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"The Wendy Williams Show" has been a revolving door this season as the host struggles with various ailments, and now TMZ has learned a "'permanent guest host" is about to be named.

Multiple sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Sherri Shepherd will take the reigns of the show beginning in September. Our sources say the deal is almost locked, and everyone involved expects it will be inked in the very near future.

Now, here's the way it will work. The folks who produce the show will be monitoring Wendy's progress between now and September. If Wendy gets better, there's an open door for her to return. If, however, it appears she is unable to return, then they would change the name of the show as early as September ... which will mark the 15th season of the show.

Our sources say the Fox Station Group -- which carries the show on its owned and operated stations ... is on board with the move.

Wendy stepped away from her show back in October after suffering "serious complications" from Graves Disease as well as a thyroid condition ... this all coming after she battled COVID-19.

Wendy's last appearance on the show came in July 2021, when she signed off at the end of season 13, telling fans she'd see them for season 14.

That never happened, but the show has since continued to air with a multitude of guest hosts including Bill Bellamy, Whitney Cummings and Leah Remini.

Simon Leviev -- aka the "Tinder Swindler" -- is gonna have a hard time finding new victims on dating apps ... because he's been booted from just about everywhere!

A rep for Match Group -- owners of OkCupid, Hinge, PlentyofFish, OurTime, Meetic, Pairs, and Match -- tells TMZ that Simon has been permanently banned from all of their properties ... leaving him out of options when it comes to scamming women.

The rep says he violated the terms of service at Tinder and therefore the other partner companies will also not allow him to create a profile on the other apps.

As we reported ... a Tinder spokesperson told us Simon -- and his many aliases -- would no longer be allowed to open an account on their platform, as he violated their terms of service ... specifically, impersonation and asking for money.

According to the new documentary, Simon would show off his lavish lifestyle to women on Tinder, in hopes of getting their trust and affection. Once hooking them, he'd convince them to "loan" him money ... before he ghosted and made off with their cash.

Much like a Ponzi scheme, the documentary claims he'd use one woman's money to impress the next, and so on. All in all, he allegedly took more than $10 million from his victims.

He was eventually arrested in 2019 and sent back to Israel, where he was released after just 5 months in prison.

No dancing, or even sleeping, around it -- Lamar Odom took a dump in his bed, and he's not ashamed to let his housemates ... and the world know it!!!

The bed pooping incident was caught on the live feeds inside the "Celebrity Big Brother" house early Friday morning, but it's comforting to know Lamar headed straight for the showers to wash his behind after, quite literally, s***ing the bed.

As you can see, Lamar is cleaning up in the shower, and even from the other side of the partition Olympic figure skater Mirai Nagasu notices something is up, and asks if he's really scrubbing as vigorously as it sounds.

Lamar cops to the cleanup on aisle 2, and moments later spells it out for Mirai, in no uncertain terms, saying ... "I just took a s*** in my bed."

Naturally, Lamar is already the butt of jokes online... and it sounds like certain phrases are off-limits in the house moving forward.

It's pretty gross ... but at least Lamar cleaned up the bed too. He's definitely owning his 💩.

Robin Thicke and Ken Jeong's 'Masked Singer' walkout over Rudy Giuliani being a contestant will not be a long-term protest -- both judges are back on the job, and looking pretty damn happy too.

Ken and Robin joined their fellow judges Nicole Scherzinger and Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg Thursday for a photo shoot to promote the show's upcoming 7th season. The fact they're still all in to hype the show is a great sign they're willing to sweep Giuliani-gate under the rug

As TMZ reported … During the first taping of the season, Donald Trump's former attorney was the first to get kicked off the show, and when he was unmasked to the judges and audience members, Robin and Ken walked right off set -- a clear protest of his participation in the show.

That all went down last week, but Thursday all seemed forgiven during the shoot outside "The Masked Singer" studio.

While there were some complaints when Sarah Palin appeared on the show back in 2020 ... it was nothing as visceral as Ken and Robin storming off the stage.

The family of 'Walking Dead' actor Moses J. Moseley does not think he committed suicide ... they believe he was kidnapped and murdered.

Moses' sister, Teerea Kimbro, tells TMZ ... everyone who was close to Moses knew he loved life and she believes with all her heart he was kidnapped and then killed 3 days later.

