Alec Baldwin Opening Statements in 'Rust' Trial

071024_alec_baldwin_trial_opening_kal
HIS ONLY JOB WAS ACTING
Court TV

Update

9:24 AM PT -- Opening statements are done ... court is breaking until 9:40 AM PT.

9:15 AM PT -- Alex Spiro finishes his opening statement by saying the prosecutors need to prove this death was foreseeable ... and Spiro says it simply wasn't.

9:10 AM PT -- Spiro's honing in on the broken firearm ... saying now no one can test the gun in the condition it was in when Halyna Hutchins was shot since law enforcement broke it during testing.

8:52 AM PT -- Alec Baldwin's defense team plays the 911 emergency call for the court. Spiro highlights how the caller says the shooting was accidental and blames AD David Halls.

TAYLOR SWIFT THROWS IT BACK TO JOE JONAS 'ERA' ... Performs Breakup Ballad!!!

Taylor Swift's all loved up with Travis Kelce ... but she hit rewind to her Joe Jonas days, performing "Last Kiss" on her latest "Eras" tour stop.

The singer surprised fans in Zürich, Switzerland as she played the breakup anthem inspired by that brief relationship -- from her album "Speak Now" -- on piano Tuesday night ... and mashed it up with "Sad Beautiful Tragic."

Taylor parted ways with Joe back in 2008 ... so it's highly unlikely he was on her mind all these years later. A better reason for her to play it is the fact the song's lyrics mention Tuesday's date, July 9th.

Donald Trump Let's Golf, Joe!!! ... Challenges POTUS To $1 Million Charity Match

070924_donald_trump-kal
presidential match

Donald Trump and Joe Biden talked the talk about golf at their debate last month ... but No. 45 now wants the two to swing the swing, officially challenging POTUS to an 18-hole match.

Trump dared Biden to tee it up with him while riling up a packed house at his Doral golf course in Miami on Tuesday.

062824_debate_biden_golf_kal 6/27/24
LET'S HIT THE LINKS
CNN

Trump told the audience he wanted to debate Biden again -- and then, as he did during their first verbal sparring session back on June 27, he brought up their golf games.

Violet Affleck Chooses Advocacy Over Acting ... Speaks Before Los Angeles County Board

071024_violet_affleck-kal
AFFLECK'S ADVOCACY
lacounty.gov

Violet Affleck isn't just cruising on the success of her famous parents ... she's standing up for what she believes in -- in front of a major local governing body.

The daughter of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner appeared before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, speaking up on an issue near to her heart ... keeping mask mandates in Los Angeles hospitals.

Check out the clip ... the recent high school grad introduces herself before diving into her firsthand experience with a long-term post-viral condition she contracted way back in 2019 -- adding she saw how medicine can't answer all the effects of a virus.

Competitive Eater Nick Wehry Cheater, Cheater, Hot Dog Eater??? ... Denies Claim

UPDATE

2:14 PM PT -- Wehry is maintaining his innocence ... but is now asking MLE to adjust his score back to 46.75 dogs over the fact he touched an opponent's plates, which "gives the appearance or possibility of impropriety," he told the Post.

Competitive eater Nick Wehry -- husband of women's champ Miki Sudo -- is facing bombshell allegations stemming from this year's hot dog contest ... being accused of cheating to increase his end result.

This year's fourth-place finisher was initially handed a score of 46.75 tube steaks eaten at Thursday's Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island ... but after a recount, his total was changed to 51.75.

As we previously reported, Patrick Bertoletti won the Joey Chestnut-less outing after downing 58 weenies.

Barron Trump Makes Surprise Appearance On Campaign Trail For The Donald

Barron Trump
that's my boy
Brendan Gutenschwager via Storyful

Barron Trump made a surprise appearance at his father's campaign rally in Florida Tuesday night, and he quickly became the crowd favorite ... even briefly overshadowing The Donald.

18-year-old Barron was sitting in the front row near the stage where Donald was giving a speech to the packed audience at his Doral golf course in Miami as he seeks a second term as president of the United States.

Donald  -- standing at a podium with a mic -- introduced Barron and told him to stand up, which he did.

George Stephanopoulos Biden Can't Serve 4 More Years

update

6:28 PM PT -- George Stephanopoulos tells TMZ in a statement from his rep, "Earlier today, I responded to a question from a passerby. I shouldn't have." An ABC spokesperson tells TMZ, "George expressed his own point of view and not the position of ABC News."

George Stephanopoulos just made a stunning comment on the streets of New York ... telling a pedestrian he doesn't think President Joe Biden can serve another term.

070924_george_stephanopoulos_kal 7/9/24
BIDEN CAN'T RUN THE DISTANCE
TMZ.com

The 'GMA' anchor was out and about Tuesday afternoon on 5th Avenue, wearing workout clothes, when the pedestrian approached him and asked, "Do you think Biden should step down? You've talked to him more than anybody else has lately." George's response -- "I DON'T THINK HE CAN SERVE 4 MORE YEARS."

Wander Franco Charged W/ Sexual Abuse OF A Minor ... In Dominican Republic

Tampa Bay Rays star shortstop Wander Franco has been formally charged with sexual abuse and sexual exploitation against a minor in the Dominican Republic ... for a relationship he allegedly had with a 14-year-old girl.

Franco, who's now 23, has been under investigation by authorities in the D.R. since July 2023 ... after a complaint was filed alleging he had sexual relations with a teenager.

Wander, according to authorities, has also been accused of human trafficking.

