RIP

The death of a monster like Richard Ramirez is a reason to CELEBRATE ... so says the Night Stalker's final attack victim ... who tells TMZ, he's gonna have himself a Mexican fiesta tonight.

We spoke with Bill Carns ... who was shot multiple times in the head by Ramirez back in 1985 during a terrifying home invasion. During the attack, Ramirez also raped Carns' then-girlfriend and forced her to pledge her allegiance to Satan. Miraculously, both Carns and his GF survived ... though Carns is still partially paralyzed from the attack.

"I feel better already," Carns told us after learning about Ramirez's death ... "I feel like I lost 50 pounds, like a huge weight has been lifted off of my shoulders."

"Saying that I’m happy he's dead is too simple ... I’m at peace with myself."

Still, Carns says he will celebrate Ramirez's demise by treating himself to a meal -- "I will go out and have Mexican food to celebrate."

The menu? "I'm going to eat a beef burrito ... chips and salsa too, of course ... and a Diet Cherry Coke.”

Richard Ramirez -- aka The Night Stalker -- who went on a rape-murder spree in Los Angeles in the mid-80s and terrorized the entire city -- is dead at 53 ... but we're getting conflicting info on the cause.

Ramirez killed at least 13 people and attempted 5 more ... by climbing in the windows of homes. He also committed 11 sexual assaults, and probably more.

Ramirez was convicted and sentenced to death in 1989, and sat on San Quentin's death row ever since. The death sentence was not carried out because of endless appeals.

A San Quentin spokesperson reportedly says Ramirez died of natural causes ... HOWEVER ... a prison official told TMZ ... the murderer died from Hepatitis C, which some doctors say can be transmitted through sexual contact. Hep C is verifiably contracted through IV drug use and blood transfusions.

The Night Stalker's crimes were particularly heinous ... he killed people as young as 9 and as old as 83.

On June 2, 1985, he murdered a 29-year-old man ... and then raped the victim's girlfriend, who survived the attack.

On July 20, 1985 ... he murdered another man -- and forced the victim's wife to perform oral sex on him. The wife survived the attack.

Just 3 weeks after that ... Ramirez committed an almost identical crime -- killing husband, raping wife.

On August 25, 1985, he committed yet another crime -- shooting a man in the head and raping the victim's fiancee ... only this time, he made her swear her love for Satan during the attack. The man, Bill Carns,miraculously survived the attack.

Eventually, cops were able to obtain a fingerprint -- and released a mug shot of Ramirez to the public. He was captured days later, when an angry mob in East L.A. found him trying to steal a car ... and beat him within an inch of his life.

When Ramirez appeared in court, he famously flashed an image of a pentagram that was tattooed on his palm.

In short -- he was one of the absolute worst people to ever walk the Earth.

Joey Covington -- who played drums for the psychedelic 1960s band Jefferson Airplane -- was killed in Palm Springs Tuesday in a deadly car accident. He was 67.

According to the Desert Sun, Covington was driving alone around 5pm when his Honda Civic left the road and crashed head-on into a retaining wall. The Riverside County coroner's report says Covington was not wearing a seat belt at the time. No other car was involved.

Covington's vehicle reportedly hit the wall with such force ... it went flying onto an elevated driveway several feet above the crash site, where a nearby motel guest tried to resuscitate the musician.

The bystander was unsuccessful and Covington died at the scene. Police don’t believe alcohol or drugs were involved.

One of Covington's close friends told the Desert Sun, the drummer's wife believes a heart attack or stroke caused him to drive off the road.

Esther Williams -- the HUGE movie star who became internationally famous with her spectacular, synchronized swimming routines -- is now making a splash ... in heaven. She died today, at 91.

Williams starred in countless swimsuit spectaculars in the 40's and 50's -- "aquamusicals" as they were called -- where MGM honchos made any excuse to get her girl-next-door good looks and bangin' bod into the water. Movies like "Neptune's Daughter" and "Dangerous When Wet" were every guy's wet dream.

Esther started as a legit competitive swimmer, smashing records in her late teens ... but she missed the 1940 Olympics because of the outbreak of World War II. So she joined a music, dance and swimming show in San Fran ... where for five months she swam alongside Olympic swimmer and "Tarzan" star Johnny Weissmuller ... and that's where she caught the eye of Hollywood scouts.

In her later years, Williams lent her name to swimwear and other pool-related products, and was a commentator for synchronized swimming at the '84 Olympics.

That chick really knew how to sync and swim.

