Comedy

American actor Vincent Martella was only 12 years old when he first started playing the role of Greg Wuliger -- the easygoing painter and Chris' only friend -- on the CW's sitcom "Everybody Hates Chris" back in 2005.

Vincent shared the screen with Tyler James Williams as the unpopular, young teen who wants to be liked by his peers, Chris, Imani Hakim as the annoying little sister, Tonya and Tequan Richmond as Chris's younger and much taller brother, Drew.

Terry Crews also played a role in "Everybody Hates Chris," and Chris Rock was both a producer and narrator for the comedic show!

"Shark Tank" star Mark Cuban has a ton of money, but his wealth could've actually grown by a couple more BILLION if he would've taken an early opportunity to invest in Uber ... a move he's regretting to this day.

The billionaire investor and entrepreneur talked about the deal that got away on an episode last month of Kevin Hart's "Hart to Heart," saying he was offered the opportunity to put some dough into the company in 2009 -- years before the ridesharing game took off.

Mark says it was a $250k investment at a $10M valuation -- for the "Shark Tank" fans doing the math, that would've given him 2.5 percent of the company. While the other sharks might've laughed that valuation off, Mark's $250k would've been $2.25 BILLION today.

Mark says he offered to give the cash if the company was valued at $5 million, but he claims he never heard anything back ... and they eventually got someone else to fill his spot. As you can guess, he's vowing to never make a mistake like that again.

Kevin says he also had the chance to put $50k down on the brand years ago ... but thought the idea of strangers driving each other around sounded like "Murderville."

Druski is starting his own sports agency, but his first client is no joke -- the superstar comedian is signing Florida Gators star and NFL Draft prospect Princely Umanmielen!!

TMZ Sports is told Druski -- who boasts millions of followers on social media -- is launching the athletics branch of his 4Lifers brand ... with the defensive standout coming on board as his inaugural signee.

Umanmielen is widely regarded as one of the top defensive ends in the country ... and has been named to the Chuck Bednarik and Lombardi Award watch lists this season after racking up 39 total tackles, 4.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles for the Gators in 2022.

Before making his way to Gainesville, 6'5", 254-pound Umanmielen was a four-star recruit out of Manor, Texas.

And, we're told while Druski likes to be playful on social media and with his comedy career, this isn't something he's taking lightly ... and he wants to make a serious name for himself in the industry.

"Launching 4Lifers Sports Agency allows me to combine my two passions -- sports and entertainment," Druski tells us.

"Our team is committed to providing athletes with the resources, support and marketing opportunities to grow on and off the field. The process begins today with Florida Gators star Princely Umanmielen’s addition to our family."

Druski has built quite the portfolio in the sports world recently ... he's already a co-owner of Fan Controlled Football's Shoulda Been Stars.

In fact, when he joined forces with the league, he made it clear he understood the responsibility that came with the role.

Jimmy Fallon gave Jonas Brothers fans quite the surprise at the band's latest show ... rocking the NYC crowd with a very impromptu karaoke performance.

The "Tonight Show" host jumped on stage at Yankee Stadium Sunday night, clearly a shock to folks in the crowd -- he showed up as the concert's intermission came to an end, showing off his boombox before jamming out to The Killers' "Mr. Brightside."

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Nick Jonas asked Jimmy to show up at their NYC show a week ago -- he was told he could do whatever he wanted, and Jimmy tested the limits, asking if karaoke with his boombox would be alright.

Obviously, that was all good with the Jo Bros ... and we're told there was no rehearsal for the surprise appearance, but it looks like it was a moment fans will remember for a long time.

BTW, the Jonas Brothers are currently embarking on their "Five Albums. One Night" world tour, which features hits from 5 of their albums.

Tony Rock is ripping the white "Big Brother" houseguest who casually used the n-word in conversation ... setting the record straight on who can and can't use the racial slur.

We got the veteran comedian at LAX on Thursday and our photog asked him about Luke Valentine getting booted from 'BB' for dropping an n-bomb on the live feed.

Tony says no one named Luke Valentine should ever say the n-word ... and his rule of thumb is to refrain from using the slur unless you are a person of color.

Chris Rock's brother also finds it interesting Luke was so quick to apologize ... he says that should be a sign Luke should have known better in the first place. He also feels it's a trend whenever people or companies offend Black people.

Tony's fascinated by the reaction from Luke's fellow white houseguests to having the n-word dropped into a conversation ... he says the virtue signaling is in full effect.

Jeff Lewis wants to let everyone know he was just havin' some fun when he called his pal Kyle Richards a "lesbian on Ozempic" ... unclear if she's realized that though, because she's leaving his messages on read!

We got Jeff at the Rockefeller Center in NYC Wednesday after he caused some buzz on Andy Cohen's "Watch What Happens Live" with the comment.

Jeff makes it clear, he was only joking, and tells us he wanted to poke fun at the rumors about Kyle and country singer Morgan Wade dating -- something Kyle's denied quite a bit.

