Family

Elon Musk can read a room -- getting ahead of potential groans and eye-rolls over him being named TIME's Person of the Year by sprinkling some adorableness on the ceremony ... courtesy of his kid.

The Tesla and SpaceX chief popped in for a Q&A Monday night in NYC, not too long after it was announced he was TIME's number 1 person for the entirety of 2021. His entrance turned out to be a big fat father-son love fest, 'cause EM trotted out X Æ A-12 for the sit-down.

It's pretty hilarious ... as soon as Elon comes into the room with X in his arm, just about everyone lets out the expected "awwwws" that come in the presence of any toddler.

X's appearance definitely softened any would-be tension that might've existed among the reporters and spectators there ... 'cause, as you may have read or heard, not everyone was all that thrilled with Elon getting the huge honor.

Nobody probably would've made a scene or anything, but bringing X along for the ride is definitely a good PR move on Dad's part.

As for the actual interview itself, Elon talked about a lot of stuff -- including whether he considered cars or rockets more important, and whether he'd ever get his ass up into space like his billionaire rival, Jeff Bezos.

Meanwhile, young X was on his best behavior (for the most part) ... not really fussing too much, and listening to his pops chat it up in what was almost certainly a new environment for him.

Dr. Mehmet Oz is dunzo on daytime TV -- after 13 seasons on the air "The Dr. Oz Show" is coming to an end, but that's good news for his daughter, whose own TV show will slide into dear ol' dad's position.

Sony Pictures confirmed the long-running daytime series will officially end on January 14 -- the fate of the show had been uncertain when Dr. Oz announced his run for U.S. Senate, and Fox stations in Pennsylvania and NYC pulled the program.

This opens up a huge opportunity for Daphne Oz and her show, "The Good Dish" ... which will officially launch on January 17.

The spinoff is all about food and cooking up family-friendly recipes -- and became an Oz fan favorite with weekly segments on "The Dr. Oz Show" for years. It's hosted by Daphne, Gail Simmons and Jamika Pessoa.

Just last month Oz announced he was entering the Republican primary in PA in his first attempt to run for public office. He's vying for the Senate seat currently held by Pat Toomey, who's retiring.

As we reported, FOX stations in Pennsylvania and NY took Oz's show off the air due to FCC rules requiring equal time for all candidates. No such challenge for Daphne and co. -- we're told 'Good Dish' will be on the air everywhere.

The Fonz's 1949 motorcycle recently sold for $231,562 at auction, but it won't just go to a museum or any old home ... it'll be in the hands of celeb grease monkey Richard Rawlings.

The motorbike was among the most prized items from the Henry Winkler-themed auction... it was expected to sell for $80k-$120k, but Rawlings scooped it up for nearly double.

The "Fast N' Loud" star tells TMZ ... his winning bid is a tribute to his dad who is battling Alzheimer’s ... he says back in the day, they would watch "Happy Days" together.

Rawlings says his dad used to ride a bike and wear a leather jacket that looked similar to Fonzie on the sitcom ... and even added he had a lot of swagger just like Fonz!

One year at Richard’s school carnival while there were games and bake sales, Richard’s dad rode his motorcycle to the school wearing his leather jacket and set up a kissing booth. As Richard says, the PTA moms ate it up.

Now Rawlings will have the actual bike that Fonz rode on, in the show ... though he won't have the actual outfit Fonzie wore -- which went for $75,312 in the auction.

Richard says he plans to ride the bike a few times, and then he'll put it in his new Monkey Trap that will have cool cars and memorabilia from all the shows he has done.

No matter what you think about LaVar Ball's antics when it comes to his sons, you gotta respect it ... so says Matt Barnes who tells TMZ Sports at the end of the day, he got 'em all to the NBA.

Remember, LaVar has aways been his boys' official hype man for years -- praising Lonzo, LiAngelo and LaMelo any chance he gets ... promising fans (and haters) they would all be in the big league.

