America's Got Talent

Piff the Magic Dragon's longtime performing companion and beloved Chihuahua, Mr. Piffles, has died ... the Las Vegas magician confirms to TMZ.

The "America's Got Talent" alum tells us ... his beloved canine conjuror passed away on November 8th, just before his 17th birthday ... with Piff crediting the rescue dog for making his act sensational.

He adds ... "For over 15 years I’ve had the privilege and the pleasure of being upstaged and outshone night after night by Mr. Piffles. He came into my life when I had nothing, and set me on the path to a career I could only dream of. In the beginning, I may have rescued him, but in the end, he rescued me."

Emily Gold -- the teenage "America's Got Talent" cheerleader who tragically died last Friday -- will be honored by her high school football team and its student body later this week ... TMZ Sports has learned.

The Chaffey Joint Union High School District in Southern California tells us ... Los Osos H.S. -- where Gold attended before her death -- will have several tributes at its football game Thursday, including a "gold game," where fans are strongly encouraged to wear gold.

Officials added there will also be a moment of silence for Gold at the event ... which is slated to kick off less than one week after the 17-year-old was found dead under a bridge on the 210 Freeway in Rancho Cucamonga.

A high school cheerleader who recently impressed judges on "America's Got Talent" has tragically died ... with her death being investigated as a suicide.

High schooler Emily Gold, 17, was found dead under a bridge on the eastbound 210 Freeway in Rancho Cucamonga, California just before midnight Friday. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ she is believed to have jumped from an overpass above and landed on the freeway below.

We're told CHP got 911 calls about a pedestrian down in the carpool lane, and when authorities arrived, they found at least one vehicle had run over Gold ... and didn't stop.

Howie Mandel and Heidi Klum are showing off their talents ... teaming up for a funny video on the set of their TV competition show ... and there's a fart joke involved.

The "America's Got Talent" judges just posted a video on social media where it looks like Howie eats Heidi ... and then craps her out.

Heidi's dancing in the background and Howie is in the foreground, cupping his hands and licking his lips ... making it appear like he's holding her in his hands.

Perry Kurtz -- a comedian who appeared on "America's Got Talent" and "The Late Late Show with James Corden" and had ties to several comedy legends -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Perry was involved in a fatal hit-and-run in Tarzana, an L.A. neighborhood, after a collision around 11:20 PM Thursday ... when a gray Honda Civic struck and killed him. The Los Angeles Fire Department pronounced him dead at the scene.

Our law enforcement sources tell us cops have arrested a suspect on suspicion of felony hit-and-run causing death.

Trevor Noah's backing up Taylor Swift ... saying the Grammys wouldn't focus lenses on her like the NFL -- they'd go after a former player.

The comedian just took to the Grammys stage to perform his opening monologue -- during which he stayed real positive and complimentary -- before mentioning the world's biggest pop star and chastising NFL fans for blaming Taylor for the amount football broadcasts cut to her.

Noah said she doesn't control the cameras, so people need to chill out ... before insisting that every time someone mentioned Swift, he'd make sure the cameras cut to an ex-NFL player.

The camera then jumped ... to actor and "America's Got Talent" host Terry Crews, who looked totally surprised by the attention.

If you don't know, TC wasn't always an actor -- he played 32 NFL games for three teams between 1991 and 1995 ... the perfect person for TN to use in his revenge plan.

Terry cracked up ... with Noah continuing to yel; funny/harassing things at the absolutely ripped 55-year-old.

It's all in good fun and an especially topical joke ... 'cause Taylor's probably heading to the Super Bowl in Las Vegas next week -- so NFL fans can expect more Swift on their screen soon enough

BTW ... Taylor looked stunning in a flowing white dress on the red carpet -- which she was left to walk alone because of her man Travis Kelce's practice schedule.

Jonathan Goodwin, who nearly died doing a stunt for 'AGT: Extreme,' is suing NBC over his gruesome injuries, alleging the network didn't do enough to ensure safety on set.

