Humor

Nick Cannon is praising Kevin Hart for not letting the Motion Picture Academy subjugate him.

We got Nick in NYC Tuesday night, and he was squarely on Kevin's side. As you know, Hart refused to follow the Academy's ultimatum to apologize for his homophobic comments ... or else.

Nick then addressed his comments about others who used the f-word and suffered no real consequences ... in particular Sarah Silverman, Amy Schumer and Chelsea Handler. He says it is clear evidence of a double standard, although point of fact ... they weren't hosting the Oscars.

And, wait till you hear Nick's review of the United States of America ... harsh for sure.

By now, Julia Roberts is totally used to media outlets sucking up to her, but an Upstate NY newspaper took it to the next level -- inadvertently -- with a headline praising her holes.

Seriously ... this is NOT photoshopped.

The Post-Journal in Jamestown, NY topped a Saturday article about Julia and her Amazon show, "Homecoming," with ... "Julia Roberts Finds Life And Her Holes Get Better With Age."

Awesome news for Julia, right?

Well, the paper copped to making a huge spelling error. It published a correction saying it was supposed to say her "Roles" are what's getting better.

Woulda been pretty awesome, though, if Julia actually said that in the interview! Makes ya wonder how they fact-checked that original headline, right?

In any event, doesn't seem like Julia's too bent outta shape about the error. One thing we know for sure is ... what Viv would have to say about all this.

Kanye West definitely ain't no Lil' Skateboard P -- aka Pharrell Williams, if you'll recall -- but it looks like he's interested in picking up some tricks of the trade ... like ollieing.

Ye was down in Miami, FL Sunday where he ran into skate videographer and Jenkem Magazine contributor Alex Raspa, who was quick to hop on the opportunity to teach the MC some moves after learning Kanye never learned how to ollie. It's skateboarding 101.

Alex's first tip for Kanye -- be comfortable, bro! He then shows Ye how to pop it up, slide the front foot up the board ... and try to get some air while landing back on the wheels.

Simple enough, right? Eh ... maybe not. Mr. West gives it a valiant effort, but he's no Tony Hawk. Gettin' close to Weezy status though! Kanye cruises a bit before making another ollie attempt ... getting praise from onlookers. But he tells 'em to hold their props for his "weak ass" tricks. It's big air or bust around these parts, apparently, for Yeezy.

Tony Rock says Kevin Hart stepping down as Oscars host is a sign of the times, and believes we'd all be better off if we could embrace "jokes" instead of being offended -- and in this case, he's talking specifically about gay people.

The comedian was outside the Hollywood Improv Thursday night after news broke Hart was bailing on the Academy Awards job following backlash over his old homophobic tweets. Tony thinks Kevin should have apologized AND stayed on as host because it's his best opportunity to flip the controversy into something positive.

He also thinks the LGBTQ community needs to be more accepting of jokes. He believes it's a sign of respect and acceptance. We'll let him explain further ... watch the clip.

Now, several of Hart's old tweets weren't really in the style of stand-up comedy -- they were just straight-up homophobic. It's unclear if Tony was aware of that when we spoke, but that might be why he thinks Kevin owed an apology.

Bottom line for Tony ... a society where you can't tell jokes freely isn't a good thing.

Michael Blackson's got a few interesting points about the fallout from Kevin Hart being chosen to host the Oscars, but he's certain, no matter what ... Kevin's gonna be just fine.

We got the comedian outside Boulevard3 in Hollywood Thursday night and asked about Kevin stepping down from hosting after being slammed for old homophobic tweets.

Blackson goes to bat for his buddy (they're back on good terms), telling us all black comics have said offensive things in the past -- even the legends -- and the Academy should have been well aware of that.

Blackson says the Oscars is just as at fault for this debacle, because it either offered Hart the job without looking up his past ... or ignored it. Either way, Mike feels Kev's response should have been enough to remedy the situation ... but no such luck.

The Ghanaian native also points out there was actually one perfect black comedian who never said anything wrong, and well ... look where he's at now.

Anyway, Michael's not worried about his friend ... because he says Hart's still rich and doesn't need the hosting gig.

Count Kevin Kline among the people who was totally fine with Kevin Hart hosting the Oscars, because he thinks it's time to cut him, and all comedians, some slack for jokes from the past.

