RIP

The assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is drawing a steady stream of mourners to the site where he was gunned down while making a campaign speech.

The nation's grief is on display in the city of Nara as citizens arrive in waves ... praying and leaving flowers at the train station.

Abe had been campaigning there in support of a parliament candidate Friday when a 41-year-old man opened fire with a homemade shotgun. The 67-year-old former PM was rushed to a hospital for treatment, but died from his injuries.

Early Saturday, a motorcade carrying his body left the hospital, and made the journey back to Abe's home in Tokyo.

The gunman is in police custody, and had already been charged with attempted murder before Abe was pronounced dead -- but the shocking assassination is raising questions about the safety of Japan's public figures, as it's common for politicians to pop up outside train stations, stores and markets to appeal directly to voters.

Tony Sirico, one of the main stars of "The Sopranos," is dead ... TMZ has confirmed.

Tony played Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri, one of Tony Soprano's main guys for every season of the HBO hit show. His brother Robert announced his passing on Facebook saying "It is with great sadness, but with incredible pride, love and a whole lot of fond memories, that the family of Gennaro Anthony "Tony" Sirico wishes to inform you of his death."

Robert says Tony passed Friday morning. Sources connected to the family tell us Tony had been living in an assisted living home in Fort Lauderdale, FL for a couple years, and had been in failing health.

Of course, Tony will be most remembered for his 'Sopranos' role -- he won 2 Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Cast.

Fun fact: He'd actually auditioned for the role of Tony Soprano's Uncle Junior -- which, of course, ultimately went to Dominic Chianese. Instead, David Chase gave him the Paulie role. He had one rule about his acting gigs ... he never played "rats."

He also got a lot of voice acting roles on animated hits like "Family Guy" and "American Dad" -- and played a mobster or gangster in tons of movies, including "Goodfellas," "Mighty Aphrodite," "Gotti," "Cop Land" and "Mickey Blue Eyes."

Sirico was a big supporter of the U.S. military -- he and James Gandolfini once traveled to Iraq for a rally for the troops there. He continued to support the Wounded Warrior Project organization too.

He's survived by his 2 children, Joanne and Richard, several grandchildren and his siblings.

Tony was 79.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot on Friday while campaigning for a candidate ahead of his country's national elections, according to reports.

Video on social media showed the stunning moment Abe collapsed to the ground and was bleeding from gunshot wounds to his neck and chest in the Japanese city of Nara, near Kyoto. Authorities say one of the bullets pierced his heart.

The 67-year-old was rushed to Nara Medical University Hospital, where doctors said they tried to stop the bleeding from his wounds and did a transfusion, but ultimately couldn't save him. Abe was pronounced dead just after 5 PM.

Police reportedly arrested the alleged gunman, Tetsuya Yamagami, who was initially charged with attempted murder before Abe's death was announced. Cops recovered what appeared to be a homemade gun that the suspect had been holding, according to local reports.

At a press conference, current Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called the attack on Abe a "heinous act," adding, "It is barbaric and malicious, and it cannot be tolerated."

Abe was in Nara campaigning ahead of Sunday's elections for the Upper House of Parliament. He was less than a minute into a speech in support of Kei Sato, a current member of the Upper House running for re-election, when the shots rang out behind him.

What makes Abe's assassination even more shocking is that Japan has one of the world's lowest rates of gun crimes because of its strict laws on owning firearms. Japan, which has a population of 125 million people, reported just nine gun-related deaths in 2018, compared with nearly 40,000 in the U.S. that same year.

Abe was Japan's longest-serving prime minister, getting elected to two terms, from 2006 to 2007 and from 2012 to 2020. He resigned in 2020 due to health issues.

Gregory Itzin, star of "24," "NCIS" and several other huge TV hits, has died ... according to a close friend and co-worker.

Gregory played U.S. Prez Charles Logan for 6 years on "24" ... a brilliant role, alongside Kiefer Sutherland, that earned him an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor.

Sorry for the spoiler (it's been more than 10 years, though), but Itzin's villain turn in the series is pretty epic.

"24" executive producer Jon Cassar shared the news of Gregory's death Friday morning on Twitter, saying "He was one of the most talented actors I had the honor to work with, but more than that he was an all around great guy. He'll be missed by his 24 family who had nothing but love & respect for him."

