Celebrity Divorce

Scorpions drummer James Kottak claims his ex-wife is an alcoholic who isn't fit to raise their 15-year-old son ... but she says the rocker is lying in a pathetic effort to reduce his child support payment.

Kottak filed legal docs this month asking a judge to change a July 2011 ruling that gave his ex Athena Lee (Tommy Lee's little sis) primary custody of their teenage son AND ordered him to cough up $1,466 / month in child support and another $1,738 / month in spousal support.

In the docs, filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Kottak claims their son has been living with him 100% of the time since January 2012, when the teenager had a falling out with his mother. Kottack claims Athena has been in and out of rehab for alcohol addiction.

Kottak -- who was married to Athena from 1996 to 2010 -- says he deserves primary physical custody with Athena getting visitation rights. He also wants the court to reduce his child support payments.

The drummer also specifies that his income -- listed at $12,000 month -- isn't set in stone because his contract with the Scorpions has yet to be renewed.

Kottak claims his wife on the other hand makes plenty of money ($3,100 month) and has the potential to pull in $80k / year as a surgical nurse -- so he wants his spousal support cut down too.

But Athena says the rocker is spewing lies -- claiming she's been sober since January 13, 2012 and is allowing her son to live with Kottak so he can stay in his school district.

"He's trying everything he can to knock me down," Athena says ... adding, " It's only about the money to James."

"Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Lisa Vanderpump finds it difficult to believe Paul Nassif choked one of his children -- telling TMZ, Adrienne Maloof's estranged husband "always looked like an amazing father to me."

You'll recall, Adrienne has obtained a temporary restraining order against Paul on behalf of their children, after claiming he choked and spanked them. Adrienne was awarded temporary custody of the couple's kids the same day. (FYI -- Paul wasn't present at the hearing to defend himself because he wasn't told about it.)

But yesterday in Beverly Hills, Adrienne's co-star Lisa found it all hard to swallow -- insisting she always knew Paul to be a good dad.

For Paul's part, he tells TMZ, Adrienne's allegations are "utterly false" and he plans to vigorously defend himself in court.

Paul says, "It is becoming a bit of a circus isn't it? The phrase 'all is fair in love and war' must have been penned by a divorce attorney."

Still, he adds, "I'm going to stay utterly focused on [my children's] well-being and the knowledge they need equal time with both of their parents both of whom love them very much. I'm sure all will be fine and when all the emotion of the moment dies down, Adrienne and I will be terrific co-parents."

"Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Adrienne Maloof and her estranged husband Paul Nassif are scrapping more than just each other -- they're also chopping their multi-million-dollar Beverly Hills mansion ... listing the property for sale.

Adrienna and Paul listed the 20,000 sq. ft. home recently -- a French chateau-style estate featured on the reality show with 8 bedrooms and 11 baths.

Maloof and Nassif purchased the home in 2004 for $12.7 million. It's now listed for $26 million, more than double what they bought if for.

Sources close to Adrienne tell TMZ, she okay'd the listing because "she just needs to make a change."

People close to Paul say it was a joint decision to sell the house -- and has nothing to do with Adrienne obtaining temporary child custody.

Adrienne Maloof's estranged husband, Dr. Paul Nassif, has been ordered by the court to stay away from Adrienne and their three children ... TMZ has learned.

TMZ obtained a copy of the the temporary restraining order -- granted yesterday -- which requires Nassif to stay at least 100 yards away from Adrienne and their boys.

The order also states Nassif must stay away from Adrienne's home and the children's school.

Adrienne's TRO request was granted by the same judge who gave Adrienne temporary custody of their children yesterday.

As TMZ first reported ... Adrienne accused Paul of spanking and choking the children in her request for temporary custody.

A hearing is scheduled for October 9th to decide whether the TRO and custody orders will be made permanent.

Kelsey Grammer allegedly just stormed out of CNN's studios in NYC moments before his scheduled interview with Piers Morgan -- and according to Morgan, it was all because producers aired a pic of Kelsey's ex-wife at the start of the show.

