Kids

A campus resource officer in North Carolina is out on his ass after he was caught on camera physically abusing a middle school student by slamming the kid to the ground ... twice.

The Vance County Sheriff's Office confirmed Monday the unnamed deputy who was assigned to Vance County Middle School in Henderson, NC was, in fact, fired. He'd been placed on administrative leave last week as an investigation got underway.

The school district there filed a complaint with the Sheriff's Office on Friday as footage of the violent incident surfaced. The deputy is seen walking down a hallway with the student and then suddenly slamming the child -- reportedly under 12 years old -- to the ground like a rag doll.

The aftermath is equally disturbing ... as the deputy drags the seemingly unconscious child through the hall.

It's unclear what precipitated the violence, but frankly ... does it really matter?

Kandi Burruss is singing the praises of the woman who helped bring her new baby girl into the world -- and now she's opening up about her firsthand experience with surrogacy.

We got the "Real Housewives of Atlanta" star out in Atlanta and asked what advice she'd give anyone thinking about using a surrogate. Of course, Kandi's second child ... a little girl named Blaze Tucker was born on November 22, and she couldn't say enough great things about their surrogate.

Check it out ... Kandi says counseling's a great start. And, not just because it was required, either. When she finally met her surrogate, Shadina Blunt, they built a solid relationship and bonded so much, they went to counseling together.

Kandi says she knows some parents opt to keep it strictly professional with surrogates -- but she explained why she and her husband, Todd Tucker, took a different approach with Shadina.

Chris Brown thinks his newborn son is a chip off the old block ... and he can't help but share a bunch of new baby pics to prove it.

Breezy and his baby mama, Ammika Harris, posted some new shots of little Aeko Saturday -- just days after they revealed his tiny feet to the world following his November birth.

The most recent photos show off Aeko's face clear as day, and yes ... he's freakin' adorable. CB also posted a since-deleted side-by-side comparison of his own baby picture and his son ... which Chris believes are pretty dang close. He says Aeko "just stole my whole face."

Chris and Ammika also threw up photos of the two of them in the delivery room with baby Aeko, and they're touching. You see Chris and Ammika holding each other, as well as the kid. CB was clearly present for the birth, and seemed to have his ex's back the whole time.

It's their first child together -- Chris' second overall. He's got a daughter with Nia Guzman.

Aeko Catori Brown was born on November 20, 2019, with each parent writing cryptic messages on social media to confirm he'd come into the world healthy. While Chris and Ammika aren't together anymore, we've heard they've been getting along well.

Antonio Brown was greeted with at least three police squad cars this AM -- all because his baby mama didn't think it'd be a good idea to pick up their kid's clothes by herself.

The unemployed wide receiver posted a crazy video Saturday morning that showed him filming police officers surrounding his Hollywood, FL property -- which eventually ended with him ordering his friend to drop off a bunch of kid's clothes with one of the cops on the scene.

According to law enforcement sources, we're told this was at the request of one of AB's baby mamas -- who put in a request with Hollywood PD to have them there for a "civil standby" as she picked up some clothes from him, which belonged to a child they share.

Our sources say they weren't responding to anything wrong or illegal AB had done ... cops were simply there to make sure the exchange went down peacefully and without incident. We're told no crime was committed, and no arrests were made on either end.

Based on AB's Instagram story from a few hours earlier ... it appears this might have something to do with his baby mama, Chelsie Kyriss ... with whom he has 3 kids.

He threw up what appear to be text messages between her and another person, which AB seemed to believe are about him, as he captioned his own screen grabs of the text exchange with ... "These hoes been liening," as well as, "These hoes be discussing your funds too."

There's a pic of Chelsie in the texts too BTW -- and just earlier this week, he tweeted something else that seemed to be a shot at her, with him writing ... "No more white woman 2020." For her part, Chelsie reportedly responded by saying he was characterizing the texts ... and said she had photos of him that'd "end your entire life!" She says he's playing victim.

Anyway, whatever the hell was going on at his crib ... he definitely let the cops know he was sick of them coming by -- saying they couldn't force their way in on a G.O.A.T.