Despite it obviously being a goof, Jeff fills us in on some potentially troubled waters -- he shot her a text and she still hasn't responded. 👀

As we reported, Jeff drew some big laughs when he cracked wise about his friend ... Heather McDonald also jumped in, saying being gay is a side effect of the medication.

"Big Brother" contestant Felicia Cannon is leaving a trail of destruction in her wake -- ruining several microphones in just the first week, with toilets and hot tubs proving to be her kryptonite.

Felicia, the oldest houseguest this season, has only been in the 'BB' house a few days ... and she's already dunked at least 3 microphones in water.

One incident happened when the houseguests first got access to the backyard, and Felicia literally fell into the hot tub ... which produced some hilarious audio.

Before the mic was ruined, it captured her scream and then the sound of bubbles as the mic was submerged.

Felicia's also destroying equipment in the bathroom, as the mics fall off her clothing and down into the toilet water when nature calls.

It's not like she can get away with it either -- the show's 24/7 online feed captured her exiting the bathroom with her skirt halfway down her butt as she tries to explain away her latest wet mic incident.

According to BB Live watchers there may have been a few other splash downs not captured by cameras.

Equipment loss aside, Felicia's proving to be the star of "Big Brother 25" ... she's a must-watch on the live feeds, and she's pretty funny when she laughs off the mic drops.

Former child star Austin Majors died as a result of a fentanyl overdose ... in a trend that's become all too common.

The ex-"NYPD Blue" actor's autopsy results were released Tuesday by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office -- and his cause of death is attributed to fentanyl toxicity. The manner is listed as accidental, and the place of his death reads ... "residence."

Remember, Majors passed away while staying at a homeless housing facility in L.A. back in February -- and we were told at the time that fentanyl was suspected to be in play.

It's a tragic end to Majors' story ... who was a successful actor in the early years of his life. He famously played Theo Sipowicz on the famed ABC drama series, starring in 48 episodes.

In addition to "NYPD Blue," Majors had worked on other big shows like "Providence," "How I Met Your Mother," "ER," "Hercules," "Threshold," "According to Jim," 'NCIS,' "American Dad!," "Desperate Housewives" and others. He'd also been in a handful of memorable movies.

His acting career appears to have slowed down in the late 2000s ... Majors doesn't have credit post-2009. The family released an emotional statement at the time of his death, remembering the best parts of his life.

The statement read, in part ... "Austin was the kind of son, brother, grandson, and nephew that made us proud and we will miss him deeply forever."

Majors was just 27.

Paul Reubens was a busy man before his sudden passing this week -- as he privately battled cancer, the guy was hard at work almost right to the end ... and there'll be something to show for it in the near future.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the 'Pee-wee Herman' star had been actively involved in various different film/TV projects in the final months of his life, including an upcoming HBO documentary (focused on his titular character) that was announced in 2021.

The doc is being helmed by the Safdie brothers, and we're told producers were able to get all of the interviews and insights from Paul himself before he died Monday.

Our sources say Paul had good and bad days toward the end, but when he was feeling up to it ... he was able to get quite a bit done ... spending upwards of 40 hours on interviews he did for the HBO doc. Between that and other interviews from over 25 different friends/collaborators, our sources say the 'Pee-wee' doc has over 1,000 hours of footage.

In addition to this documentary ... we're told Paul was working on his memoir ... a first draft of which Paul completed prior to his death. So, yes ... we'll get to hear his story from his POV somewhere down the line.

Tiffany Haddish's rap career is no joking matter ... so claims Fivio Foreign, who's telling us he saw her raw talent for himself after being tapped for a feature.

TMZ Hip Hop chopped it up with Fivio at LAX this week ... the "City of Gods" rapper was in town filming the music video for her Lil Jon-produced song, "Party Til Da Club Close."

We broke the story back in June ... Tiffany premiered the song during the Hollywood Unlocked Impact Awards in June and Fivio's since been added to the track.

Fivio thinks Tiffany's a riot in person and says Dave Chappelle was also on hand for the video shoot ... making their collab destined to top the charts!!!

Megan Thee Stallion's music release hiatus hasn't kept her from working ... the "Savage" rapper has gone straight Hollywood with her feature film debut.

Fans got a glimpse of what Megan will bring to the table when A24 popped the lid off its trailer for "Dicks: The Musical" comedy on Thursday ... which stars Aaron Jackson and Josh Sharp as a pair of bumbling salesmen who soon discover they're long-lost twins.

Megan plays their business suit-wearing, potty-mouthed boss and makes use of her artistic talents ... even breaking off into a rap song at the point where she instructs the boys to munch on her male genitalia. 😬

American actor Robert Capron was just 12 years old when he first started playing the role of Rowley -- Greg's charming best friend and immature middle school student -- in the family comedy film "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" back in 2010.

Capron was part of an ensemble which included Zachary Gordon as the shy kid who tends to stretch the truth, Greg, Devon Bostick as the intense and at times aggressive drummer, Rodrick and Rachael Harris as the supportive and loving mom who embarrasses the kids, Susan.