Itzin went on to nab roles on "NCIS" -- as Director Charlie for several seasons -- "The Mentalist," "Judging Amy" and "Star Trek: Enterprise" ... where he played Admiral Black.

He even had a bit role in the Phoebe wedding episodes of "Friends."

Gregory is survived by his wife Judie and their 2 children.

He was 74.

The amount of support for "Outer Banks" stand-in Alexander "AJ" Jennings has been massive since his untimely death ... but his family says the best way to honor him would be to donate some cash to a charity.

LuJean Jennings, Alex's mother, tells TMZ ... they've been offered help for funeral costs from "Outer Banks" cast and crew members, but she thinks a donation to the Red Cross would make more sense, given the deep ties he has with the org -- and it's not just his CPR and lifeguard certification.

Alex, who stood in for Chase Stokes on the Netflix series, was born in Russia and was adopted from an orphanage when he was 18 months old. He was proud of his heritage ... up until Russia's invasion of Ukraine -- something he found extremely upsetting.

Being a 22-year-old actor, Alex didn't always have the means to make financial contributions of his own, but his family would often send money to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The fund assists people leaving Ukraine with shelter, basic aid items and medical supplies.

Alex's family is asking those wanting to show support for the late actor to help the refugees by chipping in to the IFRC instead.

As we reported, Alex was struck and killed by two vehicles early Tuesday morning in Charleston, both of which fled the scene. According to preliminary reports, he was walking along the main thoroughfare between James Island and Folly Beach when he was hit.

Derek Chauvin was just sentenced to more than 20 years in federal prison for violating George Floyd's civil rights during his murder.

The former Minnesota cop took a plea deal back in December, admitting he kept his knee pinned on Floyd's neck when Floyd became unresponsive, and was sentenced on Thursday ... getting 245 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.

Chauvin was in the courtroom when the judge read the sentence, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, and waved to his mother and friends in the gallery when he was brought in.

Floyd's brother, Philonise, gave a victim impact statement ... saying George was murdered in broad daylight for the world to see, accusing Chauvin of using excessive force that went against his police training.

George's brother also remarked how George would not be there to see his daughter grow up ... and Philonise said George's life mattered.

Chauvin's mother, Carolyn Pawlenty, also spoke in court ... telling her son she would visit him often in prison and hoping she would still be alive when he's released.

James Caan, the legendary actor made famous for his roles in films like "The Godfather," "Brian's Song" has died.

This was just posted on James' Twitter account -- "It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jimmy on the evening of July 6. The family appreciates the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time."

Caan's breakout role came in 1972, when he played Sonny on "The Godfather." He was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor as well as a Golden Globe.

He reprised the role in 'Godfather II.'

Before 'Godfather' Caan played Brian Piccolo in "Brian's Song."

James was in numerous movies ... including "Misery," "Dick Tracy" and "Elf."

Caan was born in the Bronx ... the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany. His dad was a butcher.

James played football at Michigan State University.

Caan was a fixture at the Playboy Mansion in the '70s and '80s ... he loved to party and was never shy about speaking his mind.

He has 5 kids, including Scott, an actor himself who starred in "Hawaii Five-0."

James was married most recently to Linda Stokes from 1995-2009.

James was 82.

Kazuki Takahashi, creator of the hit TV series "Yu-Gi-Oh," and eventual inspiration for the trading card game, has passed away in Japan, according to the country's Coast Guard.

He was 60.

A spokesman told the New York Times that Takahashi -- who had been traveling alone while vacationing -- died from unknown causes while snorkeling.

His body was found Wednesday floating off the coast of Nago -- a city on Okinawa Island in Southern Japan -- the spokesman said.

The Coast Guard is investigating his death.

Takahashi's success with anime began in his early 20s, but it wasn't until 1996 -- when he created "Yu-Gi-Oh" -- he would realize just how popular the series would become.

Takahashi said in 2019 that when he created the manga, the original concept was to show different ways to battle each week. However, after two weeks of drawing out the characters he created, he decided to make the series about a trading card game.

Of course, the Yu-Gi-Oh trading card game -- which debuted in the United States in March 2002 -- went on to become one of the most popular card games in the country rivaling the likes of Pokemon.

