Celebrity Health

The NHL is damn near 100% vaccination status -- with commissioner Gary Bettman announcing just 4 players league-wide have not received the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Commish shared the big news prior to the start of the 2021-22 season on Tuesday ... applauding the "great collaboration and cooperation" between the players and players' association.

"Our vaccination rate is incredible," Bettman said. "4 players, not 4% of players. All of our officials are vaccinated. All of the personnel that come into contact with the players are vaccinated."

FYI, there are 32 NHL teams with roughly 23 players on each squad. That's 736 players ... and again, only 4 aren't vaxxed.

Bettman gushes over the whole league's efforts throughout the pandemic ... saying everyone was on board over the past 2 years -- including the bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton, where there was not a single positive COVID-19 test.

"Everybody banded together to do the right thing," Bettman added. "Maybe that's why hockey is the ultimate team sport."

The league is still dealing with some issues surrounding the virus, however -- San Jose Sharks star Evander Kane is reportedly under investigation for allegedly submitting a bogus COVID-19 vaccine card.

On top of that, several Seattle Kraken players were placed in COVID-19 protocol before getting cleared to play in the franchise's first-ever game.

Kyrie Irving will not be allowed to play or practice for the Nets until his COVID vaccine situation is resolved, the team announced Tuesday.

Brooklyn general manager Sean Marks said in a statement that unless Irving gets vaccinated or the NBA provides him an exemption ... the star point guard will be barred from the team.

"Given the evolving nature of the situation and after thorough deliberation, we have decided Kyrie Irving will not play or practice with the team until he is eligible to be a full participant," Marks said.

"Kyrie has made a personal choice, and we respect his individual right to choose. Currently the choice restricts his ability to be a full-time member of the team, and we will not permit any member of our team to participate with part-time availability."

Irving has not commented publicly on his choice to avoid the vaccine -- he told his followers on social media last month that was a "private" matter -- but he's made it clear through social media activity that he is, in fact, anti-vax.

Of course, due to New York City mandates, in order to play games and practice in NYC, players are required to be vaccinated.

So far, Irving has missed all of the team's workouts in NYC as well as the Nets' preseason games over the vaccine choice ... and it's now clear he won't be a part of any of the team's activities moving forward unless something gives.

"It is imperative that we continue to build chemistry as a team and remain true to our long-established values of togetherness and sacrifice," Marks said.

"Our championship goals for the season have not changed, and to achieve these goals, each member of our organization must pull in the same direction."

It's been reported that Irving -- who's in the middle of a 4-year, $136,490,600 contract -- stands to lose MILLIONS based on the decision.

Wendy Williams is stepping away from her show after experiencing "serious complications" as a direct result of Graves' Disease and her thyroid condition.

"The Wendy Williams Show" announced Tuesday that while Wendy's making progress ... she's not 100% ready to return to her hosting duties due to her immune system disorder. Wendy continues to be under medical supervision and meets with her medical team on a daily basis.

That being said ... the show says it's been determined more time is needed before Wendy's able to return.

In the interim, the popular daytime program will start airing original shows on Monday ... "with an exciting lineup of guest hosts and panels to be announced shortly."

A statement from the show added, "Wendy is a valued and stalwart member of the Debmar-Mercury family and has been so for 12 years. We want her health to be her top priority. As soon as she's ready, she will be back in her treasured purple chair."

As we previously reported ... Wendy was taken to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation. We were told she was voluntarily admitted to an NYC hospital last month. On top of all of that, Wendy also had COVID but, thankfully, she was asymptomatic.

Wendy's 13th season was set to premiere Sept. 20, and while the new season will kick off in less than a week ... it's clear now Wendy won't be taking part for the time being.

Smash Mouth's lead singer is calling it quits after his shot at one final show went off the rails ... because he says health challenges have become too much for him.

Steve Harwell tells TMZ he's retiring, saying ... "Ever since I was a kid, I dreamed of being a Rockstar performing in front of sold-out arenas and have been so fortunate to live out that dream. To my bandmates, it’s been an honor performing with you all these years and I can’t think of anyone else I would have rather gone on this wild journey with."

