Celebrity Health

IndyCar driver Robert Wickens was just taken to a hospital by helicopter after a horrifying crash he was involved in on the track ... which sent him and his vehicle spiraling.

Wickens was racing Sunday at Pocono Raceway in Pennsylvania for the ABC Supply 500 Series when he tried passing another driver, Ryan Hunter-Reay, on lap 6 ... but bumped him instead, and got launched into the air and against the side fence in a terrifying collision.

According to IndyCar Series' official Twitter account, Wickens was awake and alert as he was being transported to nearby Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest. At least 4 other drivers involved in the wreck were reportedly being treated on the scene as well.

The rest of the race is currently delayed, but it's expected to resume as soon as debris is cleared from the track.

Alt-rock band The Used has some major issues to work out with ex-guitarist Justin Shekoski.

The band got a temporary restraining order against Justin -- 'cause of some threatening texts he sent after being fired -- but that order expired and the judge just rejected the band's request to make the order permanent ... citing a lack of evidence.

But, the beef isn't over.

Justin is still PISSED ... denying he made real threats, adding the band owes him money and recognition for his contributions to the group.

Shekoski doesn't deny sending text messages threatening he'd hang himself during a show -- but claims he wasn't serious about it and was just venting over the band's treatment toward him.

Shonda Rhimes hasn't had a misstep in her career, which is more than can be said about a world-renowned physician who tripped and fell in front of her house, and now the good doc is suing her.

Dr. Kuo Chao claims in a new lawsuit, he was jogging past Shonda's Hancock Park mansion in L.A. back in June 2017, when he tripped over a buckling sidewalk in front of the 8,400 square foot home.

He says he broke his wrist, damaged cartilage and lost range of motion and function in his wrist and arm, which has caused limited mobility and loss of strength and stamina. He also says he has lost "fine motor skills." He says he was unable to work for a long time and it still affects his ability to work.

Dr. Chao says he is a prestigious interventional neuroradiologist -- he treats stroke and aneurysm patients. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Yale.

As for why Dr. Chao says Shonda's responsible, he says she had an obligation to fix the sidewalk, which buckled due to pipes, tree roots and botched repairs. He's also suing the City of L.A.

Dr. Chao is asking for unspecified damages.

Aretha Franklin died as the result of pancreatic cancer ... according to her death certificate.

The doc says the Queen of Soul died at 9:50 AM on August 16, 2018.

The death certificate also says Aretha will be entombed at Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit, the same place Rosa Parks is buried.

The document lists her occupation as Singer/Song Writer.

As we reported ... Aretha passed away in her Detroit home Thursday surrounded by friends and family. She'd been in failing health for many months and was under hospice care.

Her family is planning a 4-day celebration of her life with an open casket public memorial at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, followed by her funeral at Greater Grace Temple just for close friends and family.

Bethenny Frankel's late boyfriend, Dennis Shields, was able to utter a few words to EMTs and police before he died -- and they paint a clearer picture of how he passed.

Sources say Dennis told the responding EMTs and cops he'd taken some of his prescribed oxycodone as well as Vicodin and a sleeping pill ... all to ease the pain from a back injury.

Doctors warn that opioids should never be taken with sleeping pills or other sedatives. Opioids slow respiratory function and sleeping pills do the same. The two combined can have a dangerous, synergistic effect that could result in death.

As we reported, Dennis' assistant had administered 2 doses of Narcan before authorities arrived. They administered an additional dose of Narcan, but Dennis could not be saved.

Our law enforcement sources say police also found numerous prescription bottles scattered throughout his apartment ... although no illicit drugs nor drug paraphernalia were uncovered.

Bethenny attended Dennis' funeral service earlier this week and dissolved in tears. She paid tribute to both Dennis and her deceased dog, Cookie, on IG.

Elon Musk lost it during an interview as he talked about Ambien use, exhaustion and isolation.

Musk boomeranged from laughter to tears during an interview with the NY Times. He acknowledged using Ambien, saying, "It is often a choice of no sleep or Ambien." Members of the Tesla Board of Directors have worried Elon doesn't sleep after taking Ambien ... he tweets, and it has caused the company problems ... most recently when he tweeted he wanted to take the company private.

The Times went on to claim some board members believed Musk occasionally used recreational drugs.

