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Ben Shapiro's popping off on retirement in the U.S., saying people who want to hang it up professionally at age 65 are off their rocker ... arguing the threshold should be raised.

The conservative talk show host made his case loud and clear on Tuesday's "The Ben Shapiro Show" ... saying the notion that retirement age should remain at 65 is absolutely absurd -- especially since President Biden is running for reelection at the ripe age of 81.

Ben says he's actually shocked the retirement age hasn't been bumped up already -- especially considering folks in the U.S. are living a lot longer nowadays.

The host continues arguing that working well past retirement age is a good thing ... 'cause, according to him, everyone he knows who's retired around 65 has lost their purpose in life. BS adds that it's ridiculous folks would solely rely on Social Security benefits for the next two decades after retirement rather than work ... seemingly suggesting it's a lazy way to go.

Ben uses his parents as a shining example of people older than 65 who've stayed on the grind -- although, it's unclear exactly how old they might be. Point is ... he thinks people oughta keep working into old age, and he says there's many examples of people doing so.

He also makes the point that people retiring at 65 and leaning SS isn't financially sustainable for the country ... a right-wing talking point that's been brought up by Republicans, etc.

Mark Coleman's heroic actions are coming to light in the wake of the terrible blaze that burned down his home, severely injuring the UFC legend, and tragically taking the life of his family pup, Hammer.

As we previously reported, 59-year-old Coleman is currently in a hospital in Ohio where he's fighting for his life as a result of injuries sustained in the fire ... and now we're learning more about what Coleman did early Tuesday morning.

Coleman, who was visiting his parents at his childhood home, was woken up around 4 AM by his rottweiler Hammer as the fire began to burn, according to his daughter Morgan.

Mark sprung into action, immediately rushing to Mom and Dad, and escorting them to safety. They were unharmed.

Knowing Hammer was still inside, Coleman rushed back into the burning house in an attempt to save his beloved dog, risking his own life.

Tragically, Hammer didn't survive ... and the home was totally lost.

Mark's daughter confirms he was airlifted to a local hospital where he is receiving around-the-clock treatment.

MC's friend, Wes Sims, provided a bit of a medical update late last night, saying Mark "made movements" at the hospital ... though it's clear he'll have a long road to recovery, and it won't be cheap.

Mark's daughter even started a GoFundMe on Wednesday to raise money for expenses related to her dad's care ... with a goal of raising $50k.

Keith Morrison says his stepson Matthew Perry thought he was overcoming his addiction before his sudden death ... but in reality, says he knew he really wasn't.

In his first interview since Matthew's passing in October, the "Dateline" correspondent -- who's married to Matt's mother, Suzanne -- recently revealed on Hoda Kotb's podcast that the beloved actor felt he was beating his addiction and in a good place ... happy, even.

Keith also acknowledged that Matt had a particularly tough struggle with alcohol and drugs -- something we all knew. He described Matthew's addiction battle as "virulent" ... noting the disease went after him relentlessly over the years.

With this in mind, Keith says he wasn't totally surprised by Matt's untimely ending. Still, he added ... "He didn't get to have his third act, and that's not fair." It's a somber conversation.

As we reported ... Mathew's autopsy noted he'd been clean for 19 months ... but his death was ruled an accident having been caused by the acute effects of ketamine.

MP had been using ketamine infusion therapy to treat his depression and anxiety -- and his last treatment came a week before his death, which TMZ broke at the time.

Matthew was found unresponsive in his jacuzzi ... drowning and coronary artery disease were later highlighted as additional factors on his official cause of death.

Keith admitted that he's still struggling with grief over Matthew's death ... but confessed his wife/Matt's mom is having a harder time with it all, even all these months later.  According to Keith, Matthew and Suzanne were closer than ever just before the actor's passing.

Jason Derulo had to bend to the call of nature during a recent show, bringing everything to a sudden stop right in the middle of a song ... to rush to the bathroom!!!

The "Swalla" singer is currently on his "Nu King" world tour, and Saturday he was in Leeds, England .. where he abruptly halted his concert inside First Direct Arena, and politely asked the packed house for a timeout.

