RIP

Chicago White Sox radio announcer Ed Farmer -- who played 11 seasons in the Majors -- died Wednesday night, the team announced. He was 70 years old.

Details surrounding his death have not been revealed. We're working on it.

Farmer was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 5th round of the 1967 Draft -- and went on to pitch for the Tigers, Phillies, Orioles, White Sox and more. He made the American League All-Star team in 1980.

He eventually transitioned over to the broadcast booth in 1992 where he spent nearly 30 years calling games for his beloved White Sox.

During his life, Farmer suffered from polycystic kidney disease -- in which cysts cluster around the kidneys, sometimes affecting their ability to function properly.

On the field, you might remember Farmer's issues with Al Cowens.

Famer hit Cowens with a pitch in a game in 1979 -- breaking his jaw and messing up his teeth.

Farmer insisted it wasn't intentional, but Cowens didn't buy it -- and when they played against each other the following season, Cowens charged the mound and attacked Farmer.

Farmer filed assault charges against Cowens -- but later agreed to drop the case if Cowens would shake his hand. Wild stuff.

As for the White Sox, the team issued a statement about Farmer's passing saying, "We mourn the death of Ed Farmer who passed away Wednesday night."

"Farmer worked as a radio broadcaster for the Chicago White Sox for nearly 30 years, played 11 seasons in the major leagues, including three with his hometown White Sox, and was a strong advocate for organ donation."

Nick Cannon still has Nipsey Hussle in his thoughts and all over his classic car ... thanks to this sweet new artwork.

Nick recently got his 1964 SS Impala's trunk repainted with a custom tribute to the late rapper -- who was gunned down in South L.A. a year ago Tuesday. It's pretty clear, for Nick ... the Marathon continues, indeed.

We're told the actor/host/rapper/comedian commissioned Jr's Kustoms to do the airbrush paint job about 2 months ago ... apparently in anticipation of the anniversary. At the moment, the car's sitting in Nick's Ncredible Motorsports warehouse in Los Angeles.

Interesting that Nipsey is still top of mind for Nick ... who made a vow of sorts shortly after the murder.

At the time Nipsey had been working on a documentary about Dr. Sebi -- a controversial self-described healer, who claimed to have the cure for several fatal ailments.

Nick implied he would pick up the baton and actually finish the film about Sebi and dropped a trailer for the project Tuesday ... we're told he's close to finishing the whole thing up.

Still, here's hard proof Nipsey's vision and legacy are still a priority for Nick.

Skateboarding legend Jeff Grosso -- one of the biggest skate stars of the '80s -- has died. He was only 51.

Thrasher Magazine's Michael Burnett confirmed the news ... saying on Tuesday, "Today we have the terrible task of saying a heartbreaking goodbye to beloved verticalist, commentator and friend of the mag, Jeff Grosso."

The details surrounding Grosso's death are unclear. We're working on it. He is survived by his 8-year-old son Oliver, who Burnett mentions in his tribute to Jeff.

"Jeff went from number-one amateur to '80s superstar to cautionary tale and back again. His latest role as lovable curmudgeon, host of his own history-packed web series and keeper of skateboarding’s righteousness, unafraid to offend or annoy in his quest to educate, was by far his greatest – second only to being Oliver’s dad."

The "cautionary tale" is a reference to Jeff's struggles with substance abuse. He talked openly about issues with pain pills and heroin. In fact, Jeff OD'd 3 times before 2017.

"He will be sorely, sorely missed. Our hearts go out to his family and many friends. RIP," Burnett said.

Jeff shot to skate stardom in the '80s and went on to host "Vans' Love Letters to Skateboarding."

Jeff was also BELOVED by skate legends like Tony Hawk -- who paid tribute to Grosso.

"Jeff was a true skateboarder at his core, and a great wealth of entertainment, insight and valuable philosophy to a younger generation. I was lucky enough to skate with him over the last four decades and occasionally featured on his Vans’ Love Letters series.”

