Coronavirus

If Tommy "Tiny" Lister died from COVID-19 -- as people close to him suspect -- it would have been his second bout with it, because TMZ's learned he fought it off months before his death.

The "Friday" star's rep, Cindy Cowan, tells TMZ ... "Tiny" tested positive around 4 months ago. He had many of the common symptoms ... he felt lethargic and struggled breathing, but his diabetes also made him high risk. She says he wasn't hospitalized but quarantined at home.

Fast forward to December 3 ... Cindy tells us Tommy was supposed to visit her home, but instead, he called and informed her he was feeling those painfully familiar COVID symptoms again.

She says he felt it was probably best for him NOT to enter her home out of fear of spreading whatever he had. Tommy's cause of death has not yet been determined ... but we've learned he feared he had contracted the coronavirus again.

TMZ broke the story ... Tommy sadly died the following week after the L.A. County Sheriff's Department conducted a welfare check and found him dead. Friends had been concerned when they hadn't heard from him since Wednesday night.

Tommy had been feeling so ill ... he was forced to cancel his first day of filming Sunday for a new movie with Sam Worthington. He also canceled a Zoom panel Tuesday.

He'd recently told Cowan he wanted to be one of the first in line to get the vaccine when it rolls out later this month. He just wanted things to go back to normal as much as possible ... and spend time with his daughter, Faith.

At this moment, it's unclear what funeral arrangements will be made, but look for some sort of celebration of life in early January, if possible.

Mark Cuban is disgusted by the images of members of Congress showing up to the White House in ballgowns and tuxedos ... when millions are homeless, starving and unemployed.

The "Shark Tank" star was irate when he saw our video of Steve King, Jim Jordan, Doug Lamborn and others yukking it up Thursday night before entering the White House.

It's really outrageous ... Democrats blame Republicans, Republicans blame Democrats for the stalemate, but their job is to reach agreements -- to compromise, but that hasn't happened for months. As a body, Cuban and others think the entire Congress has acted shamefully.

Dionne Warwick's calling on her A-list friends to help celebrate her 80th birthday ... which is doubling as a fundraiser for an important cause.

The legendary singer hopped on "TMZ Live" Friday to dish deets on her Holiday Musical Birthday Celebration ... a virtual party and concert, going down Saturday, her 80th birthday.

Dionne's using the occasion to lift spirits with her angelic voice while also raising money for Hunger Not Impossible ... an org connecting kids and families in need with prepaid, nutritious to-go meals from nearby restaurants.

Some of Dionne's pals joining the festivities include Aloe Blacc and country stars John Rich and the Oak Ridge Boys -- but anyone can join through her website, where fans can buy packages with cool perks. Aside from getting entry to the virtual event, you can get a private Zoom meet-and-greet with Dionne and a special shout out from her.

And, Dionne's still making new friends ... she told us all about the friendship she's formed with Chance the Rapper since she playfully checked him on his stage name.

Dez Bryant is trying to figure out what the heck is going on with his COVID-19 status ... revealing he's now tested negative 3 times in a row after initially testing positive on Tuesday.

The Ravens WR was warming up minutes before Baltimore's matchup against the Dallas Cowboys when he was required to take a COVID test ... which came back positive.

Bryant was clearly frustrated with not being able to play in the game ... and even tweeted he was going to "call it a quit" for the remainder of the season.

The 32-year-old says he has now tested negative 3 times in a row following Tuesday's positive ... and he's confused.

"I’m not trying to be a pain... I’m just looking for clarity dealing with covid," Bryant said on Friday. "help me understand ... I’m going to take this matter serious."

"The Rockets finally get a young Black coach -- a young Black coach gets an opportunity -- and you don't wanna show up to camp?!"

That's Stephen Jackson sounding off on James Harden -- ripping the Houston Rockets star for blowing off the start of training camp to party with his rapper pal, Lil Baby, instead.

Jackson says Harden's antics -- which also included a whirlwind trip to Vegas -- are screwing over Stephen Silas, who was just hired to take over the team.

Silas, who is Black, has been an assistant coach for various NBA teams for years, most recently with the Dallas Mavericks. This is his first head coaching job.

And, S-Jack thinks Harden is doing everything he can to hurt Silas' chances of being successful.

"You don't wanna play for him?! How that look?! And you wonder why every time a Black coach get a job, they put him in the bulls**t situation."

"Look watchu doing," Jackson said ... "What a REAL one would do is go play for that Black coach and make him look good and build with John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins -- some real ones!"

"But obviously you wanna chase rappers around!"

Harden did eventually report to the Rockets -- but now he must pass 6 straight COVID-19 tests before he's cleared to workout with the team.

Steve Wozniak got incredibly sick after a trip to Asia in late December, and he's now sure it was COVID, but he couldn't get the attention of the CDC.

The Apple co-founder and his wife Janet were in Asia in December 2019, traveling through several spots where COVID-19 is believed to have first spread -- including China -- before returning to the U.S. on January 4. He took a selfie with someone from Wuhan, suggesting that's how both he and his wife contracted the virus.

