Warren Jeffs In Protective Custody For Over A Decade ... In Cell 22 Hours A Day
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Warren Jeffs, the subject of a popular new Netflix documentary -- "Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey" -- has been closely watched for his own protection for the past decade while locked away, TMZ has learned.
A rep for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice tells TMZ ... Warren has been in protective custody since he arrived at the Louis C. Powledge Unit in Anderson County back in 2011.
The area is designed to provide the ultimate protection for inmates ... he stays in his cell for 22 hours each day ... even his meals are brought to him. He's given some rec time, but isn't allowed to interact with other inmates.
An inmate is placed in protective custody when there's been a serious, direct or proven threat to their safety. The circumstances surrounding his confinement have not been made public.
As we reported, Warren took his new mug shot Thursday ... as his Netflix doc continues to do big numbers. The series examines his controversial church ... where polygamy reigned supreme.
Warren reportedly had 78 wives when he was arrested back in 2006. He was later found guilty of sexual assault on a minor and aggravated sexual assault against a child and is serving a life sentence.
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'9-1-1: LONE STAR' ACTOR Tyler Sanders Died From Apparent Overdose
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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.
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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.
An official cause of death for Tyler will be determined by the coroner once toxicology reports come back in 4 to 6 months.
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Disney Star Adam Hicks Out On Parole After Robbery Sentence
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Adam Hicks, the former child star of several Disney movies and TV shows, is living life on parole after doing time for second-degree robbery.
Hicks was arrested in 2018 for allegedly pulling a bunch of armed robberies in Burbank, CA -- and eventually, in July 2021, got sentenced to 5 years behind bars.
He caught a major break though, because the judge gave him credit for 1,460 days he served while awaiting sentencing, and he was released back in March.
JANUARY 2018
TMZ broke the story ... Hicks, who starred in "Zeke and Luther," "Pair of Kings," and "Lemonade Mouth" and his girlfriend Danni Tamburo were arrested after cruising the Burbank area and pointing a gun at pedestrians -- taking their cellphones, money and other property.
While Hicks got 5 years in prison, his GF got off with 3 years of probation.
The actor had shown a history of violence before his arrest -- he once shot himself in the leg while hanging out with friends, and court docs said he was "very uncooperative" with police.
He'd also gotten arrested after Danni told cops Hicks pulled her by the hair, grabbed her arms and shoved her to the ground. He only dodged prosecution after Danni refused to cooperate.
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Keanu Reeves Drops in on Aston Martin Garage ... At British Grand Prix Race
Keanu Reeves' onscreen need for speed became a reality this weekend -- he's in England taking in the Grand Prix race ... and seems to have an allegiance for one team in particular.
The actor was out and about Saturday at the Silverstone Circuit, where F1's British Grand Prix is underway ... surfacing at none other than the Aston Martin garage, where KR was watching the team's lead driver, Sebastian Vettel, take the wheel and zip around the track.
No pressure, team, but you've got an audience...
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) July 2, 2022 @AstonMartinF1
Welcome to the garage, Keanu Reeves. 💚#F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/4Tj0FfKhAS
Keanu, who tends to be pretty private, was hard to miss ... and didn't seem to be shying away from the attention. At one point, he was photographed with raceway earmuffs while hanging out with AM crew members and staff -- who welcomed the guy with open arms.
In fact, he was kinda posing with whoever wanted a picture -- rocking his signature long hair and scruffy beard. Plus, his usual all-black getups ... which he didn't seem to mind having exposed to the rain.
they did keanu reeves dirty 😭 pic.twitter.com/VbKdzU94Nu
— dita (@keoghaan) July 2, 2022 @keoghaan
Some shots of him on the actual grid -- while it was drizzling -- are making the rounds ... and, sure enough, there's Keanu with a vest on getting a closer look at the action. His blurry face has nothing to do with a glitch in the simulation ... just water on the camera. 😅
Martin Brundle from Sky News even landed an interview with Keanu, who apparently was digging the day's events. Sounds like John Wick's a real-life gearhead who nerds out on this kind of stuff ... who knew?!?