Morgan took to Twitter to explain Kelsey's absence tonight, writing, "Kelsey Grammer was supposed to be on my show now but ran out of the building. Strange."

He continued, "Kelsey Grammer saw a photo of his ex wife Camille in the open to our show and legged it. Extraordinary. Never had this happen before."

"I had a very friendly chat with Kelsey backstage. He said he was really looking forward to the interview. Weird."

He added, "I like Kelsey Grammer personally, but this was a shockingly unprofessional thing to do. I wasn't even going to mention his ex-wife!"

Adrienne Maloof was just awarded temporary custody of her three boys after telling a judge her estranged husband, Paul Nassif, choked one of their kids last Thursday ... TMZ has learned.

Adrienne's lawyer went to court and filed a declaration she wrote, in which she claimed Paul picked their 3 boys up from school Thursday. During the ride, 2 of the boys were kicking each other, when Paul allegedly reached back and choked one of the boys around the Adam's apple.

According to a separate declaration, filed by Adrienne, one of the boys told a psychiatrist ... Paul smacked him on his "wet bare bottom" because he had peed on his sibling in the bath, and then sent him to the corner for a time-out.

The couple's chef also filed a declaration, claiming he witnessed Paul kicking the family dog when it peed on the floor. And a DEA agent who is friends with the couple filed yet another declaration claiming he witnessed Paul putting his hands around the neck of one of the children.

Neither Paul nor his lawyer were present during the hearing -- they were never told about the hearing -- although we know Paul denies ALL of the allegations.

Ben Vereen has filed for divorce from his wife of 36 years ... TMZ has learned.

The Tony-Award winning Broadway legend -- who also starred as Chicken George in "Roots" -- just filed the papers in L.A. County Superior Court ... hoping to end his union with longtime wife Nancy Bruner.

The two were married back in 1976 after meeting on the set of a play -- they have several children, but they are all adults ... so child support isn't an issue.

As for spousal support, Ben doesn't think he should have to pay that either.

In the docs, Vereen blames the split on irreconcilable differences ... and says they split back in March.

Chad Johnson says he's enrolled in anger management classes ... to learn how to suppress his rage so he doesn't have another violent altercation like the one with his ex-wife.

Johnson made the announcement during an interview with James Brown on "Inside the NFL" ... saying, " I'm trying to find out how can I channel my anger when I'm in situations to where I would pop off."

During the interview, which airs tonight on Showtime, Johnson says he takes full responsibility for the headbutting incident with Evelyn Lozada ... and says, "I think what I need to do is work on Chad."

Johnson has been through anger counseling before -- as we previously reported, Chad was ordered to complete a domestic violence program after battering a former GF back in 2000.

Chad also says he believes the Miami Dolphins cut him from the team solely based on the domestic incident and NOT because of his performance on the field.

"That was the reason ... there's no need to blow smoke up my ass."

We broke the story ... Johnson officially became a single man earlier today after a judge signed off on his divorce from Lozada ... a divorce he was trying like hell to prevent from happening.

Chad Johnson and Evelyn Lozada are officially divorced ... TMZ has learned.

A judge in Florida signed off on the divorce early this morning ... one month after Evelyn filed for divorce from the NFL star.

As we previously reported, Chad initially didn't want to sign off on the split ... and waited until last week before finally accepting reality and submitting divorce papers of his own.

But Evelyn claimed the marriage was irretrievably broken after he allegedly headbutted her in the face during an argument over a condom receipt she found in his car.

Chad has since had Evelyn's face tatted on his leg ... and insists he will eventually repair the relationship.

Sources close to Evelyn tell us it ain't gonna happen.

"A Different World" star Jasmine Guy says her ex-husband totally dropped the ball on paying his child support for the last two years to the tune of nearly $40,000, this according to court docs.

