Family

Wendy Williams and her son put his assault case aside to grab some grub together, as his legal drama could soon be coming to an end ... if he plays his cards right.

The talk show host and Kevin Hunter Jr. were out in New York Thursday night, seen for the first time since he pled not guilty in a New Jersey courtroom Tuesday.

The 2 looked pretty relaxed, especially Jr. in sneakers, sweats and a white t-shirt with an interesting photo on it. Check it out ... it's a pic of one of Paul Cezanne's paintings from his 1890s The Card Players campaign.

Perhaps Wendy's son's trying to say something here -- he's playing the hand he's been dealt, he's got good cards, or ya gotta know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em -- or maybe it's just a shirt.

Either way ... our sources tell us Kevin Jr. is likely on course for a conditional dismissal in his case, meaning he can completely clear his name if he stays out of trouble for a short amount of time.

As we've reported ... Kevin Sr. has said he does not want to press charges against his son following their scuffle in a parking lot last month in which Jr. allegedly punched Sr. and got arrested for assault.

NY Giants rookie Deandre Baker just scored his first touchdown as a pro ... he bought his mom a new Bentley with his newfound NFL money -- AND SHE LOVED IT!!!!

Mama Baker had been driving around in a Nissan ... but when Deandre showed up with the new white whip and a big bow Wednesday -- she started bawling.

You can see in the clip she's shocked ... and the new Giants defensive back has to tell her repeatedly to "stop crying!"

"I Told Mama We Straight..." Deandre said of the gift ... "Remember We Use To Be In A Nissan... Watched Her Struggle And Sacrifice To Make Sure I’m Straight ...Now It’s My Turn To Take Care Her."

Unclear the price of Baker's new Bentley -- most cost in the $200,000 range -- but Deandre can certainly afford it, he signed a 4-year rookie deal worth $10.5 MILLION!!

As for the start of Deandre's career ... it kicks off on Aug. 8 with a preseason game against the Jets -- and we know Mom's going to have a comfortable ride to MetLife Stadium that day!!!

Baker was the #30th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft after a stellar career at the University of Georgia. 

Beth Chapman was taping alongside Duane "Dog" Chapman almost until her last day, but there's some unfinished work to be done ... and now it's in Dog's hands to decide how their project will end.

Their new show, "Dog's Most Wanted," had been shooting for several months, and they were coming to a close last weekend ... according to production sources. As you know, Beth suffered a choking emergency Saturday at their home in Hawaii and was placed in a medically-induced coma.

Although they were mid-production, we're told cameras were NOT rolling at that time.

Beth -- who was just as involved with the show as Dog -- was still scheduled to shoot for the series' final episodes.

Obviously, production came to a halt with Beth's hospitalization, and her death now means some big decisions have to be made about how to end the season. We're told it's possible producers will use the material they have in the can to put together an ending -- or shooting could resume after Dog and his family have time to cope with their matriarch's passing.

"Dog's Most Wanted" profiled both the family's bounty hunting business and also shed light on Beth's cancer battle. We're told it will ultimately be Dog's decision on whether there's enough raw footage to end the series, and also tell Beth's story.

As we first reported, doctors decided placing Beth in a coma would give her the best shot at surviving -- but she never recovered and died Wednesday morning.

Eminem's biological father -- who the rapper frequently rapped about abandoning him -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Marshall Bruce Mathers Jr. died this week near Fort Wayne, Indiana ... according to family members and neighbors. A family source tells us he apparently suffered a heart attack while at home.

Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, has made no secret of his lifelong grudge against his father and rapped about never meeting him in person. His hit songs like "My Name Is" and "Cleanin' Out My Closet" reflect those feelings.

According to Eminem's mother, Debbie ... Mathers Jr., who went by Bruce, married her when he was 22 and she was 15, and they had their son 2 years later. They split up shortly after, and Eminem and his mom settled in Detroit with her family while Bruce moved to California ... where he had 2 other kids.

Eminem has said in interviews that he wrote letters to his dad as a child but they always came back "return to sender." The rapper said Bruce would sometimes call while family members were babysitting, but he would never actually talk to him on the phone.

In 2001, Bruce published a letter addressed to his son in a newspaper explaining his side of the story -- that Eminem's mom kept him away. Still, Eminem apparently never got in contact with his father to reconcile.

In "Cleanin' Out My Closet" ... Em rapped, "My fa***t father must've had his panties up in a bunch ‘Cause he split, I wonder if he even kissed me goodbye. No, I don't, on second thought, I just f**kin' wished he would die. I look at Hailie, and I couldn't picture leavin' her side."