Most excellent! 🎸#BritishGP @AstonMartinF1 pic.twitter.com/mkaVOrfCuU
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 2, 2022 @F1
Keanu sightings are rare, but always a delight -- and it would appear his pop-in for F1 was no different. Talk about a most excellent adventure!
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Richard Gere NY Compound Sells for $24 Mil!!!
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Richard Gere has a buyer for his impressive New York estate ... and while he ended up selling for under the original asking price, he's still walking away with a fortune.
The "Pretty Woman" star's 50 acres of property sold on Wednesday -- the buyer shelled out $24.15 million for the entire space out in Pound Ridge, about an hour north of NYC in Westchester County.
The compound includes 5 structures, a pool and some stables -- the area has rolling hills that are perfect for horseback riding, making those stables look like a necessity. The main residence alone is a whopping 11,600 square feet.
The compound also comes with its own private beach, an island you can reach by rowboat ... and there's even a soccer field, too. The surrounding area is incredibly lush -- over 4,300 acres of protected land circle the estate.
Richard listed the property back in October for $28 mil, and records show he bought the space 35 years ago for a measly $1.5M -- talk about a profit!!!
He reportedly spent nearly $10M on a new 35-acre estate, also in upstate NY, with his wife Alejandra Silva.
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Dylan O'Brien and Chloe Bennet Flirty Lunch Date ... New Couple Alert?!?
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Dylan O'Brien and Chloe Bennet have all the makings of Hollywood's newest couple ... we're told their lunch date got super flirty.
TMZ got these pics of Dylan and Chloe grabbing a bite together over the weekend at Potato Chips Deli in Los Angeles, and folks who were eating there tell us the actors were giving off much more than just a friendly vibe.
We're told Dylan and Chloe were flirting with each other ... and while it was clear this was a relaxed date, we're told their demeanor suggested they were very comfortable with each other.
Actors love dating other actors, and Dylan's famous for his work on "Teen Wolf" and "The Maze Runner," while Chloe is known for her role in "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."
We reached out to reps for Dylan and Chloe ... so far no word back.
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Busy Philipps We Want Justice!!! Marching in D.C. for Abortion Rights
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Busy Philipps is joining the millions of Americans protesting the Supreme Court's overturn of Roe v. Wade ... and she's making her stand near Capitol Hill.
Busy was with hundreds of other demonstrators Thursday in Washington, D.C. ... marching down a street near the Supreme Court with a giant banner reading "We Won't Back Down."
The "Cougar Town" star was on the group's front line as they sang "We want justice" to the melody of Queen's hit "I Want it All."
Beyond the marching and singing, Busy made it clear she means business when it comes to opposing the controversial SCOTUS ruling -- she was wearing a t-shirt that says, "I will aid and abet abortion."
As you know, protests have been nearly nonstop since last Friday when the Supreme Court finally issued its opinion on Roe v. Wade ... after a draft of the opinion leaked back in early May.
Security at the Capitol was beefed up to address any civil unrest, according to sources within the Capitol Police. The way they see it -- anytime there are crowds of people on opposing sides, it's a recipe for potential violence.
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Julia Garner Sits Front Row At Drag Show .... Praise for Madonna Gig
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Julia Garner -- who has been tapped to play Madonna in her upcoming biopic -- shows she's got the Material Girl vibe ... showing up at a drag show, and even getting in on the action!
Drag Queen Ginger Douglas tells TMZ ... Julia was having a blast at Mickey's in WeHo during a performance of "Showgirls," put on by "RuPaul's Drag Race" star Morgan McMichaels.
Julia, her hubby Mark Foster from Foster The People and the rest of her pals sat front row ... Morgan even pulled her up on stage, congratulating her for her Madge flick ... and the crowd went wild.
Julia stayed for the whole show -- feeling the performances and even tipping the drag queens. She stayed after the show to take pics with members of the audience and some of the performers.
Madonna would approve!!!
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Tyson Fury Calls Out 'The Mountain' ... 'GOT' Star Accepts Fight!!!
The Gypsy King vs. The Mountain in 2022?!?
