Celebrity Health

U.S. Olympic legend Michael Johnson -- one of the fastest humans of all time -- says he's fully recovered after suffering a crippling stroke in 2018 ... and even sprinting again!!!

51-year-old Johnson -- who won 4 gold medals in 3 Olympics -- tells TMZ Sports he suffered a stroke on the right side of his brain following a workout in Sept. 2018.

At the time, Johnson said he felt discomfort in his left leg, numbness in his left arm and quickly began to lose balance. So, he rushed to the emergency room to get checked out.

"By the time I got to the hospital, I couldn't walk anymore. I couldn't stand on my left side," Johnson says.

"But, fortunately, I got there quickly and was able to get treated by a team of specialists."

Johnson spent the next several months working his ass off in several rehabilitation programs including physical and occupational therapy ... and says he approached rehab like he was training for the Olympics.

"[Rehabilitating was] a little more difficult on the one hand because no one's standing there clapping there for me when I finish my workout now," Johnson said.

"But, at the same time, this is my livelihood that was at stake."

Ultimately, Johnson was able to get back to the high level of physical fitness he was at before the stroke -- and now he's on a mission to spread awareness along with the American Stroke Association.

John Singleton had a plan in place for his death, because TMZ has learned he left a will, and that's a monumental development in what appears to be a family war that erupted while he lay dying in the hospital.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, John's mother, Shelia Ward, is in possession of the will and it will soon be filed with the probate court. Shelia handled all of John's business affairs, which includes the last will and testament.

As we reported, last week Cleopatra, one of John's 7 children, accused Shelia of trying to corral his assets and squeeze out his kids. Cleopatra launched her attack after Shelia filed legal docs last week to get a temporary conservatorship while John was unable to make decisions. The legal fight ended when John died.

If the 51-year-old, famed director had died without a will, Shelia would get nothing from his reported $35 million estate, because under California law the assets would be divided equally among his 7 children. But, since there's a will, John decides who gets what, and who gets nothing.

Given the business relationship between John and Shelia, it's a safe bet she's the executor of the will, which surely would not please Cleopatra.

It's unclear when John signed the will, but it's not out of the question someone might try and mount a challenge that the will should be invalid because of undue influence or mental incapacity -- this came up after Michael Jackson died. Important to note ... most of these challenges fail.

Alex Trebek opened up in an emotional, revealing interview, saying his battle with stage 4 pancreatic cancer gives him "surges of deep, deep sadness" and brings tears to his eyes.

Alex was on 'GMA' Wednesday and talked about the physical and emotional struggles he's facing as he undergoes chemo and fights the battle of his life.

The legendary "Jeopardy!" host joked with Robin Roberts and said he surprised himself with his emotions as he mused, "I'm a bit of a wus."

The good news -- doctors say he's doing better but Alex isn't fooling himself ... pancreatic cancer is as serious as it gets.

He's done filming the 35th season of the show so he has the summer to hopefully rebound. By the way, that means there are weeks of "Jeopardy!" that have not yet aired and Alex is among the select few who knows how high phenom James Holzhauer rises, and whether he reigns supreme at season's end.

By the way, Alex says he'll be walking this Saturday in PurpleStride, a fundraiser to find a cure for pancreatic cancer.

Legendary announcer Bruce Buffer was front and center when the UFC made 12 Make-A-Wish dreams come true ... and he says it's a moment he'll remember for the rest of his life!!

Dana White and his org teamed up with the Make-A-Wish Foundation to grant 12 Las Vegas kids their biggest dreams on Monday -- from trips to Disneyland and Disney World to Europe and more!!

TMZ Sports spoke with "The Veteran Voice of the Octagon" -- who used his famous chops for the big reveal to the kids ... and he says it was one of the most emotional experiences of his life.

Buffer revealed it was a local record for Make-A-Wish giveaways ... and admits it was tough not to get emotional during the touching event.

"It was a beautiful event. It was great to see those kids," Buffer says.

Bushwick Bill, one of the founding members of the legendary rap group, Geto Boys, is battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

The 52-year-old tells us he was diagnosed back in February and he's currently undergoing intensive chemotherapy treatments ... but he says it's too early to tell how his body's responding to the chemo.

The rapper says his diagnosis came as a shock ... because he was getting tests for month for a mass on his pancreas ... a mass doctors said was benign.

Bushwick's been keeping his diagnosis private, only telling close family members, but he's finally ready to share the sad news with the world ... even though he hasn't found it in him to tell fellow Geto Boys founders Scarface and Willie D what's up.

Bill says he's going to keep fighting, but he's not afraid of death ... something he made clear in his old song, "Ever So Clear."