The franchise is estimated to have made over $17.1 billion, including over $960 million in sales of Takahashi's manga series, according to Newsweek.

Fans of Yu-Gi-Oh were shocked once they learned Takahashi died ... including former NFL player Cassius Marsh, who posted a picture of Yugi -- the show's main protagonist -- on his Instagram story with a sad emoji.

R.I.P.

"One Tree Hill" star Bevin Prince is suffering through the devastating loss of her husband, who was struck by lightning.

According to a local report, William Friend was near Masonboro Island in North Carolina over the weekend when he was hit by a lightning strike. Friend, the CEO of Bisnow, a digital media company, was only 33 years old.

NBC affiliate WECT says deputies performed CPR on Friend at the scene for 20 minutes, but the life-saving efforts weren't enough ... he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Bevin and William married in 2016, the pair owned a fitness business in North Carolina.

A release from Bisnow read, in part, "Friends and former colleagues marveled at Friend's ability and willingness to take on new challenges — whether or not he was ready. He demonstrated that tenacity at an early age."

An investigation is underway at SoFi Stadium after dive teams found a body in the lake in front of the Rams and Chargers' home venue in L.A. on Wednesday.

The Los Angeles County Fire Dept. says firefighters were dispatched to the stadium at around 6 AM after they received reports that someone had jumped into the man-made body of water in Inglewood and never resurfaced.

Dive teams searched the lake for hours, using sonar operations, and eventually recovered the body of what officials said was a 45-year-old male.

Inglewood Mayor James Butts said Wednesday afternoon a motive for the man jumping into the lake was unknown. Butts added surveillance video showed it "kind of" looked like the man "didn't know how to swim."

"This is someone that made a conscious decision to trespass onto the property, get into the lake and he ended up having some distress and difficulty," Butts said. "So I don't think there's anything SoFi could've done to prevent this."

The lake -- located just south of the stadium -- is 5.5 acres big, around 15 feet deep and holds up to 11 million gallons of water.

It was reportedly designed to capture rainwater to water the plants around the stadium.

A stand-in for Chase Stokes on the hit show 'Outer Banks' was killed this week in a horrific car accident -- this as the new season continues to film in South Carolina.

22-year-old Alexander 'AJ' Jennings was struck by two vehicles early Tuesday morning in Charleston, both of which fled the scene. He passed away as a result of injuries sustained from the double hit-and-run -- the coroner's office has his time of death listed at 3:13 AM.

According to preliminary reports, Jennings was walking along a main thoroughfare between James Island and Folly Beach when he was hit around 2 AM. The first vehicle left him for dead, and not too long after that ... Jennings was apparently hit by a second vehicle that also split -- although that driver was reportedly later pulled over in a traffic stop.

Life-saving measures were unsuccessful ... Jennings succumbed to his injuries. His employer, Kimmie Stewart Casting, confirmed Jennings had been working on 'OB' as a photo double/stand-in for John B -- the main character of the Netflix series, portrayed by Chase.

KSC writes, "I cannot fathom the shock and tragedy of AJ's sudden loss and our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time. I understand this message may be difficult to process for those of you that met & became fast friends with AJ."

The agency adds that Netflix has grief counseling available to those who need it -- as AJ appears to have had a lot of friends on the production. One of those friends, it seems, was Chase himself ... who also honored AJ by taking to social media.

He writes, "Still trying to process why certain things happen, and why the world works in the ways that it does. My heart is shattered. Your life was just starting. We JUST talked about how pumped you were about your tunes, how far you'd come with that ole 6 string and your want to keep creating art. Always always making others hearts warm and being so damn selfless." CS went on to say AJ had touched all of their lives, adding ... "Fly high angel."

Bryan Marchment -- a former NHL defenseman and the father of current Florida Panthers forward Mason Marchment -- has passed away, the league announced on Wednesday.

He was 53 years old.

No cause of death has been revealed at this time.

"The National Hockey League mourns the passing of San Jose Sharks scout and former NHL player Bryan Marchment," the league said in a statement.

"Our deepest condolences go out to his family, the Sharks organization, and Bryan's many friends, former teammates, and fans."

Selected 16th overall in the 1987 draft, Bryan made his NHL debut at 19 for the Winnipeg Jets.

