Celebrity Death

Jay Leno is railing against the light punishment for most perps caught stealing catalytic converters as the L.A. crime wave is turning deadly ... specifically with the recent murder of "General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor.

The stand-up comic and renowned car guru tells TMZ ... it's outrageous the penalty for ripping off converters -- usually a $1,000 fine amounting to just a misdemeanor charge -- isn’t vastly harsher.

JL adds ... The slap on the wrist most thieves receive -- if they even get nabbed -- is the reason they're so brazen.

"General Hospital" actor Johnny Wactor's employer is addressing his death -- and the internal outrage over alleged safety concerns  ... meanwhile, we got a big update on the criminal case itself.

Level 8 -- the bar where Johnny worked in downtown Los Angeles before he was shot and killed this weekend following a shift -- posted to Instagram Friday ... remembering him as a beloved coworker and cherished team member who was lost to a senseless act of violence.

Right after this tribute, though, Level 8 went on to tackle a growing chorus of employees and associates who've been blasting them over Johnny's death -- with claims that the bar hadn't done enough to protect their workers -- and they say they're going to delve into this issue.

The woman who was with Johnny Wactor the night he died just went on camera to describe exactly how his murder went down -- and it sounds tragic ... not to mention dramatic.

Anita Joy -- Wactor's coworker who was walking to his car with him Saturday morning in DTLA before he was shot and killed -- went on 'GMA' Friday to break down what happened ... including the moments right before his death, and the moments after he was gunned down.

Check it out ... she says they approached his vehicle, which was partially up on a jack -- they came upon a group of guys whom they thought were tow people taking the car.

NBA legend Bill Walton -- arguably the biggest Grateful Dead fan on the planet -- received a huge tribute at the Dead & Company Sphere show Thursday night ... three days after he tragically passed away.

The band -- which consists of John Mayer and Bob Weir, plus other former Grateful Dead members -- projected images of Walton behind them throughout their hourslong concert at the must-see attraction in Las Vegas.

Some of the pics displayed on the building's massive screens included Walton with Weir and Mickey Hart. They also featured the former Celtics center's No. 32 jersey number, rose petals ... and a whole bunch of tie-dye colors.

10:56 AM PT -- Officials say Drew Gordon was driving a three-wheel Vanderhall Carmel when he crashed with a GMC Sierra pickup around 1 PM on Thursday.

Gordon died at the scene, while the 25-year-old driver of the GMC and a passenger were taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Officials say the preliminary investigation indicates Gordon's vehicle crossed the center line and made contact with the GMC ... and impairment does not appear to have played a role in the accident.

Former NBA player Drew Gordon -- the brother of Denver Nuggets star Aaron Gordon -- died in a car accident in Portland on Thursday. He was just 33 years old.

Gordon was a star athlete growing up in California ... earning All-American honors at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose.

He went on to play college ball at UCLA and the University of New Mexico for two seasons each ... and later signed with numerous professional clubs in Europe, before making his NBA debut with the Philadelphia 76ers in November 2014.

The female coworker who was with Johnny Wactor the night he was fatally shot is speaking out and calling his killer a "coward" while also claiming the "General Hospital" star died in her arms.

In a lengthy message posted Wednesday to Instagram, Anita Joy opened by saying she needed a few days to collect herself before sharing Johnny's story.

Joy then described the murderer as a "coward who reacted without care of the gorgeous life he was taking." She said she's angry and sad, but most of all she wants justice for Johnny – her friend of 8 years.

Nicole Brown Simpson made some troubling claims against O.J. Simpson before her death ... so says Faye Resnick, who claims O.J. would lurk in bushes to keep an eye on her.

Faye -- who was a close confidant of Nicole's before her murder -- shed light on NBS and O.J.'s dynamic following their split in a sneak peek from Lifetime's docuseries, "The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson" ... saying her late friend was scared of the NFL star.

As FR puts it ... O.J. had allegedly taken to stalking Nicole in the aftermath of their breakup -- with the American athlete even creeping on her from the bushes at one point.

Boston radio host Fred Toucher delivered the worst on-air eulogy ever, calling Bill Walton a "phony hippie" and making a joke about his death, just a day after the legendary hooper-turned-broadcaster passed away ... and suffice it to say, many people are pissed!