12:28 PM PT -- The World Surf League has confirmed Garcia was hospitalized after a suicide attempt.

In the past, Garcia has talked publicly about his struggles with depression and even asked fans for advice on treatment.

Surf legend Sunny Garcia -- a 6-time winner of the Triple Crown of Surfing -- is fighting for his life in a Portland hospital, the World Surf League has confirmed.

The 49-year-old was admitted to the hospital in Oregon on Monday. Details about his condition were not made public.

WSL says Garcia is currently in intensive care.

Garcia is one of the most beloved people in pro surfing. He grew up in Hawaii -- and became close friends with fellow surf stars like Kelly Slater and Jamie O'Brien.

He's an absolute STUD in the water -- winning the World Surf League's world championship in 2000. He was inducted into the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

Garcia also became the 2nd pro surfer in history to win more than $1 million in prize money -- which is a HUGE accomplishment.

Outside of the water, Sunny had some issues over the years -- he served time in prison in 2007 in a tax evasion case.

Years later, Garcia said the takeaway from that experience was "never trust your CPA ... don't trust anybody for that matter."

Garcia has talked about how much he loved his family and how one of his biggest fears would be to lose them.

He's also a religious guy who attends church "every once in a while."

Garcia has also pushed hard for people to come and surf in Hawaii over the years -- but he's big on people having respect for the Hawaiian culture.

"Come, enjoy and be respectful, yeah -- if you can be that then we welcome you with open arms. But, if you're gonna come and piss in my backyard, you might get a slap in the head."

Michael Blackson lost a brother when John Singleton suddenly died ... that's how much the famed director meant to him.

We got Michael out Monday night leaving Toca Madera in WeHo and asked him about the "Boyz n the Hood" director's death Monday -- at only 51 -- after suffering a massive stroke. No doubt Michael's devastated by the loss of his friend.

Check out the clip ... he talks about John and his GF, Rayvon, having a baby a year ago, making things even sadder. He tells us how he first met John and the huge plans they had about working together.

Michael also tells us which of John's classics is his favorite flick. Remember, Michael's a comedian ... so that's your first clue.

11:07 AM PT -- Traci Braxton tells us, "LoLo was more than my niece, she was my daughter; and I, my son and husband are truly heartbroken over her passing."

10:45 AM PT -- According to the police report -- obtained by TMZ -- a friend of Lauren's claims she was talking with Lauren in the kitchen and went upstairs for just 10 minutes. The friend told cops when she returned to the kitchen, Lauren was on the floor and unresponsive.

8:22 AM PT -- Trina Braxton just posted about Lauren's death, saying, "God sent me another angel! Rest in Heaven Lauren "LoLo" Braxton."

Toni Braxton's niece has died in Maryland ... TMZ has learned.

Lauren Braxton -- the daughter of Toni's younger brother, Michael Conrad Braxton Jr. -- died Monday ... according to her father, who tells us her death was related to a heart condition.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... they received a 911 call around noon on Monday, and Lauren -- who went by the nickname LoLo -- was unresponsive when they arrived. She was pronounced dead by paramedics.

Michael -- who is a Maryland native -- is the only son of the Braxton siblings. He and Toni are the elder siblings to Traci, Towanda, Trina and Tamar. Like most of his sisters, Michael is also a singer and songwriter and he's appeared on episodes of his sisters' reality show "Braxton Family Values."

Michael started singing with his sisters in church choirs when they were young.

His daughter Lauren was 24.

RIP

10:15 AM PT -- The Riverside County Health Department says its labs and STD programs have not seen any spike in herpes cases during Stagecoach or Coachella.

To clarify ... HerpAlert was NOT saying its surge of cases -- 114 at Stagecoach and 250 at Coachella -- were all for new patients. Some of that data includes old patients just seeking prescriptions.

There was a surprise guest riding through Stagecoach this weekend ... herpes.

According to big wigs at HerpAlert -- an online diagnosis and treatment website for the STD -- there's been another spike in people looking to get treated for herpes in the areas surrounding the festival grounds, but it's not quite as bad as the outbreak during Coachella.

HerpAlert's been helping folks out for over 2 years, with doctors issuing prescriptions to pharmacies after people upload photos of their junk for doctors to review. The turnaround time is super quick ... we're talking just 2 hours.

We're told HerpAlert noticed a surge in people seeking prescriptions for herpes during Stagecoach. Over the weekend, there were 114 cases reported in Palm Desert, Coachella Valley and Indio ... which is about half of the nearly 250 cases reported in the same areas during Coachella Weekend 1.

