Celebrity Death

Twin brothers who starred in TLC's "My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding" are dead after an apparent joint suicide.

The 32-year-old siblings, Bill and Joe Smith, were found hanging in a tree in Sevenoaks, England ... this according to law enforcement.

"Celebrity Big Brother" winner Paddy Doherty confirmed the news on Facebook, calling it a "terrible, terrible tragedy," adding, "I'm very sorry for their troubles from the bottom of my heart. May God look after them, may God have mercy on them, they are two angels, harmless, they were unbelievable."

Bill and Joe starred in the 3rd season of the hit show. When they started they were 24 years old and working as gardeners.

"My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding" followed the lives of and traditions of Irish traveler families for 3 seasons from 2011 to 2015.

Authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths, but cops seem confident they were suicides.

Detroit Lions star Marvin Jones broke some heartbreaking news this weekend -- his infant son, Marlo, has died ... a loss that has shaken the organization at large.

The wide receiver made the announcement Saturday, saying his boy -- the youngest of his 5 children who was born this summer -- had passed away. He didn't reveal a cause, but in an emotional post made clear the kid had left his mark on both him and the family.

Marvin took to Instagram and wrote of his son, "Yesterday the Lord called home a piece of my family’s heart, Marlo. It is hard to believe that our little angel, our fighter from day one, our son “Marlito” has unfortunately passed away and is no longer here with us."

He continued, "Marlo, the joy that you brought to us everyday, with that smile, and that energy was like heaven on earth. You will always be in our hearts. We will always remember you." Marvin added he and his wife, Jazmyn, hadn't gotten a chance to hear his first words yet -- which he notes would've been in Spanish -- among many other "firsts."

The NFL player finished by saying, "We know that everything that We do from here on out will be with you. Every step we take, you will be with us. Whenever we have a bad day, We will think of your smile. We miss you already buddy and will forever love you. Rest peacefully our sweet baby boy. You have gained your wings."

The Lions released a statement after hearing word that Marlo had died, saying Marvin and Jazmyn embody the meaning of family with the example they set in the Detroit community. They also asked for privacy on behalf of the Jones family.

Sad news for "Game of Thrones" fans ... the guy who stood in as the body double for Alfie Allen's Theon Greyjoy has died, and Alfie's now offering up his thoughts and prayers.

Andrew Dunbar passed away on Christmas Eve in Belfast, Ireland ... this according to his friends and an extras acting agency that had employed him. No cause of death was immediately revealed, but the news seemed to stun his contemporaries, including Alfie.

The English actor posted tributes of his 'GoT' stand-in, saying "RIP Andrew Dunbar," and then going on to share his full thoughts. Alfie wrote, "Andrew Dunbar was an actor who was also a stand in as Theon on GoT. Extremely shocked and saddened to hear of his passing. To lose a loved one so young, I can only imagine what his family are going through."

Ice Cube's gone back to the drawing board with the fourth installment of "Friday" ... and he's clearly pissed.

The N.W.A. rapper revealed there's been some major beef between him and the film's production studio New Line Cinema ... for dragging its feet on green-lighting "Last Friday." The rub and possible deal-breaker ... John Witherspoon -- who plays Mr. Jones, Ice Cube's father in the film -- has died.

So, when we got Cube Friday at LAX, we asked if he'd ever considered using CGI in the film -- since Carrie Fisher's fam was okay with a Princess Leia CGI in "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker" -- and he could not have been clearer.

"Last Friday" is the fourth and final installment of the 'Friday' franchise that kicked off in 1995. It's been about 18 years since the last 'Friday' film, and Cube says, "It's all on New Line, man." He's especially pissed cause, if New Line Cinema didn't take its sweet time, they easily would've been able to put Witherspoon in the flick.

Back in May, Cube revealed he wanted to release the film on April 26, 2020 ... but that's clearly not happening now ... if ever.

Don Imus -- the legendary yet controversial radio personality -- has died ... according to a family spokesperson.

Imus died Friday at a hospital in College Station, Texas, after being admitted on Christmas Eve. A cause of death is unknown at this time.

The cowboy hat-wearing shock jock's death comes less than 2 years after he retired. His final day on the "Imus in the Morning" radio program was March 29, 2018. Don made the announcement of his retirement via Twitter in January 2018, saying ... "Turn out the lights...the party's over."

Imus hosted his radio show for almost 50 years, and was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1989.

His radio career began in the late '60s, and he started his morning show in 1971 at WNBC in New York City. Over the years, he became popular for pushing boundaries on the air ... but was also known for making comments considered racist, misogynistic and xenophobic.

Because of that, Don faced many lawsuits and accusations of defamatory speech, and had a well-known rivalry with fellow "shock jock" Howard Stern.