It appears we could very well see that ... 'cause after Tyson Fury threw a verbal jab at "Game of Thrones" star Hafthor Bjornsson on Wednesday -- the actor-turned-boxer accepted a fight!!!
Fury's barb was pretty clever ... on his Instagram page, he wrote, "I wonder if Thor Bjornsson could take a crashing right hand to that big jaw," adding, "Who would have Thor's hammer? Would this mountain be too big to climb?"
It didn't take long for Thor -- a former World's Strongest Man -- to see the quips ... and in a shirtless video, he fired back at Fury -- accepting a fight if the 33-year-old heavyweight champ was offering one.
"I'm 100% up for war," Bjornsson said. "Let's do this."
Now, don't get it twisted ... even though Bjornsson is an actor and a former strongman, he's no stranger to the boxing ring.
Since 2021, Bjornsson has boxed in 4 professional fights -- winning two bouts while the others ended up in a draw.
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And, the two are roughly the same size -- both standing at 6'9".
So, could it actually go down? We're all awaiting Fury's clap back ...
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Actress Mary Mara Drowning Death May Have Involved Blunt Head Trauma
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11:12 AM PT -- According to the Jefferson Co. Medical Examiner's Office, Mara's cause of death has been ruled an accident -- due to asphyxiation and water drowning.
Actress Mary Mara's drowning may have resulted from a serious head injury ... this according to her rep.
Mary's rep Craig Dorfman tells TMZ ... investigators informed her family about new evidence ... that she may have died after slipping and hitting her head following her swim in the town of Cape Vincent.
They say she took a dip in the St. Lawrence River Sunday morning -- one of her favorite places to swim ... and after getting out of the water, investigators think she slipped and hit her head, causing her to fall in the water and drown.
Their reasoning ... when they recovered her body she had face abrasions.
So far there's no working theory on what object injured her head ... but they believe the only logical explanation is she came in contact with some object that either rendered her unconscious or debilitated.
As we reported, her rep says investigators have ruled out foul play -- it's unclear why they are certain the trauma to the head was accidental. Dorfman says he and Mary's family believe drugs or alcohol did not play a role in her death.
Mary's family has deeply appreciated the outpouring of support they've received in the past two days.
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Wendy Williams I'm Coping with Lymphedema ... Ready to Launch Podcast
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One thing ya know about Wendy Williams, she doesn't tiptoe around anything ... which is why she told us -- as only Wendy could -- about her ongoing medical struggles, and starting her new career.
Wendy joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" to tell us more about why she's turning her back on TV, for now, and instead, choosing to produce her own podcast -- and, for her, it comes down to time and money.
Sounds like she's been doing some homework, because she told us ... "When you're famous, podcasts will make more money for me, being famous, than doing the Wendy Williams Show."
She made it clear, she's "100 percent retired" from the grind of her daily TV show.
Wendy's still in the planning stages when it comes to exactly what she's going to dig into during the podcast -- although, as we first reported, she has some celeb guests in mind already. But, the biggest revelation she dropped on us was about her battle with lymphedema.
She had no issue holding up her foot to reveal just how swollen it is from the condition -- which is caused by a blockage in the lymphatic system. Wendy says she can only feel "maybe 5 percent of my feet" ... but also explained how she's not letting it slow her down.
To that point, we got video of her out in NYC Monday night, and she seemed to be moving pretty well.
Wendy says it was an amicable split from Debmar-Mercury, her TV show's production company, and while she swears she's done with TV -- she did admit there's one gig she'd still do ... but only as a guest host.
Oh, and 'TWWS' fans will notice the furniture ... Wendy was speaking to us from her famous throne, which is now in her home office! Catch the full interview on Tuesday's "TMZ Live."
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Wendy Williams Over TV Thing, Podcast Planning Now ... Kardashians, Trumps Potential Guests
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6:28 AM PT -- Wendy was out last night and asked about her future plans ... there's no doubt she's excited about the podcast opportunity, and the chance to make some serious cash.
Wendy Williams is already putting television in her rearview, having decided podcasting is a better fit -- but she's already lining up big names to join her ... TMZ has learned.