The Academy Award-winning actor was leaving Michael's restaurant in NYC Thursday when we asked what he thought about KH landing the gig. This was several hours before Hart backed out of hosting -- but KK defended him against the backlash over old, but blatantly homophobic, tweets.

The way Kline sees it, stand-up comics have been mocking all groups -- gays, blacks, Jews and more -- for decades. He admits times are changing now, and comedians are too, but he was willing to give Hart a pass on his past remarks.

As you know, Hart posted a video Thursday, claiming he had evolved since the offending tweets, but did not apologize for them. Hours later he stepped down, saying he didn't want to be a distraction -- and, at that point, he did apologize for his "insensitive words from my past."

BTW ... Kline's stance on jokes from days of old might not be that shocking considering his own "In & Out" role from 1997. Would this scene be kosher today?

Michael Richards admits he hasn't always been great at dealing with hecklers -- duh -- but he's now dishing out advice to other stars in the hopes they can learn from his mistakes.

Remember, back in 2006 the "Seinfeld" star lost his mind on a heckler at the Laugh Factory -- dropping a bunch of n-bombs in a tirade that was captured on video.

He's apologized for the incident several times since then and even met with Jesse Jackson in the hopes of repairing his relationship with the black community.

So, with NBA players getting heckled like crazy by fans these days -- specifically Patrick Beverley and Kevin Durant -- we asked Richards if he had any words of wisdom.

"I didn't handle the heckler too good that evening," Richards told us.

But, he did advise the players to not feed into the trash-talkers -- even though it might be hard -- and try to focus on doing their jobs.

"Just remember, you're there to entertain people. Stay with the entertainment. We need it."

Ice Cube's gotta say it was NOT a good day when Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury's heavyweight championship fight ended in a split decision draw -- in fact, Cube's straight up pissed.

We got him storming out of L.A.'s Staples Center moments after the boxers fought to a 12 round tie, and he called the outcome "bulls**t" because he thinks Wilder was robbed.

True enough, Wilder did knock down Fury twice -- including in the 12th -- but he got up both times.

Just like the match ... opinions are split. We also talked to boxer Andre Berto leaving the bout and he thought the result was fair, and he's looking forward to a rematch.

Michael Rappaport, on the other hand, wanted more from Deontay.

Alec Baldwin must be feeling confident about the outcome of his attempted assault case in NYC ... 'cause he played it for laughs -- while playing President Trump -- on 'SNL.'

The opening skit was about Trump's anger over the Mueller probe and his ex-attorney Michael Cohen flipping. As Alec/Donald put it ... "God, I haven't been this upset since I flipped out over that parking space."

This was Alec's first appearance on the show since he got busted last month for trying to punch a guy who jacked his parking spot. Breaking character to poke fun at the case could be seen as a risky move.

Judges typically don't react well to that sort of thing -- however, the stakes ain't exactly high here. Alec's facing one count of attempted assault in the third degree, and one count of harassment in the second degree -- a misdemeanor and a ticket, basically.

Why not have some fun with it, right?

'SNL' also paid tribute to late President George H.W. Bush during the Weekend Update segment.

They pulled out some of Dana Carvey's best impressions of the 41st Prez -- including that memorable moment when they got the real Bush to challenge Carvey.

Sean Penn busted out his sense of humor all over his pal Bradley Cooper ... just in time for Bradley's huge Hollywood achievement.

BC was honored with the American Cinematheque Award Thursday night at The Beverly Hilton. The star-studded dinner featured plenty of tributes from his fellow actors and collaborators, but Sean's stood out because it included a pretty funny stroll down memory lane.

Sean started off his toast by telling the crowd something felt strangely familiar about this scenario ... which led perfectly into a viral clip of Cooper -- from almost 20 years ago -- as an aspiring actor asking Penn a question on "Inside the Actors Studio."

To be fair, the clip Sean showed was slightly doctored -- in the original, he answers Cooper's question about "Hurlyburly" right away ... but still pretty hilarious.

Sean did praise Bradley and labeled him one "handsome motherf**ker."

Hayden Panettiere came oh so close to getting hitched a second time ... at least, that's the way her new boyfriend made it appear to some unsuspecting bar bystanders.

We obtained this video of Hayden's bf, Brian Hickerson, getting down on one knee ... and it's hilarious.

Brian and HP were hanging at Rock & Reilly's on the Sunset Strip recently when, according to witnesses, he shouted, "Everyone shut the F up! I'm about to propose to my girlfriend."