After realizing he wasn't joking, the UK crowd booed and groaned, but even that couldn't stop him -- Jason still bolted offstage to conduct his business.

Fans came to see him do the "Wiggle," but got his pee-pee dance, instead!!!

The TikTok master and his crew decided to poke fun at the situation with a skit of JD relieving himself in a Gatorade bottle ... but there was no photoshopping the fan's faces of disapproval during his bathroom break!!!

TikTok's dancing on thin ice in the U.S. ... with the House voting to ban the popular social media app -- unless its Beijing-based parent company ByteDance sells its stake, that is.

A vote went down Wednesday and it was a landslide -- 352 to 65 -- in favor of the ban ... a rare moment of bipartisan agreement, with 197 Republicans and 155 Democrats giving it the green light, citing the app's Chinese ownership as a major national security threat.

The House didn't waste any time with the legislation -- dubbed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act -- but TikTok's future still hangs in the balance ... as it still has to make its way through the Senate, and then over to Joe Biden.

This current bill gives ByteDance a strict ultimatum -- either sell off TikTok and its other apps within six months or face the chop from U.S. app stores and other web-hosting services.

Lawmakers have long been sweating bullets over fears the Chinese government could force ByteDance into handing over the data of its whopping 170M American users -- even though TikTok has vehemently denied it's snooping on U.S. citizens.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw didn't pull any punches before the vote, saying ... "TikTok is owned by ByteDance. ByteDance is in China and when you're in China, you have to do whatever the Chinese Communist Party tells you what to do."

He added, "If they want you to spy for them, you will spy for them; that's how that works."

However, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, is accusing the U.S. of running a smear campaign to bring down the China-based company -- adding in a statement the U.S "has not been able to give hard evidence to prove the so-called threats from TikTok to U.S. national security."

FWIW, Biden's promising to put pen to paper on the bill if it lands on his desk. Nonetheless, it's gonna be a nail-biter to see if this bill actually sticks, especially since TikTok's survived previous ban attempts. We're sure the influencers are shaking in their boots!

Janelle Brown says she's overwhelmed by emotion after fans honored her late son, Garrison, by donating to animal shelters in his name ... all as a way to highlight his pet cats.

The "Sister Wives" star shared photos of Garrison and his cats on Instagram Tuesday ... saying she was brought to tears after learning High Country Humane and Ark Cat Sanctuary in Garrison's hometown of Flagstaff received several donations in the wake of his passing.

Janelle -- who shared Garrison, as well as five other kids, with her ex-husband Kody Brown -- made it clear that this was the perfect way to honor Garrison ... who she said loved being a cat dad."

She adds, "The cats he adopted from both agencies were so important to him."

Remember, Garrison had rescued a nine-year-old cat -- which he named Ms. Buttons -- just before his death earlier this month. At the time, Garrison shared that the cat was "on the line for euthanasia" before he intervened.

We broke the story ... Garrison passed away in an apparent suicide last week. As we noted, cops say his brother Gabriel was the one who discovered Garrison deceased in his home.

Janelle later confirmed the heartbreaking news ... issuing a statement on behalf of herself and her ex-husband, Kody. She wrote ... "His loss will leave such a big hole in our lives that it takes our breath away."

Other tributes from the Brown family -- who documented their once polygamist life for 18 seasons -- soon poured in for Garrison as well.

He was only 25.

RIP

Drake Bell is finally telling his story on how Brian Peck molested him as a teen -- detailing the case at the time ... a period during which celebs came forward to support his abuser.

The new ID doc 'Quiet on Set' had its media embargo lifted, and people who've seen an early screener -- including us -- are detailing what exactly Drake says here ... and it's pretty hard to watch.

Drake gives the blow-by-blow of what happened between him and his former dialogue coach -- saying Brian drove a wedge between him and his father back then, who was working as Drake's manager ... and who was apparently suspicious of Brian.

In terms of how the abuse started, Drake says Brian isolated him a lot while working on Nickelodeon shows -- and he'd often end up hanging out with Brian outside of the set including at Brian's home, and had spent the night there many times. One morning after sleeping on his couch, Drake says he woke up to find Brian sexually assaulting him.