In 2007, Imus made headlines for his offensive remarks about the Rutgers Women's Basketball team, who he referred to as "nappy-headed 'hos" and "jigaboos."

He was fired by CBS shortly afterward, but made a return to radio and TV later that year.

A DoorDash delivery driver was shot and killed in an early morning armed robbery at a Denny's ... and a manhunt is on for the suspects.

The 2 men entered the restaurant in Manassas, Virginia around 2:20 AM the day after Christmas while brandishing guns and were reportedly robbing the place when Yusuf Ozgur, a DoorDash employee, arrived to pick up an order.

Ozgur was tragically killed when he encountered the suspects as they were running out ... according to police.

Surveillance footage shows the men running into the Denny's with dark clothes, masks and gloves on before holding the place up. Prince William County police describe them as in their late teens to early 20s.

Lee Mendelson -- the man behind over 50 Charlie Brown TV specials -- died on Christmas Day after a long battle with cancer ... according to his family.

The esteemed "Peanuts" producer reportedly passed away at his home in Hillsborough, CA. His son, Jason, says ... "It wasn’t great for us, but to have him pass on Christmas really ties into his history and legacy."

Along with producing the holiday television classic, "A Charlie Brown Christmas" in 1965, Lee also wrote the lyrics to “Christmas Time Is Here” ... the song famously featured in the special. The special brought Mendelson the first of his 12 Emmy Awards.

Mendelson earned his 12th Emmy in 2015 for “It’s Your 50th Christmas, Charlie Brown.” He's also won 4 Peabody Awards and was nominated for an Oscar and 2 Grammys.

Lee's relationship with "Peanuts" creator Charles Schulz began in the '60s on the heels of Mendelson's acclaimed documentary about Willie Mays. Schultz saw it and agreed to work with Lee on another documentary ... but ended up producing the 'Charlie Brown Christmas' special instead.

The success of that led to 1966’s “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” and 1973’s “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving,” among many others.

Mendelson teamed with "Garfield" creator Jim Davis in the '80s to produce the first animated short featuring the grumpy cat ... and went on to help launch the "Garfield and Friends" series in the early '90s.

Lee produced several documentaries and network specials outside of children's programming, as well. He's survived by his wife, Ploenta, 4 children, a stepson and 8 grandchildren.

Mendelson was 86.

It's eerie for sure ... George Michael's sister died on Christmas Day ... exactly 3 years after the singer himself died.

Melanie Panayiotou was found dead in her London home by her sister, Yioda. The cause of death was not revealed, but cops say it's not being treated as suspicious. Police would not elaborate.

55-year-old Melanie was close to her famous brother, who died on Xmas Day 2016, at age 53. He was also found dead in his home. The cause of death was dilated cardiomyopathy, myocarditis and a fatty liver.

Vic Mensa says rappers are doing serious harm when their lyrics promote lean, Percocet and Xanax abuse -- 'cause it's killing kids, in general, and specifically ... Juice WRLD.

We got Vic out at Delilah in WeHo and wanted his take on Lil Pump dropping "Drug Addicts" from his setlist at L.A.'s Rolling Loud Festival ... and instead opting for a tribute with Juice's hit single, "Lucid Dreams."

Vic gave a nod to Pump for the gesture, but he added hip-hop needs to take responsibility for Juice WRLD's death. He pulls no punches, saying rap lyrics glorifying drugs sends a dangerous message to fans ... especially young ones.

As we reported ... Juice WRLD died after allegedly swallowing a bunch of pills, and suffering a fatal seizure. Vic says Juice dying at 21 has impacted him to the point he's gonna rework his lyrics.

A man who accused Kevin Spacey of sexually assaulting him -- once part of the Royal Family of Norway -- has committed suicide.

Ari Behn, an author who was married to Princess Martha Louise of Norway for 14 years, took his life on Christmas Day. The couple divorced in 2016.

Behn had been battling alcoholism for years. In 2009, he said he feared he wouldn't be able to see his 3 kids grow up because of his struggle with alcoholism.

Behn's manager said, "We are grateful that we got to know him. We grieve that our grandchildren have now lost their beloved father -- and have deep compassion for his parents, siblings, who have now lost their beloved son and brother."

He accused Spacey of groping him at a 2007 concert celebrating the Nobel Peace Prize. He had said, "We had a great talk, he sat right beside me. After 5 minutes, he said, 'Hey, let's go out and have a cigarette.' Then he put his hand under the table and grabs me by the balls." He says he told Spacey, "Er, maybe later."

Spacey never responded to the allegation.

Dog The Bounty Hunter is honoring his late wife's memory this Christmas ... with mementos from their holidays of yore.

Our Dog sources tell TMZ ... he used all of Beth's old Christmas decorations to get his home in the holiday spirit, and just couldn't bear to put up any new decor after her passing.

