TV

As far as David Letterman's concerned, fans need to keep the good vibes going Alex Trebek's way -- because he agrees, positivity is helping Alex near remission in his pancreatic cancer battle.

We got Letterman Wednesday in NYC and told him about Alex revealing his tumors have shrunk around 50 percent since beginning chemotherapy.

Dave made it clear, he's cosigning on Alex's assessment that his success isn't all attributed to science -- it's also very much about the flood of well-wishes from fans and friends contributing to an improved condition.

Remember, David's been in Alex's shoes before -- undergoing quintuple heart bypass surgery in 2000, and making a full recovery.

5:15 PM PT -- We just got Chazz Palminteri in NYC, and he told us he's glad he got the chance to work with Carmine ... calling him a really great man.

Chazz also feels Carmine should be reinstated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

9:53 AM PT -- Carmine's manager tells us, "From Broadway, to film and television, Carmine spent over six decades entertaining audiences, and nothing made him happier. His talent, wit, warmth, and charm will be missed. Carmine passed peacefully, surrounded by friends and family."

"Perhaps Carmine's biggest regret was his involvement in a scandal that left him expelled from The Motion Picture Academy. While exonerated by police and the FBI, Carmine was always deeply saddened by what had transpired."

9:10 AM PT -- A rep for Carmine tells us he had actually been at Cedars-Sinai since April 25 when he took a nasty fall. He had been getting treatment for back injuries, but after nearly a month in the hospital he came down with pneumonia.

We're told he was diagnosed last Thursday, and although doctors felt he was stable enough for release on Friday ... his health started going south on Saturday.

Although some of Carmine's friends have posted he was in a coma, the rep said he was responsive up until the day before his death.

Carmine Caridi has died from complications suffered during hospitalization for a bad fall ... TMZ has learned.

The 'Godfather' actor -- who played Carmine Rosato in the first sequel -- was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai hospital in L.A., and his health started slipping over the weekend. We're told he died on Wednesday. Carmine's friend, actor and director Chazz Palminteri, confirmed the passing to TMZ.

It's unclear what caused Carmine's health crisis.

Carmine is a veteran TV actor, who's starred in big shows like "Starsky and Hutch," "Taxi," "Fame" and "Simon & Simon." He also, notably, played Det. Vince Gotelli in "NYPD Blue."

Interestingly, he returned in "The Godfather Part III," but in a different role -- he played Albert Volpe that time around.

In total, Carmine has more than 100 acting credits over six decades in showbiz.

He's also known as one of the few people who've been expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for sharing movie screeners in '04 -- which became the butt of Jimmy Kimmel's joke during the 2018 Oscars ... when he compared Carmine to Harvey Weinstein.

Carmine took exception with Kimmel's crack, telling us he shouldn't have been put in the same category as Weinstein ... even if it was all in good fun.

Carmine was 85.

RIP

Alex Trebek is revealing some incredible news ... he's nearing remission and his tumors have shrunk by more than 50 percent!!!

The "Jeopardy!" host told People his progress battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer has been "kind of mind-boggling" ... because the cancer has a 9 percent survival rate. The doctors themselves are SHOCKED by how well Trebek's been responding to chemo.

Trebek says, "The doctors said they hadn't seen this kind of positive result in their memory ... some of the tumors have already shrunk by more than 50 percent."

It wasn't long ago -- back on May 1 -- when Trebek said his battle with cancer gives him "surges of deep, deep sadness." The 'Jeopardy!' legend was diagnosed in March as he was nearing the end of the 35th season of the enduring game show.

While this is all great news, Trebek says he knows he's not outta the woods just yet. He's got several more rounds of chemo before he goes into full remission. The good news, however, brought Trebek to tears, adding, "But they were tears of joy, not tears of depression."

As for why he's responded so well to chemo, Trebek said he credits well wishes from fans and friends from around the world. He said, "I told the doctors, this has to be more than just the chemo, and they agreed it could very well be an important part of this."

Luann de Lesseps is still pissing off judges and her probation officer, but her real-life problems are NOT jeopardizing her reality TV future with 'Housewives' -- at least, not yet.