Beth Chapman is not expected to recover and leave the hospital, and the family is preparing for the worst ... family sources tell TMZ.

We've learned Beth's mother has flown from the mainland to Hawaii to be by her daughter's side. Her children and grandchildren -- many of whom live in Hawaii -- are also gathering at Beth's bedside.

As we reported, Beth has been waging a difficult war against stage 4 lung cancer. She was hospitalized Saturday after experiencing difficulty breathing as well as choking. She was placed in a medically-induced coma.

Family sources say there's not a lot that can be done for Beth and at this point, and the family is making medical decisions with the help of her doctors.

Dog posted a pic of Beth's hand as she lay in her hospital bed with freshly painted nails, with the caption, "You all know how she is about HER NAILS!!"

10:46 AM PT -- Kevin Jr.'s attorney, Ray Hamlin, tells TMZ he expects the case will be fully resolved. Hamlin says Kevin Sr. is not interested in bringing charges against his son. What's more, there's a state-wide conditional dismissal program Kevin Jr. can qualify for -- available to those without a prior criminal record -- to completely clear his name as long as he stays out of trouble.

8:30 AM PT -- Wendy and Kevin Sr. were in a car outside the courthouse. We're told they were advised it was unnecessary for them to go inside because the case was continued.

7:40 AM PT -- Kevin Jr. showed up in court and there was a change of plans, because neither of his parents showed up. He entered a not guilty plea ... and the prosecutor asked for more time so he'd have more time to review the case.

The prosecutor said he wanted to "review factors in the case" and said he thought the case would be resolved at the next hearing. That screams plea bargain or outright dismissal of charges. As you know, Kevin Sr. has said he did not want to press charges.

Wendy Williams will be right behind her son Tuesday in court when he enters a plea in his assault case, and it looks like the incident that got him arrested may have significantly reduced tensions between Wendy and her soon-to-be ex-husband.

Sources connected to Wendy tell us, she along with estranged husband Kevin Hunter, will present a united front, supporting their 18-year-old son ... who allegedly punched his dad in the nose during a heated argument.

It seems the incident last month may have actually eased tensions between Wendy and Kevin. We're told the divorce is going forward for sure -- this after Wendy learned Kevin father a baby with his mistress -- but we're told she believes it doesn't cancel out their 28-year relationship. Wendy told a friend, "There's still love between us, regardless of the divorce," adding they are still friends.

Our sources say Wendy does not want to create a spectacle in the New Jersey courtroom. She will say nothing in court ... she's only there to support her son, as is Kevin.

Kevin Sr. does not want to press charges, but because it's a domestic incident prosecutors often press on regardless.

Short story ... Wendy is saying she and Kevin Hunter Sr. will "work through this" and will maintain a relationship grounded in friendship, in no small part for the benefit of their son.

Jenelle Evans and David Eason are back in court, hoping to regain custody of their kids ... but most likely just getting an opportunity to see them face to face.

The troubled couple walked quietly into the courthouse Tuesday morning in Whiteville, North Carolina, where there's been no shortage of tense moments in recent weeks. As you know, all of Jenelle's kids -- 9-year-old Jace, 4-year-old Kaiser and 2-year-old Ensley -- were removed after a judge decided the couple's issues -- especially David killing the family dog -- put the kids at risk.

While Jenelle has said she's sticking with David no matter what ... they've agreed to attend counseling in hopes of getting back their children. Still, the drama's continued even at these court-monitored visits with the kids.

You'll recall, Jenelle got into a nasty little exchange with her mom, Barbara, earlier this month outside the courthouse. Jenelle said her own mom has blocked her number. Barbara insinuated the only reason Jenelle was hugging her daughter, Ensley, was for the cameras.

Then, there's Jenelle's ex, Nathan Griffith. You might recall Jenelle and David confronted Nathan, who was talking to our guy. David flipped them off. Nathan tried to make things right with them but to no avail.

John Singleton's family as a whole isn't up in arms about his BET Awards tribute -- despite the mother of one of his kids raising hell that it was lacking.

Singleton's mom, Shelia Ward, tells TMZ ... Tosha Lewis -- mother of John's 26-year-old daughter, Justice -- griping BET did John dirty by spending a lot more time honoring rapper Nipsey Hussle is strictly her opinion.

Shelia says Tosha doesn't speak for the family, and the fam doesn't share Lewis' feelings at all.