His decision comes after video of the band's performance this weekend in upstate New York went viral due to Steve's behavior on stage ... in which he slurred his words, yelled at the audience and at times seemed completely disassociated with the event.

A source close to the band tells us ... Steve knew it was time to hang it up after the show, because it's impossible for him to keep performing as his health continues to deteriorate.

We're told he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy 8 years ago, which has led to other medical setbacks like heart failure and Wernicke's encephalopathy ... a condition that impacts his motor functions, including speech and memory. He's also battled substance abuse over the years, which is further contributing to his health crisis.

Our sources say Steve was going through an episode during the live show, and it greatly impacted how he felt, at times not even understanding his surroundings.

Steve says ... "To our loyal and amazing fans, thank you, all of this was possible because of you. I’ve tried so hard to power through my physical and mental health issues, and to play in front of you one last time, but I just wasn't able to."

He adds that he's incredibly grateful to everyone who's contributed to Smash Mouth's success over the years, and to "those who have kept 'All Star' relevant as one of the top memes on the internet today."

Steve concludes, "I cannot wait to see what Smash Mouth accomplishes next and am looking forward to counting myself as one of the band’s newest fans."

Tommy Pham is finally revealing what his back looked like the night he was stabbed at a strip club in San Diego ... and it's GRUESOME.

The Padres star remembered the one-year anniversary of his stabbing by posting a photo of his slash wound ... and you can see, the 33-year-old is clearly lucky to still be alive today.

The picture shows Pham was gashed by a blade from the back of his right hip all the way to the back of his left hip -- leaving a deep, bloody wound.

As we previously reported, Pham was stabbed after he got into an altercation with several people in the parking lot at Pacers Showgirls International on Oct. 11, 2020 ... and he says he needed 200 stitches to close the wound.

Pham -- who ended up suing the club over the incident, claiming its employees and security didn't do enough to help protect him -- ultimately made a full recovery and played well in 2021.

The outfielder logged time in 155 games, hitting 15 home runs and stealing 14 bases ... and based on his social media post Monday, it's obvious he's proud of what he overcame.

Fuquan Johnson may very well be alive today if there was an effective way to screen drugs he took for fentanyl -- and it's something that shouldn't be ignored ... so says his own mom.

The comedian's mother, Paulene Johnson, tells TMZ ... she's 100% in favor of fentanyl strips being used, and firmly believes her son might still be breathing right now if he had access to some on the night he and two others overdosed and perished from fentanyl-laced cocaine.

We should note, Paulene is NOT advocating for recreational drug use -- even telling us she wasn't aware Fuquan partook himself beyond weed -- but she acknowledges the reality ... that people are going to dabble, and if so -- why not be safe about it?

She believes folks who do hard drugs are stuck between a rock and a hard place in an OD sitch ... fearful of incriminating themselves by calling cops. With that said, Paulene says fentanyl strips could be a good alternative for users looking to avoid that entire scene.

Paulene says parties need to be made safer by any means necessary -- and if fentanyl strips are a viable option to prevent deaths, she's all for it.

As she sadly notes to us ... she buried her son last month, and shouldn't have had to.

TMZ broke the story ... Fuquan was one of three comedians who OD'd and died at a party in Venice -- this after cops believe they ingested coke laced with the deadly opioid. Kate Quigley, the 4th comedian who also overdosed, survived the ordeal ... and is on the road to recovery.

Dog the Bounty Hunter's leaving Florida empty-handed and hurt-footed after spending more than 2 weeks hunting for Brian Laundrie ... TMZ has learned.

A rep for Dog tells TMZ ... he injured his ankle in rugged terrain during his search for Gabby Petito's fiance -- still the main person of interest in her death.

We're told the notorious bounty hunter wants to see his regular doctor in Colorado for his injury ... so he's heading back there now.

Dog's rep says he's not giving up on his mission just yet though -- he's still raising funds to help the team he's put together to continue searching for Laundrie.