Sources close to the "Real Housewives of New York" production tell TMZ ... Luann's position and security on the show are as strong as ever, despite the fact she continues to run into trouble while on probation for her drunken arrest case from 17 months ago.

As we reported ... she's already violated the terms of probation at least twice ... once for failing to prove she was going to AA meetings, and more recently for downing a couple mimosas.

After her most recent violation, she was slapped with newer, even stricter terms.

Our sources are clear though -- Luann's job is not on the line, and higher-ups haven't even discussed the possibility of firing her ... despite reports suggesting otherwise.

Fact is, Luann is great for TV right now because the fallout from her arrest offers up juicy drama and an interesting narrative for viewers. Translation ... ratings, baby!!!

One other thing our sources say should be taken into account ... some of the other 'RHONY' cast members have gotten wasted on-camera before, and have endured plenty of public embarrassment -- and they're still there.

"Love & Hip Hop" star Rah Ali gave birth 5 months into her pregnancy, and the baby only survived for a few minutes ... which is why Nicki Minaj is trying like hell to ease her close friend's pain.

Sources close to Rah Ali tell TMZ ... her baby girl died Sunday, almost immediately after the premature birth. She was not due until the middle of October.

We're told Rah Ali was in her house Sunday when her water broke and contractions started. She was rushed to the hospital, but doctors were unable to save her baby.

The premature birth came as a complete shock -- we're told all of Rah's previous doctors visits revealed no signs of trouble with her pregnancy.

Nicki and Rah have been close forever. Rah Ali allegedly tried to fight Cardi B on behalf of Nicki during last year's infamous shoe-throwing incident at a New York Fashion Week party.

Our sources say Nicki's doing everything she can to be supportive in the wake of the child's death ... calling and checking on Rah, and trying to lift her spirits ... as much as possible considering the devastating situation.

American model Janice Pennington was 30 years old when she became a daytime staple as one of the original Barker's Beauties on the classic price predicting television show, "The Price is Right."

Janice Pennington started on the showcase show in 1972 and was part of a TV trifecta alongside Holly Hallstrom and Dian Parkinson who remained the three main models on the show for over two decades.

Fun Fact: Janice was responsible for handing Bob Barker his iconic wand microphone at the start of each show ... totaling over 6,000 episodes from 1972 - 2000.

3:34 PM PT -- Kit's reps got back to us, and say he "has decided to utilize this break in his schedule as an opportunity to spend some time at a wellness retreat to work on some personal issues."

They say he's NOT there for "rehab," and emphasize the words, "wellness retreat."

Kit Harington was hit hard by "Game of Thrones" coming to an end -- so hard, he checked himself into a rehab center for stress and alcohol before the final episode aired.

The actor, who famously played Jon Snow on 'Thrones,' entered a luxury Connecticut facility for a mental health retreat weeks before the May 19 finale ... according to the NY Post, which first reported his rehab stay.

Kit's been getting treatment for stress, exhaustion and alcohol abuse. The Post says his wife -- fellow 'GoT' star Rose Leslie -- has been very supportive of the decision to get professional help.

The rehab facility is believed to cost over $120,000 per month ... no word yet on when Harington will be released.

As you know, 'GoT' wrapped its highly-anticipated 8th final season earlier this month. Reviews of the whole season were extremely mixed, at best, and downright awful at worst. It still got HUGE ratings, though.

Video of Kit reacting to the final script in the 'GoT' behind-the-scenes documentary as he read the fate of his character and Emilia Clarke's Daenerys Targaryen went viral ... because he broke down in tears.

Clearly, he wasn't just being dramatic. He has since said he needed therapy after learning how the show ends for his character.

Kit's also been very open about how much the show's worldwide attention has impacted his life. He told Variety the "darkest" point was when Jon Snow was killed ... but later came back to life.

The L.A. Lakers might as well start sellin' lip kits and flat tummy tea, 'cause Jay Williams says there's so much drama surrounding LeBron's team, he's dubbing them "the Kardashians of the NBA."