From there, Drake says things got worse ... and the abuse became more repetitive -- and he says he felt trapped by a dark secret. Eventually, he broke down and confessed to his mom. Once his mother became aware, they got cops involved -- and Drake says he told them everything. He also claims he got Brian to confess to the police on a recorded phone call.

Eventually, Brian was arrested on multiple counts ... but he pled no contest to just two -- performing a lewd act with a 14 or 15-year-old and oral copulation with a minor under 16.

One of the more startling revelations in the doc is that as Brian was set to be sentenced, he had a crap ton of famous people and friends show up on his behalf in court ... and not just that, but several stars had written character letters on his behalf, including some big names.

James Marsden wrote one, as did Taran Killam ... not to mention "Boy Meets World" stars Rider Strong and Will Friedle -- who've already expressed regret over this in recent weeks.

"Growing Pains" star Joanna Kerns also wrote a letter for Brian, but came forward in the doc to say she only did so based on misinformation. The late Alan Thicke also wrote a letter in support ... and so did "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody" directors Rich and Beth Correll.

Peck briefly went on to work on the 'Suite Life' after he served his 16-month prison sentence post-conviction. We've reached out to Marsden, Killam and the Corrells ... no word back yet.

Travis Kelce isn't sick of Taylor Swift concerts just yet -- the Kansas City Chiefs superstar raved about his girlfriend's latest tour dates in Singapore ... saying it was an "amazing" experience.

The Super Bowl champion -- who was spotted at two of Swift's six sold-out shows in Asia last week -- praised Tay's performance on his "New Heights" podcast with his brother, Jason ... and even though he's seen the same setlist several times, he clearly can't get enough.

Kelce's comments are no surprise -- after all, the guy danced like no one was watching during his appearances ... and the Swifties made sure to show him some serious love as well.

Kelce also gushed over a "cool as f***" greenhouse he visited during his trip ... and it turns out he's not just a zoo dude, he is also a big fan of plants.

Of course, the Traylor romance all came to be after Travis hit up Taylor's show at Arrowhead Stadium back in July ... and the two have written quite the love story ever since.

A California yacht owner's vicious beef with a dock worker has reached death-threat levels -- and their exchange was caught on camera and included a nude, and very rude, gesture!

Check out the clip ... it all unfolds when San Diego entrepreneur Ajay Thakore swings by the swanky Marriott Marquis Marina in his rare $4.5M Tecnomar for Lamborghini 63 yacht to pick up one of his employees -- but things boil over when dock worker Joseph Holt tells him he can't be there.

Thakore, the CEO of medical advertising firm Doctor Multimedia, flips out on Holt big time ... and starts spewing threats like, "I will kill you, you know I will kill you, I will kill."

And it doesn't stop there -- as Thakore's pulling out of the harbor, he drops trou to make a full frontal salute in Holt's direction. Stay classy, San Diego!

Holt's only retaliation was flipping the bird, and he later told CBS8 that was all he could do to keep his cool and avoid escalating the situation.

Holt says parts of the altercation were not captured on camera, and he adds ... Thakore not only threatened to kill him, but also claimed to have connections who could totally mess up his life.

Holt also says Thakore pulled out $100 bills and tossed them at him, even chucking some in the water.

BTW, Thakore's done some backpedaling since the ugly exchange -- he now says, "The interaction that occurred yesterday was regrettable. What started as a minor misunderstanding escalated into an argument, and I apologize for my actions and to those who witnessed the unfortunate exchange."

FWIW ... One of Thakore’s employees claims the whole thing began because other dock workers blocked him from boarding the yacht.

Olivia Rodrigo doubled down on her mission to provide fans with access to contraception by handing out free boxes of Plan B and condoms at her concerts ... sparking a major reaction online.

The pop singer first announced her plan in February when she revealed the Fund 4 Good initiative ... a plan to provide her female fans with access to reproductive health care during her "GUTS" world tour.

And it's clear Olivia is a woman of her word -- as one fan took a pic of the emergency contraceptive she received at the former Disney star's St. Louis tour stop.

The concert attendee didn't just receive Plan B, however ... they also got information on how to fund abortion care in the U.S. and a phone number to help those seeking to terminate a pregnancy.

