RIP

Michael Jackson's former doctor and convicted killer, Conrad Murray, must be getting pretty strong meds behind bars ... because he thinks the jury in the wrongful death trial proved he's a good physician -- he's dead wrong.

TMZ obtained audio of Murray leaving a message for someone shortly after the judge announced AEG Live was not accountable for MJ's death -- and on the recording, Murray says the decision proves, "I have never been and never will be an inept physician."

Murray's missing one giant point ... which is that the jury really only said they felt he was fit to do what AEG hired him to do -- be a good general practitioner for MJ. The part about pumping Michael full of Propofol every night was never relevant to the questions the jury was asked to answer.

In fact, the jury foreman made it clear they were NOT saying they felt Murray was ethical -- and said the verdict might have been different if ethics were in play during this trial.

Nonetheless, Murray feels vindicated ... so, you gotta hear him gushing and praising God, the jury, and the justice system ... this time, anyway.

The Jackson family just LOST their bid to hold AEG Live accountable for Michael Jackson's death.

The jury ruled AEG Live did hire Conrad Murray. That's huge. The jury then ruled Conrad Murray was NOT unfit or incompetent to treat MJ. Katherine and the kids lose.

So here's the thing. The question that ruined Katherine's case was whether Murray was competent to handle Jackson when he was hired, and the jury said he was. Ironically, a jury in the criminal case ruled Murray then went off the rails and did things that ultimately killed MJ. But because he was competent at the outset -- the Jackson family lost.

The jury foreman confirmed this during a post-court news conference where he said they felt Murray was competent to do the job for which he was hired -- a good general practitioner. However he added, "That doesn't mean we felt he was ethical. Had that question been in there, it could have been a different outset.

AEG claimed Michael hired Murray and what went on between them was a secret to all ... including AEG.

Katherine Jackson has a rather tortured analysis of the jury verdict -- she seems to be saying even if she didn't get any money, she still kinda won.

Katherine says, "We have said from the beginning that this case was a search for the truth. We found the truth. AEG hired Dr. Conrad Murray, the man who is in jail for killing Michael Jackson."

She's right to this extent ... the jury did say AEG Live hired Murray. In fact Katherine scoffs at AEG, saying, "AEG has denied for years, and continues to deny, that they hired Dr. Conrad Murray. The jury found unanimously that AEG hired Dr. Murray."

But then the jury delivered a knockout punch to the Jackson lawsuit, by deciding essentially that when AEG Live hired Murray, they had no reason to believe he was an incompetent general practitioner ... which was the whole point of bringing a doctor on board in the first place. Therefore, AEG was not negligent.

Katherine is pissed, saying, "AEG has repeated the mantra that this lawsuit was a shakedown. Such a statement is a slap in the face of the entire judicial system that allowed this case to go to a jury."

Cory Monteith was shooting heroin and downing champagne in his hotel room on the night of his death ... this according to the final coroner's report obtained by TMZ.

The "Glee" star was discovered alone in his hotel room in Vancouver, Canada on July 13 shortly after noon.

When responders arrived to the scene, they discovered a "spoon with drug residue and a used hypodermic needle."

They also found 2 empty champagne bottles and glasses.

The coroner lists Monteith's official cause of death as "mixed drug toxicity, involving intravenous heroin use combined with the ingestion of alcohol."

The report also notes that Cory "had a history of illicit drug use with intermittent periods of rehabilitation and of abstinence from drugs."

The coroner suggests that Cory's tolerance for substance abuse may have been lower than usual because he had stopped using since a rehab stint in April.

Monteith was 31.

Tom Clancy -- the author behind mega-hits like "The Hunt for Red October," "Patriot Games" and "Rainbow Six" -- died last night at the age of 66 ... this according to his publisher.

The details surrounding Clancy's death are limited at this point. His publisher revealed Clancy passed away at a hospital in Baltimore, the city where he was born.

Clancy was the first name in military thrillers -- churning out tons of hit books, many of which became blockbuster movies and video games.

Clancy's most famous character was CIA agent Jack Ryan -- who was portrayed on the big screen by actors like Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, and Ben Affleck. Chris Pine is set to play Ryan in the upcoming movie, "Jack Ryan: Shadow One."

Clancy's "Rainbow Six," "Ghost Recon" and "Splinter Cell" were all monster military strategic video game hits across multiple platforms.

Cher is standing firm that Sonny Bono is inhabiting her Malibu mansion.