LaVar ended up being right ... Gelo is on a G-league team, Zo is dominating with the Bulls and Melo has brought the Hornets back to life.

Barnes applauds LaVar for it, telling us he's a great dad for making sure his kids got to the top level.

Even if he did do a lotta trash talk.

"As far as him being a great dad and helping his kids to where they're at to succeed, I definitely salute him," the 41-year old tells us at LAX this week.

"The kids are very talented. Hope Gelo gets a real chance to make an NBA team but to have 2 kids in the league that are doing well and a hopeful third..."

"I can do nothing but respect that."

Nick Cannon just got tatted up again ... and this time, his newest addition is in honor of his late son Zen who died this week of a brain tumor.

The "Wild and Out" creator shared the angel tattoo of his son on his rib cage Tuesday on his show ... a tribute that comes just days after the 5-month-old's death.

"It was a lot of pain, but it was well worth it. I enjoyed every moment of the experience"... adding that now he will always have his son by his side.

Nick has been very vocal about his struggles with his son's death, and previously said that his baby mama Alyssa Scott was taking things "5 minutes at a time." Nick and Alyssa had kept Zen's health issues totally private until the tragic announcement that he had died.

Gene Simmons is selling his Las Vegas home overlooking the strip for $13.5 mil -- turning a massive profit if he sells -- but he doesn't want just any knucklehead to live in it.

The "Kiss" Frontman joined us on "TMZ Live" and we asked why he decided to sell his beautiful estate and why the price has been reduced -- originally listed as $14.95 mil.

The 11,000-sq-ft home has 6 bedrooms and has many unique features -- including a courtyard, private oasis and 11-seat theater. The singer says he bought a half-acre lot next door and planted 137 trees, so it's really like no other property seen in Vegas nowadays.

Simmons stressed that Vegas is the perfect place to live with no income, state or local tax. So, why in the world is he selling it?! He says his family doesn't want to deal with the Vegas heat or any strippers -- for that matter.

His family might share an unpopular opinion, because in recent years out-of-state buyers have flocked to Vegas, and as far as the prices of homes? Soaring!!

In fact, Simmons says he could really sell the home for nearly double its price, but insists that he doesn't just want any random knucklehead living there. Instead, he wants to meet the next tenant and for them to enjoy living there.

Travis Scott is doing his level best to push all responsibility for Astroworld casualties onto anyone other than himself -- that's how an attorney for one of the victims views the rapper's first interview about the tragedy.

Tony Buzbee is representing the family of Axel Acosta ... a 21-year-old who died from injuries suffered at the concert. He says he watched the 50-minute sit down with Charlamagne tha God and was offended by what he sees as Travis attempting to paint himself as a victim.

"Axel Acosta and the many others killed or injured are the victims. Travis Scott, his entourage, handlers, promoters, managers, hangers on and everyone else who enable him are the problem. Everything that Travis Scott has done or said since ten people died and hundreds of others were injured at his concert has been lawyer driven and calculated to shift blame from him to someone else."

Buzbee -- who's already filed a $750 million suit against Travis and others -- also isn't buying the artist's claim he had no idea of the mayhem fans were going through in the crowd ... even if he wasn't told in his ears. Buzbee says, "He now says he had an earpiece in, and was not told what was going on in the crowd. That raises the question: Did he have an earpiece in his eye? Why did he purposely ignore the death and mayhem occurring literally feet from him?”

Travis has acknowledged seeing at least one emergency vehicle in the audience ... and video shows him pointing it out and seeming very puzzled as to why it was there.

Buzbee believes Travis' interview was just an attempt to dodge responsibility and accountability -- and, in doing so, he says Travis "further exacerbates the pain of those that lost loved ones. Axel Acosta’s family doesn’t want to hear Travis Scott’s excuses; excuses do not assuage their grief and pain."

"Jake Paul can go suck a d*** for all I care ... p***y."

Tyson Fury just went the hell off on both Jake AND Logan Paul ... absolutely unleashing on the brothers and calling them "s***house p*****s."

