TMZ.com

'SNL' broke from tradition Saturday night ... there were no laughs in the cold open -- instead, there was a moving tribute to Ukraine.

The show opened with Kate McKinnon and Cecily Strong somberly introducing the Ukrainian Chorus Dumka of New York. The choir sang a mournful song called "Prayer for Ukraine."

The Chorus has a deep connection to both Ukraine and the U.S. ... Ukrainian immigrants back in the 1940's created the Chorus to preserve their Ukrainian heritage and celebrate music ... something deeply important in Ukrainian culture.

A table filled with candles was center stage, spelling the name of the capital -- Kyiv.

'SNL' has broken from tradition with serious cold opens only a few times in the past -- notably, after 9/11 Paul Simon sang "The Boxer" as first responders and then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani stood by.

Farrah Abraham says she's putting her child's happiness first, and standing by her decision to allow Sophia to get a septum piercing for her 13th birthday.

The "Teen Mom" star tells TMZ ... she's doing her best as a parent -- despite what her critics say -- to make sure her teen is happy and healthy, and if that means Sophia getting a needle through her nose, so be it!

What's interesting is Farrah acknowledges she wasn't personally a fan of Sophia getting the piercing, but says it was more important to her that it be done by a professional ... rather than Sophia sneaking off to do it herself.

Despite not being for it, Farrah sure sounded happy to celebrate the piercing as a new Abraham family milestone. As for Sophia, she's also blocking out the haters, and called her new nose bling a "birthday wish come true".

Seems like the reality star is in a much better place, compared to last month. You'll recall, she was arrested outside a club after allegedly slapping a security guard.

Since the incident, she's moved away from L.A. while threatening to sue the club. She's also said she's had suicidal thoughts due to the arrest.

Simon Leviev is an expensive habit -- as several European women will attest -- and now he's got nightclubs lining up to hand him up to $20K just to pop bottles and party.

Leviev is now infamous from the Netflix documentary 'Tinder Swindler,' and becoming a household name -- even for negative reasons -- means some hot spot clubs are looking to book him for appearances.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ … Simon has several offers from clubs in Philly, Boston, Germany and Mexico, and he's at least interested, because his team responded with a laundry list of demands.

We're told he's asking for the $20,000 payday, plus bottle service ... but it doesn't stop there. Leviev's also requesting a private jet, suite at a 5-star hotel, black SUV car service and 2 full-time security guards.

Basically, he wants the same lifestyle his alleged victims say he pretended to have while he duped them into handing over millions of dollars. As we reported, Simon was recently shopping for Ferraris ... so, he's for sure, leaning into the image he portrayed in 'Swindler.'

You'll recall, the doc claims he bilked women out of more than $10 mil by gaining their trust on Tinder.

Ya gotta wonder if he really has Ferrari money now, but if not, he's now trying to get it legitimately ... if the nightclubs will bite.

Kim Kardashian is flying high these days, being a billionaire and such, and she's taken her massive wealth to a new level by plunking down more than $95 mil on a new private jet.

Kim flew back to L.A. from Milan Friday in a G65OER jet ... our sources confirm she had it built from scratch. When we say $95M, that's the base price. We're guessing cashmere walls are extra.

She's been waiting a year for completion, and we gotta say ... it's pretty damn awesome. The custom interior and exterior are pained a Créme color. The cabin is laced with cashmere finishes and leather seats. It's the same color scheme as her home. She designed the interior with the help of Tommy Clements and Waldo Fernandez. BTW ... Fernandez also designed Travis Barker's home, with an assist from Kourtney.

It's baller ... the placemats and plates are the same as the ones she has at home. Not to mention, we're told guests who board are given a pair of SKIMS slippers and pajamas for a cozy trip.

It seats 18, so make your reservations now.

As for the total price ... we've made some calls and after the customizations, it could have easily set her back around $150 MILLION! But remember ... she's a billionaire.

The plane is the same type as the one owned by Jeff Bezos.

Mama June's ex, Geno Doak, says he tried to overdose on pills and booze ... but he's in a better place now because June helped him get into treatment.