We got Cher at LAX yesterday ... and asked her if she was sure Sonny was behind the mysterious light flickering. Cher was certain the mercurial Sonny was hitting the switch.

And there's a reason she KNOWS it's not some other ghost.

NBA player Ryan Anderson fought through tears today as he spoke publicly about his gf Gia Allemand's suicide ... saying her death has given him new purpose in his life.

Anderson -- who plays for the New Orleans Pelicans -- opened up during the team's media day, telling reporters he hadn't planned to talk about it, but then tearfully said ... "we have a huge plan to do something great in her name that's going to help a lot of people."

As we reported ... Gia, who was once on "The Bachelor" ... committed suicide in August -- just a few hours after she had a bitter fight with Anderson.

Anderson didn't spell it out, but it sounded like he was talking about Gia's rumored battle with depression. He got really choked up as he said ... "This is a topic that is not talked about enough."

Cher believes in life after ... death -- claiming ex-husband Sonny Bono's ghost not only lingers around ... but still pulls pranks on her!

When asked about her thoughts on ghosts during a recent AMA (ask me anything) on Reddit ... Cher confessed she's a hardcore believer -- 'cause Sonny still messes with her from beyond.

"I actually think that Sonny makes a light go on (in the house)" Cher revealed, adding, "I have a beautiful chandelier that he makes the light go on when it is impossible, there is no power on."

It's possible Cher is telling the truth ... or she could just be nuts.

Jane Lynch just delivered a powerful tribute at the Emmys for her "Glee" costar Cory Monteith ... that definitely won't make Jack Klugman's son feel any better.

Jane pulled no punches during the speech ... reminding the audience Cory "wasn't perfect" -- and referred to his death as a reminder of the dangers of addiction.

Jane Lynch was shockingly candid today when we asked her how she felt about her "Glee" co-star Cory Monteith getting a special tribute while TV icon Jack Klugman is getting the bum's rush.

Jane was locked and loaded when we approached her ... and had clearly thought it through before she left home for Kings Road Cafe.

Emmy winner Peter MacNicol is not buying what Jack Klugman's angry son is selling because Peter thinks the tribute to Cory Monteith could actually save lives.

MacNicol -- who won an Emmy for "Ally McBeal" and also starred in classics like "Ghostbusters II" and "Sophie's Choice" -- tells TMZ tonight's tribute to Cory will create enormous drug awareness and possibly reach thousands of teens on a path of destruction.

Peter doesn't think it matters that Cory died without a single Emmy. He says, "If we are going to get into a merit system based on longevity then we are in trouble."

Tell that to Adam Klugman -- who is furious that his 3-time Emmy winning deceased father is barely getting a mention at tonight's ceremony.

Cory Monteith's mom thinks Jack Klugman's son has it all wrong -- because Cory could have been the next Jack Klugman had he lived.

Ann McGregor thinks Adam Klugman is being unfair, telling TMZ her son is absolutely worthy of getting a special in memoriam honor at tonight's Emmy Awards ... even though Jack isn't getting one.

Ann tells us she believes you cannot judge worthiness by a person's age because her son was on a path of greatness -- not only with his acting and singing abilities ... but with the charitable work he did.

Ann tells us, "If he had lived 30 more years he would have accomplished much more."

Ann believes Adam Klugman is misdirected ... and thinks its coming from a place of a son who loves and misses his father.

Jack Klugman -- who has won 3 Emmys and starred in TV classics -- "The Odd Couple" and "Quincy M.E." -- has been overlooked and disrespected for special mention during tonight's ceremony. Instead ... Cory Monteith gets the honor. Jack's son thinks it's ridiculous and disrespectful, and he's right.

The Emmys are honoring 5 TV types who died in the last year -- 4 of whom have earned their stripes ... Jonathan Winters, Jean Stapleton, James Gandolfini, Gary David Goldberg -- and then there's Cory.

BTW ... Larry Hagman was also overlooked.

Jennette McCurdy -- who plays Sam on Nickelodeon's Sam & Cat -- suffered a tragedy today ... her mom died.

We're told Jennette is devastated -- she was very close to her mother, Debra McCurdy. Debra had been fighting cancer and was very ill.

McCurdy was supposed to host a big show in NYC this weekend -- Nickelodeon's Worldwide Day of Play, where the network goes dark for 3 hours and kids are encouraged to get out and play. We're told she's cancelled the gig.

Ex-Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi passed away this week -- but he'll live on forever in the amazing games he left behind.

It's like a slice of your childhood ... that you can't get back because the graphics are outdated and cheesy.