We broke the story ... law enforcement sources told us Moses' body was found in Georgia Wednesday and cops were investigating his death as a possible suicide.

But, Moses' sister says he'd booked a taping for the Monday before his body was found but never showed up ... something she says he would never do. She went on to say he loved where his career was heading and they were planning big things in the near future.

Cops say they found Moses' body in his car with the doors locked, a gun in his lap and a facial bullet wound.

His sister says investigators told her the gun in question was one of hers -- she says she and Moses liked to go to the gun range and that he had a license to carry.

The family says cops told them they're looking at possible foul play, and Henry County Police Captain Randy Lee tells TMZ ... "It is being investigated as a possible suicide, however, detectives are following any and all available avenues and not ruling anything out."

Now here's an idea ... filming "The View" at the Museum of Tolerance to show support for the Jewish community and educate viewers about the Holocaust.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper from the famed Simon Wiesenthal Center in L.A. tells TMZ ... he'd love to have the show air live at the Museum of Tolerance. He thinks a special week-long visit to the Museum -- which focuses on the Holocaust -- would be enlightening, and he thinks given what was said on the show, the network has to show some accountability.

Ok, let's back this up for a minute. Rabbi Cooper thinks it's absurd to even suggest Whoopi Goldberg is anti-Semitic. She's been a tried-and-true friend of the Jewish community for decades.

That said, the Rabbi thinks her comment that the Holocaust was not racially-based was way out of bounds, and since she said it on the show ... the show should take steps to educate the audience.

It's an interesting take ... especially since the Prez of ABC News came out and proclaimed her network was a big supporter of the Jewish community.

Rabbi Cooper also has an opinion about Whoopi's 2-week suspension -- an opinion that is at odds with many others in the Jewish community. He thinks the suspension is appropriate, because he thinks accountability is important.

The head of the Anti-Defamation League and many others beg to differ, saying Whoopi apologized, recognized the error in her ways, and that should be the end of it.

Fact is ... lots of people think this is ABC reacting out of fear -- since Sharon Osbourne was suspended for defending Piers Morgan's take on Meghan Markle, ABC felt it had to do the same with Whoopi.

There's another way of looking at it ... that both Whoopi and Sharon shouldn't be suspended for stating their opinions on live, opinion-based TV. If neither said what they said from a place of malice, then why the suspensions? In Whoopi's case, she actually gave a mea culpa, so it's unclear exactly what the ABC President expects her to reflect on.

Cooper says one of his colleagues has a relationship with Whoopi, and they've reached out to her for a meeting. Since Whoopi seems to already get what she did, it's unclear what the point of the meeting would be.

Anthony Anderson is sticking behind Whoopi Goldberg ... he says we all make mistakes and should be forgiven.

We caught up with the "Black-ish" star at The Dominick Hotel in NYC. Anthony says ... he only read Whoopi's comments, so he doesn't know the full context. But, he says he doesn't believe they came from a bad place.

Anthony added ... we all say things in the heat of the moment that we aren't fully informed about. He doubled down and said that as long a person can admit to being wrong and apologize, then he thinks that's fine ... something he says WG has done.

Anthony says these kinda things happen to us all ... for the most part, we come from a place of love and understanding.

As you know, Whoopi's been in the hot seat since she said that the Holocaust wasn't about race ... She has since apologized but ABC still decided to suspend her from "The View" for 2 weeks.

Rudy Giuliani's just as polarizing in reality TV, as he is in politics -- 2 'Masked Singer' judges revolted during a taping where Rudy was revealed as the mystery singer!!!

The taping went down last week, the first episode of the show's upcoming season, and -- not shockingly, we think -- Rudy was the first contestant eliminated. TMZ has confirmed ... as soon as the mask came off Rudy's head, Robin Thicke and Ken Jeong blew their tops.

As Deadline first reported, the judges were pissed and walked off the stage in protest.

Donald Trump's former attorney and advisor made jaws drop in the studio -- which is not uncommon during 'Masked' reveals, but we're told Robin and Ken's response went beyond the common reaction.

What a difference a day makes -- Elizabeth Lyn Vargas is looking totally cheerful 24 hours after a terrifying experience where she feared she might be killed by an ex.

