TV

Mark Blum, famous for starring in "Desperately Seeking Susan" and "Crocodile Dundee" ... has died as a result of complications from the coronavirus.

Mark, who also starred as Mr. Mooney in the hit series, "You," and acted on Broadway, was a true working actor.

Blum played Gary Glass in 1985's 'DSS' ... and he played Richard Mason in 1986's "Crocodile Dundee."

The veteran character actor was well known within the NYC theater community ... Mark appeared on Broadway in Neil Simon's "Lost In Yonkers" plus Gore Vidal's "The Best Man," and many more. He also won an Obie Award for his work in the Playwrights Horizons production of an Albert Innaurto play, "Gus and Al."

The rapidly spreading novel coronavirus has already led to more than 19,600 deaths across the globe, including several celebrities ... COVID-19 is also believed to have killed American playwright Terrence McNally, Italian actress Lucia Bosè and celeb chef Floyd Cardoz.

Mark was 69.

RIP

Idris Elba is on the mend in his bout with coronavirus ... and pretty soon he could be immune to the disease, so he says.

The actor gave his fans a huge health update and said his doctor told him that after quarantine "we will be immune for a certain time since our antibodies fought this." Idris says he and wife, Sabrina, are still under quarantine and feel okay, with no changes.

As we reported ... Idris tested positive not long ago and said he wasn't experiencing ANY symptoms. He told fans the day he got tested after he had body aches and a headache.

As for his claim that he'll be immune to COVID-19 -- that's a fact, according to the experts.

The FDA, earlier this week, approved the use of plasma from patients who've recovered patients to treat some of the more severe cases. New York became the first state to begin such testing.

And, even if the antibody protection is short-lasting ... experts reportedly say those who get infected a second time with coronavirus will likely have a milder case than the first time.

Jussie Smollett wants to move on from his alleged "attack" -- despite a pending trial -- and he's singing about it while on coronavirus lockdown.

Jussie just broke his social media silence Wednesday by singing and playing the piano. It's the ex-"Empire" star's first time posting anything in over 9 months, so this is a rarity.

Jussie sang Stevie Wonder's song, "A Place in The Sun." It's about moving on and finding a place in the sun where there's hope for everyone. Guess this is what's been on the top of Jussie's mind.

Seems Jussie considers his quarantine as dating way back to the alleged racist and homophobic "attack" ... because he says he's on day 421. We checked, and that marks the number of days since Jan. 29, 2019 ... when he made the allegation he was jumped in Chicago by 2 white men who yelled, "This MAGA country!"

Jussie also says ... "Hope y'all are staying safe. Spread love and kindness... not Rona."

Moving on won't be as easy as singing a tune ... remember, Jussie is gearing up for his new trial, and weeks ago he said "truth" will be his defense.

As we reported ... Jussie got re-charged for allegedly lying to police about the alleged hate crime -- after the State Attorney's Office dropped the original 16 charges against him.

Oprah's longtime partner, Stedman, isn't getting any snuggles during these days of sheltering at home -- he's in the guesthouse ... but you could call it the dog house, too.

Oprah's been quarantining at her home in Santa Barbara, CA during the coronavirus pandemic, but in an interview with her magazine she revealed her longtime partner is separately self-isolating in their guesthouse for an important reason ... to protect her health.

O says she's more at-risk because she had pneumonia late last year and just recently got off meds following a bronchial infection ... but it's still mostly Stedman's fault he's not able to be by her side now.

She claims Stedman's "one of those" people who didn't take the COVID-19 crisis seriously enough and was "late to the party" in getting onboard with taking precautions.

In fact, Oprah says Stedman flew from Chicago to California just on Thursday and when he asked her what the procedure was for coming home, she says she told him ... "The procedure is...you ain't coming and sleeping in my bed!"

Oprah says she added ... "Have you not been paying attention to the news? Social-distancing does not mean you go and sleep in the same bed with the person. When you just got off American Airlines!"

O says it's all good, though, and Stedman's happy to be keeping her safe. She says she and her girls bring him meals daily and they have "love chats" ... with a window between them.

For the record, he's not tested positive for coronavirus either ... they are just being extra-careful, and it's only for a couple weeks, right?

Howie Mandel has a warning for anyone even thinking of interacting with him ... and all you need to do to heed the warning is take a hard look at his noggin.

The famed "AGT" germophobe took a stroll Friday with the words "Do Not Disturb" emblazoned on his hat.

