Gossip / Rumors

Fugitive from justice Columbus Short lied when he claimed the guy he knocked out in an L.A. bar had it coming because he slapped his wife ... fact is, Columbus confessed to the guy IN WRITING.

You'll recall ... Columbus was arrested in March after sucker punching a guy during an engagement party at a West L.A. sports bar. The guy ended up in the hospital with a concussion and broken nose.

Columbus spoke out last month ... claiming he punched the guy in defense of his wife, because the man was taunting the "Scandal" star's wife, slapping her in the face with $20 bills.

But we've obtained a text message Columbus sent to the guy he hit ... sent the very same night of the incident. Columbus wrote, "I know im texting and incriminating myself but I have to own what I did wrong in that situation."

Columbus goes on, "Im so sorry and completely disappointed in myself," adding, "Whether I go to jail or not that will be the worst punishment of all. Losing you guys."

Nicole Murphy was mum Thursday on her breakup with Michael Strahan ... but she had a lot to say about her new passion -- moscato.

Nicole was leaving the W Hotel in Hollywood Thursday when she shut down questions about her breakup -- which some are calling a revenge breakup.

But Nicole was unstoppable when it came to talking about the wine she's promoting.

CBS honcho Les Moonves is normally a straight shooter, but he carefully danced around the rumors he's picked a new host of "The Late Late Show."

Moonves and his wife, Julie Chen, were leaving Madeo Tuesday night when our photog grilled him over reports 35-year-old British actor James Corden would be taking the reigns once Craig Ferguson leaves. Reading between the lines the rumors sound .... tru-ish

And our photog asked ... what's the deal with foreigners having a lock on the 12:30 AM timeslot?

Moonves also has a strong opinion about the cast of "The Big Bang Theory" getting a huge raise.

There are reports out that Jennifer Garner is pregnant with her 4th kid. Too bad for the 4th non-existent kid, because she's not pregnant.

Garner's rep, Meredith O'Sullivan tells TMZ, she is NOT pregnant.

Nicole Murphy had a secret romantic fling in the Caribbean with former NBA star Jim Jackson in early July -- the exact same time she says she suspected Michael Strahan of cheating on her.

TMZ has obtained photos of Nicole and Jim at the Dorado Beach Ritz-Carlton in Puerto Rico, where they stayed from July 7 through July 10.

You see them in a cabana on the beach ... and they got very snuggly. People at the hotel tell us they were hugging, kissing ... definitely affectionate.

Sources close to the exes tell us ... Nicole had gone to P.R. with some girlfriends, and just happened to run into Jim -- an old friend -- and even though they "hung out" ... it was nothing serious.

We're told Michael knew Nicole was taking the trip with her GFs, but was not aware anything went on with Jackson.

We're told Nicole now says she and Michael were "on a break" when she hooked up with Jackson -- but she did not feel the relationship was over.

Former NBAer Delonte West is part of the most infamous rumor perhaps in all of sports history ... and he says that is the reason he didn't name his son after him.

For the uninformed ... back in 2010, in the middle of the NBA playoffs, a rumor emerged saying that Delonte had sex with LeBron James' mother Gloria. There was never any proof, but LeBron played so poorly once the rumor came to light ... it never fully died.

In an interview with Vice Sports, West says avoided naming his son after him because he didn't want him to be tagged with the LeBron rumor all his life.

Robin Thicke was not cavorting with a chick on Lake Perris when he was supposed to be performing a concert ... he was with his son and his nanny.

There have been a slew of reports the chick might be Robin's new girl. But we've learned it's not. Robin, we're told, isn't dating anyone and has no interest in getting back on the saddle ... at least for now. He still wants Paula back ... but he knows it's probably not gonna happen.

As for why Thicke canceled his Indiana concert and hung out on the lake ... we're told he was having vocal issues, so he decided to make the most of a bad situation and spend time with his kid.

"Star Trek: Voyager" actor Robert Picardo says he way too old to experiment with Bill Nye the Science Guy ... in the bedroom.

Picardo is asking a judge to stop his soon-to-be ex-wife from spreading rumors he's in a gay relationship with Nye.

The actor says in court docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Linda Pawlik lured him over to her house on July 4th by falsely telling him the family dog was missing. While he was there, he claims Linda had a P.I. attach a GPS device to his car.

Days later ... Linda started telling family friends the P.I. reported back that Picardo and Nye spent 3 hours together in Nye's bedroom, which she believes is proof of an affair.