It's still a massive spike ... because HerpAlert tells us they typically handle 12 cases a day in SoCal.

Bottom line ... if you got down at Stagecoach, you might want to giddy-up to your local clinic.

Rep. Tim Ryan is pushing a new approach to educating America's kids, and it's not just about making them smarter ... it's about avoiding deadly school shootings.

The Democratic candidate for President was on "TMZ Live" Monday, and told us he wants to become the education Prez -- and job 1, for him, would be teaching students socially AND emotionally.

Congressman Ryan calls the program SELF -- social and emotional learning for families -- and he explained the benefits go way beyond better grades. Ryan points out there's an all too familiar call for new gun control laws after school shootings -- but says not enough is being done to prevent students from ever wanting to open fire on classmates.

Take a couple minutes and watch what he's proposing. For Ryan -- who's serving his 8th term in Congress while running for Prez -- the key is removing the "fight or flight" instinct from kids ... at least while they're in school.

4:01 PM PT -- Ice Cube, who starred in "Boyz n the Hood" just gave us an emotional statement on John's passing, saying, "Thank you John for being my friend, brother and mentor for 30 years. For believing in me when I was unsure of myself. Your passion for telling our stories from our point of view was more than an obsession, it was your mission in life."

Cube continues, "Your love for the black experience was contagious and I would never be the man I am without knowing you. On April 29, 1992 you were on TV warning the world what was to come. I'm sad today, cause on this April 29th who will warn the world what's to come. I love you and miss you already brother."

"Boyz n the Hood" was Cube's first major role in film.

John Singleton, the first African American nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director -- whose decorated career spanned nearly three decades in Hollywood -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

A Singleton family rep says he passed "peacefully, surrounded by his family and friends." The news comes more than a week after the famed director suffered a massive stroke. As we first reported ... John's mom, Shelia Ward, filed legal docs asking the judge to appoint her temporary conservator because he was "unable to properly provide for his personal needs for physical health, food, clothing, or shelter." He had been in a coma in ICU at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A.

The "Boyz n the Hood" director suffered the stroke 12 days ago after returning from Costa Rica and experiencing problems with his legs. He checked himself into Cedars where he suffered a stroke on April 17 in his hospital room.

John directed 9 films ... including "Poetic Justice," "Higher Learning," "Four Brothers" and "2 Fast 2 Furious." He also has several high-profile producer credits to his name ... including the critically acclaimed film "Hustle & Flow." He co-created the FX hit series "Snowfall" and directed episodes of "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story" as well as "Empire" and "Billions."

John's burst to stardom came just 2 years after he graduated from USC. He was only 24 years old when he made his directorial debut ... and the world noticed, earning him an Oscar nomination in 1992 for Best Director. He also earned a nomination for Best Original Screenplay.

He heavily guarded the project from start to finish ... only allowing the 'Breakfast Club' director John Hughes to read his script. Raised in South Central L.A. and coupled with the fact 'Boyz' was set in the same area -- John refused to let anyone else direct his film.

The move paid off ... because in 2002 it was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.

John's family said, "Like many African Americans, Singleton quietly struggled with hypertension. More than 40% of African American men and women have high blood pressure, which also develops earlier in life and is usually more severe. His family wants to share the message with all to please recognize the symptoms by going to Heart.org."

The family also revealed something we didn't know. He kayaked in Marina del Rey every morning. They also said his greatest joy other than making movies was sailing his boat, J's Dream, up and down the Pacific Coast.

The family added, "We who have grown up with John, made movies with him, sailed with John and laughed with John, know the universe of calm and creativity he created for so many. Now in the wake of his death, we must navigate the storm without him. It is, for us, heartbreaking."

John was married only once ... to Ghanaian actress Akosua Gyamama Busia in October 1996. They divorced a year later. He's survived by his mom and 7 children.

John was 51.

RIP

1:00 PM PT -- Larry's publicist says the talk show host suffered an angina attack and did not suffer a heart attack or go into cardiac arrest, after which he underwent a successful angioplasty. However, our sources are clear -- doctors told Larry's wife, Shawn, that he DID suffer a mild heart attack and there were proteins in his blood -- a clear sign of a heart attack.

Larry King suffered a heart attack last Thursday after going into cardiac arrest ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us, Larry had been having difficulty breathing for months and was scheduled to check himself into the hospital Thursday for an angiogram.

We're told while he was at home getting ready to go to the hospital, he went into cardiac arrest. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where doctors performed an angioplasty. They opened up an artery that had collapsed and inserted several stents.

The 85-year-old talk show legend was put in the cardiac intensive care unit and we're told he's expected to be released Monday.