And, he ain't saying it as a compliment.

It's been a dumpster fire of an offseason for the Lakers ... with Magic Johnson going scorched earth on Rob Pelinka and accusing him of some old fashioned backstabbery. They fired Luke Walton and struggled to get a replacement coach.

And, of course, Lonzo Ball has Big Baller Brand drama.

Williams says things in LakerLand have gotten so bad, the team is starting to resemble the Kar-Jenners more than an NBA organization.

"I feel like we talk about everything but their on-court play ... that's kind of a signature of a lot of drama."

Williams says he still doesn't understand Magic's reasoning behind leaving the team ... and the very public breakup is gonna have players second-guessing whether they wanna be around that come free agency.

There's no clear-cut evidence Blac Chyna was wielding a knife when she allegedly threatened her hairdresser.

Sources close to the case tell TMZ ... no witnesses have come forward backing the hairdresser's claim Chyna went after her with a blade. Nor does the surveillance footage we obtained from that night show a knife.

It's possible the alleged knife appeared off-camera -- but, again, zippo from witnesses.

TMZ broke the story ... BC and her hairdresser got into a heated argument earlier this month at Chyna's San Fernando Valley home. The hairdresser filed a police report, and BC appeared as a named suspect for assault with a deadly weapon.

For her part, Blac Chyna insists she's the victim, not the aggressor ... and claims her Rolls-Royce was damaged when the hairdresser started hurling soda cans during the altercation.

Chyna might be S-O-L too ... our sources say there's no way of proving the damage to her car came from soda cans being thrown.

Fact is ... neither woman's got evidence to help 'em prove a case.

Jordyn Woods and her mother, Elizabeth, surfaced for the first time since Kylie Jenner said her former BFF really "f***** up."

Jordyn and Elizabeth were leaving a London hotel Saturday night, looking kinda stoic. The Kardashian sisters went in on Jordyn in a big way for the "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" promo. It was emotional and sure felt real.

Kylie recently let Jordyn back into her guesthouse to move out her belongings, which seems to be the final chapter, at least for now.

Jordyn's been in London several times recently to promote her Eylure lash line. She's also hawking a clothing line.

George Foreman says he loves, admires, respects and reveres Muhammad Ali ... but still wishes he'd have KICKED HIS ASS when they fought in the Rumble in the Jungle back in '74.

The whole world knows Ali knocked Foreman out in Zaire, one of the biggest, most improbable, and inspiring upsets in sports history.

It's easy to argue that victory was ESSENTIAL for Ali's legacy and that Foreman played a pivotal role in history by LOSING. Sooooo, is there even a little, tiny part of Foreman that's happy he lost? HELL NO.

"I'm so happy, especially about that right eye that was swollen for two weeks. Not to mention I hit my head on the canvas. Who could be happy about something like that?"

Foreman said all of that with his trademark smile, but you can clearly see he derives NO JOY in being the biggest victory in Ali's insanely remarkable career, but still gave props where props are due.

"Muhammad beat me ... he flat-out, outsmarted me and beat me."

Dr. Paul Nassif wants to hook Artie Lange up with a nose job on his reality TV show ... if the comedian can kick his drug habit.

We talked to the "Botched" star about Artie's seriously deformed honker ... and the Bev Hills plastic surgeon tells us he's happy to offer his services to Artie -- but he's gotta stay clean.

Artie was arrested this past week in New Jersey for violating his drug probation, and his sad mug shot shows just how much damage's been done to his nose. The former Howard Stern sidekick recently tested positive for cocaine and morphine.

Nassif tells us Artie's got saddle nose, a deformity caused by trauma to the septum. The doc says the condition is common with drug abusers, and cocaine is the main culprit.

While he wants to get Artie on "Botched" so he can go under the knife ... Nassif says Artie's gotta stop putting drugs up his nose for good, because if he doesn't ... his nose will collapse again and it will look even worse.

Britney Spears' father's done right by her for a long time and deserves respect for that, but her latest issues might require a different approach ... so says Dr. Drew.