He went on to say he's constantly exhausted because of his workload and it's compromised his health. He claims he works up to 120 hours a week and has not taken more than a week off in 17 years. The last time he was off the clock for more than a week ... 2001, when he had malaria.

Musk, who turned 47 in June, said he spent the entire day and night of his birthday at work ... "All night -- no friends, nothing."

Nichelle Nichols is spry and lucid, and doesn't need to be controlled by a bunch of people who don't have her best interests at heart -- including her son-- so says a woman claiming to be her close friend.

According to new legal docs filed by Angelique Fawcette ... the 'Star Trek' icon's son, Kyle Johnson, doesn't really care about Nichols' well-being ... she says he's trying to use her health issues as an excuse to gain possession of her riches.

Fawcette claims Nichelle even wrote a note to her son in March 2017, letting him know she wants to amend her will because he allegedly told her ... "I can't wait to get rid of this sh*t and sell [your] house and property."

As for Nichols' recent dementia diagnosis ... Fawcette says it's not credible because the doctor who diagnosed is not a psychiatrist and lacks necessary qualifications. And, Fawcette says she's consistently observed Nichelle performing daily activities with no issues ... she just needs occasional reminders to pay her bills.

We broke the story ... Johnson claimed his mother needed court-ordered protection because people were taking advantage of her. A judge signed off on a conservatorship.

Fawcette claims it's all a ruse set up by Nichols' son, so he can get his hands on her money. She says Nichelle's doing just fine and wants to keep living her life and handling her own business ... and her 2013 video interview with Nichols is more proof.

Ex-NHL superstar Bryan Berard -- the 1st overall pick in the '95 Draft -- is suing the NHL claiming the league failed to protect him from brain injuries during his 12-year career.

The lawsuit is similar to the ones pro football players filed against the NFL -- essentially saying the NHL concealed the risks of traumatic brain injuries resulting from pro hockey and failing to take adequate steps to protect the players.

In his suit, Berard says he sustained "repetitive brain injuries" during his career and now has serious medical problems as a result.

Berard says the NHL had a duty to "cease their patent glorification of, and profiting from, fist-fighting and violence in the league"

He adds, "The time has come for the NHL to not only care for those former players on whose backs and brains the League reaped billions of dollars, but also finally to put long-term player safety over profit."

In his suit, Berard says he suffered at least 5 concussions and became blind in one eye during his career (though the blindness was due to a hockey stick to the eye from a 2000 game).

He's suing for unspecified damages.

Berard's suit says he's also filing in memory of "the late Jeff Parker, a former NHL player who was posthumously diagnosed with having Stage 3 CTE."

Even cancer couldn't drain Aretha Franklin's optimism ... and the Queen of Soul was looking forward to getting back on the mic, as late as last week ... so says the producer of her upcoming biopic.

Aretha was intimately involved in the pre-production of her biopic, spending hours with producer Harvey Mason Jr.

Harvey says Aretha has signed off on the perfect person to play her ... Jennifer Hudson, who has the pipes and the acting cred to pull off the role.

The movie centers around Aretha's journey to discover her true voice and who she wanted to be as an artist. The film doesn't have a release date and there are no plans to speed the production in the wake of Aretha's passing.

The Montreal Alouettes have placed Johnny Manziel in the concussion protocol following a massive hit he took on Saturday -- though the QB says it's Rx medication that's making him feel off.

Manziel took a monster shot at the goal line in Saturday's game against the Ottawa Redblacks -- his body went limp, he fumbled the ball and looked woozy after the play. However, he stayed in the game.

Manziel missed practice on Tuesday and Wednesday and now the team has issued a statement saying the QB has medical concerns.

"On Tuesday morning Johnny Manziel mentioned to our medical staff that he felt symptoms that could be associated with the prescribed medication he uses for a previously diagnosed medical condition."

FYI, Manziel has previously stated that he takes medication for bipolar disorder.

However, it's clear the team believes Manziel's condition may not be solely related to the meds -- suggesting he may have suffered a concussion in Saturday's game.

"In view of the hit he received on Saturday and the potential mitigating side effects of his prescribed medication, the Alouettes medical staff has placed Manziel under the CFL concussion protocol for further observation and precautionary reasons."

"Manziel will be closely observed and assessed over the next few days."