According to a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Jonathan claims NBC and producers kept upping the ante on stunts to go bigger and bolder to keep eyeballs on the 'AGT' franchise, and he says that led to producers signing up contestants to perform extreme stunts ... while cutting corners on safety.

In the docs, Jonathan claims the show controlled, designed and interfered with the safe performance of stunts ... which he says nearly cost him his life when he got seriously injured on set.

Jonathan says he was "catastrophically injured" during an October 21 rehearsal at the Atlanta Motor Speedway in Georgia, where he was crushed and burned by 2 exploding cars before falling more than 20 feet to the ground and landing violently.

In his suit, Jonathan claims he dislocated his spinal cord, lost his left kidney, suffered 3rd-degree burns and fractured his legs, ribs and shoulders.

Remember ... we first obtained video of the stunt, and it shows Jonathan suspended in the air, hanging from a wire and attempting to free himself from a straightjacket before two swinging cars smash together.

The footage shows the cars sandwiching Jonathan in midair ... and sources on set told us folks who were there thought Jonathan had died.

It's been nearly 2 years since the incident, and Jonathan says there's no end to his suffering from his mental, physical and emotional injuries from the "catastrophic, life-altering" incident.

In his suit, Jonathan's blasting the show for what he says was a failure to implement industry safety standards. He says the production hired unqualified people to oversee and design the stunt, which he says wasn't tested with a crash dummy before he got in the ring.

He's suing for damages.

Don't get lost in the shadows when examining these two shots of Sofia Vergara! Are you ready to roll up your sleeves and find the discreet changes? You may need to adjust your glasses in order to find them!

Sofia was recently out in Pasadena -- lookin' back at it in a casual outfit -- and threw a ✌ to the cameras before entering the "America's Got Talent" set. Yes, she's got say on "AGT", but can you be the judge of the images and scout out the changes?

Michael Grimm, famous for winning "America's Got Talent" season 5, is showing big signs of improvement after being hospitalized with a serious, and mysterious, health issue.

Michael's wife, Lucie, tells TMZ ... he recently had a breakthrough in his recovery, and he's now able to speak and even walk under his own power.

It's big news for Michael, who has been in the hospital since Memorial Day, when he was rushed to an intensive care unit and put on a ventilator.

Michael's wife says he's still in the hospital and doctors have so far been unable to diagnose a specific disease or syndrome behind his hospitalization.

We're told Michael had an adverse reaction to being on the ventilator ... his wife says his brain stopped communicating with the rest of his body.

So, now he needs to relearn movement and speech, which is why walking is such a milestone for his recovery.

While Michael no longer needs a cane and is able to speak, his wife tells us he still can't sing or play guitar ... but he's working on different exercises to get back his musical talents.

The breakthroughs are nice, but there are still some issues ... Michael's wife says he has PTSD from being on the ventilator and some past personal trauma has been resurfacing during rehab.

Michael Grimm, famous for taking home the title on "America's Got Talent" season 5, is sedated and in intensive care after a mystery health issue.

The singer's wife, Lucie Zolcerva-Grimm, says Michael has been hospitalized since Memorial Day and remains unconscious, though he's finally breathing on his own again.

Michael's wife says the root of the issue is not clear ... but he had not been feeling well for a while, lacking energy and having a tough time finishing his recent performances.

She says things reached a head last month when he became increasingly sick. Michael's wife says he could barely walk and couldn't lift his head, so she rushed him to the emergency room, where things got worse.

Michael's wife says his blood pressure skyrocketed when he got to the ER and he started talking gibberish, so he was rushed to the ICU ... where he remains.

Doctors put Michael on a ventilator and sedated him, his wife says, and he's only recently been taken off the ventilator ... though he's still sedated.

Michael's wife says most of his upcoming shows this month have been canceled ... noting he will not only need to regain consciousness but also undergo physical therapy because he's been bedridden for over a week.

Scott Alexander, a magician best known for his time on "America's Got Talent," has died ... according to his wife.