Remember, Missouri banned almost all abortions after Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. So, this was a bold move by Olivia.

While her initiative -- which includes the singer donating a portion of her ticket sales to the National Network of Abortion Funds -- has been applauded by activist groups, some online have slammed her for her pro-choice stance.

Still, the positive comments are outweighing the negative ones ... with most people praising Olivia for putting her money where her mouth is.

The Kate Middleton saga continues -- and now, Stephen Colbert is leaning into a new salacious rumor ... namely, that Prince William might allegedly be having an affair.

The 'Late Show' host made the Royals one of his topics on Tuesday night's opening monologue -- and he completely embraced unfounded speculation and innuendo that Bill is, perhaps, cheating ... a rumor that has been floating around for a while in tabloids, etc.

The alleged "other woman" in question is Lady Rose Hanbury -- the Marchioness of Cholmondeley -- who's been in William and Kate's inner orbit, as a friend, for years.

Like we said, this has never been confirmed ... but it's been gossiped about for a long time -- and now, amid Kate's mysterious absence, it's kicked into high gear again ... with some suggesting that it somehow has something to do with why KM's been out of the spotlight.

Colbert didn't seem all that interested in connecting the dots -- but he was happy to poke fun at the headlines that have theorized this ... cracking jokes at Will and Kate's expense.

He even made fun of a report that suggested Kate had confronted her husband about this ... to which the Prince allegedly "laughed it off" and said it was much ado about nothing.

As we reported ... William has been keeping calm and carrying on with his Royal duties as Kate continues to recover from her abdominal surgery behind closed doors -- although, slight glimpses of her have been seen here and there ever since her procedure in January.

Of course, her failed Photoshop attempt over the weekend -- which she has explicitly taken the blame for -- only added more fuel to the fire on what exactly is going on with her.

Fact is ... hardly anybody believes the picture was taken when Kensington Palace says it was -- and with this new affair rumor now making its way into the mainstream ... it's just another layer that Will and Kate have to combat as people keep digging into theory after theory.

Betcha never thought you'd ever see Kim Kardashian and Bianca Censori together.

Well, think again, 'cause Kanye West's ex-wife and current wife were hanging out at Ye's listening party Tuesday night – and it was all caught on video!!!

Check it out ... Kim was standing with Bianca behind a police barrier, grooving and mouthing the words to a song from Kanye's newest studio album "Vultures 2."

Amazingly, they seemed chill and comfortable in each other's presence at the Chase Center in San Francisco. But one thing was obvious -- the women were not best buds or getting chatty with one another, at least in the footage posted on social media.

Still, this was totally outta left field. Even their fans were stunned and started gossiping about it on "X" after the footage spread like wildfire.

These were just some of the comments posted on the app: 'Didn't expect that'... 'What on earth would they be taking about?'... ''I don't know but this is crazy'... 'Yo WTF.'

As you know, Kim was hitched to Kanye for nearly seven years before their divorce in 2021, settling it a year later. The couple shares four children: North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm.

Enter Bianca Censori, a former employee of Kanye's company, Yeezy. The two were first seen out together in early 2023 before tying the knot in a private wedding ceremony.

Since then, they've been gallivanting around the world ... as Bianca prances around in public half naked and sometimes even more than half, wearing sheer tights.

While Kim and Bianca have seemingly had an amicable relationship, it's been reported Kim wasn't too happy about Bianca dressing in revealing outfits while around the kids.

But now all's cool and they're bonding at a Kanye event. Or is this Kim's play to calm her ex?

Stay tuned ...

A Japanese space rocket blew up after takeoff Tuesday, turning the sky into a fireball of smoke and debris on live stream TV.

The unmanned 59-foot Space One Kairos spacecraft lifted off from a platform in western Japan's Kii Peninsula on Wednesday, but it exploded moments after it launched.

Local media was live streaming the inaugural event by Space One, a start-up trying to become the country's first private company to put a satellite into orbit.

Check out the video ... the 23-ton solid-fueled rocket blasted off from the launchpad, leaving a massive cloud of white smoke in its wake as it hurtled upward. Suddenly, the craft intentionally detonated, transforming into fiery wreckage dropping to the ground.