Hawk continued ... "One of the last times we spoke, we talked about how ridiculous it is that we still get to do this for a living and that anyone even cares what we do or think in terms of skateboarding at our age."

"I believe Jeff is a big reason that anyone truly cares, and skateboarding was lucky to have him as an ambassador and gatekeeper to its history. He was also a great father, which is obvious in his last social media post. Thank you Jeff, words cannot describe how much we will miss you."

The next installment of Kobe Bryant's best-selling book series is here ... and Vanessa is paying tribute to her husband's work on the bittersweet day.

The book, "Season One" is a follow-up to Kobe's NYT Bestselling work, "The Wizenard Series: Training Camp" ... which focuses on a young hooper named Reggie, who dreams of being a basketball superstar.

Vanessa celebrated the news on Instagram Tuesday ... saying, "Welcome back to Dren! We hope you are all ready to catch up with the West Bottom Badgers for another magical basketball season."

The book shares a quote from the late Kobe Bryant after the title page ... which says, "To young athletes who commit to doing the hard work. The process always pays off."

The book's author, Wesley King, reflected on the book drop -- saying, "Official release day. Bittersweet without my collaborator, but grateful to see the words live on. This is a book about chasing your dreams."

Of course, Kobe's second act after basketball was just taking off ... from business partnerships to winning an Oscar for the short film, "Dear Basketball."

#RIP

The towel Kobe Bryant famously draped over his shoulders during his "Mamba Out" speech in 2016 just netted somebody a small fortune ... it sold for over $30K at an auction!!

You'll recall ... just minutes after the final buzzer sounded on Kobe's last game in the NBA on April 13, 2016 -- the Mamba grabbed a Body Armor towel and a mic and delivered a powerful speech.

He reflected on his L.A. career, thanked fans, and expressed gratitude for Vanessa, Gianna and the rest of his family for giving him the opportunity to hoop for the Lakers for 20 years.

Kobe famously ended the speech by saying "Mamba Out" ... and as he walked off the floor -- a lucky fan was able to nab the towel off his shoulders.

Turns out ... that was a VERY lucrative move -- because it not only fetched $8,000 at an auction in 2016 -- it sold again for $33,077.16 at a different auction Sunday.

Iconic Auctions president Jeff Woolf told CNN the winning bidder was none other than David Kohler -- the Lakers superfan who not only collects insane memorabilia but also sells it.

Remember, Kohler is the dude who scored $1 MILLION from Babe Ruth's 500th home run bat back in December!!

As for Kohler's plan for the towel ... Woolf says the guy with the massive Lakers collection wants to open up a museum someday with all of his L.A. memorabilia on display.

Actor Matthew Faber -- who starred in a number of cult classic films in the '90s -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Faber was found deceased Saturday inside his Van Nuys, CA apartment -- this after his family hadn't heard from him in some days and asked the landlord to his building to open up his unit ... according to Matt's brother, Mark. His death appears to be natural, we're told.

Mark tells TMZ, "A beautiful man. Incredibly talented. Wise beyond his years, quick-witted. Abundantly aware. He could really pay attention more than most. He had such incredible focus and ability to sustain concentration -- brilliant man, very aware, very smart."

Matt is perhaps best known for his roles as Mark Weiner in 1995's 'Welcome to the Dollhouse' and its 2004 sequel 'Palindromes.' He also starred in 'Natural Born Killers,' 'Hard Luck,' 'The Pallbearer,' 'Ride with the Devil,' 'Sue,' and several other mid-to-late '90s flicks.

John Callahan of 'All My Children' fame has died.

The longtime soap star passed away Saturday after suffering a massive stroke at his Palm Desert, CA home ... according to his rep. On Friday, paramedics were called to his home and he was transferred to a hospital in Rancho Mirage, where he was put on life support.