We're told the team consists of a talented group of Florida locals who will continue the manhunt ... and Dog will stay connected and keep going after leads as much as he can in CO.

As we reported ... Dog joined the extensive search for Laundrie in late Sept. and claimed he was hot on his tail, only to leave everyone waiting for an actual capture.

He certainly seemed dead set on finding him though ... wading through a swamp to track a lead and even cancelling a public appearance to focus more on the search.

Kate Quigley says she's getting back to her old self as her recovery from a near-fatal overdose -- spurred by fentanyl-laced cocaine -- continues ... which begs the question ... why don't more people know about (or use) strips that can detect the lethal poison?

The comedian recently posted an update on her journey back to normal, suggesting she was getting some sort of rehab done down in Mexico ... where she thanked everyone who'd helped her thus far get back to the old Kate everyone knows and loves.

It's an encouraging sign for sure -- but the deaths of Fuquan Johnson, Rico Angeli and Natalie Williamson still linger ... and with the advent of fentanyl strips -- which have been on the market for at least a couple years or so -- it makes one wonder if they could've made a difference here.

If you're unfamiliar ... these strips come exactly as advertised. They're able to be applied to just about any drug and like a litmus test ... can tell you if the narcotics have the opioid or not. While not always 100% effective, they do seem to work more often than not ... and are sometimes distributed to drug users. Although, not nearly as much as they should be.

Whether it's simply a lack of awareness or a taboo issue ... you really don't hear about these strips being talked about. And yet, they're out there ... and can absolutely save lives.

In fact, USC students have recently started to dabble in this ... forming a delivery service specifically for this -- among other drug resources -- to help protect the "naïve drug user." The strips are only a penny a pop, so they're certainly affordable ... and now widely available to students on campus who may be experimenting.

That's California ... but it looks like there are a handful of states across the country that take a different approach to this -- essentially outlawing these strips because they're viewed as "paraphernalia" ... perpetuating the old "Just Say No" D.A.R.E. mentality, which is antiquated.

Tiger Woods is off crutches and walking without a limp ... new video, obtained by TMZ Sports, shows.

The golf legend was out in Port St. Lucie, FL. watching his son, Charlie, play in a junior tournament Sunday ... and Woods was moving around the course without much issue at all.

A witness tells us Tiger -- who is still wearing a sleeve on his surgically repaired right leg -- was in great spirits, alternating between walking holes and riding around in a golf cart for others.

We're told Tiger was speaking with fans throughout the tournament ... thanking them for encouraging words while he was following Charlie around the track.

Of course, the images are a very positive sign for Woods ... considering they're the first time since his Feb. 2021 accident that he's been seen without any sort of walking aid.

As we previously reported, Woods horrifically injured his leg in a rollover car crash in Los Angeles ... suffering comminuted open fractures that required a rod, screws and pins to fix.

As late as July, Woods was still using crutches to help get around.

Jamie Lynn Spears has something to get off her chest -- but prefers that we read about it ... and the timing seems to be anything but coincidental as it relates to her sister.

The one-time Nickelodeon child star -- and famous sibling to one Britney Spears -- just announced she's got a new book that's about to hit shelves ... which she calls "Things I Should Have Said." Hmmm, interesting title ... go on.

JLS explains the project -- which has apparently been in the works for a few years now -- this way ... "Back In 2017, after Maddie’s life changing accident, I felt a strong conviction to share my story, but there was a lot of personal work and healing that had to happen before I could share my truth the proper way."

She goes on to say that she's felt pressure her whole life to be perfect, even though she says she's far from it ... and adds this book will touch on her own mental health struggles.

There appears to be a shot at her family embedded in here, and perhaps a direct tie to Britney's conservatorship sitch -- with Jamie Lynn saying that instead of glossing over these problems "like (she) was taught to" ... she's being radically honest on the pages before her.

Jamie Lynn finishes by saying that she's still got a lot of learning to do, but hopes this book can help people who've lost their voice ... and who are trying to break unhealthy cycles in their own lives. She also says the proceeds are being donated to a nonprofit called This Is My Brave, which encourages folks who suffer from mental illness to share their stories.