The Space One president said, "The rocket terminated the flight after judging that the achievement of its mission would be difficult.”

Space One is now investigating the flight data to determine what went wrong, and there are no injuries reported on the ground from the falling wreckage.

Some ovations defy explanation -- like this crowd on the beach in Venice, Florida watching the gruesome removal of a beached sperm whale, yet erupting in cheers ... all captured on video.

Check out the new footage we obtained showing the massive whale's body being mutilated by an excavator -- definitely not for the faint of heart or stomach -- but a group of beachgoers found reason to hoot, holler and celebrate the process.

The removal was coordinated earlier this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration -- also known as NOAA -- along with a local marine lab.

The beached whale was first spotted Sunday evening, and reportedly still alive before dying the next morning, when officials quickly attempted to move the decaying corpse.

This video gives you a closer look at the initial attempt to move the massive mammal, as several onlookers record the scene.

Not surprisingly, some locals were disturbed by the crowd's reaction, and a rep for PETA tells TMZ ... "With the planet’s oceans being trawled barren, the death of any aquatic animal is a high-stakes tragedy, and PETA urges everyone upset at the sight of this beached whale to throw all sealife a lifeline by going vegan."

However, as graphic as the removal is, PETA has no issue with NOAA's process ... telling us it's "standard operating procedure."

The city of Venice was forced to issue a no-swim advisory at the beach due to the carcass -- which might be one reason for the cheers.

Researchers cut into the whale's corpse on Monday, causing blood to leak into the water. Translation: the bloody scene could've attracted sharks to shore, endangering swimmers.

BTW, this whale tale isn't nearly as gruesome as a similar situation that went down back in 1970 ... when a Pacific gray whale washed ashore in Florence, OR. That carcass was blown to smithereens with dynamite, and the end result was beyond explosive.

Kanye West's longtime friend and confidant says Ye is happier than ever being married to Bianca Censori -- so much so, in fact, he might be ready to be a papa all over again!

We got a member of Ye's inner circle, Justin LaBoy, Tuesday at LAX ... where we chopped it up about his buddy and Bianca for a little bit. We were wondering how the couple feels about her family being ticked off lately, but he spilled some other tea.

Remember, her father came out and said he didn't appreciate his son-in-law parading his daughter around France in barely any clothing ... this after several wild outfits she rocked.

You can tell Justin doesn't wanna go there ... saying he doesn't like to speak on his buddy's wife -- but he does say he loves her, and can tell she's perfect for his good pal.

The reason? Justin tells us he's actually never seen Kanye happier than he is right now.

Justin also says Bianca's enjoying herself too -- clearly addressing the speculation from Kanye's critics that he's keeping her against her will, or brainwashing her.

Finally, we touch on something Ye himself is alluding to in recent songs -- saying "another baby is my end goal" ... which most listeners heard as a reference to Bianca.

Justin himself had some thoughts about that when we asked if Kanye was being serious -- and according to him ... he absolutely is. JLB says he thinks a "bunch of babies" are on the way for them.

Bianca's only 29, so if she's inclined to have kids ... this could be prime baby-making time. As you know, Ye already has 4 children with Kim Kardashian.

You better not blink if Mike Tyson connects during his bout with Jake Paul ... 'cause Chuck Liddell tells TMZ Sports a KO is guaranteed if an Iron Mike haymaker lands.

"As soon as Tyson hits him," the UFC legend said of the upcoming boxing match, "it's over."

Liddell didn't mince any words when giving his thoughts on the superfight out at LAX this month ... saying he believes even at 57 years old, Tyson's got to be the favorite.

As for why, the Iceman made it clear he's still a huge believer in the former heavyweight champ's hands.

"The last thing to go is power," Liddell said. "Last thing to go is power."

"If he hits him, it's over."

Most betting websites feel differently -- Paul is the favorite on the majority of them. After all, he is only 27 years old and 9-1 in his career -- and he's coming off two easy victories.

But, listen to Liddell ... he seems to think there's just no chance.

"If you've seen Mike," he said, "he still hits."

As for any advice he's got for Paul ... Chuck made it short and sweet -- "Keep covered up, man."