TV

Tyler Perry has long been dogged over his signature character, Madea, and stereotypes some feel she upholds -- but he's defending himself ... especially against Spike Lee.

The movie studio mogul sat for an interview with Chris Wallace as part of his new program on HBO Max -- "Who's Talking to Chris Wallace" -- which was scrapped from CNN+ ... and repurposed on their main streaming app.

Chris asks Tyler about a criticism that Lee once lobbed against him in describing his Madea movies -- in which he called the character and/or those movies "coonery buffoonery" in '09.

From Spike's POV ... Madea is a caricature of Black people, women in particular, and he thinks it's a cheap, over-the-top impersonation that Tyler has monetized with a lot of success. There are at least 10 movies of his in which the character appears.

While TP was once quoted as saying Spike can "go to hell," he's a bit more nuanced in explaining why he loves the character and the thinking behind her makeup. He says Madea represents women he grew up around, whose stories he wanted to convey in a humorous way ... with truth sprinkled in. In other words, he seems to see it as an homage.

Tyler also invokes Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance to reinforce his point ... noting this convo has been happening way before Spike's salvo.

Now, it should be noted ... this old beef, while still discussed today, seems to be long and buried. Back in 2019, when Tyler opened his movie studio lot in Georgia, Spike was actually among the many famous guests who came to check it out. And TP even named one of the soundstages after him ... telling us at the time that his legacy was bigger than their feud.

A Michigan radio host was murdered Friday after he and his family were savagely attacked in their home by a guest who then tried to kill himself, this according to local reports.

WWJ 950 overnight anchor Jim Matthews was with his girlfriend and 2 children in their Detroit-area condo around noon when they allegedly invited over a man who lives across the street. Neighbors had seen the man with Matthews' girlfriend in the past.

What happened next was still under investigation ... but Matthew's girlfriend and his 5-year-old daughter made it out of the condo alive and flagged down someone driving by. His girlfriend had been stabbed several times and his daughter was injured as well.

After the driver called 911, Chesterfield Township officers responded to the apartment and had to force their way inside, finding Matthews dead. His 10-year-old boy was discovered bound and beaten inside a closet.

What's more ... police went to the basement where they encountered the suspect -- who was overdosing on heroin after sustaining self-inflicted wounds.

Matthews' girlfriend and son were listed in critical condition at the hospital. His daughter was in stable condition.

The suspect was given Narcan to save his life. He, too, was hospitalized in stable condition.

As for Matthews, WWJ Newsradio 950 issued a statement ... “There have been many tears shed in our newsroom today and Jim will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Jim’s family and friends during this difficult time.”

Authorities did not release a motive and were weighing criminal charges.

Bill Maher has a hot take on people who love America and people who don't ... and he says lots of folks on the right and the left are as anti-American as they come.

As the "Real Time" host plainly puts it ... "You don't love America if you hate what it stands for," and B.M. has receipts.

Bill asks, how Republicans can say they believe in America when they support a president who tried to pull off a coup? How can Republicans who won't accept election results say with a straight face they believe in America?

He's got another great example using Colin Kaepernick ... just watch.

How can Republicans, he asks, say they believe in America when they get downright underhanded to restrict the right to vote?

There's more ... Republicans used to support law and order ... but now, when it comes to the Capitol Police or the FBI, their mantra is "F*** the police!"

And, of course, there's Donald Trump, who mused out loud he wished generals in the United States military were more like Nazi generals.

It gets downright absurd ... Congresswoman Lauren Boebert complained, "I'm tired of this separation of church and state  junk that's not in the Constitution." Well, it is stupid.

But then on the other side, he says lots of liberals seem to see nothing redeemable about the United States of America ... just shame. Congresswoman Cori Bush said, "This land is stolen land and Black people still aren't free." Bill has some choice words for that.

Congressman Jamaal Bowman said, "I believe our current system of capitalism is slavery by another name." Again, Bill has feelings.

Oscar-winning actress Louise Fletcher, who played the iconic villain Nurse Ratched in "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest," died from natural causes Friday in France, this according to her family.

Her son, Andrew Bick, tells TMZ ... Louise passed away peacefully in her sleep at her home in Montdurausee -- a commune in Southern France -- after she had overcome breast cancer several years ago.