As you can see, Dog's got a huge Christmas tree in his living room ... and we're told it's full of Beth's favorite ornaments.

He'll be spending Christmas at his home in Colorado, where he'll be surrounded by close friends and family, including his son, Garry, and daughter, Bonnie Jo.

As you can imagine, it will be an emotional time for the Chapmans -- it's their first Xmas without Beth.

The holiday spread will have some of Beth's touches too ... we're told the family will be chowing down on Beth's old recipes for their Christmas dinner, as she used to cook for everyone.

On the menu -- deviled eggs with jalapenos, sweet potatoes with tons of brown sugar and corn syrup and homemade apple cider to wash it all down.

Get those tissues out.

The 49ers' victory this weekend was secured with heavy hearts after the team learned C.J. Beathard's brother had been killed -- something their head coach addressed head-on with grace after heading back to the locker room.

Kyle Shanahan talked to his guys after beating the Rams in the final seconds of Saturday's game, and he didn't shy away from the obvious ... their backup QB just learned of a major tragedy within his family hours before kickoff.

His younger bro, Clayton Beathard, had been stabbed to death in a bar fight out in Nashville earlier that morning.

Cops are reportedly saying the fight erupted after an "argument over a woman," which then ended up outside where Clayton and another man were fatally attacked. He was only 22.

Shanahan said he was with C.J. shortly after hearing the horrific news, and then shared what the quarterback told him as he was heading out the door. Watch ... it's gut-wrenching.

In video of the heart-to-heart moment, you can clearly see the 49ers players have tears in their eyes. Things end on an uplifting note though, as Shanahan thanks the team for playing tough in the wake of such news and pulling out a W for one of their own.

Robert Glenn "Junior" Johnson -- one of NASCAR's first superstars -- has died, the racing organization announced on Friday. He was 88.

Johnson won the Daytona 500 in 1960 ... and had 50 career wins and 148 top-10 finishes. He was named one of NASCAR's 50 greatest drivers in 1998.

"From his early days running moonshine through the end of his life, Junior wholly embodied the NASCAR spirit," Chairman and CEO Jim France said in a statement.

"He was an inaugural NASCAR Hall of Famer, a nod to an extraordinary career as both a driver and team owner."

"Between his on-track accomplishments and his introduction of Winston to the sport, few have contributed to the success of NASCAR as Junior has."

Johnson was a successful team owner ... and his drivers accounted for 6 Winston Cup Championships and 139 race wins.

"The entire NASCAR family is saddened by the loss of a true giant of our sport, and we offer our deepest condolences to Junior’s family and friends during this difficult time.”

The "Wilkes County Wildman" retired from the sport in 1966 ... and was the most successful driver to never win a championship.

Model Mama Cax has died at the age of 30 after surviving cancer and a brief stay in the hospital.

A rep for Cax -- born Cacsmy Brutus -- posted the sad news on her Instagram Friday, saying, "It is with deep regret and immense sadness that we announce the passing of Cacsmy Brutus (Mama Cax). Mama Cax spent the past week in the hospital, and unfortunately, on Monday, December 16, 2019, she left this world."

They continue, "To say Cax was a fighter would be an understatement. As a cancer survivor, she had grown accustomed to taking on life's several challenges head on and successfully. It is with that same grit (fervor) that she fought her last days on Earth."

Shahdon Winchester -- international soccer star from Trinidad and Tobago -- died on Thursday at the age of 27 ... after the car he was riding in crashed and caught fire.

Winchester -- a soccer vet who made his international debut in 2010 (he has 23 international caps) -- died alongside a highway in Trinidad on Thursday morning.

The soccer star was reportedly riding with his girlfriend and 2 other men when the car crashed and became engulfed in flames ... killing all 4 passengers.

Firefighters responded to the scene ... but none of the passengers could be saved.

Legendary high school football coach Herman Boone -- portrayed by Denzel Washington in the movie "Remember the Titans" -- has died at age 84, his school announced Wednesday.

Boone was the head coach at T.C. Williams High School in Virginia where he led a group of integrated players to a 13-0 record and a state championship in 1971 ... as well as national championship runner-up honors.

"It is with great sadness that we share the sad news of the passing of former Head Football Coach Herman Boone who lead the Titans to the State Championship in 1971," the school said on Wednesday.

The accomplishment was turned into a Disney flick in 2000 and starred Washington as the Titans head coach.

Washington received a Black Reel Award for Best Actor in 2001 for the role ... as well as Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture at the NAACP Image Awards.

Boone's team gained national attention in 1971 ... when President Nixon dubbed the Titans "the team saved the city of Alexandria."

Boone continued to coach the Titans until he was let go in 1979.