As we previously reported, Jake has been talking a ton of crap after Tyson's brother, Tommy, backed out just 2 weeks before their fight was set to go down in Tampa ... calling the champ and his now-former opponent a "f***ing bitch."

Logan also chimed in ... saying it's a good thing Tommy is handsome, 'cause he's a p***y."

Now, Tyson is firing back at the YouTube superstars ... and boy, he didn't hold back.

"Jake Paul can go suck a d*** for all I care ... p***y," Tyson said. "Him and his brother are s***house p***ies and could never live in my world because they're f***ing bitches."

"And, if you don't like the language, get f***ed."

Yikes.

Tyson says Tommy missing out on the fight is no big deal -- saying there will be plenty more paydays to come.

As for whether he wants to see Tommy and Jake reschedule their fight, Tyson says he has zero interest in what the two boxers do.

Nick Cannon sent a big thank you to everyone for the support, kind words and love sent after yesterday's emotional announcement where he revealed the devastating news that his 5-month-old son, Zen, passed away.

The "Wild "N Out" creator shared his gratitude on the "The Nick Cannon Show" Wednesday afternoon... "of course, everyone knows I'm not fine, but you all are making me feel better."

Nick says he feels a bit of guilt because he never wanted to exploit the news, but he is appreciative of the outpour of support ... "The onslaught of love is new to me, so thank you is all I can say."

Nick kept his son's diagnosis private for months out of respect for Zen's mom, model Alyssa Scott, and everyone in their family. Cannon says she's been taking things "5 minutes at a time."

As we previously reported, Nick announced Tuesday that his youngest child Zen died from a brain tumor ... after his brain tumor began to grow quickly around thanksgiving. Nick says he got to hold Zen for the last time by the ocean last weekend, after he made a trip to California to spend time with his baby.

Zen was Nick's 7th child and 4th of Nick's kids born in the last year and a half.

Tiger Woods is back ... the golf legend has just committed to playing again nearly 10 months after his car crash -- officially signing up for next week's PNC Championship with his son.

The event will take place beginning on Dec. 16 in Orlando, Florida ... and it's a huge deal -- considering it'll be the first time Woods has competed on the course since he horrifically broke his leg in a Feb. 23 car crash.

As we previously reported, Woods suffered comminuted open fractures in his right leg -- and he said last week the injuries were so bad, amputation was a very real possibility.

But, Tiger's made huge strides in his comeback -- swinging his golf clubs regularly ... and now, he clearly feels he's ready to compete in a tournament.

While the PNC Championship is certainly not the Masters -- it's still a 36-hole event that'll pit Tiger and his son, Charlie Woods, against some of the biggest names in golf -- including John Daly, Justin Thomas and Bubba Watson.

"Although it’s been a long and challenging year," Woods said of his impending return, "I am very excited to close it out by competing in the PNC Championship with my son Charlie. I'm playing as a Dad and couldn't be more excited and proud."

Jamie Spears says he wants nothing more than to tie up loose ends and end Britney's conservatorship, but the people put in place on her side are dragging it out, and destroying his reputation in the process.

Spears just filed new docs in L.A. where he says he just wants a simple order ending the conservatorship, but that's been made impossible by what he calls Britney's "temporary conservators" ... whom Jamie says are only trying to continue a media circus.

He says Britney and her team mostly make "statements with no other purpose than to attack Jamie" and are trying to paint him as a "disgraced, suspended conservator."

What's more ... Jamie says he's been more than cooperative in handing over requested documents from the 13 years Britney was in the conservatorship. In fact, he says he's already handed over 58 boxes of docs -- totaling around 478,000 pages.

Nick Cannon just shared some devastating news, his youngest child has died from a brain tumor.

An emotional Cannon made the announcement Tuesday on "The Nick Cannon Show," telling his audience his 5-month-old son, Zen, passed away. Nick says things took a turn for the worse around Thanksgiving, and the tumor began to grow very quickly.

Breaking down, Nick says he spent this last weekend in California with his son, and on Sunday they took a trip to the ocean where Nick held Zen for the last time, he died soon after.