Side note, AB might be fighting off a cold or something ... his voice sounds super hoarse.

Ronnie Ortiz-Magro is dropping some heinous, and unproven, accusations against his baby mama -- posting texts he claims demonstrate she can't handle being a mother.

The "Jersey Shore" star is ranting on Instagram ... alleging Jen Harley has abandoned their 20-month-old daughter, Ariana, by dumping her off with friends while she's off "getting drunk with a sugar daddy."

He's offering no evidence of that, and, let's be honest, even if his claim is true -- sounds like he's describing a standard babysitting situation.

Anyway, Ronnie's rant included texts he claims show Jen is ignoring their child while Jen's in another state and he alleges she refuses to return home to care for Ariana.

The texts appear to show friends are reaching out to Ronnie for help, but he replies he can't because legally, he's not allowed to see Ariana. Jen got full custody in the wake of their domestic incident back in October, and he's been ordered to stay away from Jen and their child.

Lira Galore says Quality Control Music CEO "Pee" beat her violently and regularly during the first 8 months of her pregnancy with his child ... and she's asking for at least $15 million for her injuries.

In legal docs obtained by TMZ, Lira describes 5 separate beatdowns she received at the hands of Pee. In one alleged attack, she claims he punched her in the face, threw her to the ground, began choking her and punched her in the head so many times, she developed knots. Galore claims Pee then ripped her ring off her finger, dislocating it.

In the other 4 attacks, she claims he routinely punched and choked her.

Galore says in August 2018 -- after one alleged attack -- he tried to "make things right" by buying her a $50,000 SUV. Just 2 weeks later, Lira alleges Pee broke the driver side window on the same SUV during a violent altercation and then took the vehicle and changed the title out of her name and into his own. She says a week later, he paid her $50k not to call the cops.

Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy's youngest daughter is going to college -- and kinda rubbing it in the face of her older sis, who's still undeclared after Mom's admissions scandal.

17-year-old Georgia Macy just updated her Instagram to say she's a future Vassar College student -- with her graduation year pegged as 2024. She also added a big ol' "VASSAR" logo to her IG story ... so it's pretty clear she is celebrating big-time.

Now, Georgia isn't the kid who got roped into the college admissions scandal earlier this year -- that was Felicity and Will's other daughter, Sophia Macy ... who's 19.

According to prosecutors, she was the one Felicity shelled out $15k to have her SAT test fixed to make sure she got a good score. Of course, Felicity pled guilty and did her time, brief though it was.

Since then, Sophia hasn't announced she's enrolled anywhere.

We have seen Sophia hitting the books lately, which could mean she's ramping up for a second shot at college. AKA ... the ol' college try.

For now ... congrats, Georgia!

Cassie and her husband, Alex Fine, have welcomed their baby girl to the world ... and the little one boasts one of the coolest names ever.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... Cassie gave birth Friday at an L.A. County hospital, and the couple named their first child Frankie -- Frankie Fine.

We're told their bundle of joy weighed in at 8 lbs., 4 oz and measured a smidge over 21 inches long.

As we've reported, Diddy's ex and Alex announced they were expecting in June, got engaged a couple months later ... then got hitched in Malibu in September.

If you recall ... there was some drama when the 2 began dating last year, because Alex was her former trainer. Any potential bad blood was washed away by the time they revealed their pregnancy news, though ... Diddy gave them a shout-out, wishing them nothing but love and happiness.

The well-wishes seem to be working. Congrats to Cassie, Alex and, of course, Frankie!!!

Caroll Spinney -- the guy who manned Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch on "Sesame Street" for nearly half a century -- has died.

Spinney passed away Sunday at his Connecticut home after living with Dystonia for a while, according to Sesame Workshop ... the nonprofit org behind the hit children's television show. Dystonia is a movement disorder in which a person's muscles contract uncontrollably.

Incredibly, the longtime puppeteer worked on the show for 49 years ... and retired from 'Sesame' just last year. He had been on the show since its early days in 1969. Besides being the man behind Big Bird, Spinney also handled and voiced Oscar the Grouch.