If you missed it, Tosha blasted the award show Sunday night for taking time to honor Nipsey and not John, saying about Hussle ... "I guess he's trendy nevermind John was talking and doing the same stuff as Nipsey since the 90s."

When fans pointed out BET did include a tribute to Singleton -- led by Morris Chestnut and "Snowfall" star Damson Idris -- Lewis shot back saying it wasn't enough compared to Nipsey's.

Tosha also claims John's family, unlike Nipsey's, wasn't invited to the show, but we've learned that's, at least, partially false. Her and John's daughter, Justice, did get an invitation.

Shelia's bottom line is simple -- if Tosha has beef with BET or Nipsey's family, that's totally on her ... leave the Singleton family out of it.

Tiger Woods is no longer a defendant in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a former employee at Tiger's Florida restaurant, who died last year in a DUI crash.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the estate of Nicholas Immesberger sued The Woods -- along with Tiger and his girlfriend, Erica Herman, the restaurant's GM -- claiming Nicholas was overserved alcohol at the restaurant in the hours before the crash.

In the original suit, the Immesberger estate claimed Nicholas -- who was a bartender -- stayed after a shift on 12/10/2018 and was served to the point of "severe intoxication" before being allowed to get in his car and drive. He crashed and died shortly after.

The family claimed Tiger and Erica knew Nicholas personally -- knew he had an alcohol problem -- and should never have allowed him to be served alcohol.

But, Tiger's attorney, Barry Postman, says the family has had a change of heart when it comes to Woods personally ... and have voluntarily dismissed his name from the lawsuit.

"The decision was clearly appropriate and reflected the fact that Mr. Woods should not have been included in the lawsuit in the first place because he had nothing to do with Mr. Immesberger's death,'' Postman said in a statement.

"While the situation was tragic, the facts will ultimately show that the cause of Mr. Immesberger's car accident were the many decisions made by Mr. Immesberger on the night of his passing.''

Julian Edelman ... Super Bowl champ -- and Super Dad???

The New England Patriots star says his new documentary, "100%: Julian Edelman," is set to show off his father side ... and he tells TMZ Sports it's the coolest part of the film.

"There's some unbelievable shots of me and my daughter," the wide receiver says ... "That was dope."

Of course, Edelman had a baby girl with Swedish model Ella Rose back in 2016 ... and for one of the first times since, Edelman is giving a rare glimpse of his dad side in the documentary.

Edelman tells us the footage is unbelievable, saying, "It was, like, just great memories."

The documentary -- which shows off Edelman's ride from his ACL tear in 2017 to his PED suspension in 2018 to his Super Bowl MVP performance in 2019 -- is set to air on June 28 on SHOWTIME.

Julian says he was super active in the editing process, and joked he's spent so much time on the project, he's "sick of it!"

By the way, Edelman also spoke with us about Rob Gronkowski earlier in the day ... and ya gotta watch the clip to find out if he'll miss off-the-field Gronk more than on-the-field Gronk!!

Ric Flair told us he wasn't gonna let his medical scare slow him down ... and he's proving it -- because the WWE legend ordered up a beer this weekend during an outing with his family.

Sporting a shirt with his own face on it (legendary stuff), the 70-year-old strolled into Hamilton's On Magnolia in Alabama (right near Auburn) flanked by his wife, Wendy Barlow.

Inside the restaurant, Flair was all smiles ... toasting his wife with a pint of beer.

Yeah, sippin' on brew may not be exactly what the doctor recommends just one month after undergoing heart surgery ... but Flair has told us he wants to live life to the fullest while he's still here on earth.

As we previously reported, Flair had a procedure to change up his pacemaker after a medical emergency in May.

When we spoke with Ric on the "TMZ Sports" TV show earlier this month, he told us he plans on living another 25 years ... AT LEAST!

Charles Barkley HATES LaVar Ball -- blasting the Big Baller as an "idiot" who should never be allowed on television again!

"Wherever LaVar Ball is, there's a village missing an idiot," Barkley said ... "We should just keep LaVar off television. That would be the best way to be."

Barkley's newest anti-LaVar stance comes in the wake of another Ball controversy -- he's been under fire for comments he made on-air to ESPN's Molly Qerim ... comments ESPN deemed "completely inappropriate."

Sir Charles clearly feels LaVar's antics are HURTING his sons -- especially Lonzo Ball, who just got traded to the New Orleans Pelicans -- and he wants LB to cut it out.

"It's really unfair to his son. His son is a good player and a nice kid."