Louise snagged the 1976 Best Actress Academy Award for her bone-chilling performance as Nurse Ratched in 'Cuckoo’s Nest.' The film, which swept all 5 Oscars in each of the major categories, centered around the tense relationship between Ratched and Randall McMurphy, a psych ward patient played by Jack Nicholson.

McMurphy was an anti-authority-free spirit who was a threat to Ratched's strict rules to keep the other patients in line. In the end, McMurphy won over the hearts and minds of the patients ... only to have a vengeful Ratched order him to be turned into a lobotomized vegetable.

The Nurse Ratched character was hand-picked as the fifth-greatest villain in movie history by the American Film Institute -- and she was runner-up to the Wicked Witch of the West as the greatest villainess.

After the success of 'Cuckoo's Nest,' Fletcher landed roles in other popular films and TV shows, such as "ER," "Picket Fences," "A Perfect Man," "Shameless" and "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." She was nominated for an Emmy for "Fences."

Louise was 88.

Elton John's performing at the White House for a TV special ... and a packed house, including celebs, is on hand to see the Rocket Man.

The rock icon says playing the South Lawn at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is the coolest venue in his career, calling it the "icing on the cake" ... and he started his set with his hit, "Your Song."

Elton told the crowd it felt wonderful to be among so many folks who have supported his AIDS foundation over the years ... then went to work on the piano.

Billie Jean King was in the house ... and the political power players included President Biden, Jill Biden, Pete Buttigieg and Nancy Pelosi, among others.

The White House streamed opening remarks from Elton, plus his first song before cutting out ... the rest of his performance will air at a later date as a TV special on A&E Networks.

Robin Wright has still not found Mr. Right ... because she just filed for divorce.

The former "House of Cards" star filed for divorce Thursday from husband, Clément Giraudet, after 4 years of marriage.

In the docs, Robin lists the date of separation as July 31st. The reason -- the standard "irreconcilable differences."

Robin and Clement, a Saint Laurent executive, did not have any children together.

As for assets, Robin says in the docs, "Pursuant to the parties' post-nuptial agreement, all assets are his/her separate property."

She also checked the box to block the court's ability to award spousal support to either of them.

Disso Queen Laura Wasser is repping Robin in the divorce.

The former couple began their romance back in 2017, and in August 2018 they secretly tied the knot in France.

It's the third divorce for Robin ... she married her first husband, the late Dane Witherspoon, back in 1986 after meeting him on the set of the NBC soap opera "Santa Barbara." Robin and Dane divorced in 1988.

Robin's second husband was, of course, Sean Penn ... they got romantically involved in 1989 following his divorce with Madonna.

"Black-ish" actor Allen Maldonado says his people in Puerto Rico are suffering after a catastrophic 1-2 punch from mother nature ... so, he's urging folks to do whatever they can to help.

We got the Afro-Puerto Rican actor at LAX, where he told us about his visit to the Caribbean island earlier this year -- and he says he what he saw makes him even more concerned about Hurricane Fiona's recent path of destruction, which left millions without power.

Allen says folks in P.R. were still recovering from the previous hurricane before this one hit, and he's stressing just how desperate the situation is down there.

The 'Last O.G.' star says a recent string of disasters -- natural and otherwise -- are reminding him how important it is to spread love around the world, and that's why he's calling on everyone to donate anything they can to help families -- but not just in Puerto Rico.

Allen made a point to shout out the citizens of Jackson, Mississippi ... who are still dealing with the water crisis there.

A Los Angeles TV anchorman just got the boot for going ballistic against management -- on the air -- after his co-anchor was not allowed to say so long to viewers after she resigned.

Mark Mester had been suspended earlier this week, but KTLA decided what he did warranted termination.

Mester was pissed off that co-anchor Lynette Romero, whom Mester called his "best friend," told management she was leaving after 24 years to anchor at another station and management didn't allow her to have an on-air goodbye.

Producers had reportedly written a segment for Mester to read as tribute to Lynette, but he refused, instead, Mester groused, "I want to start off right now by offering up an apology to you [Lynette]. I love you so much, you literally are my best friend. You did not deserve what happened to you."

Mester was not done, calling the move rude, cruel and inappropriate.

He also told viewers a plane was flying over KTLA with a banner that read, "We love you Lynette." The plane was chartered by Mester, according to the L.A. Times.