The legendary Jim Henson brought Spinney on-board, and by most accounts ... he struggled bringing Big Bird to life at first and having him resonate with the audience. Eventually, Spinney said he turned BB into a "big kid" character -- and the rest was history.

He starred in thousands of "Sesame Street" episodes -- more than any other cast member -- and it was certainly no walk in the park controlling the 8-foot bird costume. Spinney said he would have to hold the 5-pound head up with his right hand and work the mouth and eyebrows on that end ... while controlling both arms with just his own left one.

There was a fishing wire that connected both extremities inside the suit, and Spinney would operate both by using just his left side. Oscar, no doubt, was much easier to work.

He's survived by his wife, Debra, and his three children. Spinney was 85.

Rosie O'Donnell firmly believes the Stanford Law Professor who name-dropped Barron Trump didn't do anything wrong and hopes the testimony helps impeach the President.

We got Rosie and her BFF Ally Sheedy Thursday night outside the "Jagged Little Pill" musical in NYC and asked her about the GOP outrage over Prof. Pamela Karlan's wordplay. Not shockingly ... Rosie's team Karlan, all the way.

She says Karlan made a fair point about POTUS, and it's being taken out of context to look malicious. Both Rosie and Ally think there was nothing mean spirited about it. Rosie thinks it's nice Karlan apologized but adds ... it wasn't necessary.

Rosie, of course, had her own controversy involving the President and Melania's son a few years back, when she posted a video questioning whether Barron was autistic.

She apologized to Melania for being insensitive and causing pain ... but clearly thinks Karlan's case is different.

As for the impeachment hearings, in general, Rosie admitted she's a total junkie. It's no secret she has a rooting interest and spells out the many reasons why she's on Karlan's side.

That's a wrap for Caroline Wozniacki ... almost!

The 29-year-old tennis star says she's officially retiring from the sport -- right after the Australian Open in January -- to focus on other aspects of her life, including growing her family.

"I've played professionally since I was 15 years old," Wozniacki says.

"I've always told myself, when the time comes, that there are things away from tennis that I want to do more, then it's time to be done. In recent months, I've realized that there is a lot more in life that I'd like to accomplish off the court."

Caroline says getting married to NBA star David Lee "was one of those goals" -- along with "starting a family with him while continuing to travel the world."

She also wants to focus energy on raising awareness for rheumatoid arthritis -- a condition she suffers from.

"So with that, today I am announcing that I will be retiring from professional tennis after the Australian Open in January," Wozniacki says.

"This has nothing to do with my health and this isn't a goodbye, I look forward to sharing my exciting journey ahead with all of you."

As far as her tennis accomplishments, Caroline was pretty damn good.

"With 30 WTA singles titles, a world #1 ranking for 71 weeks, a WTA Finals victory, 3 Olympics, including carrying the flag for my native Denmark, and winning the 2018 Australian Open Grand slam championship, I've accomplished everything I could on the court."

Not bad, right?

Wozniacki and her hubby recently took classes at Harvard Business School as part of a program that helps athletes build a second career outside of sports ... so post-tennis life has been on her brain for a while.

Congrats!

Jesse Williams will be allowed to be with his kid for her bday -- but he had to fight with his ex over it ... who tried positioning things in her favor with yoga.

The "Grey's Anatomy" star won his latest legal battle against ex-wife, Aryn Drake-Lee, after she refused to let their 5-year-old daughter, Sadie, be with her pops this weekend to celebrate her 6th birthday ... even though Jesse insisted it was his turn under their agreement.

In court docs, obtained by TMZ, Jesse argued that Aryn would still get to be with Sadie for most of her bday (Dec. 6), and all he wanted was for mom to drop Sadie off with him at 6 PM, like usual, and let Sadie hang out 'til he could drop her back off Monday. NBD, right?

WRONG ... at least according to Aryn, who argued in her own court docs that SHE actually deserved to keep Sadie this weekend 'cause she recently missed some mother-daughter time with her due to a work trip she recently had to take -- and wants to make up for it now.

Turns out, that work trip was a yoga retreat in India ... which Jesse lays out as something that's seemingly unrelated to work at all. He lists the classes attended -- like "Tea Break," "Tour of Dalai Lama's Residence" and "Finding Your Purpose" -- and calls BS on her excuse.