Granville Adams -- famous for his ongoing role as Zahir Arif in "Oz" -- has died after a battle with cancer.

His costar, Kirk Acevedo, made the announcement Sunday ... writing, "I lost my brotha today after a long battle with cancer. I don’t do well with loss because I'm unfamiliar with it." He adds, "Yo Granny we'll be chopping it up on the other side one day. Until then… Rest easy my friend."

Adams appeared to announce his diagnosis back in December of last year, posting a photo of himself in a hospital bed, looking ill, and captioning it ... "F*** CANCER!"

His "Oz" family started a GoFundMe on his behalf shortly thereafter, explaining that the guy's hospital bills were mounting for both him and his family ... asking the public for help. At the time, they wrote ... "In this quarter alone, the unpaid bills have piled up to $69,550. We want to gather together and show Granville our love by clearing this quarter’s bills, giving Granville concrete support in his fight against this vicious disease."

The GFM also notes that Adams hadn't been able to work over the past year (2020) and that all funds would be donated directly to his loved ones. As of this writing, it's reached nearly $100k in contributions.

Like we said, GA is perhaps best known for appearing on 48 episodes of the hit HBO show, first appearing as a guest and then a recurring supporting role until it went off the air in 2003. Adams played Arif -- a Muslim inmate who served as a lieutenant to Kareem Said.

Adams had a few other acting credits under his belt ... including roles in "Homicide: Life on the Streets," the movie "Empire" and "Magic City Memoirs."

Granville is survived by his wife, Christina. He was 58.

Chumlee is a whole new man ... after practically losing an entire man's weight.

The guy from "Pawn Stars" tells TMZ ... he was tired of struggling with his weight, which constantly fluctuated 100 pounds at a time. He says it had been a years-long battle and he felt it was time to make a drastic change after getting all the way up to 350 pounds in January 2019.

That dramatic change started the following month when he went in for gastric sleeve surgery ... a popular weight-loss procedure in which a large portion of the stomach is removed to create a smaller stomach pouch.

This, of course, reduces the quantity of food one can eat while making them feel fuller even when consuming less food. The stomach size is brought down to about the size of a banana.

As you can see, Chumlee's looking slim at 190 pounds now. He says he went through the 160-pound transformation because he wanted to not only get healthy, but stay healthy ... unlike his years of yo-yoing.

Chumlee, who got the procedure done at Blossom Bariatrics in Vegas, says now that he's slimmed down he's committed to maintaining his weight by embracing a lifestyle change ... eating clean, healthy food and getting his sweat on.

The battle between Mark Cuban and Cole Beasley over the COVID vaccine is still going strong ... 'cause the Dallas Mavericks owner tells TMZ Sports he's still pushing for the NFL star to get vaccinated.

The two have gone back on forth on social media for weeks over Beasley's anti-vax stance ... and when we got Cubes out in NYC this week, he reiterated he desperately wants the Bills player to get the shots.

"Cole's a good guy, but, you know," Mark said, "getting vaccinated isn't just about you, it's about everybody else as well."

Cuban tells us he believes getting the vaccine is necessary to help protect at-risk people from contracting COVID-19 ... and he REALLY wishes Beasley would change his stance.

"There's 16.9 million cancer survivors in this country," Cuban said. "Three million-plus people who are immuno-compromised. And, when you don't get vaccinated, it's not just about you. It's about other people as well."

Of course, Beasley has dug his feet firmly in the ground on not getting the vaccine ... saying earlier this summer, "I may die of COVID, but I'd rather die actually living."

Beasley has been booed even at home this year in Buffalo over his comments ... but he's remained staunch in his beliefs regardless.

Adele is returning to the big stage after a 6-year absence from music -- and if you were wondering if she's still got it in the vocals department ... here's confirmation that she does.