Robert portrayed his role in 3 of the series' films.

Pete Davidson is back on the road doing what he does best ... making people laugh, something his fans are clearly anxious to see, considering he's got back-to-back sold-out shows.

Sources connected to Pete tell TMZ he's out of rehab, and doing some standup gigs this week. We're told he has 2 shows Tuesday at the Improv in Dania, FL ... in the Fort Lauderdale area. If ya don't have tickets already, sorry, they're all gone.

It's unclear when Pete left the medical facility that he checked into back in late June for mental health reasons -- but, he's obviously feeling well enough at this point to get back to performing.

It's been a bumpy time for PD ... he's juggling movies, TV, sponsorships, a new GF, and lots of other stuff in the wake of leaving 'SNL.'

And, don't forget, he just sorted out his legal issues for ramming his car into a Beverly Hills home earlier this year.

As we reported, he's doing a diversion program -- which requires him to do 50 hours of community service -- and, if he completes that the incident will be expunged from his record.

On top of all that, he had a contentious, and very public, face-off with PETA over a puppy he bought for his mother.

We'll know soon enough if he's up for discussing any of these recent trials and tribulations in standup routine ... but ya gotta figure some of it's gonna get a mention.

Paul Reubens -- the comedic actor best known for playing Pee-wee Herman -- is dead after a private battle with cancer.

Paul died Sunday night, according to a statement posted Monday on his Instagram account ... a statement that revealed, for the first time, the medical crisis with which he'd be dealing -- "Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit."

We're told he had a brain tumor 6 years ago, but doctors were able to surgically remove it ... and it was considered a successful procedure. It's unclear what kind of cancer he'd been diagnosed with most recently.

The comedic icon will forever be remembered for his Pee-wee Herman character, which Paul created in 1978 during an improv exercise with The Groundlings. Paul worked with another comedy legend, the late Phil Hartman, to develop the character.

That led to the eventual launch of the "Pee-wee's Playhouse" TV show in 1986 ... and although it was Saturday morning programming, it became a huge hit with kids and adults.

He also brought the character to the big screen with the film, "Pee-wee's Big Adventure," which was a huge commercial success.

The movie featured a scene with Pee-wee dancing to the 1958 hit song, "Tequila" by The Champs. The character, and that dance, were so beloved ... you can't hear that song without thinking of Pee-wee.

While Pee-wee is his most iconic role, Paul had been doing live comedy routines long before that. In addition to his time in The Groundlings, he made 14 appearances on "The Gong Show" back in the '70s.

He's also done a ton of acting unrelated to Pee-wee -- having roles in movies, like "Blow," "Batman Returns," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "The Nightmare Before Christmas" and "Doctor Dolittle" ... as well as hit TV shows like "Murphy Brown," "Ally McBeal" and "Everybody Loves Raymond."

As for his cancer battle -- Paul addressed it in a note he'd written, saying ... "Please accept my apology for not going public with what I've been facing the last six years. I have always felt a huge amount of love and respect from my friends, fans and supporters. I have loved you all so much and enjoyed making art for you."

Paul was 70 years old.

RIP

Los Angeles native Skyler Shaye (now known as Skyler Shaye Lopez) was 20 years old when she played the role of Cloe -- the Bratz 'doll' who is clumsy yet highly skilled in soccer -- in the comedy/family film "Bratz: The Movie" back in 2007.

Skyler shared the big screen with the other main Bratz members including Logan Browning as the sassy one who goes after what she wants, Sasha, Janel Parrish as the eccentric one who isn't affraid to stand out, Jade and Nathalia Ramos as the quiet one who enjoys writing and animals, Yasmin.

Blake Shelton has gone on the record to support Jason Aldean amid his new song controversy ... at least that's what a satire site wants you to believe, anyway.

Here's the deal ... Blake is trending this weekend, and it's all because of this fake article that has him quoted as explicitly backing Aldean amid the whole "Try That In A Small Town" fracas -- which has divided a lot of people, especially after the music video was released.

The story comes from a site called The Dunning-Kruger Times -- which labels itself as "America's Last Line of Defense." This article of theirs is headlined as such ... "Blake Shelton Cancels $30 Million Project With CMT: 'Jason Is My Friend.'" The problem ... it's a BS piece.

The reason we know this -- aside from the fact this is literally the only "media outlet" reporting such a story -- is that DKT itself calls itself a website that's just for laughs.

Their "About Us" page spells it out clearly ... "Dunning-Kruger-Times.com is a subsidiary of the 'America’s Last Line of Defense' network of parody, satire, and tomfoolery, or as Snopes called it before they lost their war on satire: Junk News." AKA, it's one big fat joke.

Although this site has openly laid out their intentions -- namely, laughing at conservatives -- folks on the right have ran with this fake story regardless ... lifting it up as a rallying cry.

While Blake and Jason have certainly been on friendly terms in the past ... the former has not said anything about all the hubbub his new song/video has caused -- and yet, it appears folks genuinely believe he's on Jason's side. Unfortunately for them, there's no truth to it.