When asked if LaVar can get a fresh start in Louisiana ... Charles said, "He's an idiot in all 50 states."

Charles also talked about Zion Williamson -- who a lot of people have compared to Barkley.

"He's a lot more explosive than I am," Barkley said ... "A lot more explosive."

"He's not as good of a basketball player as I am right now but he's got great potential and a great future."

Janet Jackson has broken her silence amid new allegations against her brother, Michael Jackson, in "Leaving Neverland" -- and her message is simple ... his rep will be just fine.

Michael's younger sister spoke with The Sunday Times, and addressed what she thought would happen to the King of Pop's legacy going forward ... saying, "It will continue." Janet went on to say that she still sees Michael's influence in the world today ... a reassuring sign.

Janet says, "I love it when I see kids emulating him, when adults still listen to his music. It just lets you know the impact that my family has had on the world." She added, "I hope I'm not sounding arrogant in any way -- I'm just stating what it is. It's really all God's doing, and I'm just thankful for that."

In the interview, Janet did not speak on Wade Robson and James Safechuck's specific allegations head-on ... but it's pretty clear where she stands on the issue. According to Billboard, Janet has been playing Michael's tunes during her concerts without hesitation.

She's also defended him in the past, specifically when Jordy Chandler accused Michael of sexual abuse in '93. At the time, Janet called it a money grab.

Other members of Michael's family have gone to bat for him in the wake of "Leaving Neverland," calling Wade and James' claims full-blown lies. His estate is even taking HBO to court for airing the explosive documentary ... saying the network violated a decades-old contract they signed with him back in the day, in which it agreed not to disparage MJ.

George Lopez doesn't mind including President Trump's son, Barron, when criticizing DT's immigration policies ... and don't give him the "he's a kid" line, either.

The comic was leaving the Palace Hotel Saturday in NYC, where we got a chance to ask him about an IG post he'd just thrown up ... which basically calls out the Prez for being so harsh on immigrant children, while his own offspring have immigrant mothers themselves.

In the post ... Don Jr., Ivanka, Eric and 13-year-old Barron are referred to as an "anchor baby" -- meaning a kid born by a non-citizen mother in a country that offers birthright citizenship.

For the record, Ivana -- Trump's first wife, and mother of his older three children -- obtained citizenship in 1988, and her and DT's kids were all born before that. Melania obtained her citizenship in 2006 (the same year Barron was born) but it's unclear what month.

The bigger point here though ... was it appropriate to include Barron in the critique at all? Ya know ... since he is a minor?? George says absolutely ... especially in this administration.

Check it out ... he flips the question back on our photog, asking what's the difference between Barron and any number of the children being detained down by the border. The issue's timely -- Trump just announced he was gonna hold off mass ICE raids on families.

Cindy Crawford's daughter, Kaia Gerber, truly got it from her mama -- which couldn't have been more clear than in these matching vacay views.

The supermodel is vacationing with her hubby, Rande Gerber, and their kid right now down in Miami, where mom and her little girl (who's 17, BTW) wore similar swimwear ... black bikini tops, revealing their great figures and spectacular family genes.

Like her ma, Kaia is also a well-established model in her own right. She's done campaigns for Chanel, Prada, Jimmy Choo, Alexander Wang and Marc Jacobs, among others. Definitely following in her parent's footsteps ... no question about that.

Just to drive the point home, check out the position they were both in at one point while relaxing by a pool. Interestingly, Cindy and Kaia both seemed to be a bit distracted as they laid out -- making it that much more obvious ... Kaia's a chip off the old block.

Considering how incredible Cindy still looks at age 53, ya know Kaia's gotta like her chances at a long and prolific career. Not too many mother-daughter combos that can do it like this.

Cristiano Ronaldo is so rich, he's vacationing on a massive yacht that costs more than $200,000 per week to rent ... and it won't even make a DENT in his bank account!!!

The soccer superstar is currently sailing with his family in the French Riviera on a boat called "Africa I" -- a 155-foot yacht with 6 cabins, dining room, wet bar, hot tub, gym area ... and a MOVIE THEATER!!!

CR7 is on the ship with his girlfriend and kids -- relaxing after leading Juventus to another Serie A championship. He posted from the yacht a few days ago showing off his insane abs.

Money ain't an issue for 34-year-old Ronaldo -- the guy just clocked in at #2 on the Forbes list of highest paid athletes of 2019 ... with an estimated $109 MILLION in earnings over the past year.

Ronaldo reportedly made $65 mil in salary from his soccer contract and another $44 mil in endorsement cash.