Steve says he and his wife got incredibly sick -- worse than any flu by a long shot. He says they were coughing up blood, had diarrhea and other symptoms that lasted 3 weeks, subsided and then flared up again in March.

Steve says when he got back he gave his data to the CDC, telling them lots of people on the plane ride from Hong Kong back to the U.S. were coughing. The response from the CDC ... "They could care less about my story."

Steve says his case study proves the CDC was wrong when it said the first cases were in Seattle in mid to late January ... he thinks there was an untold number of people infected way before the alarm was sounded in the U.S.

Steve says from his vantage point, COVID was in the U.S. in December, and his theory is supported by a recent study.

Jocko Sims plays Dr. Floyd Reynolds on the medical drama "New Amsterdam," but he's not playing around with COVID ... he says everyone needs to get inoculated.

We got the masked-up actor outside in NYC's Hell's Kitchen and asked about the skepticism over the vaccine ... especially among Black people.

Jocko tells us he understands why his community is hesitant to get medicine courtesy of the U.S. government -- there's a disgraceful historical context -- but he says he's witnessed the carnage firsthand, so the vaccine is a choice of life over death.

The TV doc heaps praise on Obama, W. Bush and Clinton for agreeing to show themselves get needled on video ... to show others it's effective and safe.

As we told you ... Gayle King is also imploring people to follow the lead of the former presidents and trust the vaccine, trust science, and trust Dr. Fauci.

This type of reassurance might be vital as the vaccine becomes available to the public, especially in the African-American community. As we reported ... a new study shows only 14% of African-Americans trust the vaccine will be safe and only 18% trust it'll be effective.

Rep. Andre Carson's 5-second pause, when asked if he'll get vaccinated against COVID-19, underscores the hesitation most African-Americans have ... but he believes that can change.

We got the U.S. Congressman on Capitol Hill Thursday and he addressed the new study showing only 14% of African-Americans trust the vaccine will be safe -- in short, he's not surprised.

The congressman brought up America's ugly history when it comes to medical research on Black citizens -- most notably the Tuskegee experiments with syphilis on 600 Black men.

However, Andre also pointed to the work of Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett ... the African-American scientist who helped develop one of the COVID-19 vaccines.

He believes that will help start the "healing" process necessary for African-Americans to trust vaccines, but stressed ... it's just a start.

One of the best football players EVER says COVID-19 whooped his butt ... with Larry Fitzgerald telling reporters Thursday he lost NINE POUNDS while battling the virus.

... oh, and the future Hall of Famer says he's STILL having trouble smelling and tasting things.

The Arizona Cardinals superstar tested positive for coronavirus in the last week of November ... and in his first meeting with media members since the diagnosis, Fitz explained it wasn't fun at all.

"There were a couple days I didn’t feel great," the 37-year-old said ... adding all of the reports of coronavirus deaths had him terrified.

Fitz explained he lost weight and actually re-worked his will while he was sick ... saying, "You reevaluate things."

Fortunately, Larry has been testing negative the past few days ... and he was activated from the Cardinals' COVID/Reserve list earlier this week.

Ellen DeGeneres has tested positive for coronavirus, but says, so far, she feels okay ... but she wants to give everyone she's been in close contact with a heads up.

The talk show host revealed her diagnosis Thursday morning and says she's following all the proper CDC guidelines. It sounds like she's going to be taking a break from work, because she adds ... "I'll see you again after the holidays. Please stay healthy and safe."

As for the guests she's had in studio in the last week -- Justin Bieber, Bryan Cranston, Diane Keaton, Alison Brie and Lil Nas X.

It's been a rough stretch for Ellen the past several months. We broke the story ... her Montecito mansion with Portia de Rossi was burglarized in July, which led to a serious security upgrade at the home.

Around the same time ... several ex-employees of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" alleged a toxic work environment, for which she later apologized.

A Canadian cop was out for revenge when a motorist dared to call him out for not wearing a mask ... and it's right there on video.

It went down in Winnipeg when the officer pulled a woman over and said he was prepared to give her a warning for some sort of driving infraction. That's when the lady asked the cop why he wasn't wearing a mask, and that did not sit well with the officer.

He clearly felt disrespected, for some reason ... incorrectly saying he was safe because he was 6 feet away. In case he missed it, the pandemic has exploded, and just about every scientist is saying 6 feet away isn't enough ... you gotta wear a mask, even outdoors.

In any event, he exacts revenge on the woman for daring to question him.

God, we hope she fights this in court.

Teyana Taylor's gotta be feeling appreciated today ... she celebrated her 30th birthday with a flashy Miami shindig, packed with her celeb friends.

The newly-retired singer danced her ass off Wednesday night at the bash ... surrounded by folks like Diddy, Lil Wayne and A$AP Ferg, just to name a few. You can see in the video ... people were shoulder-to-shoulder at times on the dance floor.

Unclear what, if any, testing went down beforehand -- but there was no social distancing and very few face masks.

