TMZ Live

John Ratzenberger -- the voice of Hamm in the 'Toy Story' franchise -- says there's an upside parents don't think about when it comes to all the heartbreaking scenes in the films.

The actor -- also known as Cliff Clavin on "Cheers" before his days as a talking piggy bank -- joined "TMZ Live" Friday to talk about the newly released "Toy Story 4" ... and he answered a serious question in an unexpected and hilarious way.

Damn, John!!!

He makes a good point, though -- sadness is part of life, so maybe it's best to have children learn to work through it before an inevitable death of a grandparent.

Parents who aren't so sure can take solace, though ... Ratzenberger says the 4th installment isn't that sad.

John also reveals how director Josh Cooley was able to keep Don Rickles in the latest movie as the voice of Mr. Potato Head despite Don's passing in 2017. Pretty cool stuff.

To say Irv Gotti's ecstatic to finally unveil Kanye West's new track on his show would be a severe understatement ... Irv's damn near losing his mind!!!

The Murder Inc. Records honcho joined "TMZ Live" on Thursday, and was visibly hyped about season 2 of his BET series "Tales" ... because it features new music from Ye. The track "Brothers" serves as the soundtrack for the episode ... and it's also the basis for the 2-hour episode's storyline.

Check out the clip ... Irv says the idea to work on this project was conceived back in October 2017. Way back then, Gotti hinted he and Kanye had "something enormous" coming ... but no one knew.

Irv captioned the post, "2 crazy. Out of the box thinkers. That only thinks about serving the world!! Hahah. Stay tuned. Great great great meeting of the minds."

And, here they are ... on the verge of dropping the new track AND a TV episode. Irv dished on what it was like to produce with Kanye and what he learned from a guy he says is "largely misunderstood."

Josh Elliott is here with some good news on the out-of-control ATV driver who led police on a wild chase that ended with him getting SMOKED by another car ... the dude somehow walked away alive!!!

The host of the new FOX reality series "First Responders Live" tells us the man recklessly riding around Baton Rouge and eluding cops before a super scary wreck is miraculously on the road to recovery ... and it's all thanks to the police and paramedics the show's TV cameras were embedded with.

Josh's new show premiered on FOX last Wednesday and it quickly proved why it's a raw, in-depth look at first responders ... because viewers were given front-row seats as a police chase turned into a horrifying car wreck in the blink of an eye, which Josh says illustrates the interplay between cops, firefighters and paramedics.

'FRL' embeds cameras in several cities across the country, documenting a night in the lives of the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect others.

Presidential candidate Eric Swalwell has an answer for Meghan McCain, who called him out over the 9/11 Victims Fund, and makes it clear ... he's supporting Jon Stewart and all the first responder heroes.

The Democratic Congressman was on "TMZ Live" Thursday responding to Meghan criticizing him for missing Jon's powerful testimony this week for the House Judiciary Committee. Rep. Swalwell told us his absence was the result of a top-secret matter.

Swalwell has 3 family members in law enforcement and stressed he's voted to fund the 9/11 Victims Fund before and would continue to support what Jon's pitching.

As for his 2020 presidential run -- the California Rep. says he's up for the hectic schedule, but there's one aspect of it that really grinds his gears. He says it's a MUST that he gets in his daily run. As for how far he goes -- it's pretty impressive, considering he's traveling almost every day.

We couldn't let the Congressman go without challenging one of his odd wardrobe habits. Check out his explanation for ... ironing his jeans!!!

Can you picture R. Kelly working the register in a red shirt and an apron at Del Taco? His ex-wife can ... if that's what it takes to dig himself out of a child support hole.

Drea Kelly and her daughter, Buku Abi -- who are both on "Growing Up Hip Hop: Atlanta" -- joined "TMZ Live" Thursday and pretty much she said she doesn't give a damn what kinda job Kelly has to land to meet his legal obligations ... so long as he once and for all wipes his debts clean.

As we first reported ... Drea asked the court for a hard and fast deadline for Kelly to pay her the $32k he owes. Kelly's camp previously insisted the money owed is interest and not back child support ... but we've learned only $11,500 of it is interest and the rest is for unpaid child support and educational expenses.

Check out the clip ... Drea suggests the fast food joint for the King of R&B.

Kelly, of course, has hired an army of lawyers for his mounting legal troubles, which can't be cheap. This is on top of back child support he's already ponied up ... to the tune of $161,633. That money, we were told, came from a benefactor. So, you can see why Drea's worried.

Cardi B's lingering side effects from her recent plastic surgeries should be setting off alarm bells ... so says Dr. Terry Dubrow.

The "Botched" star came on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and weighed in on Cardi's super swollen feet and ankles ... telling us the swelling could be indicative of much larger health issues than CB is letting on.

Cardi posted this graphic pic over the weekend, blaming her swollen feet on flying and further showing fans the toll her recent boob job and liposuction is taking on her body, which forced her to postpone some shows.

The rapper says she got her boobs done sometime after giving birth to baby Kulture last July ... and in early May she told a crowd in Memphis she should have canceled the show because "moving too much is going to f*** up my lipo."

Dr. Dubrow says he's concerned Cardi is still dealing with swelling this far removed from going under the knife ... and he's advising her to see a doctor pronto!

Check out the clip ... Dr. Dubrow warns CB about the dangers of plastic surgery.

UFC fighter Macy Chiasson has little more than the shirt on her back after a massive crane crashed through her Dallas apartment building, and her description of the moment of impact is chilling.

Macy joined "TMZ Live" Tuesday and said she and her dog escaped the collapsing crane's path with seconds to spare. She told us the crane was there for new construction going up next to her building -- and when a severe storm struck on Monday it blew the crane over backward.

Macy says she knew something horrible had gone wrong after hearing a loud "boom," and then floors collapsing above her first-floor apartment. She grabbed her dog and ran out the door ... stumbling into the lobby to find neighbors covered in blood and debris.

The accident's still under investigation but the crane company's come under scrutiny because the crane's supposed to withstand 95 MPH winds. Winds gusted as high as 71 MPH. Video showing the crane coming down shows another nearby crane remain stable.