The defenseman played 17 total seasons in the NHL ... including stops with the Oilers, Sharks, Whalers, Blackhawks, Lightning, Avalanche, Maple Leafs and Flames.

Jayland Walker's older sister says she's not ready to watch her brother getting gunned down by cops ... and believes the story officers are giving of the moments that led up to his killing has been planted to put him in a bad light.

Jada Walker was understandably emotional as she recalled her brother's life during an interview with ABC News Wednesday, saying the Jayland she knew isn't the one depicted by officers of the Akron, OH police department ... she also says she never knew him to own a gun.

Jada says she can't bring herself to watch the body cam footage, choosing not to remember her brother in such a horrific manner. She also thinks the photo that was circulated showing a gun in Walker's vehicle was staged.

As you know, body cam footage was released Sunday that showed Jayland Walker being hit by gunshots at least 60 times, killing him. The shooting happened shortly after a traffic stop turned into a car chase throughout the city, ending in a foot pursuit.

A 2-year-old child was left to fend for himself after both of his parents were killed during Monday's mass shooting at the July 4th parade in Illinois.

37-year-old Kevin McCarthy, and 35-year-old Irina McCarthy, both died after a 21-year-old armed with an assault rifle opened fire on the unsuspecting crowd.

The McCarthy’s son, Aiden, was reportedly separated from his parents and got lost in the chaos.

Apparently, a couple found the young boy in the midst of Monday's mayhem and brought him to the local fire department.

Reports say the 2-year-old was eventually reunited with his grandparents at a hospital.

As we've reported, 7 people have died and at least 30 were injured during Monday’s massacre. The shooter fired off close to 70 rounds.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help support Aiden, who is now without both parents. The creators of the page wrote, "We took him to safety under tragic circumstances, came together to locate his grandparents, and prayed for the safety of his family."

Tyler Sanders' death is being treated as a suspected overdose ... sources connected to the death investigation tell TMZ.

We're told Tyler, who had roles in big shows like "9-1-1: Lone Star" and "Fear the Walking Dead," had a history of drug use and cops found a plastic straw and white powder in the room where he died.

TMZ broke the story ... 18-year-old Tyler was found dead June 16 in his Los Angeles home.

Our sources say Tyler's friends called police to conduct a welfare check because they had not heard from him following a night out ... and that's what led to his body being discovered.

Tyler was laid to rest in Houston ... and someone who attended the funeral tells us Tyler's dad, David Sanders, delivered the eulogy and told the crowd Tyler died of an apparent drug overdose.

We're told Tyler started battling depression when he began filming '9-1-1' and his father repeated some of Tyler's own words at his funeral, talking about how Tyler's brain was wired to where he could not feel happiness.

Hip-hop trailblazer and legendary dancer Bruno "Pop N Taco" Falcon has died ... this according to his loved ones.

His sister, Diana Wolgamott, tells TMZ ... the longtime Los Angeles-based breaker and choreographer passed away Saturday at his Long Beach home. She says she believes he may have died from a possible heart attack. We're told his death is considered natural, and no autopsy will be conducted.

Bruno was a staple in the dance scene throughout the '80s and '90s -- specifically, through a style he sorta carved out as his own in locking ... which he popularized in the cult classic film "Breakin'" where he played one of the main characters, Electro Rock 1 opposite Ice-T.

Speaking of, the rapper confirmed his death on Twitter ... replying to a fan who asked if he'd heard of Bruno's death and saying, "Yep, just got a text. He was to young. Smh."

The guy went on to act in other films such as "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey," "Thumbelina" and even Michael Jackson's "Moonwalker." He actually had a pretty tight relationship with MJ ... having danced on and off with the superstar for years, even appearing in some music videos.

He might best be remembered as one of the dancers on "Smooth Criminal" who did the iconic lean dance sequence. Bruno is also said to have taught Michael a thing or two about popping and locking ... a style MJ employed often in his career. Bruno was with Michael during his HIStory tour in the '90s -- he appears to have served in a choreographer capacity.

Bruno has also danced with other Jackson family members including La Toya and Janet. He's also appeared in music videos for Lionel Richie and Chaka Khan, among other storied artists.

He was 58.