RIP

President Barack Obama has released a statement on the passing of Dick Clark ... praising the entertainment mogul as an innovator who "reshaped the television landscape forever."

"With 'American Bandstand,' he introduced decades' worth of viewers to the music of our time," Obama said.

He added, "[Clark] reshaped the television landscape forever as a creative and innovative producer and, of course, for 40 years, we welcomed him into our homes to ring in the New Year."

"But more important than his groundbreaking achievements was the way he made us feel -- as young and vibrant and optimistic as he was."

Dick Clark's only been dead a few hours ... but the roasting has already begun ... this time, it's Denis Leary leading the charge.

Leary went to his Twitter a few minutes ago and wrote, "With Dick Clark dead, Casey Kasem now reveling in his status as last and reigning king of leather faced syrup voiced lizard people."

There's more -- Denis wrote, "I'm gonna package a Dick Clark Hologram mc'ing a Tupac Hologram summer tour."

So, we gotta as ask ...

Tupac came back to life this weekend ... as a hologram ... and it was frickin' AMAZING!!!.

Pac was resurrected for the Coachella music festival in California ... and "performed" a couple of his greatest hits ... including "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted" with Snoop Dogg.

We're told the crowd went INSANE ... especially when 2pac first appeared to the crowd ... rising up from the ground until he was standing on the stage.

The movements were remarkably lifelike ... grabbing his crotch and pointing his mic to the crowd like the good ole days.

At the end of his performance, a light shines on Pac ... and he dissipates into thin air.

More tragic news for the family of John Graziano -- Nick Hogan's infamous 2007 crash victim -- TMZ has learned John's younger brother Michael has died from injuries he sustained in a car accident earlier this month.

As we previously reported, Michael was a passenger in a 1994 Volvo which slammed into the back of a dump truck on a Florida highway on April 3. Like his brother John, he was not wearing a seat belt.

Michael was rushed to the hospital where he remained in critical condition for several days.

Now, officials say Michael has "expired from his injuries sustained in the April 3rd traffic crash."

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Nate Dogg isn't letting a little thing like death keep him away from Coachella this weekend -- sources tell TMZ, the rapper will be making a very special guest appearance on stage ... in the form of a HOLOGRAM.

Sources tell us, Dr. Dre didn't want to leave Nate out of his Sunday performance -- so he's incorporating his old friend using hologram technology ... the same technology that broadcast Mariah Carey's image across Europe last year ... at 5 simultaneous concerts.

We're told an image of Nate will be projected onto the Coachella stage -- alongside Dre, Snoop Dogg, Kurupt, Warren G, and Daz Dillinger -- to make it appear as though he's actually performing on stage.

According to sources, Nate will perform several songs.

The singer passed away last March -- just weeks before last year's Coachella festival.

Bob Scheiffer, the host of "Face the Nation," announced his passing on CBS this morning, saying that Wallace died on Saturday night in New Haven, CT alongside his family.

Wallace had been in declining health in recent years.

His last interview for CBS was with retired baseball star Roger Clemens, which aired in January 2008.

Wallace was the first person hired by legendary CBS producer Don Hewitt when he was putting together the staff for "60 Minutes." He won 21 Emmy awards, five DuPont-Columbia journalism awards, and five Peabody awards.

Wallace never had a problem confronting his guests, perhaps best evidenced by two of his more famous interviews -- with Barbra Streisand in 1991 and Louis Farrakhan in 2005 (see below).

Biggie Smalls was shot and killed 15 years ago today ... but the rapper's female protege Lil' Kim tells TMZ ... she's still in mourning ... explaining, "It still hurts very much."

Kim -- who was famously close with Biggie -- tells us she'll be honoring his memory at a private dinner in NY with close friends and family members ... saying, "I will never forget him and I will think about him every day until I die."

She adds, "I will celebrate him every single day of my life ... I have endless love for him and I'll be grateful and thankful to him until my last day."

"I love him ... and will never stop loving him."

Jimmy Ellis, who sung lead vocals for The Trammps on their 1970s classic "Disco Inferno," died yesterday in South Carolina. He was 74.

Eliis died from complications due to Alzheimer's disease, his daughter told the NY Times.

"Disco Inferno" was featured on the soundtrack to "Saturday Night Fever," which sold 15 million copies -- making it the second biggest selling soundtrack ever behind only "The Bodyguard."

Ellis toured with The Trammps as recently as 2010.

"Brady Bunch" star Maureen McCormick -- who famously shared an on-screen kiss with Davy Jones on the 70s sitcom -- is finally breaking her silence on the singer's death ... telling TMZ, "Davy was a beautiful soul."

Maureen -- aka "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia" -- tells us, Davy "spread love and goodness around the world. He filled our lives with happiness, music, and joy."

She adds, "He will live on in our hearts forever. May he rest in peace."

Davy guest-starred on 'The Bunch' back in '71 -- playing himself in an episode where Marcia tries to convince him to sing at her prom.

In case you've forgotten, she got him ...