Deacon Jones wasn't just a QB killa ... he's also responsible for bringing WAR to the world ... this according to two of the legendary band's founding members.

Back before WAR took over the music scene, some of the guys performed in a band called Nightshift ... which played backup for Deacon during his singing gigs. (Deacon was a hell of an R&B singer).

In fact, Nightshift was reportedly "discovered" by a major record producer while backing up Deacon during a gig in 1969 ... and they soon became WAR.

Also, Deacon famously sang on the studio recording of "Why Can't We Be Friends?"

Now, two of the original members of WAR -- Harold Brown and Howard Scott -- tell TMZ they're eternally grateful for everything Deacon did for their careers.

"Were it not for Deacon's interest, we may not have become world-famous musicians as members of WAR," the guys told TMZ in a joint statement.

Brown and Scott also tell us they plan to dedicate an entire concert to their "friend and mentor" at their July 27 show in Chicago.

Deacon passed away on Monday night at his home in California. He was 74.

One of Michael Jackson's biggest fans is SO CONVINCED there's something fishy about his death ... that she dropped $16,800 on her credit cards to have conspiracy-theory banners flown all over the L.A. area ... TMZ has learned.

The message-towing planes mysteriously started buzzing L.A. 2 weeks ago with banners like, "FOLLOW THE $ TO MICHAEL JACKSON'S DEATH" ... and "LAPD -- HONOR BOUND TO TELL TRUTH FOR MJ."

Sources connected to AirSign, the company flying the banners, confirmed to TMZ ... a Hollywood costume shop worker paid for 11 flights over several locations including the downtown L.A. courthouse where Michael's wrongful death lawsuit is going on right now.

The woman, who wants to remain anonymous, tells us ... "I'm hoping that someone will look at those messages and say, 'If someone feels that strongly about it, maybe this is worth looking into."

As for the massive cc debt ... she says she can handle it because she's single and kid-free.

And in case you think she's totally nuts ... she does have one connection to MJ. The shop where she works supplied some costumes for "This Is It."

Totally worth it.

Deacon Jones ... one of the greatest football players in the history of the game -- is dead.

Jones -- a member of the L.A. Rams Fearsome Foursome from 1961 to 1971 -- died at his home in So. Cal. at age 74.

Deacon revolutionized the way defensive ends played the game -- not only creating his famous "head slap" technique, but he's also responsible for the term "sack" because of the way he destroyed quarterbacks.

Jones was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1980.

Deacon also dabbled in TV and movies. He had guest-starring roles on "The Brady Bunch" and "Bewitched." He was also in the movie, "Heaven Can Wait."

Jones died of natural causes.

Tim Samaras -- one of the stars of the Discovery Channel show "Storm Chasers" -- was one of the nine people who died Friday in the tragic tornados that hit Oklahoma.

Samaras' son Paul, and colleague Carl Young, died with Samaras while chasing a tornado, relatives told CNN.

Samaras' brother Jim posted on his Facebook page, "Thank you to everyone for the condolences. It truly is sad that we lost my great brother Tim and his great son, Paul. Our hearts also go out to the Carl Young family as well as they are feeling the same feelings we are today. They all unfortunately passed away but doing what they loved."

Bernadette Hernandez -- mother of Bruno Mars -- died unexpectedly Saturday at the age of 55.

Hernandez suffered a brain aneurysm. She passed away at the Queens Medical Center in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Hernandez was a hula dancer and singer who immigrated from the Philippines and nurtured Mars' musical talents from a very young age.

Jean Stapleton -- who played the iconic role of Edith Bunker on "All in the Family" died Friday in New York City. She was 90.

According to her family, Stapleton passed away of natural causes.

Stapleton won three Emmys from her work on "All in the Family" opposite Carroll O’Connor’s equally iconic character, Archie Bunker.

Stapleton's last major role was in the 1998 film "You've Got Mail." She played a co-worker of Meg Ryan's character.

Her husband of 26 years, William Putch, passed away in 1983. She is survived by her two children, John and Pamela.

The legal battle has raged for more than a decade ... but Anna Nicole Smith's estate may finally see a piece of the Playboy legend's millionaire dead husband ... possibly as much as $49 MILLION.

The Supreme Court ruled years ago that Anna's estate was NOT entitled to any of J. Howard Marshall's fortune -- estimated between $500 million and $1 billion -- but yesterday, a California judge said Anna's 6-year-old daughter Dannielynn is entitled to sanctions against Marshall's family.

The judge hasn't specified the amount of the sanctions yet ... but previously suggested they could run as high as $49 million.

