News

The Buena Regional High School wrestling team announced it will NOT compete in events refereed by the man who forced Andrew Johnson to cut his hair before a match earlier this month.

The Buena Regional school board held an emergency meeting in New Jersey on Wednesday with board members and concerned community members ... and that's where the announcement was made.

As we previously reported, referee Alan Maloney (who is white) told the 16-year-old black wrestler to either cut off his dreadlocks or forfeit the match during a Dec. 19 event.

Johnson -- who was only given 90 seconds to make his decision -- opted for the haircut ... and video of the shameful moment went viral.

Maloney's camp insists the ref was only following strict guidelines about hair maintenance -- and was not being racist.

As for Johnson, Buena has a wrestling match scheduled for Thursday morning -- but an attorney for the student says he will NOT compete because he's overwhelmed by the media attention.

Terrible news out of Florida after a police dog was shot and killed by a suspect ... and the K9 is being credited for saving the lives of officers.

The sad incident went down on Xmas Eve in Wellington, Florida ... where Palm Beach County Sheriffs confronted several individuals cops say were wanted on attempted first-degree murder and armed robbery warrants.

According to local reports ... one of the suspects ran and that's when Cigo -- a 3-year-old canine -- gave chase. But the suspect shot Cigo before a deputy returned fire ... hitting the suspect and severely injuring him. Cigo, however, would later be pronounced dead at an animal hospital.

Shortly after Cigo's death, several tributes were posted in honor of the fallen officer. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office tweeted, "He gave his life to save others. He's a good boy and he will never be forgotten. Rest in Peace #K9Cigo."

The Sheriff's Office also posted this heartbreaking video of Cigo's handler devastated from the loss.

Michael Rapaport has no business suing anyone for saying he has herpes ... because he himself has said it ... according to the countersuit Barstool Sports just filed against the actor.

Barstool is firing back at Rapaport's September lawsuit against them, saying it's impossible to defame the guy because his reputation's already "so badly tarnished that it cannot be harmed any further." In the docs, obtained by TMZ Sports, Barstool points out Michael commented on a 2015 photo of himself, saying, it "looks like" I have "a herpe."

Of course, the Barstool guys included the photo as an exhibit in their lawsuit.

For the record, Michael said in his lawsuit he "does not suffer from herpes."

Barstool Prez Dave Portnoy told us back in September, Rapaport "claims to be the king of trash talk and then cries when people respond in kind." Now, he's included tons of examples of that in the docs. For example, Barstool calls out Michael for calling a sports show host a "twinkie-eating f**k boy" and a producer for the show a "Long Island Jew."

In the suit, they also include social media posts where MR caught flak for racist comments about 'Real Housewives' star Kenya Moore ... and sexist comments about Fox News host Laura Ingraham. According to the docs, he also called a female sports reporter a "rail thin, no ass ... looking to get piped at an R. Kelly concert ... backstage and at the hotel."

You get their point ... Rapaport's no choir boy, and has said enough vile things to make him defamation-proof.

And, Barstool insists it did NOT breach his contract by firing him -- quite the opposite. In docs, they say his contract included a clause that allowed for his firing if he put Barstool in "public disrepute" with his public comments ... including several about Barstool staffers.

Barstool is suing Rapaport to get back the $400k it paid him.

Someone was really feeling a little too much holiday spirit -- Friday night a man climbed the National Christmas Tree near the White House.

After a stalemate with U.S. Park Police, the man finally came down and was taken to a hospital for mental evaluation. No injuries were reported, and Park Police described the climber as being in "emotional distress."

The wild scene started unfolding around 5:45 PM Friday night at the Ellipse, which is across the street from the White House.

After the man climbed about 15 to 20 feet up, the 74,000 LED lights covering the giant spruce were turned off, creating an eerie scene. By the time the climber started heading down, the lights were turned back on and police officers rushed inside to track him down.

David Hogg is leaving the Sunshine State and shipping off to Boston -- the Marjory Stoneman Douglas student's been accepted to Harvard.

David's mom shared the incredible news this week after her son finally allowed her to spread the word. As you can imagine, she's super proud and said she's excited for David's bright future!

The Stoneman Douglas grad -- who emerged as one of his school's leaders after the mass shooting in Parkland, FL -- says he plans to major in political science. It seems right up his alley ... you'll recall, David helped organize the March For Our Lives rally that attracted nearly 800,000 people pushing for sensible gun reform.

David should feel right at home on campus ... he's already spoken twice this year at Harvard, and some of his mother's relatives attended the prestigious institution.

He also got into a bunch of other schools -- but there's nothing like the Ivy League.

