He earned a seat on the House Judiciary Committee in 1965, and eventually went on to chair the committee in 2007 -- becoming the first black man in American history to do it. Conyers was also famously on President Nixon's "enemies" list during the Watergate scandal.

Rep. Conyers became embroiled in a scandal himself in 2017 after allegations of sexual misconduct surfaced in the wake of #MeToo. He denied the accusations but resigned nonetheless. His son, Conyers III, had shown interest in running for his open seat, but Rep. Rashida Tlaib ultimately ran and ended up winning it in the 2018 election.

Conyers' death comes a little more than a week after his congressional colleague and fellow civil rights activist, Rep. Elijah Cummings, passed away himself.

Rep. Elijah Cummings had a spectacular send-off after a life well-lived, with former Presidents and other dignitaries singing his praises at his funeral.

Among the mourners ... Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Joe Biden, Senator Kamala Harris and many others filled all the seats at the New Psalmist Baptist Church in Baltimore. Interesting and predictable ... Trump was a no-show, although we're guessing he wasn't invited.

The theme from all of the speakers -- Rep. Cummings was a powerful, moral voice in Congress and was a pillar of integrity. As you know, he has famously squared off with President Trump, sometimes expressing moral outrage over the conduct of The White House.

Cummings had been hospitalized and underwent some sort of medical treatment. His office said the Congressman passed due to "complications concerning longstanding health challenges."

As for his health issues, Cummings had been dealing with ill health for years, which included heart surgery.

Cummings was 68. RIP.

Nipsey Hussle's clothing brand is working with fashion designer Jerry Lorenzo on a limited edition capsule collection ... and sales proceeds are going straight to the trust fund for the late rapper's children.

The Marathon Clothing announced Thursday it's working with Jerry's Fear of God clothing company on a special capsule dubbed "08 Crenshaw" ... and the profits are ultimately benefiting Nip's kids, Emani and Kross Asghedom.

The collection, which drops this Friday at Fear of God's storefront in Los Angeles, includes a crewneck sweaters, pullover hoodies, sweatpants and sweatshorts ... available in both royal blue and gray.

We broke the story ... Nipsey made sure his children would be financially stable before he died, setting up a trust fund for Emani and Kross.

As you know ... The Marathon Clothing is a huge part of Nipsey's legacy. He opened the store in Crenshaw, giving jobs to tons of people in his neighborhood.

A famous gold medal-winning Paralympic athlete died Tuesday after taking her own life through euthanasia in Belgium, officials confirm.

40-year-old Marieke Vervoort battled degenerative spinal disease -- yet was able to compete in wheelchair racing at the highest levels.

She won two medals at the 2016 Paralympic games in Brazil and famously clinched a GOLD medal during the 2012 Paralympics in London.

But, when she wasn't competing, Vervoort lived with extreme physical pain which sometimes limited her to only sleeping for 10 minutes a night.

Vervoort also suffered epileptic seizures -- and in one case in 2014, a seizure caused her to spill boiling water on her legs while cooking pasta. She suffered major injuries and was hospitalized for several months as a result.

Vervoort had considered euthanasia for years and began planning for the end of her life back in 2016.

In fact, Vervoort spent her last night surrounded by friends and family, sipping on sparkling wine ... just as she planned.

After her passing, the Belgian royal family issued a statement praising their Paralympic hero -- saying, "Marieke 'Wielemie' Vervoort was an athlete tough as nails and a great lady. Her death touches us deeply."