RIP

The showrunners for the 2017 Emmys forgot to honor some noteworthy performers during their in memoriam segment ... including Dick Gregory, Charlie Murphy, Harry Dean Stanton and Frank Vincent who all died this year.

During the memorial montage of Hollywood stars who passed away so far in 2017, a bunch of TV stars, producers and other figures in showbiz were remembered except the above 4 guys ... and many people noticed the omissions, including Common.

It's odd ... all 4 actors had performed in TV shows and series in their careers at one point or another. Gregory had starred in "Reno 911!" and "Wonder Showzen", Murphy in "Chappelle's Show" and "The Boondocks" and others, Stanton in a number of TV roles and Vincent in "The Sopranos."

Still ... the Emmys failed to recognize them regardless.

Prince was a perfectionist and it's evident in the handwritten edits he made to "Purple Rain" and lyrics for songs which hit the auction block for a hefty price.

Some 200 Prince-related items are up for bidding via RR Auction including the 9 pages of notes Prince made on his epic 1984 opus which RR thinks will go for more than $12k!!!

They're pretty cool ... you can see where Prince changed and added things to the original screenplay: "1. Glove box opens, Jerome fingers camisole, hands it back 2 Morris, 2. Morris takes it. Uh, 1 more thing here's a little something ..." and so on.

Some other Prince items include:

-- Yellow boots he wore onstage from '86-'92 ... $12k
-- "The Ladder" handwritten lyrics ... $8k
-- Lace crop top .... $3k
-- His Parade Tour tambourine ... $1.5k
-- "Camille" Advance Pressing ... $4k
-- Prince's 1980 Rick James tour all access pass ... $800

Bobby "The Brain" Heenan -- a former wrestler, manager, announcer and WWE Hall of Famer -- has died ... according to WWE.

Fellow WWE commentator Jim Ross tweeted out the news first Sunday, saying "The news of Bobby 'The Brain' Heenan's passing today gutted me. I loved our time together. No one ever did it better than the Wease."

Ric Flair also tweeted out his condolences, noting that Heenan was one of the greatest managers, announcers and performers in the wrestling game.

Bobby came up as a pro wrestler and manager through the '60s and '70s in the World Wrestling Association, American Wrestling Association and later the World Wrestling Federation. He managed stars like Angelo Poffo, Guy Mitchell, the Valiant Brothers, Nick Bockwinkel, Jesse Ventura and Andre the Giant.

He went on to become a well-known wrestling commentator through the '80s, '90s and 2000s. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004.

Bobby had battled throat cancer for more than a decade after announcing his diagnosis in 2002. Talent agent Gilbert Boyes tells TMZ that Bobby's wife told him recently Bobby would not be able to make public appearances any longer.

He was 73.

RIP

Chester Bennington appeared happy and engaged with his own family less than 2 days before his hanging suicide ... based on a video his widow shared.

Talinda Bennington posted a video of Chester hanging out with one of his sons eating jelly beans ... she says it was shot just 36 hours before his death.

She captioned the vid saying "This is what depression looked like to us just 36 hrs b4 his death. He loved us SO much & we loved him."

We broke the story ... Chester committed suicide by hanging in July ... much like his good friend and fellow musician Chris Cornell did just a couple months before.

A location scout for Netflix's hit show "Narcos" was shot and killed this week while working in Mexico ... this as the upcoming season shifts its focus to Mexican drug cartels.

Carlos Muñoz Portal was found shot to death Monday in central Mexico during location scouting for season 4 of "Narcos." He was reportedly found riddled with bullets in his car in a remote area near Hidalgo, which is known to have one of the highest murder rates in Mexico.

Netflix issued a statement saying ... "We are aware of the passing of Carlos Muñoz Portal, a well-respected location scout, and send our condolences to his family." Police are currently investigating the circumstances of Portal's death.

The new season of Narcos is expected to focus on the origins of the Juarez cartel in Mexico, and filming was supposed to go down there as opposed to Colombia where past seasons were shot.

Unclear if Portal's death will derail production.

Harry Dean Stanton -- who had iconic roles in "Godfather II," "Pretty in Pink," "Alien" and "Escape from New York" -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Harry Dean died peacefully Friday afternoon at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in L.A. The legendary actor's career spanned more than 6 decades. His credits also include "Repo Man," "Cool Hand Luke," "Paris, Texas," "Alien," "Wild at Heart" and "Twin Peaks."

Harry Dean's final performance will be seen in "Lucky," which is set to air later this month. He's also appeared in HBO's "Big Love" as a polygamist patriarch.

Stanton was in the Navy in WWII and fought in the Battle of Okinawa.

Harry Dean was a talented musician who sang and played guitar. He performed for years with The Harry Dean Stanton Band.

TMZ used to see Stanton frequently at Dan Tana's in WeHo and he was always great to our photogs.

Harry Dean is survived by some family. He was a lifelong bachelor.

Harry Dean was 91. RIP.

Kathy Griffin's sister, Joyce -- the one stricken with cancer who inspired Kathy to shave her head in July -- has lost her battle.

Joyce Griffin succumbed to an undisclosed form of cancer after undergoing extensive chemotherapy.

You'll recall, 2 months ago Kathy shaved her head in solidarity.

It's been tough for Kathy. Her older brother, Gary Griffin, died of esophageal cancer in 2014. Another sibling of Kathy's also died young. She had 4 siblings. Now there are 2.

Joyce was 65 years old. RIP.

The plot thickens in the death of a Chicago teen who was found dead in a hotel freezer, because cops have released a video which shows her stumbling through the hotel shortly before she disappeared.