Walton -- a College and Basketball Hall of Famer, and, when healthy, one of the most unstoppable big men to ever lace up a pair of sneakers -- died at the age of 71 after battling cancer.

Most people, especially in the cities where Walton played, were in the mood to remember Bill ... just not like this.

Johnny Wactor's death was unjust and unnecessary -- something his ex-fiancée tearfully made clear in no uncertain terms ... with a direct plea to whoever shot and killed him.

Tessa Farrell -- an actress who used to be engaged to the slain "General Hospital" star -- hopped online Monday with a heartbreaking reaction to the news that Johnny had been murdered in Los Angeles during an attempted theft of his catalytic converter.

The video is hard to watch, as Tessa gets emotional throughout as she responds to Johnny's death ... saying it's just a microcosm of what's been happening in L.A. lately crime-wise.

Nicole Brown Simpson's 30-year death anniversary is coming up -- with her sisters saying they're still battling grief ... and O.J. Simpson's passing hasn't helped them move on.

Denise, Dominique and Tanya Brown sat for an interview with Diane Sawyer ahead of a new documentary that's coming out that looks back on Nicole's life and murder -- which they believe was carried out at the hands of O.J. ... even though he was criminally acquitted.

Despite that, the Brown siblings say there were warning signs in Nicole and O.J.'s relationship ... including domestic violence, which they reflect upon in this sit-down and in the doc.

Johnny Wactor -- an actor best known for appearing in nearly 200 episodes of "General Hospital" -- has died, TMZ has learned.

Wactor was shot and killed in downtown Los Angeles early Saturday morning, his mother Scarlett tells TMZ. She says Johnny was with a coworker when they saw three men messing with Johnny's car. While authorities haven't released his name, this matches the description of an incident where three suspects allegedly tried to steal a catalytic converter.

Scarlett says she was told Johnny didn't try to fight or stop them ... but, the men shot him anyway before taking off. According to police info, paramedics rushed to the scene just after 3 AM PT. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Grayson Murray's parents have released a statement about the death of their 30-year-old son ... revealing the PGA Tour golfer died by suicide.

Murray's parents, Eric and Terry, gave the update on Sunday ... a day after Grayson died following his abrupt withdrawal from the second round of the Charles Schwab Challenge. At the time, he cited sudden illness as the cause.

"We have spent the last 24 hours trying to come to terms with the fact that our son is gone," his parents said on Sunday.

Golf star Grayson Murray has died at 30 years old, the PGA Tour announced on Saturday ... just hours after withdrawing from a tournament with an illness.

Murray was in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was competing in the Charles Schwab Challenge ... but he pulled himself from the tourney during Friday's second round, citing an illness. No further information was given at the time.

Saturday morning, the Tour announced the young, talented golfer had passed away.

Richard M. Sherman -- half of the Sherman Brothers songwriting duo responsible for some of the biggest Disney hits ever -- has died ... according to the Walt Disney Company.

Sherman passed away at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills, the company posted on its website. The announcement cites age-related illness as the cause of death.

Richard and his brother Robert -- who died of natural causes in 2012 -- caught their first big break in Hollywood in 1959 when their song "Tall Paul" reached #7 on the charts.

Morgan Spurlock -- the filmmaker behind the famous "Super Size Me" documentary -- has died at 53 after complications of cancer.

His death was confirmed by his family Thursday who said, he "passed away peacefully in New York surrounded by family and friends."

His brother Craig Spurlock added, "It was a sad day, as we said goodbye to my brother Morgan. Morgan gave so much through his art, ideas and generosity."

Kabosu, the hilarious Shiba Inu dog behind the famous "doge" internet memes, is giving side-eye to God now -- she died, according to her heartbroken owner.

You've probably stumbled across Kabosu's pic online at some point -- she's that pooch giving the ultimate side-eye with a skeptical expression, which blew up big time in 2013 on Tumblr and all those online hangouts, earning itself the title "doge."

Atsuko Sato, Kabosu's owner from Sakura, Japan shared the sad news in a heartfelt blog post Friday ... writing, "She passed away peacefully, almost like she was just sleeping, while I gently stroked her."