Even though her daytime show was one of the most popular over its 13-season run, Wendy has no interest in being on TV full time right now ... according to her manager Will Selby.
Will is executive producing Wendy's upcoming podcast, and tells us Wendy recently spoke to Snoop Dogg and Fat Joe about being guests -- as she's planning to focus more on her own personal favorites from the music world.
In addition, we're told Wendy's had convos with the Kardashians, and even a member of the Trump family. Will's not saying which one, but any of them would be a huge get ... considering what's going on in Washington.
We got Wendy in NYC back in May, and she vowed she would be back on TV, but we're told that's no longer her passion. Instead, she's focused on producing a pod that's the full Wendy experience -- all about her favorite artists, fashions, food and celebs.
On the business end of things ... Will says Wendy's trying to decide if she's going to partner with a single platform -- like Spotify or Apple -- or just release it independently.
No timetable yet for the podcast debut. BTW, we're told Wendy's not swearing off TV altogether -- she'd still be open to doing appearances on talk or reality shows like "The View" or the 'Real Housewives' series.
Originally Published -- 1:00 AM PT
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Actress Mary Mara Dead at 61 ... Drowns in St. Lawrence River
Actress Mary Mara drowned in the St. Lawrence River during a swim ... according to New York State Police.
The "Ray Donovan" actress was discovered Sunday morning in the town of Cape Vincent.
Troopers responded to a call for a possible drowning in the river at around 8 AM ... when they arrived they found her body in the water. Officials say she had been visiting her sister and jumped in the River for exercise.
Mara, a Syracuse native, went on to act in a number of TV shows and films. She appeared in 20 movies and 40 TV shows. Among her TV credits ... “ER,” “NYPD Blue,” “Law and Order” and “Lost."
She also starred in "Mr. Saturday Night", “The Hard Way”, and “Love Potion #9″.
The preliminary investigation showed no signs of foul play. Her body was taken to the Jefferson County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
Mara was 61.
RIP
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Guess Who This Smarty Pants Turned Into!
Before this million dollar baby turned into a genius musician and actress, she was just an east coast girl with big dreams, growing up in Portville, New York.
This cute kid can play the guitar like no other and has pipes that have landed her band millions of views on YouTube. In the early 2000s, she made her television debut with "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" and "Titus" -- and later made her way to an even bigger screen playing Mardell Fitzgerald in the 2004 film "Million Dollar Baby."
When she's not in the studio or memorizing lines, she's taking care of her beautiful new baby.
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Olivia Palermo from MTV's 'The City' 'Memba Her?!
American socialite and fashion influencer Olivia Palermo was just 22 years old when she was cast as one of MTV's chosen stars for 'The City' -- 'The Hills' spinoff series, which followed a young crowd as they journeyed their way through the fashion industry in New York City.
Joining Olivia in the dramatic experience was of course fellow Hills star Whitney Port as she ventured off to the Big Apple from Los Angeles, 'Brothers and Sisters' cast member and actress Roxy Olin and actor from VH1's 'Hit The Floor,' Adam Senn.
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Kristy Sellars 'AGT' Contestant Hopes To Break Pole Dancing Stigma
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Kristy Sellars' jaw-dropping pole dance performance wowed the judges on "America's Got Talent" but turns out she's not just putting on a great show ... she's shattering a stigma.
When Kristy informed the judges during her 'AGT' audition her act was pole dancing, Simon Cowell was visibly annoyed and called it "pointless." Kristy turned that around in a big way when she hit the pole and ended up winning Simon over. She received a standing O from all 4 judges.
Kristy tells TMZ ... pole dancing has had a stigma attached to it for eons, so Simon's initial reaction was no shocker. She actually didn't even notice his negative reaction while she was on stage because she was so nervous and in the zone.
Kristy says pole dancing is actually an amalgam of several different art forms, including dance and gymnastics. She also says it can be super sexy, which is not a bad thing.
Since her audition aired Tuesday, she's been courted by 5 international TV productions, a theme park, a festival and a few private events. Kristy, however, has her sights set on taking her talent to Vegas.