Drugs & Alcohol

Cory Monteith -- who famously played Finn Hudson on the TV show "Glee" -- died early Saturday morning in Vancouver ... he was 31 years old.

According to police in Vancouver the actor was found dead in his hotel room on the 21st floor of the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel around noon ... when staffers went to check on him after the actor missed his check-out time.

In a press conference, officials said the actor was "clearly deceased" -- and had been so for several hours -- when police arrived on the scene.

Cops say Cory checked-in to the Fairmont on July 6th and was scheduled to leave July 13th. It is unclear why he was in Vancouver, but cops did mention he's from Canada and visits often.

The night before his death, Cory was seen in his room hanging with friends, before hitting the town ... but came back early Saturday morning ... alone.

Cops say "it was not immediately apparent" what caused his death, but no foul play is suspected. An autopsy is scheduled for Monday.

A rep for the actor says they are "in shock and mourning this tragic loss."

As TMZ previously reported, Monteith voluntarily checked himself into a treatment center back in April, admitting he had substance abuse issues. It was his second time in treatment.

Prior to that, Cory had been open about his problems with drugs. Back in 2011 he told Parade Magazine, his family and friends were so afraid he "could die" they staged an intervention. He was 19 at the time.

He explained that his drug use consisted of "Anything and everything, as much as possible." Adding, "I had a serious problem."

Melissa Etheridge's ex GF doesn't want their kids going on tour, living the rock 'n roll lifestyle -- specifically exposure to topless groupies and marijuana ... according to court documents.

Tammy Lynn Michaels went to court today in L.A. requesting an emergency hearing regarding the care of their 6-year-old twins -- because Melissa wants to take them with her on tour starting this month.

According to court docs ... Tammy is worried the kids haven't been vaccinated against Diphtheria, Tetanus, Measles, Mumps, Chicken Pox ... and a slew of other nasty stuff.

In the papers, Melissa claims she and Tammy agreed, when they were together, the kids would not get vaccinations -- and Tammy only changed her mind after they broke up in 2010.

Besides the medical issues ... Tammy also has beef with the kids being exposed to Melissa's rowdy fans and their ya-bos. In the docs, she claims "many female fans remove their shirts and bras and throw them on stage" ... which, we're guessing, she feels is inappropriate.

Further, Tammy is concerned about other people watching the kids while Melissa performs because "there is use of marijuana on the tour bus and in the dressing rooms."

Justin Bieber refuses to throw Lil Za and Lil Twist out on the street ... even after all of the trouble they've caused ... because he considers them "true friends" ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Bieber tell TMZ ... members of Justin's camp have been pleading with him to boot the Lils out of his Calabasas home and forbid them from driving his fleet of fancy cars after a string of embarrassing incidents including Twist's DUI arrest in JB's car.

We're told Bieber's camp has been very concerned about the way he acts when he's with the Lil crew -- and have been vocal that the guys are a bad influence.

Why? Weed ... sizzurp ... neighborhood wars ... pissing in public ... anti-Clintonism ... and of course, Twist's DUI arrest. The Lils had a role in all of that stuff ... and people close to Beiber want it to stop.

But despite the warnings, Justin is pushing back HARD ... claiming he would never turn his back on his boys, because that's not what friends do.

Plus, one source says Justin's been surrounded by adults for most of his life -- and now that he finally has a group of close friends that are his age, the last thing he wants to do is push them away.

Bottom line -- get used to Za and Twist ... they're not going anywhere.

Michael Jackson's buttocks were so scarred and infected from long-term drug injections ... the singer's thickened skin nearly broke his doctor's syringe -- this according to the doctor's testimony.

Dr. Stuart Finkelstein -- who cared for MJ back in 1993 during his "Dangerous" tour -- sat for a deposition earlier this year in Katherine Jackson's wrongful death lawsuit against AEG, describing the signs of MJ's drug addiction, and the testimony was just shown to the jury this week in court.

We got video of the depo and the details are crazy -- Finkelstein described one incident, saying, "I attempted to give [Michael] a shot of Demerol [a painkiller] but his buttocks were so scarred up and abscessed that the needle almost bent."

Finkelstein said the scarring resulted from "significant, extensive" shots of drugs over time.

Lil Twist was driving Justin Bieber's car while under the influence of marijuana ... and he even had a LIT BLUNT in the car at the time of his DUI arrest, law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

We broke the story ... 20-year-old Twist was busted in Calabasas around 3:30 AM Thursday morning on his way to Bieber's house.