Also worth noting, there are very few COVID restrictions right now in Florida.

The party, sponsored by the clothing line Pretty Little Thing, came less than a week after Teyana announced she was retiring from music because she felt underappreciated by the industry.

She said, "I’m retiring this chapter of my story with the comfort that I can depart with peace of mind seeing that all the hard work & passion put was indeed loved & supported somewhere in the world!"

She definitely got love and support to ring in the big 3-0.

This is pretty great -- the Georgia Tech basketball team celebrated a win over Nebraska on Wednesday by smashing a COVID piñata!

The Yellow Jackets were on the road -- and defeated the Huskers in a 75-to-64 thrashing -- and coach Josh Pastner had special plans to celebrate in the locker room.

Usually, the GT celebrates a road victory by hitting a gas station after the game for a quick candy run.

But, since the pandemic has ruined the tradition, Pastner got a COVID piñata stuffed with goodies ... and let star player Khalid Moore do the honors of smashing it up!

"We're gonna take the ball and he's gonna smash it," Coach Pastner says.

The team LOVED IT -- and devoured the candy!

Georgia Tech is now 2-2 on the season.

Next up for GT ... the #20 ranked Florida State Seminoles -- and that's a road game the Yellow Jackets would LOVE to win.

The pandemic hasn't stopped people from getting their freak on at possible COVID super-spreader events -- they've simply gone underground, and they're going to extremes to keep it hidden.

A source with direct knowledge tells us the events have been happening since the start of COVID, but the recent surge in cases has made them more hush-hush. There's a vetting process, but more for secrecy than public health issues.

For starters, we're told anyone looking to access these speakeasy-esque events will first have to get in touch with a real sex worker.

Alice Little, a popular prostitute in Nevada, tells us sex workers -- who advertise on social media and escort sites -- serve as gatekeepers, giving only their most trusted clients the hookup to a party.

Alice says the sex worker might ask for references -- not unlike a job interview -- but we're told the grilling is more to sniff out narcs and undercover agents ... and not about health issues.

While you'd think there would be testing -- for COVID and STIs -- we're told that's not the concern for these underground parties ... they're more worried about getting busted by law enforcement.

This is a big change, and a dangerous one considering we're in a pandemic. Alice says pre-COVID these events would typically be run by brothels ... which were more likely to require medical testing.

Anyway, if you pass muster, we're told the sex worker takes you to the so-called kingdom -- which could be at a strip club, a private residence or even a literal underground hideaway.

As we reported, a swingers party in NYC was busted and more recently ... 158 people were arrested in L.A. County. So, these events are clearly on law enforcement's radar, and for good reason.

Party-goers risk arrest, but now the other major concern is the threat to public health and spreading COVID.

Pfizer is in inevitable competition with the other drug companies that are developing COVID vaccines, and it's apparently trying to get a jump on its competitors with a new catchphrase.

The pharmaceutical giant filed docs this week to lock up the rights to the phrase, "Science will make the breakthrough." The phrase will be used in several initiatives, including marketing vaccines.

As we get closer to mass inoculation, the drug companies that are able to market COVID vaccines will have to make the case ... they should be the first choice, and good marketing becomes essential.

And remember, this is not a one-time deal. Everyone will have to periodically get re-inoculated ... ultimately it will go direct to consumer, so marketing will be essential.

While a rep for the company wouldn't say exactly what the campaign would look like, they did tell us, "We plan to use the phrase in our corporate campaign as a continuation of our 'Science Will Win' digital ads.”

As you know ... it was almost exactly a month ago when Pfizer gave the world a figurative booster shot by announcing it had developed a coronavirus vaccine that was more than 90 percent effective.

That number went up even higher -- closer to 95 percent -- after a phase 3 study concluded, and the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has already begun to be administered to at-risk folks in England.

Pfizer's mission statement says its purpose is to "deliver breakthroughs that change patients’ lives" ... so they must be feeling themselves right now.

The house featured in "A Christmas Story" is normally a tourist hot spot during the holidays, but this year business is hurting as much as getting your tongue stuck to a frozen flagpole.

Folks running A Christmas Story House & Museum -- the Cleveland residence used for exterior shots of Ralphie's home in the 1983 classic -- tell TMZ ... they're projected to have about 50,000 less visitors compared to 2019.

On top of that, the home -- which guests can reserve for an overnight stay and sleep in Ralphie and Randy's beds -- is still available on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day ... which we're told is unprecedented.

Since the place began allowing overnight reservations in 2008, it's usually booked for November and December 6 months in advance ... even though it costs nearly $3k per night!!!

But, with COVID-19 cases surging, stay-at-home orders and financial struggles for families across the country ... 2020's put the 'Christmas Story' business in a difficult spot too.

The good news is ... the museum's online gift shop is helping make up for some of the losses in tour and lodging revenue this year.

We're told the shop's sold around 14,000 different variations of the movie's famous leg lamp, 1,000 pink bunny suits, and a couple hundred Red Ryder BB Guns ... and there are plenty more in stock.