Giving some background, Nick says when he was about 2 months old, Zen started to develop what they thought was a sinus issue, and they noticed his head seemed large. Doctors said fluid had started to build up in Zen's head, and they discovered a tumor, which required immediate surgery.

Zen was Nick's 7th child, born earlier this year with model Alyssa Scott. Zen was the 4th of Nick's kids born in the last year and a half, twins Zillion and Zion were born in June and his daughter, Powerful, last December.

American Airlines is on the hot seat for booting a couple off a flight after they got into an argument with 2 flight attendants that turned physical -- all while the mother was cradling their 7-week-old baby.

As you can see in the video -- shot Sunday on a flight from Charlotte to Philadelphia -- the mother was trying to explain her side of things to a flight attendant who came over after the initial argument ... which was all over a different AA staffer asking her to stand up to let another passenger get to his seat.

The father was recording video of the convo until a third flight attendant approached from behind and smacked the phone out of his hand. That's when things got way more heated, and the couple was eventually removed from the plane.

While in the Charlotte airport terminal, the mother involved in the incident says she did nothing wrong and was met with aggression and unfair treatment from the start.

Sources familiar with the situation say that the family was removed from the flight, and AA booked them on a later flight to Philly. A spokesperson for American Airlines tells TMZ... "We are investigating the incident and working to understand what took place."

Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the lead armorer on the set of "Rust" has one weapons specialist and Hollywood veteran on her side -- it's her dad, who is backing his daughter's training and claiming she was sabotaged.

Thell Reed, whose career in movies spans several decades says Hannah was raised around guns, and learned gun safety from an early age. Reed says his daughter complained she had to carry both armorer and prop duties on the movie, and it was because she was doing prop duties that she was unable to be inside the church set when Halyna Hutchins was killed.

Thell told "Good Morning America" Tuesday he believes if Hannah was inside the church during the fatal scene, she would've checked the gun's chamber one more time and discovered the live round, potentially saving Hutchins' life.

What's more, Thell echoes the same message Hannah's attorneys have previously claimed ... believing Hannah was somehow sabotaged on set with the live ammo. Though, he doesn't really get into how or why that might've happened.

Of course, it was just last week when Alec Baldwin claimed he never pulled the trigger on the revolver that killed Hutchins. Alec claims he cocked the hammer back and when he released it, the gun went off.

Aaron Carter is going back to square one with his baby mama -- trying to patch things up after a dramatic weekend ... which included a call to Child Protective Services.

Aaron tells TMZ ... he's back with fiancée Melanie Martin, and they're trying to work it all out for the sake of their family. He says he feels hurt by her being in contact with his estranged family, but also says everyone deserves a second chance.

You'll recall ... Aaron told us he discovered Melanie had been in touch with his sister, Angel, which he felt was a betrayal and caused them to temporarily split. He also thought she was in cahoots with his fam to try to get him under a conservatorship. He even dropped a new song about his estranged siblings called, "So much to say".

That's all water under the bridge now, it seems, but the reconciliation came with even more tension -- because we're told Aaron's fans called CPS on him after seeing Melanie put their newborn, Prince, in his bed ... which some felt was too rough for a baby.

Aaron tells us CPS came by his Lancaster, CA home to check on the baby and the general living conditions -- but found everything was in order and left without incident.

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez did a little blending Saturday ... as the love train chugged through Westwood.

Ben and Jen hit up the Regency Theater with his kids, Seraphina and Sam, and her daughter, Emme.

They took in a showing of "Licorice Pizza" and looked like a fam out for a day of fun.

They got celeb treatment for sure ... an attendant was right there to escort them in through a side door and warn them all to step away from some puddles.

The kids have been seen more and more with J Lo and Ben ... over Thanksgiving, they were all involved in a food drive in L.A. ... loading and unloading sacks of food. The event was part of Rise Against Hunger ... a problem that has reached crisis proportions in L.A. and many other cities.