Twist was hauled to a nearby station, where he was booked ... and was later released after roughly 8 hours in custody.

Charlie Sheen is using his old "Two and a Half Men" co-star Jon Cryer to try to convince the courts that Brooke Mueller's child support payment should be reduced from $55,000/month to ZERO ... TMZ has learned.

As TMZ first reported ... Charlie filed documents requesting the massive change in child support because Brooke currently doesn't have custody of their boys, Bob and Max ... while she's in and out of rehab.

In the docs, Charlie references Cryer's divorce -- where his ex-wife was arrested in 2009 for alleged child abuse and temporarily lost custody of their son.

Charlie says Cryer requested his support payments "be reduced from $10,000 per month to zero" -- and the court did lower the amount of support ... thereby setting a precedent, Charlie feels, for his current situation with Brooke.

The docs also list some astronomical financial details, such as the fact Charlie earns more than $740,000 per month (before taxes) -- and has more than $90,000/month in expenses on all his homes.

By the way, that $55k isn't all Brooke gets each month -- according to Charlie he also foots the bill for ALL the kids' expenses ... including therapy, medical, schooling, and more -- for a grand total of $30,000/month.

It's clear Charlie's point to the court is -- Brooke doesn't need the the $55k anyway.

2:23 PM PT -- Management at Bodi nightclub issued a statement to TMZ ... saying, "On Tuesday night, Justin Bieber made a brief appearance at Bodi to support his close friend, DJ Tay James, who was performing at Bodi that evening."

Bodi continues, "Justin was not served any alcoholic beverages while at Bodi" ... adding, "Neither Justin nor anyone affiliated with Bodi broke any laws."

"We believe this matter amounts to a simple misunderstanding with local police officers. We have requested a meeting with Chicago's local liquor control commissioner and look forward to resolving the situation quickly."

Justin Bieber was kicked out of a Chicago nightclub this week ... when cops determined the 19-year-old pop star was being illegally served alcohol inside the establishment ... TMZ has learned.

It all went down Tuesday night at Bodi nightclub in Chi-town. We've learned ... cops entered the joint after being tipped off that Bieber and his crew were inside the 21+ establishment -- and allegedly boozing.

We've learned ... officials questioned nightclub employees and determined Bieber was, in fact, served alcohol in the club.

Bieber was immediately kicked out of the place and cops delivered a citation to the club honchos for: "Serve/allow person under 21 on premises w/o parent/guardian."

The citation specifically refers to Justin Bieber and his "entourage."

A rep for the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection tells TMZ, "The ticket was issued by the police to Bodi Nightclub for admitting and knowingly having underage persons in the establishment."

The rep adds, "Typically the fine for a ticket like this would be $1,000.00, but the fine is not determined until the case is heard by a hearing officer and if the establishment is found liable for the violation."

10:15 AM PT Sources tell us Twist allegedly had a lit blunt in the car when officers pulled him over ... as well as some more marijuana.

Lil Twist -- Justin Bieber's lackey -- was ARRESTED for DUI in Calabasas, CA early this morning ... while behind the wheel of Justin's famous chromed- out Fisker Karma ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... 20-year-old Twist -- real name Christopher Lynn Moore -- was pulled over for speeding around 3:30 AM on Parkway Calabasas, while en route to Bieber's mansion.

When officers approached the car, they believe Twist appeared to be under the influence of a substance ... but we're told he DID NOT appear to be drunk.

Twist was arrested and hauled to a nearby station where he was booked for DUI.

Justin Bieber's single days are officially over ... again ... for now ... 'cause he's back on with Selena Gomez -- but TMZ has learned there's one major catch -- he's gotta stop acting like a d-bag.

According to sources, Selena had firmly resisted reuniting with Justin after their most recent breakup because he and his friends have been acting like raging self-entitled jackasses the last few months -- smoking pot, speeding around in expensive cars, and pissing in mop buckets.

But Justin -- being the Casanova that he is -- was able to change her mind ... and on July 4th, we're told he won her back by promising to change his douche ways. Apparently, Selena bought it.

We're told JB and his "Wild Kidz" goons have taken notice of the public backlash against their ridiculous behavior -- hard not to -- and they all decided to clean up their acts.