The video shows Kenneka Jenkins appearing to be under the influence of something ... she's running into walls, she slams into a stairway railing and has no sense of balance.

The 19-year-old went missing Friday night after a party at the Crowne Plaza Hotel and her body was discovered in a hotel freezer a day-and-a-half later.

There's been a lot of suspicion on social media that foul play was involved, but cops have maintained they found nothing suspicious.

Rosie O'Donnell's ex-wife, Michelle Rounds, was found dead in her home Monday of an apparent suicide ... sources tell TMZ.

Rosie tells TMZ ... "I am saddened to hear about this terrible tragedy. Mental illness is a very serious issue affecting many families. My thoughts and prayers go out to Michelle's family, her wife and their child."

Rosie and Michelle started dating in 2011 and got married in a private ceremony in June 2012. They broke up in November 2014 and Rosie filed for divorce in February 2015.

Rosie cited irretrievably broken relationship as the reason for the divorce, which became final in March 2016. Seven months after they married, Rosie and Michelle adopted their daughter, Dakota, who is now 4 years old.

Michelle's mom posted a statement, "... If anyone would like to give to the National Suicide Prevention it would also be greatly appreciated. There are so many out there in this world that have demons that they think suicide is the only way out ..."

Michelle was 46.

#RIP

Frank Vincent has been cremated and will be displayed at his memorial service ... TMZ has learned.

The body of "Sopranos" and "Goodfellas" star was taken to a Montclair, New Jersey funeral home. After cremation, his ashes were placed in an urn. We're told the urn will be placed front and center on a table at the memorial service, surrounded by photos of the actor over the years.

As we reported, Frank died Wednesday due to complications from open-heart surgery.

The service is Saturday.

The helicopter crash that killed country singer Troy Gentry was caused by a faulty engine.

The NTSB has issued its preliminary accident report, obtained by TMZ ... which says the pilot "was unable to control engine rpm with throttle inputs." Translation ... the engine was not responding to the throttle inputs, so the pilot on the doomed aircraft had lost control.

The pilot elected to stop the engine and perform an autorotation, which he had done in the past. The main rotor is supposed to turn -- even without power -- which essentially glides the chopper to the ground. According to the NTSB, the pilot was told to autorotate the aircraft over the runway.

The pilot started the autorotation 950 feet above the ground. The RPM "decayed" to the point where the pilot could see the individual rotor blades. It then fell to the ground. A high-pitched whine was heard as it crashed.

It seems, based on the NTSB report and the audio transmissions (below) ... the pilot initially tried hovering until emergency vehicles arrived below him, but the situation got desperate enough that he turned off the engine and attempted an autorotation to the ground.

The NTSB says Gentry was on the chopper purely for pleasure.

Paul Walker's birthday was truly a bitter/sweet occasion for a dear friend and family member.

Tuesday would've been Paul's 44th bday, and his Uncle Rhett and childhood pal marked it with a visit to Paul's L.A. burial site -- and they didn't come empty handed. They each left a package of Red Vines, and his uncle included a note about time, healing, and this: "Miss you f***er! I remember it all!"

Not sure about the Red Vines -- maybe they were Paul's fave -- but witnesses say Rhett got very emotional during the visit.

His tribute to Paul -- who died nearly 4 years ago -- also had this note: "Ask your self? W.W.P.W.4.D"

RIP

Bobbi Kristina's estate has now joined forces with Bobby Brown to stop TV One from doing a biopic on Bobbi Kristina's life ... TMZ has learned.

Bobby has already filed suit, claiming the portrayal as a bad dad is defamatory.

Bobbi Kristina's estate has now joined the lawsuit, claiming the biopic violates Bobbi Kristina's right to privacy, which they claim survived her death.

Bobby Brown has already claimed in his lawsuit the movie falsely shows him as a violent person toward Whitney Houston. The show suggests Bobbi Kristina witnessed the alleged abuse. He also claims the scenes show him as an unloving father.

The estate and Bobby want more than $2 million in damages and they want the judge to block the airing of the show.

The show is set to air on TV One next month.

Alexis Arquette died a year ago on September 11, and her brother, David Arquette, still gets choked up talking about keeping her memory alive.

We got David Monday night at Bootsy Bellows, where he and his fam were holding a memorial for Alexis ... who died of a heart attack and battled HIV for years.

He talked about launching the Alexis Project to support LGBT communities in L.A. He also told us what he thinks Alexis' legacy will be.

Emotional moment, but Dave did laugh when we asked how Alexis would have wanted the party to go.

Steve Aoki is still coping with the tragic loss of his pal and Linkin Park frontman, Chester Bennington, and he's doing it through music.

Aoki just released "Darker Than The Light That Never Bleeds" (Chester Forever Steve Aoki Remix) - a mash-up of “Darker Than Blood” and “A Light That Never Comes,” two songs he worked on with Chester and Linkin Park. Proceeds go to Music for Relief's One More Light Fund which LP created in Chester's name to raise money for suicide awareness and other relief efforts.

When we got Aoki at LAX Monday he told us how playing the track at his live shows has been therapeutic.

RIP Chester.

The autopsy on the son of Eric Bolling has been completed but the cause of death has not been determined.

The Boulder County Coroner has said determining cause of death will require further investigation. Law enforcement sources tell us, they believe the toxicology results may prove critical.

TMZ broke the story, Eric Chase Bolling, Jr. was found dead in his bed Friday, hours after his father resigned from Fox News Channel after an investigation that allegedly revealed he sent pics of his genitals via text years ago.