Remembering Prince

Prince is tearing KISS apart ... because lead singer Paul Stanley is embarrassed over his partner Gene Simmons saying Prince's death was "pathetic."

Stanley went so far as to apologize for his bass player ripping Prince for using drugs. Simmons told Newsweek, "How pathetic that he killed himself. Don’t kid yourself, that’s what he did. Slowly, I’ll grant you... but that’s what drugs and alcohol is: a slow death.”

Seems Paul was blindsided by the interview. He tweeted, "Embarrassed by cold clueless statements re Prince's death. Without all the facts better to say nothing. My apologies."

After Gene's interview came out, there was a backlash from many KISS fans who felt he was insensitive -- so Paul appears to be doing damage control.

The DEA is currently at Prince's Paisley Park home, executing a search warrant, and TMZ has learned there is an active federal investigation into doctors who prescribed meds to Prince ... sources connected with the investigation tell TMZ.

Our sources say the feds are conducting the probe under a series of federal laws targeting doctors who sell prescriptions to drug abusers. Our sources say this is precisely the reason for the investigation.

The laws also outlaw doctors and pharmacies who falsify record or forge prescriptions.

Our law enforcement sources tell us ... there's an additional element ... crossing state lines to violate prescription laws. Our sources say the feds are also looking at the son of the rehab doctor who flew to Minnesota with a backpack full of synthetic opiates. The son, Andrew Kornfeld, was at Prince's home when he died. We're told Andrew is under the federal microscope.

A doctor who treated Prince, wrote him prescriptions and was present at Paisley Park when the singer died has mysteriously left the medical center where he worked.

Cops obtained a search warrant for North Memorial Medical Center where Dr. Michael Todd Schulenberg worked. The warrant asks for all medical records, documents, reports, charts, photos, prescriptions, doctor's notes and medical notes for Prince Rogers Nelson.

According to the warrant, cops interviewed Dr. Schulenberg, who acknowledged he treated Prince twice in April ... the last time the day before he died. The doctor told cops he ran tests on the singer and he was at Paisley Park the day Prince died to drop off the test results.

The doctor also told cops he prescribed medications for Prince, which were supposed to be filled at Walgreens.

TMZ broke the story ... Prince had gone to Walgreens 4 times in the week preceding his death. The warrant mentions the plane trip where Prince OD'd 6 days before his death. We broke the story about the emergency landing and that the drug was Percocet.

Turns out Paisley Park isn't the only Prince real estate that could be hitting the market.

Back in 2010, Prince purchased a 10,000 square foot fortress on the island of Providenciales in Turks and Caicos. Asking price ... $12 million!

The 10 bedroom and 10 bathroom mansion comes with a tennis court, 200 foot boat dock and its own private white sand beach.

Robert Greenwood of Christie's International Real Estate tells us Prince had not fully moved in -- it's sparsely furnished. There's actually a few items in the house from the "Purple Rain" movie, including a mirror and a few chairs.

"Purple Rain" made Prince a superstar and led to him putting his John Hancock on a Hollywood deal -- something he rarely did -- and the contract is up for auction.

A longtime fan just posted Prince's first exclusive agency contract -- with Creative Artists Agency -- on eBay. The seller purchased

from an auction back in 2005 for $10,000 ... but now she's looking to cash out in a big way.

Tom Ross, the founder and former head of CAA's music department, tells TMZ they landed Prince by helping him close the deal for the "Purple Rain" movie and tour. Ross says Prince was always present for meetings, but early on minions were warned to never speak directly to Prince ... or risk getting fired.

The doctor commissioned to save Prince's life treated one of the most strung out rock stars in history.

Former Guns N' Roses drummer Steven Adler sought treatment from Dr. Howard Kornfeld in the mid-'90s to kick a vicious heroin habit.

Adler's been open about his demons -- his heroin problem got him booted from Guns N' Roses. In 1996, right around the time he was being treated by Kornfeld, he suffered a stroke from an OD that left one side of his face paralyzed.

We're told Dr. Kornfeld treated Adler with the same synthetic opiate Kornfeld's son carried in his backpack to Prince's home.

Prince's blood will be under a microscope soon at the request of the special administrator of his estate.

A judge in Carver County authorized Bremer Trust to order DNA testing of the late singer's blood ... for purpose of addressing "parentage issues." It's clear Bremer is expecting alleged family members to come out of the woodwork to get a slice of Prince's fortune.

According to docs, there is a sample of Prince's blood being held at the Medical Examiner's office for testing.

The man who brought a synthetic opiate to the place where Prince was found dead won't talk about the investigation that focuses in part on him.

Andrew Kornfeld was at his dad's rehab facility Thursday when a photog asked about his decision to take the pills across state lines. We're told Andrew, who does not have a medical license, is under the microscope ... to determine if he's violated a law prohibiting the unlicensed practice of medicine.

Prince's emergency landing 6 days before his death -- the one where he almost died from a Percocet OD -- was caught on video, and you see paramedics rush to the plane in an attempt to save his life.

The video was released by the Quad City International Airport in Moline, Illinois. You see emergency vehicles waiting for the plane to taxi up to the tarmac.

Once the plane stops, there are at least 3 vehicles surrounding it.