We hear Mars is super cool this time of year -- and a European satellite is confirming it with some awesome shots of a 50-mile wide frozen lake!

You're looking at Korolev Crater -- it's on the North side of the red planet -- and the European Space Agency's Mars Express probe did a flyby Thursday. It's not quite our North Pole, but still pretty spectacular to see so much water in one spot on Mars.

Scientists first discovered the lake back in 2004, and they've been keeping a steady eye on it ever since -- and NOT for little green men in ice skates, although that would be awesome.

Turns out, even during those balmy Mars summers, the lake stays frozen ... because it's so large, it actually cools all the air around it.

You're welcome in advance -- for the trivia question you're gonna nail this weekend.

Whoever clogged the toilet in the restroom above this H&M but kept flushing anyway REALLY made a damn mess for the store ... and no, this can't be good for holiday sales numbers.

Folks at the Times Square H&M location tell TMZ ... there was a major plumbing issue Friday in the ceiling above the store, and eventually the water leaking from the faulty pipes was too much weight to bear.

Check out the video ... whoever was filming thought it was all fun and games -- until it became cleanup on aisle, well, everywhere.

Elon Musk made his grand reveal Tuesday night ... what he once envisioned as a "weird little Disney ride in the middle of L.A." became a reality with the unveiling of his underground tunnel.

The billionaire entrepreneur gave a preview of what future traffic in L.A. might look like with this 1.14-mile route built under his SpaceX headquarters. Elon joked back in 2016 he was going to dig tunnels as an alternative to clogged up freeways in L.A. And, here's his teaser:

A modified Model X equipped with special wheels took members of the media through the tunnel after the SUV descended via elevator. Once underground, the tunnel's light turned green and off it went. It only hit 35 MPH and it was bumpy, but still ... it worked.

When Elon's vision is complete, the tunnel will include fully autonomous 16-passenger vehicles rocketing under L.A.'s terra firma at 150 MPH. Elon is starting similar projects in Chicago and D.C. ... with the hopes of one day taking folks from D.C. to New York in only 29 minutes.

Gayle King got a taste for "CBS This Morning" and the initial takeoff had her holding on for dear life ... and cursing on live TV too.

Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb can't seem to decide who has more word in choosing a replacement for KLG on the "Today" show ... but it's definitely one of them.

We got the NBC morning show anchors Wednesday in NYC, the day after Kathie announced she's leaving "Today" at the end of her 11th year. Our photog asked who's in line to fill Kathie's shoes, and she enthusiastically says, "Whoever Hoda wants, Hoda gets."

For her part, Hoda played it coy, saying ... "This is all about KLG." Kathie immediately refutes that, though, but Hoda insists it is. It's like an Abbot and Costello bit here, really.

Our camera guy throws out Jenna Bush Hager as a possibility -- who's said to be in the running -- but Hoda and Kathie are definitely playing this close to the vest.

Kathie Lee Gifford is saying sayonara to the "Today" show ... after she reaches the 11-year mark.

Kathie Lee unveiled her play Tuesday on the show, and she and her co-host, Hoda Kotb, immediately dissolved into tears.

Kathie didn't say why she's leaving, but it's gotta be a blow to NBC. The 10 AM hour of "Today" was one of the most profitable shows for the network. It was doing consistently well, although it suffered a drop in rating during the Megyn Kelly tenure.

It's pretty remarkable ... Kathie was a phenom with Regis Philbin on their morning show, "Live with Regis and Kathie Lee." After leaving that show in 2000, she took a break. It's almost impossible to recreate magic in a bottle, and there were doubters when she went to "Today," but she proved them wrong ... really wrong.

Her last day will be her 11-year anniversary on April 7, 2019 -- and she is leaving to pursue music, movie and TV opportunities.

Kathie started her career as the "singing girl" on "Name that Tune" in 1977.

James Alex Fields Jr., the white supremacist who rammed his car into Charlottesville protesters in 2017, is guilty of murdering Heather Heyer.

The jury returned the verdict Friday in the first degree murder trial, and also found him guilty of 5 counts of malicious wounding, 3 counts of aggravated malicious wounding and one count of failing to stop at the scene of a deadly accident.

The 21-year-old hate monger plowed into the protesters as they rallied in response to the white supremacists who had marched through Charlottesville with torches the previous night.

Video of the horrific act of domestic terrorism made it clear Fields was behind the wheel ... the only question was about his intent. Prosecutors needed to prove he intended to maim and kill.

Several of Fields' victims testified during the trial. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Monday, and he faces the possibility of life in prison.