Quadruple platinum singer Khalid tells TMZ ... Aretha Franklin will be remembered as a strong woman who's accomplished so much -- and will forever be known as the "Queen of Soul."

Remember, there was a controversy about Aretha's royal title a while back -- when Beyonce called Tina Turner the "Queen" at the 2008 Grammys.

Aretha -- who's been called the Queen of Soul since the '60s -- was so pissed at the time, she issued a statement saying, "I am not sure of whose toes I may have stepped on or whose ego I may have bruised between the Grammy writers and Beyonce. However, I dismissed it as a cheap shot for controversy."

BEAST!!!

Here's Matt Stafford's very pregnant wife, Kelly Stafford, gymin' for 2 in Detroit this week -- rippin' off set after set while 38 weeks preggo!!!

Kelly (who's pregnant with baby #3) hit up Elite Training USA and crushed everything from the battle ropes to the weight sled and even some modified deadlifts!!!

Kelly is calling the routine, "Operation GET BABY OUT."

Meanwhile, Matt's working pretty hard too -- gearing up for the NFL season with the Detroit Lions.

Kelly is technically due in 2 weeks -- but she's at full term now and clearly she's ready to celebrate a birthday.

Jada Pinkett Smith's new friend is a shredded 72-year-old bodybuilder who is fit to DESTROY Will Smith ... in a push-up contest!!

We talked to Dr. Josefina Monasterio whose determination for body wellness is giving Jada all the feels. We're not sure big Willy will feel the same way as his wife though, now that Josefina's calling him out and challenging him in the gym.

Check it out ... the good doctor has more than push-ups in mind for Will -- and says now that she has Jada's digits, it won't be easy for Will to dodge her challenge.

If you're wondering how she and Jada connected -- Jada recently reposted one of Josefina's videos to her Instagram feed. Some of Jada's fans mistook Josefina for Jada's mom, Adrienne Banfield-Jones (she's not) ... they're both super fit. Anyway, they both set the record straight with a FaceTime hookup.

Demi Lovato's near-death OD began at 4 AM July 24, when she texted a drug dealer to come to her house ... sources tell TMZ.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us, Demi had been at a party in WeHo following a birthday celebration at Saddle Ranch on the Sunset Strip. After the drug dealer got the text, he came to her house and we're told the 2 of them freebased Oxycodone on tin foil.

Our sources say unbeknownst to Demi, the drug dealer had a bad habit of buying dirty drugs from Mexico ... and the batch in question appeared to be laced with fentanyl -- that's the same drug that killed Prince and Lil Peep.

We're told the dealer fled her home when he noticed she was in bed, breathing very heavily.

Our sources say Demi had been using the dealer since April.

TMZ broke the story ... someone on Demi's staff found her around 11:30 AM on the 24th. She had to be revived with Narcan.

Demi was hospitalized for 2 weeks and then went to an out-of-state rehab facility. Last Friday, she and her mom flew to Chicago for a few days where she received treatment from a renowned addiction specialist.

Great news for Leonys Martin ... the Cleveland Indians outfielder is expected to make a full recovery just days after being hospitalized with a life-threatening bacterial infection.

Martin was placed on the 10-day disabled list last week after falling ill. He complained that he wasn't feeling well, but clearly didn't know the seriousness of the situation at the time. Doctors later discovered Martin had a bacterial infection that had entered his bloodstream and was causing his organs to shut down.

The Tribe released an update on Martin's health on Tuesday ... saying he's "made considerable progress and is currently in stable condition."

"The medical team is optimistic that he will make a full recovery, but progress is expected to be slow," the team says.

"The collective focus is to help Leonys return to full health, and there have been no considerations regarding a timeline for his return to baseball activities."

8:55 AM PT -- Jax just replied to our story, saying, "Come on it’s kind of funny, wasn’t trying to be a dick. It happens to be best of us. Drake should make a song though 'started at the top now we here'. Maybe next album?"

"Vanderpump Rules" star Jax Taylor took glee in watching Younes Bendjima slum it like all the normies after Kourtney Kardashian dumped his ass.

Jax posted this photo Monday night at an L.A. gym, as Younes contemplated his water bottle and his next exercise.

TMZ broke the story ... Kourtney pulled the plug on her relationship with the 25-year-old model last month ...shortly after their trip to Italy.