Andrew Kornfeld, the man who flew to Prince's home on a thwarted rescue mission that ended with his call to 911, made it clear to a photog Thursday ... he wasn't going to talk about the ongoing criminal investigation into the singer's death.

Andrew's dad, rehab specialist Dr. Howard Kornfeld, got the call from Prince's rep the day before the singer died, pleading with him to come to Minnesota to save Prince from a fatal OD. The doctor couldn't make it but sent his son, who was in the house when Prince was discovered in the elevator.

As we reported, Andrew is under investigation because when cops arrived they found pills -- a synthetic opiate used to treat Percocet addicts -- in his backpack. Andrew, who is not a doctor, is being investigated for the unauthorized practice of medicine.

The photog got Andrew at a nature preserve in Northern California.

We also got video Thursday of Dr. Kornfeld outside his rehab facility, Recovery Without Walls, in Marin County, CA. He was also mum.

Arsenio Hall just clapped back at Sinead O'Connor with a $5 MILLION defamation lawsuit over her claim he was fueling Prince's habit.

His lawyers, Marty Singer and Lynda Goldman, filed the suit Thursday morning, in which Arsenio calls Sinead a "desperate attention-seeker" for posting an incendiary rant on Facebook earlier this week. She called Prince a "longtime hard drug user" who got his supply from "Arsenio Hall (AKA Prince's and Eddie Murphy's bitch)."

In the suit, Arsenio flat out denies ever supplying Prince with illegal drugs -- and adds, he hasn't had contact with Sinead for 25 years. He also denies spiking her with drugs back in the day ... as she claimed.

As for why she targeted him -- Arsenio says she's repeatedly said she met Prince a couple times and she "detested" him. She also says she told Prince "to go f*** himself."

Authorities in Minnesota have made the overprescribing practices of Prince's doctors the focus of their investigation ... sources connected with the case tell TMZ.

We're told the criminal probe has zeroed in on a drug that almost killed Prince 6 days before his death -- Percocet. TMZ broke the story, EMTs gave Prince a "save shot" at the Moline airport after his plane made an emergency landing.

We're told law enforcement in Minnesota is looking at 3 possible abuses ... multiple doctors who overprescribed meds to the singer, aliases the singer and his doctors may have used, and multiple pharmacies that filled the prescriptions.

As we reported, Prince had prescriptions filled at least 4 times in the 7 days before he died, and at least one of the pharmacies was 6.1 miles from his home ... much farther than 8 other drug stores.

The man who called 911 in Prince's death could face criminal prosecution if he was expecting to get paid for helping the singer ... and it all comes down to the pills in his backpack.

The lawyer for Andrew Kornfeld -- whose dad runs a rehab facility in Marin County, California -- says his client is entitled to immunity from prosecution because he was acting as a Good Samaritan.

The issue -- Andrew had a synthetic opiate in his backpack, and he's not a doctor. Our sources say investigators are keenly interested in knowing why Andrew brought the pills. They are often used to wean people off drugs like Percocet -- the opiate which fueled Prince's addiction.

Andrew's attorney points to a Minnesota law that protects people who might be committing drug crimes from being prosecuted if they call 911. The idea is to give people an incentive to help others in dire need without fear of prosecution.

Here's the problem. Under the law, the person who calls 911 does NOT get immunity if they receive or expect to receive compensation for picking up the phone and making the call. It's unclear if Andrew and his dad were going to get paid, but the recovery center charges for its services, so it's a good bet they were expecting compensation.

As for the drugs in the backpack ... even if Andrew's dad prescribed the drug for Prince, our DEA sources say it's illegal for anyone to take the drugs across state lines and deliver drugs in states where the doctor is not board certified.

Paul McCartney stopped short of punching a higher floor when he paid homage to Prince during a concert in Minneapolis Wednesday night.

Sir Paul was playing the Target Center when he launched into "Let's Go Crazy."

Paul and his band jammed through the tune, and the crowd went nuts ... but something was missing through most of it -- Paul's vocals.

Check it out ... McCartney ain't looking for no purple bananas, but you know Prince would still dig this tribute. After all, he loved him some Beatles tunes.

The Federal Drug Enforcement Administration is now involved in the death investigation of Prince, and our law enforcement sources say drugs are the focal point of the criminal probe.

Our sources say the DEA and the Minnesota Attorney General are looking into the various prescriptions that were written for Prince, and the focus is opiates. Prince had a life-threatening Percocet addiction and authorities believe opiates will likely be either the sole or at least a significant factor in his death.

Our sources say the investigation is sweeping ... doctors and pharmacies involved in prescribing and filling meds for Prince are targeted, but possible enablers are also in the crosshairs.

Our sources now say the toxicology report may still be weeks away, although it was initially set to be released 2 weeks after the autopsy.

Prince's death is creating a unique issue for Minnesota lawmakers ... in the eyes of a prominent attorney with a reality TV show.

Rhonda Wills, one of the attorneys from "Sisters In Law" on WE tv, weighed in on the mad scramble to cash in on Prince's name and likeness ... and pointed out there's never been a situation like this in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

Check out the clip ... she's strongly hinting it might be time for a change. Of course, Rhonda practices law in Texas, not Minnesota -- but 'Sisters' fans know ... she tends to get what she wants.