Sure enough, he assumed the position, and we're told everyone thought they were about to see one of those classic rom-com moments. Then it got weird. Check out the video ... Brian definitely proposed. Just to the wrong person. Hey, at least it was an actress, and Hayden cracked up.

Sources close to the couple tell us Hayden bet Brian he couldn't make her laugh in 10 seconds. Brian even produced a ring -- a paper one, but still. And yes, he won the bet.

When we last saw Brian out with Hayden -- "saving" her from swarming paparazzi -- he mocked the paps and kidded he was her "gay pool boy."

Kevin Hart is taking over a gym in Philly for Mountain Dew in what appears to be a new ad for the green pop ... and a peek behind the scenes looks promising for laughs.

TMZ has obtained footage of Kevin at a Philadelphia Sports Clubs gym early Sunday morning, where cameras were rolling as he got a lesson from an employee on how to work the front desk. From the looks of it here, Kev's got it all under control.

He hilariously gives a blow-by-blow of what he plans to be doing behind the desk -- "I'ma get back here, and I'm gonna help people!" -- while the gym worker gives him a quick rundown on how to check first and last names. Simple enough ... go dew you, "Daniel."

Hard to tell if this is part of a bigger ad campaign by MD, but it wouldn't be surprising if it is. Kevin's done plenty of TV spots for Mountain Dew in the past ... most were pretty funny.

This is a fun, alcohol-fueled Thanksgiving video.

Ken Jeong was clearly in the Holiday spirit at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Melbourne, Australia, yelling something about "Hangover 4." Really?

Ken's always super fun and did not disappoint fans who were thrilled to take selfies with the doctor-turned-movie star.

They asked him about the possibility of a new installment of the hit flick, and then asked if a spinoff of his character, Mr. Chow, might be possible.

Truth be told, whatever Ken says in the video ... don't necessarily take it to the bank ... but a hangover might be a reality today.

Ken performed a comedy set earlier Wednesday at Hamer Hall. He's coming back to the U.S. to continue his stand-up tour which will continue through the New Year.

Kevin Hart tells us he wouldn't touch the White House Correspondent's Dinner with a 10-foot pole ... not even if comedians are ever allowed back as hosts.

We got the funny man Wednesday afternoon at L.A. Mission where he was helping serve turkey dinners to those in need ... and asked him straight-up if he'd ever considered hosting the annual black-tie affair.

Check out the clip ... Kevin couldn't be more clear in his disdain for the current state of the dinner.

The banquet, held every April in the spirit of good will between POTUS and his press corps, is on a downswing with Donald Trump in office. He's skipped the event twice after labeling media an enemy of the people.

This year's host is historian/biographer Ron Chernow, and he's pretty much guaranteed to cause less of a stir than comedian Michelle Wolf, who hosted this past April and eviscerated Trump and other prominent members of his administration.

Michelle's jokes caused a ton of controversy and sparked loads of backlash ... and next year's dinner is the first since 2003 to not feature a comic.

Okay, so full disclosure here -- we don't get it. We're not really sure why a French Soccer star just made love to a chicken on his Instagram, but he did ... and we're about to show it to you.

The guy's name is Patrice Evra, and he's an international soccer superstar, who used to play with Manchester United, and now plays with West Ham United F.C.

Not long ago Evra took to his IG and, in full view of his over 5 million followers, made love to raw turkey. He kissed the turkey, he sucked the turkey, he even got a little rough with the turkey, smacking it.

Patrice is pretty infamous for posting bizarre stuff, but none have inspired anything close to the collective WTF that the entire internet is experiencing right now.

BTW -- Evra came back and admitted he's not aware of things like oh, SALMONELLA which, if he isn't lucky, he'll be intimately acquainted with soon.

Shania Twain is setting her piss record straight ... telling us she only sprung a leak once mid-concert.

We got the country queen Tuesday night in WeHo at Craig's, and she wanted to clear a few things up about her penchant for pissing during performances.

Check out the clip ... Shania tells us she's taken a No. 1 onstage, but only one time -- when she was 16.

If you're wondering where all the potty talk came from ... Shania was on Andy Cohen's Bravo show last week, and the way the convo went down it sounded like she was a serial pisser.

Shania says her losing it was the result of stage fright ... when she was only 16 in front of a big audience. She wants to get the word out stat that she's outgrown the spontaneous pee thing.