The judge awarded the sanctions based on allegations that attorneys for Marshall's estate used unsavory tactics throughout litigation ... such as concealing crucial legal docs from Anna's estate lawyers.

Lil Eazy -- son of Eazy-E -- is so ecstatic about his dad's hologram debuting on stage with Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, he's planning a massive party to celebrate it ... and to mark a milestone.

Lil Eazy tells TMZ he will definitely be there when hologram Eazy-E hits the stage at the Rock the Bells festival on September 7 -- because that would have been his father's 50th birthday.

LE says, "I am happy my father gets to get honored ... it's exciting" -- and he's going to keep it rolling after the concert by putting together an over-the-top afterparty.

As for whether Lil E will be on stage with BT&H and Holo Eazy-E -- nothing's been announced yet ... but they've collaborated several times ... including the 2008 "This Ain't a Game" video.

***Warning: Explicit lyrics***

The drama in Larry Hagman's life lives on ... months after his death, because the actor's estate now claims Larry's granddaughter has committed familial treason by holding ridiculously valuable jewelry hostage.

The lawyer for Hagman's Estate has filed legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- which claim Noel Hagman is in possession of a Raj necklace and matching earring set with encrusted diamonds and emeralds. The Estate claims the jewels were once owned by Larry's mom, actress Mary Martin, and given to Larry.

The Estate lawyer says somehow Noel got her hands on the jewels and won't give them back. The legal docs say Noel claims someone in the Hagman family gave her the necklace and earrings, but according to the Estate no one in the family cops to it.

The Estate wants the jewels back, and if she refuses, they want her to pay double the value -- the law provides double the value if someone wrongfully holds on to property. The legal docs don't place a specific value on the items.

Some racist jerk has desecrated Michael Clark Duncan's grave ... this according to a Duncan family rep, who tells TMZ a vandalism report has already been filed with the police.

We're told ... a family friend stopped by Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills to deliver flowers to the spot where MCD was interred in Sept. 2012 ... when she noticed a figure of a cartoonish black face had been attached to the center of MCD's tomb.

The friend believes the black face is an image of "Sambo" -- a character that has long been considered an offensive and racist depiction of a black person.

MCD's friends and family were shocked by the discovery -- wondering what kind of lowlife would desecrate Michael's final resting spot.

We're told the family contacted the LAPD -- and were told the incident could be considered a hate crime. Cops are currently investigating the situation.

The family tells us ... Forest Lawn immediately removed the "Sambo" from MCD's tomb -- but they won't be satisfied until they find out who violated the tomb.

Every single penny from Heavy D's estate will go to the late rapper's 13-year-old daughter ... this according to Heavy's mom.

We broke the story ... Heavy's brother Floyd has filed court docs seeking control of Heavy's estate -- via an old will that earmarks nothing for D's 13-year-old daughter, parents or other siblings.

But Heavy's mom Eulahlee Myers tells TMZ ... the entire family SUPPORTS Floyd ... because they believe he will protect Heavy's fortune for his daughter -- until she's an adult.

"Heavy’s Estate needs to be managed," Myers tells us ... adding, "It cannot be self-managed or self-administered and it has to be Court approved. Open bills, unfinished business, taxes and day-to-day decisions including future plans for his daughter all need to be done. This management needs someone who is capable, smart, honest and close to this family."

"The family all wanted Floyd as that person to represent Dwight’s estate."

Myers explains, "All of Heavy’s assets are going to his 13-year-old Daughter Xea -- including his Social Security, Pension, and future Royalties. All of Heavy’s personal belongings are in storage for his Daughter until she gets a bit older."

She adds, "The Myers family is a close-knit family and always will be. Just the way Heavy liked it."

HD died in November 2011 from a pulmonary embolism. He was 44.

"The Doors" co-founder Ray Manzarek traveled across the world to seek out special world class treatment for his rare form of cancer ... which is why he was in Germany when he died, TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Ray's most recent band -- The Manzarek-Rogers Band -- tell us, Ray did tons of research on the best places to get treatment for his bile duct cancer ... and his search led him to the RoMed Clinic in Rosenheim, Germany.

As we reported, Ray eventually passed away at RoMed yesterday.

According to sources, Ray broke news of his cancer to the band in March ... and traveled to Germany shortly after.

Up until Ray told his band about the cancer, we're told they had no idea he was sick. Ray had repeatedly just told them he was "tired," so the news was a shock.

Manzarek's next appearance was scheduled for August at the Orange County Fair ... but that's obviously been canceled.