Picardo says in docs, "I'd made it to 60 without having sex with a man and a 'walk on the wild side' at this age seemed unlikely to anyone who knows me."

The actor acknowledges he and Nye have been friends for years and have taken many pics together ... but he says it's purely platonic.

Jay Z and Beyonce might be crazy in love or they might be headed for a split, but R&B star Akon says the fact they have always kept their relationship private is what has led to so much speculation.

Akon was in D.C. Monday and was super open to our photog about celebrity relationships ... particularly Jay and Bey. What he says is really interesting.

Akon feels the mega-couple always presented their relationship to the public as more of a business than a real relationship. He says famous people need to be open with their fans about their relationships or else they invite the kind of rumors that have dogged Jay Z and Beyonce lately.

Rapper YG started the chaotic water bottle melee that abruptly ended his concert ... and he did it to cover up the fact that he couldn't sing.

YG lost his voice 2 songs into his performance ... that's what a rep for the promoters tell TMZ. The promoters say the rapper first tried to get his DJ to pump up the volume to mask his voice, but when that didn't work he resorted to throwing water bottles at the crowd ... which predictably turned bad.

Apparently YG wasn't sure the bottle would do the trick, so he jumped off stage and punched a fan in the face ... and that's when all hell broke loose.

The promoter tells us the club is now in danger of losing its license. We're told the club may take legal action against the rapper.

Chris Brown -- NOT KARRUECHE -- is the one who did the breaking up, because she was a crass opportunist ... so say people in Chris' camp.

Sources closely connected with the singer tell TMZ ... Chris is shocked Karrueche's people leaked a story that she dumped him, allegedly because of a never-ending obsession with Rihanna and refusal to act like an adult.

But Chris' people tell us ... he found out she was texting and sending photos to other guys while they were together. He was also furious she did interviews for her clothing line and talked about their relationship.

In a word ... Chris decided she was an "opportunist" and dumped her.

Jay Z and Beyonce secretly attended a private event last week ... and it's significant because it's the most authentic evidence so far that they're still very much a couple.

Jay's mom, Gloria Carter, threw a shindig to celebrate the opening of her new restaurant, Diamondz N Da Ruff in Newark.

Jay Z and Beyonce showed up at 7 PM last Saturday for the ribbon cutting and champagne toast and stayed 15 minutes. Our spies say Beyonce and Gloria hugged and laughed.

Here's the thing. There were no photogs at the event. We got this pic just by chance. So it seems there was no grandstanding on Bey's or Jay's part to look like a happy couple.

The plot thickens.

Don't panic, Shia LaBeouf is NOT joining the Air Force ... his recent visit to a recruiter's office was just prep work for a new role he's eyeing.

Our Shia sources tell us his trip to the USAF office in L.A. Saturday wasn't a whacky publicity stunt -- he's really trying to learn about the enlisting process -- from recruitment through basic training.

LaBeouf hasn't locked down the potential role yet ... he's just doing his homework.

Unfortunately for Shia, the office was closed. Damn budget cuts.

Get ready to interpret ... because Beyonce now obtusely reveals what went down in that elevator ... and one interpretation goes directly to her marriage.

Beyonce dropped a remix for her song "Flawless" with Nicki Minaj Saturday night ... and early in the track says, "We escalate, up in this bitch like elevators ... of course sometime s**t goes down when it's a billion dollars on the elevator."

So how's this for a theory. Multiple reports estimate Beyonce and Jay Z's worth between $900 million and 1 billion. So when she says "of course sometimes s**t goes down when it's a billion dollars on the elevator" ... could that mean there's a billion dollars on the line and they were arguing over something related to the heart of the marriage?

Just a theory.

Brace yourselves Dundler Mifflinites ... one of the stars of "The Office" -- who also ran the show behind the scenes for a few seasons -- says there will NEVER be a reunion.

Paul Lieberstein -- better known as Toby Flenderson -- was on his way out of Riva Bella in West Hollywood when we asked if there was a chance the cast would ever reunite.

The actor got right to the point without pulling any punches.

Justin Bieber is on an absolute tear in Ibiza, and his latest conquest might be his best -- the Playboy Playmate he held a late night make out session with on a yacht.

Biebs was photographed hooking up with Miss July 2013, Alyssa Arce on Thursday night. Our sources say she and Justin met on Wednesday ... and ended up hanging on the same yacht. Funny how that happens in Ibiza.

22-year-old Alyssa is signed with Wilhelmina LA, and we're told she hit it off with Justin almost immediately -- but it's nothing serious just yet.

As one source put it ... they're just "having fun."

Amen.