Scott's wife Jenny -- who appeared on the show as his assistant -- shared the tragic news on Monday, posting ... "We have lost a father, a husband, a son, a brother, a friend, a mentor, and one hell of an entertainer."

As for what led to his death, Jenny says "Scott suffered a stroke while working on a cruise ship in St Kitts and did not make it home to us."

'AGT' fans will remember Scott and Jenny from Season 6 of the hit show. He made quite the impression on the judges with his illusions and tricks, before getting eliminated in the Quarterfinals.

After the show, Scott also appeared on Season 2 of "Penn & Teller: Fool Us".

Scott is survived by his wife and their 3 children. In Jenny's own words, "We are shattered."

A GoFundMe has been started by a family friend to help Jenny as well as their children's future.

Zuri Craig -- who's worked with the likes of Tyler Perry, and once wowed on 'America's Got Talent' -- has died.

His family confirmed his passing Sunday, throwing up a tribute post on Zuri's official ZoReMi Entertainment page and writing ... "It is with profound sadness that we announce the transition of our beloved son, brother and friend, Zuri Craig."

They continued ... "We thank you in advance for your prayers. Please honor our privacy at this unimaginable time of mourning." They note he died on Friday -- a cause of death has yet to be released, but more info seems to be forthcoming.

Craig might best be known for his time on 'AGT' back in 2015, when he and his singing partner, Jeffrey Lewis, cleaned up that season by impressing the judges and audiences alike.

They first knocked it out of the park by crooning to James Brown's 'This Is a Man's World,' and later got a gold buzzer from Michael Buble after tackling Mary J. Blige's "I'm Goin' Down." They went pretty far, but in the end ... placed 5th overall, despite a helluva run.

Even before that, though, Craig was already rubbing shoulders with some Hollywood heavyweights -- including TP, who noticed him and Lewis from YouTube covers they were doing as early as '09. This landed Craig a job on some of Tyler's 'Madea' plays.

Craig has starred in/worked on a few ... "Madea's Big Happy Family," "Madea Gets a Job" and "A Madea Christmas." He and Lewis even appeared on 'Oprah' in the early 2010s.

He's also worked on podcasts and other shows over the years -- and was even set to produce a live production in Atlanta, 'Soul Food Live,' starting next month ... with ads already being made and the cast already chosen. Zuri was 44.

Don't let these two nearly synchronized images of "America's Got Talent" coach JoJo Siwa throw off your mojo. In order for the golden buzzer to go off, you must quickstep your way to nailing the changes in these two shots.

The pro dancer recently grabbed some Starbucks to-go before heading to the 'AGT' studios, and of course she was rockin' her group, XOMG POP, on a bedazzled tee. So, go ahead and grab your cup of Jo and see if you can capture the differences in these two similar snaps.

Ex-NFL star Prince Amukamara and the Players Choir are ready to be the newest members of NSYNC -- 'cause the footballer-turned-singer says his guys are ready to collab after the pop star approved their rendition of his song on "America's Got Talent!"

If you missed it, the Players Choir -- a group of 11 former NFL athletes including Amukamara, Isaiah McKenzie, and Bryant McKinnie -- performed Justin Timberlake's "Can't Stop The Feeling!" on 'AGT' earlier this week ... and they killed it!

Timberlake was very impressed, sharing the clip of their gig on his Twitter with praising hand emojis ... and, Amukamara says they were hyped about the nod.

"Anytime you do another artist's song, you want to make sure that you make them proud first and foremost," the former Giants cornerback tells us this week.

"Getting that stamp of approval from Justin was huge!"

Does this open doors for a collab with the award-winning singer? If it does, Amukamara tells us the squad is down for it.

"Of course!" Amukamara said, "No one is gonna decline that!"

"It was just even awesome for him to retweet us and show us some love. If that opportunity comes, we're all gonna be jumping up and down for that."

Until then, PC -- who made their debut in 2008 -- will continue to sing on stage with more to come soon.

"Being on stage was awesome," Amukamara said, "and if we get another opportunity which I'm sure we will and we have been."

"Stuff's coming up so it's awesome."