Apparently, Lynette was willing to stay if she could anchor weeknights instead of weekends, but the station wouldn't budge and that's why she left.

Bob Saget's famous friends are picking up where he left off, raising seven figures for a cause near and dear to his heart ... scleroderma research.

John Mayer, Jimmy Kimmel and Jeff Ross took over hosting duties for their late friend Wednesday at an annual fundraiser for the Scleroderma Research Foundation, with the event raising $1.2 million for crucial research.

Bob hosted SRF's signature event, "Cool Comedy • Hot Cuisine," for 30 years before his death ... and this year's fundraiser featured a special video tribute to Bob, presented by John Stamos and Mike Binder.

Dave Chappelle showed up to the Beverly Wilshire for a surprise performance, even sharing a personal video message he got from Bob before he passed. Bill Burr joined Dave on stage for a couple jokes too.

And, Lori Loughlin was also in attendance at the event.

Other celeb performers included comedy sets from Howie Mandel and Kevin Nealon, plus a musical number from Mayer. Joel McHale led the live auction.

Attendees plunked down $500 just to get inside the building ... and they chowed down on a sit-down dinner curated by celeb chef Susan Feniger.

Todd Bridges, who famously played Willis on "Diff'rent Strokes," has tied the knot for a second time ... this time with a low-key Bev Hills ceremony.

Sources at the wedding tell TMZ ... Todd married a woman named Bettijo on Wednesday at Greystone Mansion & Gardens, and it was an intimate and exclusive affair for those closest to the bride and groom.

The guest list topped out at around 40 people -- friends and family members ... like Todd's mom, son, sister, brother, and nephew were present. The rest of the crowd was mainly from Bettijo's side.

We're told she ran a little late, but hey ... it's her party, and that's every bride's prerogative!

The reception went down later at Il Cielo, a couple of miles away -- more people were invited to that, and the party went well into early Thursday morning.

Talk about your whirlwind romances ... we've learned Todd and Bettijo met 9 months ago on a dating app, and got engaged about 6 months later. She comes from a big Mormon family, and Todd's now stepdad to her 4 kids.

FYI -- he's already got 2 of his own ... 24-year-old Spencer and 25-year-old Bo.

As we reported, Todd and his ex-wife Dori split back in 2012 -- putting an end to their 14-year marriage.

Ryan Grantham, known for playing Jeffery Augustine in "Riverdale," has been sentenced to life behind bars for killing his own mother.

The 24-year-old was sentenced Wednesday in British Columbia, Canada Supreme Court -- approximately 6 months after pleading guilty to a second-degree murder charge for the death of his mom, Barbara Waite, back in 2020.

Prosecutors say the disgraced actor recorded his confession and the aftermath of the tragic ordeal with his own camera at the time -- in the clip, he admitted, “I shot her in the back of the head. In the moments after, she would have known it was me.”

Justice Kathleen Ker described the case as heartbreaking, tragic, and life-shattering while giving him the sentence.

According to prosecutors, Grantham shot his mother in the back of the head while she was playing the piano at home -- the following day he loaded his car with guns, ammo, Molotov cocktails, and directions to Rideau Cottage -- where Canadian PM Justin Trudeau lives.

Detectives investigating the case say Grantham later confessed he was attempting to kill Trudeau and wrote about his goal in a journal.

Elon Musk is one cocky motherf***er -- because he's so confident he can stay ahead of the pack, he doesn't even bother to protect his innovations.

Elon appeared on CNBC's "Jay Leno's Garage" Wednesday night where the 2 guys tooled around Elon's Texas-based SpaceX Starbase facility and chatted it up.

At one point Jay asked if SpaceX had a patent on the materials he used to construct spaceships. Elon's response ... "I don't care about patents. Patents are for the weak."

Translation ... Elon's fine with competitors playing catchup with his creations, because he's betting on himself that he'll come up with something even better before they do.

Elon believes patents are just a buzzkill ... "They don't actually help advance things, they just stop others from following you."

Musk has followed his mantra in other ventures, including Tesla. Back in 2014, he sent a memo to Tesla staff, shunning patents and saying Tesla innovations are there "to attract and motivate the world's most talented engineers."

He had some choice words about getting such legal protection .. "[Patents] serve merely to stifle progress, entrench the positions of giant corporations and enrich those in the legal profession, rather than the actual inventors."