Callahan's rep says his death is NOT related to COVID-19 -- but notes that nonetheless, some of John's family members were only able to see him for a short while due to hospital restrictions currently in place all over the country because of the coronavirus.

His ex-wife and former 'AMC' co-star, Eva La Rue says ... " We are extremely saddened and distraught over the loss of John." She continued, "He was my great friend, co-parent and an amazing father to Kaya. The absence of his bigger than life, gregarious personality will leave a hole in our hearts forever. Words cannot express the shock and devastation we are feeling at this time. The Yankees just lost one of their greatest fans."

John played Edmund Grey on the hit show for years, starring in his role from 1992 all through 2005. He also acted on the daytime drama "Santa Barbara" for a couple years in the '80s as well as 'Falcon Crest' in the early '90s. He also had recurring roles on 'Days of Our Lives' dating back to the late '80s all the way up until 2010.

The guy had 34 acting credits to his name. He's survived by his daughter, Kaya.

"Game of Thrones" fans already reeling from the show ending have another heartbreaking loss -- the dog that played Bran's direwolf has died.

Odin, an Inuit dog who played Summer the direwolf in the very first 'GoT' episode back in 2011, died after being diagnosed with mouth cancer in November.

His owners announced the sad news on social media Thursday, saying they got him as a 7-week-old pup and he's been a member of the family the past decade.

Though they're very sad, they say ... "We can all take great comfort in knowing that he is forever immortalized in the great TV Show Game of Thrones as Summer Bran Starks' Direwolf Pup in Season 1 episode 1."

The HBO show even rallied behind Odin following his cancer diagnosis, helping raise funds for the family, so they could get the TV direwolf special treatment in Dublin on a weekly basis.

The family says Odin was treated to beach walks and his favorite foods during his final days, but succumbed to further illness this week and passed in his sleep.

He was 10.

RIP, good boy.

Tragic day for the basketball community ... beloved Harlem Globetrotters legend Fred "Curly" Neal has passed away. He was 77 years old.

Curly became one of the most recognizable players for the Globies during his 22-year stint with the team ... playing in more than 6,000 games.

Neal's #22 jersey was retired in 2008 ... one of just 5 players to receive the honor.

Curly was also featured in several of the Globetrotters' TV specials ... including "The Harlem Globetrotters on Gilligan's Island" and "The Harlem Globetrotters Popcorn Special" ... as well as 'Scooby-Doo.'

Curly was the team's elite ball handler for the Globetrotters after a successful career at Johnson C. Smith University ... where he averaged 23 points a game.

Fellow Globetrotters legend Curley "Boo" Johnson mourned the loss of his friend on Twitter, saying "Last night the World lost a true ambassador of the game of basketball and outside of Muhammad Ali one of the most recognizable faces on the Planet!"

"Rest In Peace my Brother.... "

Police are actively looking into the death of a 22-year-old Washington State football player after he was found dead Tuesday in his apartment, TMZ Sports has learned.

Bryce Beekman -- who started all 13 games at safety in 2019 -- was one of top players on the WSU defense. He was 5th on the team in tackles last season.

But, cops in Pullman, Washington received a call to Beekman's apartment around 5:44 PM on Tuesday for a person with "breathing problems" ... and when they arrived, it was too late.

No official cause of death has been released but a spokesperson for the Pullman Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports there is an active investigation into the situation, as with all death cases.

Beekman was well-liked by his teammates and coaches -- several of whom have already commented on social media.

WR Renard Bell wrote, "Fly high. Forever my dawg." Offensive lineman Liam Ryan added, "Cherish your loved ones. Every second matters."

WSU Athletic Director Pat Chun made a statement Wednesday morning, "Bryce was a tremendous young man, great teammate and will be missed by all."

"We send our deepest condolences and prayers to the Beekman family and his many friends."

Beekman -- from Baton Rouge -- transferred to the Cougars last January from Arizona Western Junior College and wore #26 as a tribute to the late great NFL safety Sean Taylor.