Howie's gotta be having a hard time dealing with the coronavirus pandemic ... for decades he's had blinding fear of contracting illnesses .... some of that fear was phantom, but this is starkly real.

You'll recall, we got Howie out a week ago -- before "AGT" was shut down -- and he wasn't taking any chances. There's a good reason, too -- his fellow-"AGT" judge Heidi Klum took ill on the set and went home. Last we heard she hadn't gotten results from her coronavirus test.

Netflix is stepping up for its crews -- and others -- during the pandemic by creating a $100 million fund to provide relief to production staff suddenly forced into unemployment.

The streaming giant made the generous announcement Friday as signs grew of a global recession due to the coronavirus crisis. Netflix says, "Most of the fund will go towards support for the hardest hit workers on our own productions around the world."

The company went on to say, "We're in the process of working out exactly what this means, production by production. This is in addition to the two weeks pay we've already committed to the crew and cast on productions we were forced to suspend last week."

The fund will help non-Netflix workers too ... as the company said $15 million of the dough will go to third parties and non-profits providing emergency relief to out-of-work cast and crew in the countries where their productions are shot.

Several other relief funds, including SAG-AFTRA Covid-19 Disaster Fund and the Motion Picture and Television Fund will each get $1 mil from Netflix.

Netflix is also working with other regions where it has a big production presence -- Europe, Latin America and Asia -- to create a similar support fund.

The massive fund comes as the U.S. government tries to hammer out a trillion dollar relief bill for out of work Americans.

Gimme an S! Gimme an A! Gimme a D! What's that spell? SAD!!!!!!!

Navarro College cheer coach Monica Aldama -- star of Netflix's uber-popular show, "Cheer" -- is speaking out after the national championship competition was canceled due to COVID-19 ... and it's heartbreaking.

For the few who haven't watched the show ... Navarro cheer is essentially the Tom Brady-era Patriots of the cheer world -- the Bulldogs compete for the national title every year and they're good as hell.

But, Navarro won't be able to defend its 2019 title in Daytona due to the coronavirus pandemic ... and Monica is absolutely devastated.

"This decision was inevitable as things have progressed and our country is in uncertain times," Monica says. "My heart, however, is breaking for the lost memories and the lost time with my beautiful team. I was not ready to say goodbye so quickly."

"I was not mentally prepared for the team to turn in uniforms, pack their things and leave town."

Monica praises her team for their work ethic ... saying their routine was "so beautiful."

"For the first time in my life I had no control and my life has been a roller coaster over the past week. What I do know is that we will be back better than ever!!!"

The silver lining -- you can watch the first season of "Cheer" all you want during self-isolation ... so yay??

"America's Got Talent" is feeling the effects of the coronavirus pandemic ... the reality series is putting the kibosh on live audiences.

Sources confirm to TMZ ... 'AGT' will tape episodes without fans in the seats for the foreseeable future, due to fears over the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

The decision comes on the heels of Heidi Klum falling ill on set and Howie Mandel showing up to work in a full hazmat suit.

As we first reported, Heidi felt physically ill before shooting 'AGT' in Pasadena on Tuesday, and she left the taping. When Heidi left, sources said the judges told the audience she had a case of suspected food poisoning, and Sofia Vergara cracked a joke about it.

Eric Stonestreet filled in for Heidi as a judge during Wednesday's taping.

Folks on social media are posting emails from 'AGT' about taping cancellations. The notices say, "Out of an abundance of caution, America's Got Talent is suspending all tapings with a studio audience until further notice."

As we first reported ... "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune" scrapped live audiences over coronavirus fears, and "The Price Is Right" is going dark altogether for two weeks in the hopes the virus subsides by then.

"The Price is Right," one of the most enduring game shows in the history of TV is going dark for 2 weeks with the hope the coronavirus will subside by then ... TMZ has learned.

The show is going the way of so many other entertainment shows ... some are shooting without audiences and some are going down altogether ... at least for the time being.

Production sources tell us they are shutting the shown down for the obvious reasons -- protecting the crew, Drew and the audience from contracting the disease.

As we reported, so many shows are changing the way they do business ... "Jeopardy!," 'Wheel,' "The View," "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," 'Ellen' and 'Live with Kelly and Ryan' are all shooting without audiences.

Various sources at a number of entertainment companies are all telling us the same story ... they are struggling to find a balance between producing content and keeping staff safe.

Scary times.