Geno tells TMZ ... he tried to kill himself back in September by chasing 90 blood pressure pills with a liter of Jägermeister while at his Florida home.

He says he was feeling down over everything going on in his life, explaining he had been miserable for a long time leading up to the attempted suicide.

It's interesting ... that happened right around the time he and Mama broke things off, but Geno told us that wasn't the reason he tried to kill himself. Watch the video ... he says it was the cumulative effect of untreated issues that began before June.

Luckily for Geno, a friend was at his house the night he popped all those pills and noticed the empty bottle. He says she called 911 and paramedics ultimately saved his life. After that he ended up in a mental health facility ... and when he was released, June offered a helping hand.

The way Geno tells it ... June came over to pick up some of her belongings, and when he told her about the OD, she referred him to a rehab center in South Carolina.

Since going through treatment, Geno says he's been going through the 12 steps and learning a lot about himself, and what put him in a "dark place."

It sounds like Geno's doing a lot better now -- but explained why he's no longer in touch with Mama June.

Sharon Osbourne wouldn't go back to CBS if they unloaded a Brinks truck in front of her house ... because the bad blood is still boiling.

Sharon and Ozzy were at Erewhon market in L.A. Thursday, and our photog asked the question lots of folks want to know ... Whoopi Goldberg's punishment was way less severe than Sharon's, so would she consider going back to "The Talk" if CBS asked her?

Well, we're thinkin' she wouldn't give it another go, because she said, "I would never go back to that show because CBS sucks big time d**k."  So we're thinkin' no.

As you know, Sharon got the ax after defending her friend Piers Morgan who attacked Meghan Markle on his show.

She also made it clear ... she's not hanging it up -- she is NOT retiring. Sounds like she's got plans.

"Adults Adopting Adults" -- the show featuring Frédéric Prinz von Anhalt and his new son -- is off the air after just 3 episodes ... and now he's ready to cancel the adoption too!!!

Prinz von Anhalt tells TMZ adopting Kevin Feucht was just something he did for the show. He's already legally adopted him, but says he wants to reverse the process.

It's kinda tragic for Kevin, who's getting kicked to the curb due to TV ratings, essentially. A&E has said the show's ratings were just too low to continue airing the remaining episodes.

Prinz, who is Zsa Zsa Gabor's widower, tells us he hasn't broken the bad news to Kevin yet, but plans to do so very soon.

How quickly things change ... just 10 days ago we spoke to Prinz and Kevin in Bev Hills, and Dad said he wanted Kev to quickly crank out some grandkids, but it sounds like that won't be a factor anymore.

Even then, the adoption was on shaky ground. Anhalt said he'd pull the plug if Kevin didn't pull his weight in their relationship. Turns out the bigger issue was pulling a TV audience.

One other issue ... Prinz tells us Kevin was planning to take a trip to Africa with his GF instead of building a connection with his newly adoptive father.

Bottom line -- he feels like Kevin isn't committed to him or taking over the family trust.

'Adults Adopting' actually featured several other families, besides von Anhalt, and one of which viewers found creepy and off-putting.

Danny Huff and wife Christy were trying to adopt an adult for the second time, after initially trying with an 18-year-old woman, but having it fall through when Danny formed romantic feelings towards her.

Tristan "Mack" Wilds is sick and tired of the way the media and others unfairly profile black males, and he wants to blow these misconceptions to smithereens in a new Discovery+ show.

Tristan, who starred in "The Wire," joined "TMZ Live" Wednesday to talk about the false stereotypes that have been attached to Black males ... false stereotypes like Black fathers leave their families, and they devalue Black women.

Tristan knows of where he speaks, growing up as a Black male in America and dealing with these damaging presumptions people make.

The Discovery+ show is executively produced by none other than Tina Knowles-Lawson, who had a strategy to get her message out. The strategy -- don't sell the show to a predominately Black network. Her reasoning is that white people are the ones who need education, so Discovery+ fits the bill.

It's interesting ... Tristan thinks the way the media has unfairly characterized Black men has spilled over into the problems of police officers profiling Black men -- the cops learn from the media and then perpetuate the false narrative.

