Celebrity Death

Bill Cobbs, an actor with over 50 years of experience in Hollywood, is dead ... TMZ has confirmed.

Bill died Tuesday at his home in the Inland Empire in CA ... according to his publicist, Chuck I. Jones.

With an acting career spanning all the way back to the 1970s, Bill has nearly 200 movie and TV show credits to his name.

A Michael Jackson impersonator got to celebrate MJ's life by getting close to his family -- meeting Janet Jackson shortly before the 15th anniversary of his passing ... but it cost him a bundle.

Carlo Riley, an MJ tribute artist, tells TMZ ... he finally got to meet Michael's sister after one of her concerts last weekend. Janet had just performed in St. Louis, and Carlo made it to the show.

He says he also decided to fork out an extra $2,000 for the meet-and-greet experience with Janet after the concert.

Bret "Epic" Mazur -- who formed Crazy Town with Shifty Shellshock -- talked to his late ex-bandmate a few months before he died ... and says SS seemed upbeat about the future.

We caught up with Epic Tuesday in the studio -- and he tells TMZ ... Shifty was actually stoked about making new music when they last spoke over the phone, and there was no indication Shifty was in a bad space, or going through something out of the ordinary.

TMZ broke the story ... cops are looking into Shifty's sudden death Monday as a possible fatal overdose. But based on what his former bandmate's saying here ... Seth was far from that reality.

Crazy Town frontman Shifty Shellshock's sudden death is under investigation ... and law enforcement sources tell us cops are looking into the possibility of a fatal drug overdose.

We're told police and fire responded to Shifty's L.A. area home Monday afternoon, after someone stopped by the house and found his body on the floor.

Our sources say drug paraphernalia and a lighter were found near the body ... which is why police are treating his death as a possible OD.

Seth Binzer -- the lead singer and co-founder of the rap rock band Crazy Town -- has died.

Better known by his stage name Shifty Shellshock, Binzer passed away Monday at a residence in L.A., according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. An investigation is underway to determine the cause of death.

In 1999, Binzer and fellow vocalist, Bret "Epic" Mazur, formed Crazy Town, hiring Rust Epique, Doug Miller, James Bradley Jr., Antonio Lorenzo Valli and Adam Goldstein.

The Giants organization will honor the late great Willie Mays on Monday ... with the entire San Francisco squad rocking the MLB icon's number 24 jersey as they take the field against the Cubs!

"Tonight, all uniformed #SFGiants personnel will wear 24 in honor of Willie Mays 🧡" ... the team announced on social media this afternoon, along with a photo of several jerseys as they hung in players' lockers.

The 36-42 SFG are playing the 37-41 CHC at Oracle Park in the Bay.

Tamayo Perry, a surfing legend known for appearing in the 4th 'Pirates of the Caribbean' movie, has died ... authorities have confirmed.

The famed surfer passed away Sunday following a shark attack in Oahu, Hawaii ... as Tamayo's body was found by local surfers off Mālaekahana Beach. According to Stab Magazine, TP's arm and leg were missing when they recovered his body.

Honolulu's emergency services say a bystander actually witnessed the attack near Goat Island on Oahu's famed North Shore.

Sarah Becker -- a reality television star who appeared on MTV's "The Real World" -- has died by suicide ... TMZ has learned.

A family member of Becker confirmed the tragic news to TMZ ... telling us she died early last week at her home in Illinois. She'd moved to the area to take care of family last year, but had plans to move back to California.

Unfortunately, we're told she struggled with mental health in recent months ... including taking care of her ailing mother and sister -- and, a skateboarding accident compounded her troubles.

Julio Foolio's fatal shooting left a devastating scene in its wake -- victims taken off in stretchers and cars riddled with bullet holes ... and, TMZ's obtained video capturing it all.

Check out the new clips from just after the shooting took place ... police take command of the scene while paramedics rush around tending to those allegedly wounded in the gunfire.

Check out the series of clips ... one person can clearly be seen in pain as the paramedics roll them away from the Holiday Inn toward an ambulance. Cops say three other people were injured in the shooting that killed Foolio -- and, they're all expected to survive.

Ryan Hadley -- a tattoo artist who appeared on season 6 of the hit competition show "Ink Master" -- has died after a battle with cancer ... this according to his own social pages.

Hadley's Instagram account shared the sad news Friday -- saying he'd passed away the night prior while surrounded by loved ones. The caption continued, "While his life was cut short, in that time he left a legacy behind in both the art and tattoo world."

It went on ... "He loved his many fans, his friends and clients, and most of all his children. He’ll be missed and always remembered. A legend forever." A photo of Ryan doing some tattoo work was added to the post, and it showed him beaming.

Taylor Wily -- an actor and former sumo wrestler best known for his recurring role on "Hawaii Five-0" -- has died.

According to an anchor for local Hawaii outlet KITV -- who described Taylor as a family friend ... Taylor died Thursday. KITV did not provide a cause of death.

Television producer Peter M. Lenkov confirmed the news on his official Instagram account ... posting a picture with Wily from behind the scenes of a television show and telling his followers he's "heartbroken.".

Donald Sutherland -- a legend in Hollywood -- has died ... this according to his talent agency and his family.

The actor -- who was best known for appearing in classics like "The Dirty Dozen," "M*A*S*H," "Animal House," "Hunger Games" and many, many other films -- passed away Thursday in Miami, Florida after a long illness ... something CAA announced.

No cause of death was shared, and the exact details of his passing weren't disclosed either.

Major League Baseball will go silent Wednesday night -- at least for a few moments -- as all thirty teams will hold a moment of silence following the death of one of the greatest players of all time, Willie Mays.

Mays, arguably the greatest player ever, died Tuesday at the age of 93.

TMZ Sports has learned MLB quickly put a plan together ... all 15 of today's games won't start before the tens of thousands in attendance have a moment to remember the 24x All-Star.

Willie Mays, one of the greatest baseball players to ever step foot on a baseball diamond, died at 93, Major League Baseball announced Tuesday evening.

Mays had been living in an assisted living facility in the Palo Alto, CA area, according to the Giants.

"The Say Hey Kid" was 24x MLB All-Star, 12x Gold Glove winner, Rookie of the Year, and 2x NL MVP who patrolled the massive Polo Grounds center field for the New York Giants before the team relocated to San Francisco in the late-50s.

Hiram Kasten -- a force on the New York City comedy scene in the 1970s and '80s who appeared on "Seinfeld" -- has died.

The actor-comedian passed away Sunday after battling various illnesses including prostate cancer ... according to an obituary posted to his official Facebook page.

In the obituary, Kasten's remembered as a hilarious comedian, charming guy and terrific family man who rose to fame during New York City's comedy boom of the 1980s.

Olivia Newton-John's Instagram account's under fire after posting a pic of the late star in support of Pride ... with commenters rushing to blast the post's intention.

The actress -- who passed away back in 2022 -- still has an active social media account, and the IG admin decided to share a snap of ONJ in a rainbow-covered sweater ... wishing all of the late actress' followers a Happy Pride Month.

While it seems a rather innocuous post, it started a firestorm among Newton-John's followers ... who flooded the comments section with a ton of homophobic comments.