The mother of the child is also included in the indictment ... with prosecutors claiming the mother was paid thousands of dollars by Franco to look the other way, and allow the relationship.

NICKI MINAJ FANS FUMING OVER DISASTER DUBLIN GIG! ... Late Arrival, Short Set

Nicki Minaj fans are pissed off -- this after they paid big bucks for tickets, only for her to show up over 90 minutes late for her Dublin gig ... leaving them stranded in the rain.

The rapper was supposed to rock Malahide Castle at 8 PM Saturday as part of the European leg of her "Pink Friday 2" world tour. Instead, she waltzed onstage just before 10 PM and played for less than an hour.

Not even that ... during her brief set, Nicki kept vanishing for ages thanks to endless costume changes, all while fans shivered away in the rain.

GYPSY ROSE BLANCHARD GAVE HER EX HEADS UP ON BABY NEWS

Gypsy Rose Blanchard still has compassion for her estranged hubby Ryan Anderson -- she let him know she was pregnant with Ken Urker's baby before informing the public ... TMZ has learned.

Family sources tell TMZ ... Gypsy told Ryan about her pregnancy a couple of weeks ago -- news we're told came as a huge blow for him, as he was holding out hope of reconciling their marriage. As one source put it, "He didn't take the news well at all."

Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.

Sadly for Ryan, looks like GRB getting back with him after their marriage crumbled in March is slimmer than slim ... 'cause we're told she's got no regrets over being back with her ex-fiancé Ken because she believes he's her person.

TMZ STUDIOS 'STRANGE & SUSPICIOUS' Exorcisms Outside Hollywood ... Real, Or Mental Illness???

strange_and_suspicious_exorcism_kal
POSSESED BY DEMONIC FORCES???
TMZ Studios

Hollywood loves a good exorcism movie, but real people all across the world sometimes claim they are possessed by demons ... and there's real questions surrounding the authenticity of exorcisms.

TMZ Studios has a new series, "Strange & Suspicious," now airing on a dozen FOX stations, where we explore strange, unexplained and downright weird stories, and now we're looking into the validity of exorcisms.

Take Anneliese Michel in Germany for example ... she was allegedly possessed by a demon, who claimed they had a right to use her body until she "croaked."

Kelly Oubre Alleged Accident Victim ... Threatening To Sue 76ers Star

The man who claims he was hit by Kelly Oubre in a late-night car wreck earlier this year wants the 76ers star to pay up for the damage he says the hooper caused ... and if the NBAer doesn't open his wallet soon, the guy tells TMZ Sports he's going to sue.

Siddh -- a 21-year-old college student -- says he was driving a 2023 Hyundai Elantra at around 1:45 AM on April 23 in Philadelphia when Oubre ran a red light and plowed into him in his purple Lamborghini Urus.

070924_kelly_oubre-kal
THE CRASH IN QUESTION

Siddh claims Oubre -- who had just competed against the New York Knicks in a playoff game hours earlier -- was driving at such a high rate of speed ... it rocked his car and caused injuries to himself and one of his passengers.

TMZ TV Hot Takes Cassie Outraged By Diddy ... Gypsy Rose, J.J. Watt

Cassie is upset with Diddy going white water rafting, Gypsy Rose is starting a family and J.J. Watt is looking jacked in retirement ... all this on today's TMZ TV Hot Takes.

TMZ Live

070924_tmz_live_cassie_kal
CHOPPIER WATERS AHEAD
TMZ.com

First up on "TMZ Live" Harvey and Charles explain why Diddy's recent outings are causing an outrage with his ex.

Fabienne In 'Pulp Fiction' 'Memba Her?!

Portuguese actress Maria de Medeiros was 28 years old when she was cast as Fabienne -- Butch's innocent and adorable girlfriend who loves her blueberry pancakes -- in the crime/thriller film "Pulp Fiction" back in 1994.

Maria shared the big screen with Bruce Willis as the professional hotheaded boxer, Butch Quentin Tarantino as the smooth talker who helps dispose of Marvin's dead body, Jimmie and John Travolta as the hitman in the spruce suit, who enjoys the finer things in life, Vincent.

Other worthy mentions include Samuel L. Jackson as Jules and Uma Thurman as Mia.

Guess what she looks like now! 

Missing American Climber Found Mummified On Peru Mountain 22 Years After Avalanche

The remains of an American climber missing for 22 years have been found on the Peru mountain where he was buried by an avalanche.

Police in Peru say they found U.S. mountaineer William Stampfl's mummified body Friday near a camp on Mount Huascaran, one of the highest peaks in the Andes.

William was trying to summit Mount Huascaran back in 2002 when an avalanche buried him under snow and ice. Cops say his still-frozen body was found about 5,200 meters up the 6,768-meter mountain.

Oregon Cops $200K Lego Theft Ring Bust!!!

Police in Oregon put the case together, piece by piece ... all leading to a massive LEGO bust where a toy store owner's accused of buying LEGOs stolen from his competitors.

Here's the deal ... the Springfield Police Department says a 3-month investigation uncovered evidence Ammon Henrikson, the owner of Brick Builders toy store in Eugene, was knowingly purchasing new, unopened Lego sets that had been stolen from local retail stores.

Stolen Legos
LIFTED LEGOS
Springfield Police Department - Oregon

Cops say a raid on Brick Builders recovered more than $200,000 worth of the stolen toys. In total, police say over 4,000 stolen LEGO sets were found in the store.