Larry had been seeing doctors over the last 6 months for the breathing problems but we're told they did not diagnose the severity of the underlying problem. This photo was taken late last month when Larry was leaving the doctor's office.

Larry has had heart issues for 30 years. He's had 2 heart attacks but has remained vibrant.

10:10 AM PT -- John's family just released this ... "It is with heavy hearts we announce that our beloved son, father and friend, John Daniel Singleton will be taken off life support today. This was an agonizing decision, one that our family made, over a number of days, with the careful counsel of John's doctors."

The family's statement also reveals John "quietly struggled with hypertensions. More than 40% of African-American men and women have high blood pressure, which also develops earlier in life and is usually more severe."

John's family encouraged his fans to recognize symptoms and visit heart.org for more information.

John Singleton is still alive, contrary to reports Monday morning, but it does not look good.

John's publicist tells us the famed director is alive and on life support at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. We're told John is still in a medically-induced coma and is non-responsive and not getting better.

TMZ broke the story ... John suffered a stroke at Cedars 12 days ago ... this after checking himself into the hospital because of pain in one of his legs.

The "Boyz n the Hood" director has not responded to treatment and his condition is dire ... after what his mother, Shelia Ward, characterized as a major stroke.

In the middle of all of this, there's a family war over control of John's estate. Shelia has asked a judge to appoint her temporary conservator to handle his business affairs, while one of his daughters, Cleopatra, is trying to block the conservatorship, claiming Shelia is trying to fleece the estate and freeze out his 7 children.

Originally Published -- 6:26 AM PT

Singer Peabo Bryson suffered a mild heart attack over the weekend and is currently in the hospital ... TMZ has learned.

A rep for Peabo tells TMZ ... the Grammy-winning balladeer was at his home in Georgia early Saturday morning when he suffered the mild heart attack. We're told Peabo's currently responsive and both his medical team and family are optimistic he'll make a speedy recovery.

The rep tells us, "At this time, privacy is requested; however, the thoughts and prayers of friends and fans are welcomed and appreciated.”

Peabo, of course, won two Grammy Awards in 1992, one for his performance of the song "Beauty and the Beast" with Celine Dion and another in 1993 for "A Whole New World" with Regina Belle. The "Aladdin" theme song was so huge back in the day ... it toppled Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" from Billboard's Hot 100 chart in March 1993. Both tracks also took home Oscars for Best Original Song.

John Singleton's mother is holding her own in a fierce family battle for control of his estate -- as he lies in a coma -- and it's all about who gets access to what, and most importantly ... when.

Sources connected with the Singleton family tell TMZ ... Shelia Ward is not only up against John's daughter, Cleopatra ... but also his current girlfriend, and his estranged father.

As we reported, Cleopatra filed a motion last week, attempting to block her grandmother's proposed conservatorship, and claimed Shelia was trying to liquidate all of John's assets and freeze out his 7 children. She also insisted her father was not in a coma and was improving every day.

We're told family insiders think Cleopatra made the move based on her fears about having access to Singleton's estate -- reportedly worth somewhere north of $35 million -- but also when she'll get it. We're told she thinks Shelia will make it impossible for her, and others in the family, to gain access to Singleton's money.

Our sources say Singleton absolutely remains in a coma -- albeit a medically induced one -- but everyone in the family remains hopeful he'll recover.

As for Cleopatra's concerns about Shelia controlling the estate? Another fact is ... John's mother is his longtime business manager, so it would seem to make perfect sense she handle his professional decisions ... and we're told that's why she filed for the conservatorship.

We're told Shelia is denying any plot to cut off John's children from his estate.

Still, Cleopatra's mistrust is clear in that she's suggesting John's son, Maasai or his father, Danny be appointed conservators instead of Shelia. We're told Danny is fully in Cleopatra's camp ... as is Singleton's current GF, with whom he reportedly has a 1-year-old son.

We reached out to Singleton's camp for comment, but no word back. Ditto for Cleopatra.

A judge's ruling is expected soon on who will call the shots as John's conservator while he remains incapacitated.

Before he was Captain Robert Sullivan, he was crushin' kids on the tennis court ... and actor Boris Kodjoe tells TMZ Sports he was so good, he could've been one of the best players in the world!!!

We spoke with the "Station 19" actor at LAX about his love for the sport ... and asked him straight-up if he had what it takes to make a career out of it if he wanted to.

As it turns out ... Kodjoe is a freakin' beast ... and says he was ranked in the top 10 at the junior level, went on to play at Virginia Commonwealth University in the '90s on tennis scholarship for 4 years.