The docuseries premiered earlier this month, and new episodes will air on Discovery+, every Saturday.

Stand-up comedian and shock magician "The Amazing Johnathan" is dead after battling heart issues for years.

An assistant to Johnathan's wife tells TMZ ... Johnathan passed Tuesday night while at home "cuddling" with his wife of 11 years, Anastasia Synn. We're told a hospice nurse had been staying with him for the last 3 weeks, and confirmed he had passed.

The former Las Vegas headliner, whose real name was Johnathan Szeles, had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure in 2007, and it's been a very tough road. The assistant says, "We have thought we lost him so many times that we never thought it would actually happen."

Johnathan was reportedly making up to $3 million per year at the peak of his Vegas fame when he had a residency at Bally's casino. His gonzo act featured some astounding, and downright shocking, moves ... including putting a spike through his tongue and sucking on his dangling eyeball.

The Detroit native gained a more mainstream audience after appearing on Criss Angel's reality show, "Mindfreak."

During a 2014 appearance, he announced he'd been told he only had one year to live ... but he was still around 5 years later when he launched a comeback tour.

Anastasia's assistant says they will have memorials for Johnathan in Vegas, Michigan and in L.A. they will hold the "Los Angeles Broken wand ceremony at the Magic Castle."

Johnathan was 63.

Lindsey Pearlman, the "Empire" and "General Hospital" actress who was found dead in her car Friday ... had a history of depression before committing suicide ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Lindsey called her husband, Vance Smith, the day before her body was found, saying she was intent on ending her life. Her husband contacted police in a frantic effort to find Lindsey. He never saw her alive again.

We're told Lindsey drove to the base of Runyon Canyon in Hollywood -- a popular hiking spot -- and swallowed enough pills to fatally overdose. A hiker came upon her car last Friday, saw her body inside and called police.

We've learned Lindsey left a suicide note at her home and also left a note in her car ... telling whoever found her to call 911.

Investigators learned Lindsey suffered from bouts of depression over the years, and it appears it just became too overwhelming.

After her body was found, Lindsey's sister posted the phone number of the National Suicide Hotline on social media and said, "Please know that you are never truly alone."

The Los Angeles County medical examiner's office says an autopsy was performed but they are requesting more tests and studies before determining an official cause of death, but our law enforcement sources say it's apparent it was a drug overdose.

Stand-up comedian Earthquake has the biggest platform of his more than 30-year career, and he's giving Dave Chappelle all the props for giving him the big break.

Earthquake joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" to talk more about his upcoming special, "Legendary" ... the first of Dave's 4-part series, "Chappelle's Home Team." He told us, he's flattered Dave "reached back" to give comedians like himself such a huge opportunity to reach a wider audience.

Of course, Dave sparked lots of controversy for Netflix last year after his special, "The Closer," pissed off LGBTQ+ groups and some employees at the streaming service.

Rather than shying away, Netflix is capitalizing on its relationship with Dave ... and Earthquake and other comedians are benefitting. Earthquake says it all started with a surprising call -- which he thought was a prank -- from Netflix execs.

Chappelle won't be doing any stand-up specials this time around, but he is executive producing all of them and recording intros for the comedians. BTW, Earthquake gave us some insider intel about the other comedians who will be featured.

"The Wendy Williams Show" is no more ... and it will become "Sherri."

Wendy has been dealing with serious health issues for months now. TMZ broke the story, the TV honchos that carry the show said Sherri Shepherd became the permanent guest host and they were monitoring Wendy's heath and, if it didn't get better, the change would become permanent.

Now, the show's producers said Tuesday, "This is also a bitter-sweet moment for us and our partners at Fox. We all have great love and affinity for Wendy, who grew into a true icon during her 12 incredible seasons as the solo host of a live, daily talk show dishing on 'Hot Topics' and interviewing celebrities."

As for Sherri, she's tried and true ... appearing on "The View," "Dish Nation," and, of course, 'Wendy.'