The singer previewed a snipped of her new forthcoming single, "Easy On Me," on IG Live this weekend ... playing a good 40 seconds of what seems to be the first verse and almost the hook. She cuts it off before it gets any better ... but the consensus is, so far so good.

The track is laced with a piano melody -- and Adele starts talking about how there's no gold in the river she's been washing her hands, but how she still maintains hope.

The song is also sung in the same soulful, operatic style that Adele has carved out for herself ... as she goes low, high and everything in between. This, of course, comes before she dives into what sounds to be a crescendo that'll probably top what we've heard here.

In other words ... Adele's pipes are still intact after years of no new music. If anything, she sounds as good as ever -- if not better. That's something people often wonder about when artists take long breaks from the scene when it comes to new studio sessions. Rihanna falls into that category ... Bieber recently did too, before coming out with his latest album.

Now, it's unclear if Adele was supposed to play this before the song's out next Friday ... because she (jokingly?) said her phone was blowing up, and that she was gonna get in trouble.

She's probably kidding ... and the snippet is likely part of a bigger marketing campaign to get buzz. Not that she needs it, really -- but hey, there's no such thing as bad pub for Adele. Especially when the product is as top-notch as this almost certainly promises to be.

Adele also took some fan questions ... and weighed in on #FreeBritney, Lana Del Rey and Harry Styles. She supports the first, loves the 2nd and thinks the 3rd is a "very sweet boy."

Kodak Black's doctors believe it would behoove the rapper to spend the final 30 days of his treatment at a facility outside of Florida ... so he's asking the court for permission to do so.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Kodak's physician and treatment specialist believe he would benefit from a program outside Florida. The location and details were not provided in the public documents for security reasons.

But, Kodak's team makes it clear ... his doctors think that for Kodak to have a better chance of success, he needs to be in a different environment for a period of time.

The request comes on the heels of some very alarming tweets from the rapper that quickly had fans worried about his mental health. He's since deleted all of his social media accounts but some tweets included, "Sitting In My Room Crying Feel Like Killing Myself."

He also wrote, "So Lonely Depressed Sad & F***** Up ... Nobody Love Me Nobody Cares ... I'm Everywhere @ Once ... Friends Playin In My Head ... Girls Playin Wit My Heart ... Wish I Can Go Back To The Start I'll Never Be Famous."

Kodak's legal team is now asking for the court's permission to join an out-of-state residential treatment facility for the last 30 days of his court-ordered residential program.

Kodak's attorney, Bradford Cohen, tells TMZ ... they'd love to move Kodak to a different state if and when probation agrees. He wouldn't say which state they have in mind.

We asked Cohen about Kodak's failed drug test and about Kodak's concerning tweets but he declined to comment.

As we first reported ... Kodak violated the terms of his supervised release in his federal gun case by failing a drug test. He was ordered to get treatment. He's currently in treatment now ... but his doctors want him to spend the last 30 days at an out-of-state facility.

The Brooklyn Nets are poised to win an NBA championship with or without Kyrie Irving this season ... so says Charles Oakley, who tells TMZ Sports the star's availability won't derail the team's title hopes.

Of course, Irving -- who is not vaccinated -- could miss more than half of the season due to COVID vaccine mandates in NYC and California ... which has folks like Shaq saying the Nets should get rid of him.

Oakley doesn't think KI's absence will be that big of a deal, though ... after all, it helps they still have Kevin Durant and James Harden.

"I think they can still win it with him playing this way," Oakley said on TMZ Live this week.

"You still have James Harden and KD -- 2 of the top 5 best players in the league."

Oakley -- who's coming out with his own cooking show, "Chopping It Up with Oakley," added, "They wasn't healthy last year, so you think if James Harden comes back healthy this year with KD healthy, they still can win it even if Kyrie play only half of the season."

Besides missing playing time, KI is gonna lose a TON of money -- $380k per game!

So, we asked the NY Knicks legend if he was on the Nets would he talk to the point guard about his decision ... he says he would but at the end of the day -- "he's a grown man."

"He knows he losing 300, 400 thousand a game and it's not about the money. We see that."

"He believe what he believe in."