Sounds like BS -- considering Bieber's abysmal track record for making phony apologies and continuing to act like an oblivious self-important douche-baby -- but our sources say Selena has always been an extremely positive influence on him ... and if anyone can change him, it's her.

Bottom line, it seems like no one else can fix Justin, so why not give Selena a shot? It might just be crazy enough to work.

Former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani doesn't give two craps about steroids allegations ... telling TMZ, Yankees fans should STOP dumping on Alex Rodriguez because he's a baseball legend ... and a good person, too.

Yankees fans have been crushing A-Rod for years -- some say he's overpaid, some say he's overrated, some just like to give him grief -- but now that the famous third baseman is smack in the crosshairs of ANOTHER steroid investigation, the opprobrium has reached new levels.

But Giuliani tells us, it has to stop now -- "I was one of the first to say that Yankee fans should not boo A-Rod. He's on our team. You gotta root for him. I think he's one of the greatest players ever."

For the record, A-Rod admitted to using banned substances from 2001 to 2003 ... but he was never punished by MLB.

Still, Rudy's got his back: "I happen to know him personally," Giuliani tells TMZ ... "He's a really good man."

You ever hit the bars so hard, you can't walk straight, you show everyone your ass, and your boobs fall out of your dress?

Yeah ... that happened to Brandi Glanville last night.

The "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star was stumbling around West Hollywood after what appeared to be a high-end bar crawl that started at The Abbey ... moved to Dan Tana's ... and ended at the London Hotel.

Good news -- it appears she took cabs everywhere.

Amanda Bynes rolled into a New York courtroom today dressed more for a rave than a court hearing -- sporting an aqua-colored wig, sweatpants, a tank top ... and sneakers!

... and no one was surprised.

Bynes was in court to fight allegations she threw a glass bong out of her NY apartment window back in May.

According to police, Amanda threw the bong out of her window before they arrested her, but she has denied the accusation ... in fact, she says the arresting officer sexually assaulted her by slapping her vagina.

She also said cops entered her apartment illegally.

WARNING: Never pass out drunk at a Paris Hilton party ... because her immature friends will dress you up in embarrassing clothes and then take photos of you.

The above pic was snapped at Paris' 4th of July bash in Malibu ... and as you can see, some poor schmuck obviously had a little too much to drink and fell asleep on a beach chair.

Thankfully, Paris and her friends let him snooze peacefully until he woke up. Just kidding, they dressed him up in a bikini top and gave him a purse and sunglasses. Then took photos.

As far as we know, no markers were involved ... those are this guy's actual tattoos ... but still, HILARIOUS.

Except not really.

The whistleblower who claims to have proof Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun and other baseball players took steroids ... has been threatened and hounded so much ... he's being forced into hiding, TMZ has learned.

According to sources connected to Major League Baseball's steroid investigation ... Porter Fischer has been under constant pressure for more than six months from private investigators -- hired by players, he believes -- attempting to get their hands on his records from the now infamous Biogenesis clinic in Miami.

We're also told Fischer's received death threats.

As we previously reported the ex-Biogenesis employee has documents which allegedly nail several players for purchasing and using performance enhancing drugs from the clinic within the last year.

He's currently negotiating a deal to turn over the docs to MLB officials.

Although Fischer stands to make a fortune -- possibly seven figures -- we're told he plans to use the money to disappear, and to protect his loved ones ... sort of like his own witness protection program.

Re-address those get well cards ...Tan Mom has been released from the hospital following yesterday's health scare and she's now safe and sound back in rehab.

As TMZ first reported, 45-year-old Patricia Krentcil suffered a seizure at The Lukens Institute in Florida on Saturday. She was rushed to a local hospital and stabilized in the ambulance on the way.

Tan Mom was originally supposed to stay in the hospital for several days ... but after just five hours, we're told doctors said she was in good enough condition to leave.

She's now being monitored by doctors at the rehab facility.

Tan Mom was hospitalized this morning after suffering a seizure inside rehab, TMZ has learned.

Sources tell TMZ ... Patricia Krentcil started seizing earlier this morning. Rehab techs from The Lukens Institute -- where she's in rehab for alcoholism -- found her and rushed her to a Palm Beach hospital.

We're told the techs were able to stabilize her on the way to the ER.

Our sources say she is currently resting and we're told she will stay in the hospital for a few days so doctors can monitor her condition.