Check out these pics of the 'RHOC' star Wednesday outside her Newport Beach home ... where just yesterday her ex-boyfriend was armed and threatening her life. As you can see, she's all smiles now as she hangs out with a friend and her dog.

Looks like ELV was chatting up a guy -- possibly a neighbor -- just before or after walking her husky pooch. Whatever they were discussing, he got her to LOL ... no small feat considering the ordeal she just survived.

Like we told you, Liz had to get the cops involved after claiming the guy, who she'd briefly dated, started acting erratically -- constantly following her around, and allegedly asking for money. Things came to a head Tuesday, and she felt compelled to report it to cops as attempted extortion.

The situation escalated when the guy showed up armed at her home -- allegedly roughing her up before letting her go ... but barricading himself in the home in a standoff with police.

Cops say 33-year-old Ryan Geraghty was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, burglary, felon in possession of a firearm and extortion for the incident.

Whoopi Goldberg’s suspension is unnecessary, because she’s already made good with the community she offended -- so says AOC, anyway.

The New York congresswoman gave us her take on the controversy Wednesday in D.C., saying this was a learning moment ... and suggesting WG had, indeed, learned her lesson.

Check it out ... she says in situations like these, context matters -- and in Whoopi’s case, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez says it’s clear she’s got a good track record with the Jewish people -- who were in the crosshairs of her controversial comments about the Holocaust.

In her mind, that’s pretty evident in the fact the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt, accepted Whoopi’s apology -- especially after he was invited on to explain why her take was misinformed.

Just a refresher ... Whoopi said the Holocaust wasn’t about race because a majority of the Jews who were killed were white. However, as many people have since explained ... the Nazis viewed and treated the Jews as an inferior race -- and carried out the Holocaust with an ethnic focus. So, yes ... the Jews are seen as a race in this context, even if it isn’t something you can check off on a census form in 2022.

Like we said, Whoopi saw the error in her thinking and delivered a mea culpa Tuesday -- yet she was suspended by ABC anyway, a decision that’s drawing a lot of criticism.

Ricky Gervais might just be the one comedian who’s welcoming cancel culture with open arms, because he says he's gonna lean into it hard with an upcoming performance.

The British comic and actor told Heat this week that his next stand-up special -- which he's appropriately calling "Armageddon" -- is likely going to force him to get the hook ... something he’s actually hoping for with giddiness.

RG says, in part ... “I'm treating it like it's my last one ever. It won't be, but I want to put everything into it. I want to try and get cancelled,” adding he can’t wait to get started.

The show’s gonna be about how we as a society are destroying ourselves, be it through the media, global warming or other means ... so you can imagine Ricky will be hop-scotching around some heavy topics, with no punches pulled.

One thing he believes in as an old-school, stand-up comic is that no topic is off-limits, which he’s recently reiterated in interviews ... but also hammered home with his actual material, especially on the biggest of stages.

You’ll recall ... Ricky hosted the Golden Globes a few years back, and he let the jokes fly at just about everybody’s expense. He was not invited back to host, and sounds like he's going for a similar outcome with his latest solo offering.

Whoopi Goldberg's comments about race and the Holocaust just got her benched.

ABC Prez Kim Godwin just announced, "Effectively immediately, I am suspending Whoopi Goldberg for two weeks for her wrong and hurtful comments. While Whoopi has apologized, I've asked her to take time to reflect and learn about the impact of her comments."

She went on ... "The entire ABC News organization stands in solidarity with our Jewish colleagues, friends, family and communities."

Whoopi got in trouble on the show Monday, when she said, "Let’s be truthful about it because Holocaust isn’t about race. It’s not about race. It’s not about race. It’s about man’s inhumanity to man."

Ana Navarro challenged Whoopi, arguing ... "But it’s about white supremacists going after Jews."

Whoopi's response ... "But these are two white groups of people. The minute you turn it into race it goes down this alley. Let’s talk about it for what it is. It’s how people treat each other. It doesn’t matter if you’re Black or white, Jews, it’s each other."

She tried a make-good Tuesday, saying ... "Yesterday on the show I misspoke. [The Holocaust] is indeed about race, because Hitler and the Nazis considered the Jews to be an inferior race. Now, words matter, and mine are no exception. I regret my comments and I stand corrected. I also stand with the Jewish people."