Davy Jones died from a heart attack ... this according to the Martin County Medical Examiner.

TMZ has learned ... an autopsy was performed at 10:30 AM EST, and doctors determined Jones died from an abnormal heart rhythm caused by coronary artery atherosclerosis -- in other words, a severe heart attack.

The M.E. still has toxicology results pending, but it was obvious from the autopsy that the heart attack killed the lead singer of the Monkees.

TMZ broke the story ... Jones died yesterday after complaining of shortness of breath.

Andrew Breitbart -- founder of the popular news website Breitbart.com -- died early this morning at the age of 43.

According to his website, Breitbart -- the political journalist who broke the Anthony Weiner penis pic story -- died "unexpectedly from natural causes" shortly after midnight this morning in L.A.

A statement on Breitbart reads, "We have lost a husband, a father, a son, a brother, a dear friend, a patriot and a happy warrior."

Andrew is survived by his wife and 4 children.

Breitbart's father-in-law told reporters Andrew was walking near his Brentwood home around midnight when he collapsed.

The father-in-law says someone saw Andrew collapse and called paramedics ... who raced to the scene and tried to revive him. Breitbart was transported to UCLA Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

According to reports, Breitbart suffered from heart problems last year.

Law enforcement sources tell us the LAPD is investigating the death.

Micky Dolenz says he had a feeling something bad was going to happen today ... saying he "had bad dreams all night long" ... only to later learn about the death of his friend Davy Jones.

Dolenz released a statement moments ago ... saying, "Can't believe it...Still in shock...had bad dreams all night long."

In a separate statement, Dolenz added -- "I am in a state of shock ... The time we worked together and had together is something I'll never forget. He was the brother I never had and this leaves a gigantic hole in my heart. The memories have and will last a lifetime. My condolences go out to his family.

Monkees bassist Peter Tork also released a statement about Jones which reads:

"It is with great sadness that I reflect on the sudden passing of my long-time friend and fellow-adventurer, David Jones.

His talent will be much missed; his gifts will be with us always. My deepest sympathy to Jessica and the rest of his family.

Davy Jones -- lead singer of The Monkees -- died after suffering a heart attack this morning ... TMZ has learned.

An official from the medical examiner's office for Martin County, Florida confirmed with TMZ they received a call from Martin Memorial Hospital informing them that Jones had passed away.

We're told Davy suffered the heart attack at a ranch near his Florida home, where he was visiting his horses. Davy began experiencing distress while he was sitting in his car, and that's where a ranch hand found him.

The ranch hand told Sheriff's detectives ... the singer began to complain that he was not feeling well and was having trouble breathing. Paramedics were called and Jones was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. Authorities say there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death.

Jones is survived by his wife Jessica and 4 daughters from previous marriages. He was 66-years-old. Jones was married to Jessica Pacheco -- his 3rd wife.

Jones joined The Monkees in 1965 ... along with Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork ... and together they churned out a bunch of hugely popular songs including 3 number 1 hits -- "Daydream Believer," "Last Train to Clarksville" and "I'm a Believer."

The group was initially cast by TV producers who wanted to create a scripted series about an actual rock n' roll band. But the group exploded, and Jones in particular became a Beatles-caliber heartthrob.

The Monkees songs were covered by huge bands like Coldpay, and Smash Mouth's version of "I'm a Believer" was famously featured in "Shrek."

Davy's last performance was on February 19th in Oklahoma -- the night before, he performed "Daydream Believer" and "It's Nice to Be with You" at the BB King Blues Club in NYC ... and he looked totally fine (video below).

Children's book legend Jan Berenstain -- who co-created the Berenstain Bears -- died Friday at 88-years-old after suffering a stroke ... this according to her family.

Jan and her husband Stan Berenstain created the Bear family -- Mama Bear, Papa Bear, Brother Bear and Sister Bear -- back in 1962 ... when they published their first book, "The Big Honey Hunt."

Since then, they fired out more than 300 stories.

According to Jan's son, Jan suffered a severe stroke on Thursday and died the following day.

Stan died back in 2005 at the age of 82.

Jack Osbourne's adorable bulldog Lola -- who famously tore up couches and peed all over the place on the family's MTV reality show -- has died at the age of 12.

Lola wasn't just a reality star ... she was a Twitter sensation as well, racking up more than 8,800 followers.

Jack broke the news a few hours ago ... tweeting, "Thank you all for the kind words about @PrincessLolaO it's nice to know she was loved by so many people."

He added, "Lola you were the best friend anyone could ever have. I will love you and miss you always. RIP @PrincessLolaO 00-12."

Kevin Costner had his hands full at LAX moments ago, where he's set to board a plane bound for Whitney Houston's "Home Going" ceremony in Jersey -- grabbing his wife with one hand, and a trolley bag with the other.

As TMZ previously reported, Whitney's funeral is expected to be star-studded -- with invites like Oprah, Stevie Wonder, and Aretha Franklin.

Mel Gibson was invited, but is unable to attend.