Troy Gentry died as a result of his helicopter pilot's error ... according to investigators.

The National Transportation Safety Board concluded the pilot cut the engine too soon as he attempted to make an emergency landing back in September 2017.

As we reported, Troy -- one half of the country music group Montgomery Gentry -- and the pilot were killed when they crashed in a field in Medford, NJ.

According to the NTSB's report, the pilot's mistake led to an uncontrolled descent and instead of landing at nearby Flying W Airport, the chopper crashed in the woods. The report included dialogue between the pilot and experts on the ground assisting him with the landing.

The pilot had intended to pull off a maneuver he said he had done before -- cutting the engine and attempting to glide to the ground. However, experts had advised a shallow, run-on landing.

Troy was 50.

The thousands of people who lost everything in the flames of the wildfire in Malibu are about to get six figures worth of relief, courtesy of the One Love Malibu concert.

A spokesperson for the concert tells TMZ … between donations, ticket sales and the live auction, the tally from the weekend event is approaching $1 million. We're told it will be a few more days before they have an exact number.

Sunday's sold-out concert in Calabasas featured performances from Robin Thicke, Katy Perry and Gwen Stefani ... and the auction included a motorcycle ride with Orlando Bloom.

We're told 100 percent of the proceeds are going to MalibuFoundation.org ... and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Malibu will assist with distribution of funds to victims of the Woolsey Fire.

The Woolsey Fire scorched nearly 100k acres and destroyed more than 1,500 structures over 2 weeks. Three people died and nearly 300k people were evacuated.

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West were among the evacuees as the fire came right up to their Hidden Hills property. A private firefighting crew they'd hired was able to hold back the flames.

While Liam Hemsworth, Camille Grammer, Gerard Butler and Robin lost all or parts of their homes ... there were thousands of non-celebs affected. The concert funds will, at the very least, help start the recovery process.

Halsey's making it clear, just because she appeared in the annual Victoria's Secret Fashion Show ... she's still pissed off about one of its execs disregard for the LGBTQ community.

The singer, who performed in the VS Show, blasted the show as it was airing Sunday night. She called out Ed Razek, the chief marketing officer for VS's parent company.

Last month in Vogue, he was asked about having transgender models in the show and said ... "No, I don't think we should. Well, why not? Because the show is a fantasy. It's a 42-minute entertainment special. That's what it is."

Halsey's IG post slammed VS for "a lack of inclusivity" ... and added she stands in solidarity with the trans community.

For his part, Razek apologized and walked back his comment, as soon as the backlash began. He said, "To be clear, we absolutely would cast a transgender model for the show."

Razek added, "We've had transgender models come to castings. And like many others, they didn't make it. But it was never about gender. I admire and respect their journey to embrace who they really are."

Halsey seems to want action, not words.

Robin Thicke got everyone in the holiday spirit when he performed at the "One Love Malibu" benefit concert.

The singer gave a solid rendition of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" Sunday at King Gillette Ranch in Calabasas for the concert benefiting victims from the deadly Woolsey Fire. Robin's just one of several artists scheduled to headline the event.

Katy Perry and Gwen Stefani are also scheduled to perform and no doubt tons of celebrities will be attending. We already spotted Brody Jenner hanging out early.

As we reported ... the Woolsey fire torched nearly 100k acres and destroyed more than 1,600 structures. Three people were killed as a result of the fire and nearly 300k people were evacuated. Gerard Butler, Camille Grammer, Liam Hemsworth and Robin himself are some of the celebs who lost their homes.

Kim Kardashian West was flying over Malibu when she saw the flames, which reached her and Kanye's property.

Alec Baldwin must be feeling confident about the outcome of his attempted assault case in NYC ... 'cause he played it for laughs -- while playing President Trump -- on 'SNL.'

The opening skit was about Trump's anger over the Mueller probe and his ex-attorney Michael Cohen flipping. As Alec/Donald put it ... "God, I haven't been this upset since I flipped out over that parking space."

This was Alec's first appearance on the show since he got busted last month for trying to punch a guy who jacked his parking spot. Breaking character to poke fun at the case could be seen as a risky move.

Judges typically don't react well to that sort of thing -- however, the stakes ain't exactly high here. Alec's facing one count of attempted assault in the third degree, and one count of harassment in the second degree -- a misdemeanor and a ticket, basically.

Why not have some fun with it, right?

'SNL' also paid tribute to late President George H.W. Bush during the Weekend Update segment.

They pulled out some of Dana Carvey's best impressions of the 41st Prez -- including that memorable moment when they got the real Bush to challenge Carvey.