It'll be interesting to see how the suspension impacts live, opinion-based TV shows.

Elizabeth Vargas' home is seeing lots of police activity ... we're told her ex-boyfriend barricaded himself inside after she called cops, and now one person is in custody.

Sources close to the 'RHOC' star tell TMZ ... she’s been having ongoing issues with an ex-boyfriend and called cops Tuesday to report him for possible extortion. We’re told the guy showed up at Liz’s home when police were there and barricaded himself inside.

Our law enforcement sources tell us one person is in custody ... but we're told they’re sweeping the place just to be sure no one else is inside the home.

As you see, there were at least 7 police officers outside Liz's place on the strand in Newport Beach ... and there's a guy in handcuffs at the side of a police car.

It sounds like a pretty scary situation for Liz ... but we're told she was not held hostage and was not harmed during the standoff.

Lisa Vanderpump's hubby, Ken Todd, says the 'RHOBH' star will likely never ride a horse again ... after her last ride ended with a badly broken leg.

We caught up with Ken on Tuesday, just as Lisa was having surgery to repair the shattered bones. Ken confirms she broke her leg in 3 places, and will have a bunch of new hardware by the time you're reading this.

He says he's not completely sure how long it will take Lisa to fully recover, but he's guessing about 8-10 weeks.

One thing at least he's sure of ... LV's riding days are over. Ken says the horse she was riding Sunday was a gentle and amazing animal, and despite the ol' saying, it doesn't sound like he wants his wife to risk it by getting back on the horse. Of course, we'll have to see what Lisa thinks once she's recovered.

As we've previously reported, the 'Real House Wives' star was riding in L.A. when her steed apparently got scared, reared up and bucked her off.

Ken saw it happen, and was in complete shock -- he says Lisa immediately knew something was broken.

Ellen DeGeneres is following in Dian Fossey’s footsteps ... especially now that her section of a gorilla sanctuary is open to the masses.

The talk show host has her own campus in Fossey’s Gorilla Fund in Rwanda -- a massive area dedicated to the protection of gorillas there — and on Tuesday, Ellen’s wing of the sprawling grounds got an official grand opening that’s been years in the making.

Portia de Rossi gifted Ellen with a gorilla fund in her name -- which was incorporated into Fossey’s larger org -- 4 years ago to celebrate her wife’s 60th birthday, and after a lot of work and construction ... the place is finally available to guests.

The whole purpose of the fund is to help gorillas survive poachers and other deforestation activities that might otherwise wipe out their species entirely, and lo and behold ... it’s been doing its job by keeping these apes going strong for decades now, with hundreds of gorillas thriving thanks, in large part, to Fossey’s conservationist efforts.

Ellen’s too, for that matter -- her campus is said to be a game-changer with cutting-edge tech and resources.

Covering several acres, the campus has state-of-the-art lab facilities and hundreds of thousands of native plants. There’s also custom-designed furniture the gorillas can use as they spread out and make use of the new environment. Gorillas like lounging too, bro!

Ellen seems stoked about her campus seeing the light of day, saying ... “To see my name alongside hers on the walls of this beautiful campus, and to know I'm doing my part to protect endangered gorillas and continue Dian's legacy, is simply amazing.”

Moses J. Moseley, famous for playing one of Michonne's zombies in "The Walking Dead," has died at just 31 years old ... and cops are investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.

A family member tells us the police found Moses' body Wednesday in the Hudson Bridge area of Stockbridge, GA ... the bridge covers a freeway. We're told there's currently an active investigation into how the young actor's body ended up in the area -- and whether or not foul play was involved.

A family member tells TMZ, they hadn't heard from Moses since Sunday of last week. They called around to hospitals, to no avail. On Wednesday morning, they filed a missing person's report. They then contacted OnStar which tracked the car and that's where his body was discovered.

The family member tells us Moses died of a gunshot wound, but investigators are working to find out who pulled the trigger.

Moses got his big break on "The Walking Dead" from 2012-2015 as one of Michonne's zombies that followed her around. He also made appearances on "Watchmen" on HBO and was in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" in 2013.