The reason he's so against Sadie staying home with mom on his weekend ... he says he had a full weekend of plans lined up for her birthday -- a Disney trip, a Nutcracker play, etc.

Welp, the court sided with Jesse. A judge wrote they couldn't see the connection between Aryn's yoga trip and work ... and insisted she could make up her time at another date.

Namaste ...

Chris Brown is now banned from monkey business -- like, real monkeys -- for the next 6 months ... after making a deal with the D.A. in his illegal pet case.

Chris' attorney was in court Wednesday morning, as the judge placed him into a diversion program for the case of the Capuchin monkey he bought back in 2017.

The terms prohibit Chris from buying any monkeys until June 6, 2020. He also has to pay $35,000 to the monkey retreat facility where his old monkey is now living. If he sticks with the program, all charges will be dropped after June 6. The judge also left it up to the monkey retreat to decide if Chris can have visitation with his ex-pet.

TMZ broke the story ... CB claimed he didn't own the monkey, Fiji. The L.A. City Attorney had charged him with 2 counts of having a restricted species without a permit.

Brown was adamant the video showing Royalty playing with the monkey was NOT taken at his L.A. home. He claimed the video was actually shot in Vegas, where the monkey lived with a relative who was the real owner.

As we reported ... Chris took major heat for posting the video of his then-3-year-old daughter playing with the exotic pet. People were freaking out that she was in danger because the monkey's a wild animal. Chris told everyone to take a chill pill.

Here's a video that'll hit ya in the feels ...

A little Saquon Barkley fan who was snubbed by a Dallas Cowboys superstar a couple months ago finally got to meet his NY Giants idol -- and the hangout brought the kid to tears!

If you missed it ... back on Sept. 8, 11-year-old Kamil Bautista tried to ask Demarcus Lawrence for an autograph after the Giants-Cowboys game in Dallas.

But, D-Law wasn't having any of it 'cause of the Barkley jersey Kamil was wearing ... and the Cowboys star straight-up told the kid as he was walking away, "Get the right jersey, son!"

The video immediately went viral ... and when Barkley saw the snub -- he flew Kamil and his family out from Texas to New York for a game!!

The Bautistas got the VIP treatment -- sideline passes, autographs and all the hook-ups -- but the best moment was clearly Kamil's first time hanging with Barkley.

Watch the vid, Saquon is SUPER nice ... and it actually makes Kamil cry!!

After the game, the two linked up again ... with Barkley signing a few things for the kid and taking a cool picture.

As for the outcome of the night, the Giants ended up losing to the Jets ... but Kamil's father tells TMZ Sports, "Our Giants are not doing that great this year but we support them 100000% all the time from South Texas!"

Criss Angel is sharing some somber news about his young son's dire medical battle ... the leukemia is back after a brief dip into remission.

We got Criss and his kid, Johnny Crisstopher, at LAX Tuesday, and the famous illusionist told us his 5-year-old will be going back to a hospital next week to restart treatment for a rare form of leukemia.

Criss says before Johnny's readmitted, he's going to make sure the little guy has the time of his life in SoCal. Sounds like dad's got some fun stuff on tap.

You'll recall, when Johnny was first diagnosed with cancer back in 2015 at just 21 months old ... Criss set out to make a documentary on his son's chemo treatments, and to raise $1 million for pediatric cancer research.

HOW AWESOME IS THIS?!?!?

LeBron James' son is such a superstar already that L.A. Rams running back Todd Gurley had courtside seats to watch him play in his high school game Tuesday night!!

And, get this, the kid didn't disappoint -- throwing down a MONSTER alley-oop!!!!

Bronny James got his first-ever start for Sierra Canyon against Granada Hills Charter in Chatsworth, Calif. ... and it didn't take him long to flash his insane potential.

Just a few minutes into the game ... LBJ's 15-year-old kid caught a lob and threw it down with authority!!!

And, eventually, Bronny's squad ran away with it ... routing GHC, 87-35.

Gurley seemed impressed with the King's kid ... and even posted a few highlights from his night on the hardwood to his social media page!!