The celebrity doc was leaving the Sirius building in NYC this week when we asked about Britney's mental health and family drama, and first things first ... he tells us folks need to lay off the pop star.

Dr. Drew then says Britney's dad, Jamie, should be applauded for his courage for putting her under conservatorship after her infamous 2008 meltdown, which allowed her to make a comeback and have renewed success in recent years.

He points out Jamie's not just been doing what he thinks is best for Britney -- he's doing what's required by law. Dr. Drew's not buying the sordid allegations related to the "Free Britney" movement.

Having said that ... he suggests Britney may well still need a conservatorship -- which medical professionals will determine -- and if she does, Drew thinks it might not be a bad idea to possibly install a new conservator. Problem is, if not Jamie, who?

Sorry, Oscar De La Hoya ... you will NOT be making money off Kevin Hart's boxing career -- 'cause the actor says there's no way in HELL he's stepping in the ring for real!!!

If ya missed it ... Hart took on poker star Antonio Esfandiari in a fun exhibition match a few weeks ago, and De La Hoya told us he was fired up about the chance to be Hart's boxing promoter.

At the time, Oscar said, "If he wants a promoter, Kevin, give me a call. I can put you on the big stage here in Vegas live on DAZN."

When we got Hart out in NYC this week ... we had to ask about Oscar's offer -- and Hart couldn't shut down The Golden Boy faster!!!

"Boxing? I'm 40 years old!" Hart said .. "I can't box at this age."

It's a big bummer ... considering there was already HUGE interest in Hart's sparring sesh with Esfandiari -- big stars like Jonah Hill and Don Cheadle had ringside seats.

Remy Ma's been hit with a new criminal complaint for allegedly punching Brittney Taylor ... and there are some very significant updates.

Prosecutors filed 4 charges against the rapper Friday -- 2 counts of assault in the third degree, 1 count of aggravated harassment in the second degree, and 1 count of harassment in the second degree ... all of which are misdemeanors.

The charges stem from an incident in April, in which Remy allegedly punched the "Love & Hip Hop: New York" star in the right eye while backstage at the Pretty Lou Benefit Concert at Irving Plaza in NYC. She was initially booked for misdemeanor assault after turning herself in ... but prosecutors have now made the multiple charges official.

Here's what's interesting ... Remy's attorney, Dawn Florio, tells TMZ that prosecutors have updated the time in which they claim the attack went down, from 9:30 PM to 10:30 PM. We're told they still do not have any video of the alleged attack.

However, the timing is important because as we told you ... Remy claimed she had visual proof she was nowhere near the venue or Taylor at the time she was accused of punching her, which was 9:30. Now that's been updated to an hour later to match up with the rapper being present at the concert.

Though she's facing 4 charges, we're told Remy has been offered a deal to plead guilty to just the top charge -- assault in the third degree -- and the rest will be dropped. She'd also have to enter a long-term anger management program.

Wendy Williams has put a wall up between her son and his father ... so claims Kevin Hunter Sr., who fears the fight that led to Kevin Jr.'s arrest has solidified the wall with indestructible mortar.

Sources with direct knowledge of the divorce say Wendy's estranged husband has been vocal, accusing Wendy of poisoning his relationship with their son, getting in his ear and talking smack about him ... at least that's what he's been saying.

We're told Kevin Sr. has made several attempts in recent weeks to spend time with his son to repair the relationship, but he got the cold shoulder. He's also sent his boy lengthy texts ... only to get one-word replies.

Our sources say before Wendy filed for divorce, the Kevins were super tight ... so Sr. claims the trigger for the change has to be Wendy. Of course, the marriage fell apart because Kevin apparently had a child out of wedlock with another woman. He says he's admitted his wrongdoing but feels Wendy's feelings have been transferred to Jr.

We broke the story ... Wendy's son was arrested for assault after he got into an altercation with his dad in a New Jersey parking lot and allegedly punched him in the nose after Sr. put Jr. in a headlock.

We're told the fight erupted over an argument involving Kevin Sr.'s demand for spousal support. They also beefed over Sr.'s claim Wendy was sabotaging his relationship with Jr.