We got Sherri out Monday night in New York and she was non-committal about the change, saying she was still just a temp.

Wendy was down with Sherri as her temp replacement, although she was hoping to return, but apparently, her health struggles have not gotten better.

"Real Housewives of Atlanta" star Sheree Whitfield has been filming for the show's upcoming season, and longtime beau Tyrone Gilliams will be joining her on camera for the first time ... after being on non-speaking terms for months.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the two recently filmed multiple scenes together, including the season finale, in which Sheree hosts a fashion show.

Having Tyrone on is a big deal for the reality series ... as you'll recall, the couple had serious bad blood after Sheree allegedly tried to spring a camera crew on him back in November ... he was on home confinement at the time and wasn't able to leave the house for any reason -- filming included.

Tyrone had his attorneys fire off a cease and desist to NBC, Bravo and production company Truly Original ... asking to scrub every trace of him from 'RHOA' footage, social media posts, and advertising that used his name.

Recently, Tyrone and his attorneys were able to hash out a deal with Truly, which led to him filming mid-February. Now that he's off home confinement, he was able to shoot with Sheree and the other 'RHOA' cast members in ATL.

These new pics of Simon Leviev make ya think -- somewhere a woman is crying about losing a big stack o' money, 'cause the guy's perusing super pricey sports cars in his native Israel!!!

The so-called 'Tinder Swindler' -- the title of the Netflix documentary about Simon -- was spotted on the prowl over the weekend in Tel Aviv at a luxury dealership, and naturally ... he was checking out Ferraris.

As you can see, SL rolled up in an SUV with what appear to be bodyguards trailing behind -- protection from his "enemies," no doubt -- and wearing a Gucci jacket worth thousands.

But that's nothing compared to the whips he's eyeballing! Some of the Ferrari models in his sights, including a 296 GTB, which go for as high as $250,000 MSRP. And not only did Simon take a good hard look at the exteriors, but he actually got inside at least one of 'em to get a feel from the inside.

From the outside looking in, Simon would definitely seem to be rolling in the dough to be able to shop for a prancing horse.

We should note -- for the sake of any impressionable women seeing this -- that Simon did NOT cruise away in any of the cars.

Considering his history of alleged fraud -- the documentary claims he bilked women out of more than $10 mil -- you gotta wonder if this is all just for show, or if he's legit rich.

Simon Leviev, aka "The Tinder Swindler," is saying goodbye to scamming women and has just scored an actual paying job ... this time, he's making money being his real self on Cameo.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the 'Tinder Swindler' joined the site Tuesday and got a wave of requests from fans to make messages. We're told he made $30K within his first 3 days, charging $200 a pop for personal video and $2k per video for businesses.

Folks have requested everything from birthday shoutouts to pep talks, happy anniversary videos, and more. He says in his profile he's excited to be on Cameo to wish folks whatever they need. In a few videos, he jokes his enemies are after him.

If you haven't seen it, Simon's the focus of a new Netflix doc, "The Tinder Swindler" ... accused of scamming women in shocking fashion out of a fortune. It was like a Ponzi scheme, where he'd take money from one woman and use it to impress the next before he took money from her.  In all, he pilfered around $10 million.

Lindsey Pearlman, the actress with credits that include "Empire" and "General Hospital" was found dead 3 days after disappearing ... the LAPD now confirms.

The body of the 43-year-old was found Friday at the base of Runyon Canyon Park in Hollywood ... a very popular hiking spot. Her body was discovered inside a car.

The cause of death has not been released, but Saturday Lindsey's sister said on Twitter, "Please know that you are never truly alone," as she posted the phone number to the National Suicide Hotline.

Pearlman, who also appeared on "Chicago Justice," "The Ms. Pat Show," and "Selena," was last heard from Thursday afternoon. She called her cousin and phone data shows the call was made a mile-and-a-half from where her body was discovered.

Lindsey's husband, Vance Smith, said, "The police found Lindsey. She's gone. I'm broken."

The family says to honor Lindsey -- an animal rights advocate -- please donate to the Sante d'Or, an L.A,-based animal rescue org.