Donald Trump doesn't have a leg to stand on when it comes to pilfering classified documents from the United States government -- the Special Master has already made that pretty clear -- so he's resorting to an almost unbelievable fallback -- a President can declassify docs just by thinking about it.

Trump was on Sean Hannity's show Wednesday and said, almost unbelievably, "If you're the President of the United States, you can declassify just by saying, 'It's declassified," even by thinking about it." The absurdity continued ... "There doesn't have to be a process, there can be a process, but there doesn't have to be," adding, "You're the President, you make that decision."

As you know, Trump took around 100 classified docs to Mar-a-Lago where they sat in a basement and other unsecured places. The FBI raided the joint in August and seized 11,000 documents.

Trump's been trying to block the Justice Department's criminal investigation and insisted on having a Special Master appointed to determine what is fair game for prosecutors. However, the federal court of appeals has ruled the government can have access to the documents immediately, and will not have to wait for the Special Master to finish his review.

BTW ... the Special Master has already made it clear, Trump's argument over classified documents is ridiculous.

If Trump's last stand is the "I thought to declassify it and that makes it so" ... his case will go down in flames.

It was only after the raid that the former president said he had declassified them.

Bob Saget's former home is still on the market ... and now it can be snagged for a slightly cheaper price.

The home was originally listed for $7.765 million back in June, but the residence has gotten a price cut after spending 3 months on the market -- it's now going for $6.9M.

The late actor and his wife Kelly Rizzo called the place home before he died unexpectedly, earlier this year. She felt the home became a burden to keep after his death ... even though it was filled with happy memories.

As we first reported, the 6-bedroom pad comes with all the bells and whistles, and lots of space for entertaining.

There's a pool, spa and barbecue hosting space ... and there's even a guest house!

The home was first built back in 1964, but got a total makeover in 2003, when Bob scooped it up for $2.895 mil.

As you know, Bob died in January at The Ritz-Carlton in Orlando after suffering a brain bleed. It is believed the comedian hit his head on the hotel headboard before going to sleep.

Queen Elizabeth's funeral doesn't hold a candle to Princess Diana's when it comes to TV ratings -- in the U.S. and the UK -- but the reality is it's kinda hard to compare the events.

Indeed ... the TV ratings for QE2's burial ceremony Monday are in, and they pale in comparison to how many folks watched Diana's service in 1997 ... drastically so when it comes to us Yankees.

The Nielsen numbers are striking ... an average of 11.4 million viewers watched the Queen's state funeral -- this next to the 33.2 million people who watched Diana's funeral more than 2 decades ago in the States.

It was a little closer among the British -- about 27 million British people watched the monarch's final send-off, slightly less than the 32 million who tuned in for Di.

The one thing that's not accounted for here with the Queen's figures is that her procession was being live streamed across various digital platforms, and those numbers don't count in the Nielsen ratings. So, it's quite possible she did have a bigger raw number of worldwide viewers.

It's also unfair to compare just about ANY TV program today to one from 25 years ago ... the advent of streaming services has dramatically lowered TV ratings for even the biggest shows. And, ya can't ignore the facts surrounding both women's deaths -- Diana died in the prime of her life in a tragic car accident, as compared to the Queen ... who, while being widely beloved, was also 96 years old.

Fans of "Stranger Things" could soon own an iconic piece of the show's history ... and it won't cost you a trip to the upside down to afford it, either.

The 1,846 square foot property, hitting the market with a $300K price tag, rests on 6 acres of land and was built way back in 1900.

The pad was listed on Monday and can be found in Fayetteville, GA -- nowhere near the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana.

The seller acknowledges it's a "fixer-upper" ... which probably explains why the price tag is so low for a property tied to such a hit show. The listing describes it as "a PERFECT Airbnb, short-term rental or personal residence for someone willing to take it on."

'ST' fans will remember the house from the first few seasons of the series, where Joyce Byers lived with her sons Will and Jonathan.

Joyce even used Christmas lights in her home to search for Will, who was stuck in the upside down -- arguably one of the most memorable scenes in the show's history.

The 7 siblings who own the home in a trust were approached by the Duffer brothers to film there in 2015. They now want to sell the property to someone with the means to restore it.