Guy filed legal docs in L.A. County Superior Court recently, claiming Terrence Mitchell Duckett -- who she divorced in 2008 -- was ordered by a judge to pay $1,469/month in child support for the couple's daughter.

In the docs, Guy says Duckett hasn't paid a dime since May 2010 and now owes her a whopping $39,663 in back support.

Guy filed the docs because she wants a judge to hold her ex in contempt of court so that she can collect on the debt by garnishing his wages, going after his assets, or even having him thrown in jail.

A hearing on the matter was scheduled for last month, but was cancelled because Jasmine was unable to serve her ex with the papers.

Sources close to Jasmine tell TMZ the actress is still attempting to serve the papers, so the hearing can be rescheduled.

Nas and Kelis insist they aren't getting back together, but they were out this weekend at the very romantic and luxurious Bacara Resort & Spa in Santa Barbara, CA with son Knight.

As TMZ first reported, Nas says he and his ex are becoming friends -- following a nuclear divorce -- for the sake of their 3-year-old son.

Our luxurious spies tell us .. Nas and Kelis were having lots of fun ... getting along great ... BUT nothing seemed romantic.

Heidi Klum and her bodyguard/boyfriend Martin Kirsten were spotted this morning leaving the Beverly Hills Hotel after having breakfast together.

Heidi told Katie Couric this week that the two are "seeing" each other -- but despite Seal's claims, the relationship began after she split from him.

On her last trip to NYC, Heidi used a different bodyguard, giving her man the day off.

Usher's ex-wife Tameka Raymond just lost ANOTHER round in her custody battle with the singer ... the judge shot down her request for a retrial ... but Tameka's not giving up.

As TMZ first reported, Tameka filed docs earlier this month demanding a second bite of the apple after Usher was awarded primary custody of the couple's two kids. Tameka claimed the judge is biased because she accepted campaign donations from Usher's lawyer.

But this week, the same judge rejected Tameka's motion -- claiming it's been public knowledge since 2008 that Usher's lawyer donated to her re-election campaign ... and if Tameka cared to look, she would have found out long before her custody trial.

As far as the judge is concerned ... Tameka's just a sore loser.

Chad Johnson has finally accepted the fact that his marriage to Evelyn Lozada is over ... and has filed divorce docs in which he admits the union is "irretrievably broken" ... TMZ has learned.

Johnson filed the papers yesterday in a Florida court ... in response to the docs Evelyn filed back on August 14. In his papers, Chad admits the two have a prenup that he believes should be enforced -- especially the part about who pays for the lawyers.

According to the docs, Johnson wants a judge to BLOCK Evelyn's request that Chad foot the bill for her legal fees ... citing a provision in the prenup in which the two sides agreed to pay their own way if they were to split up.

The divorce has not been finalized yet ... but at this point, it's only a matter of time ... and sources close to Evelyn tell us she's "ecstatic" and ready to move on.

Chad Johnson insists he's no wife beater ... and entered a "not guilty" plea to misdemeanor battery this morning for the alleged attack on his wife Evelyn Lozada last month.

TMZ broke the story, Chad was charged with domestic battery yesterday following his arrest in Florida on August 11th.

According to Chad's wife, the former NFL player headbutted her during a massive argument that erupted after Evelyn found a condom receipt in Chad's car. If convicted, Johnson faces up to a year in jail.

Evelyn has since filed for divorce.

Chad Johnson has officially been charged with misdemeanor battery after allegedly headbutting his wife Evelyn Lozada during a nuclear argument last month, this according to the State Attorney for Broward County, Florida.

If convicted, Chad faces up to a year in jail.

As we reported, Chad was arrested for domestic violence in Florida on August 11th after a fight over a condom receipt allegedly turned violent. Evelyn told police Chad headbutted her.

At the time of the fight, Evelyn and Chad had barely been married a month. Evelyn has since filed for divorce, claiming their marriage had become "irretrievably broken."

Chad is refusing to sign any divorce papers, insisting he's still in love with her.