RIP

Joan Benedict -- known for TV favorites like "General Hospital" and "Candid Camera" -- has died.

A family spokesperson announced Monday that Joan, who was the widow of actor Rod Steiger, died on June 24 at L.A.'s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center due to complications from a stroke.

Joan had a remarkable career, kicking things off in the 1950s with "Candid Camera" ... where one of her most famous moments was playfully tickling men with her feathered hat as they sat next to her.

Neverland Ranch is under serious threat from a huge SoCal wildfire, but Michael Jackson fans should not worry ... 'cause fire crews and heavy-duty equipment are already there to keep the iconic property safe.

As TMZ previously reported ... the gigantic Lake Fire in Santa Barbara is burning toward MJ's infamous ranch, fueled by the dry land conditions and sweltering heatwave and now mass evacuations are underway.

Capt. Scott Safechuck, spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department, tells TMZ the blaze is a big-time threat to Neverland ... which is why dozens of firefighters are already there -- including multiple fire trucks and bulldozers. Fire aircraft is also in the area, ready to respond!

Alec Baldwin is about to stand trial for the fatal shooting on the "Rust" movie set ... and he's already in New Mexico for a pretrial hearing.

Check out these first images of Alec in court Monday at the Santa Fe County District Courthouse ... he's in a suit and tie with thick black glasses and has his arms folded over his chest as he sits with his defense team.

Alec seems pretty aware of the camera -- the trial will be live streamed -- and at one point he leans over to one of his attorneys and whispers something in his ear.

Porn star Jesse Jane's official cause of death is an overdose ... TMZ has confirmed.

TMZ has learned Jesse died of an accidental fentanyl and cocaine overdose according to the Oklahoma City Medical Examiner's office.

We broke the story back in January ... law enforcement sources told us the famed adult film actress was found dead at a home in Moore, OK after authorities responded to the residence on a welfare check.

Sam Worthington's showing love for the late, great producer Jon Landau ... lauding his leadership abilities -- and, referring to their hit movie "Avatar."

The actor shared a statement with Deadline early Sunday in honor of producer Jon Landau who passed away Saturday ... saying JL was a passionate producer who led with humor, strength and compassion.

And, Worthington's honoring him through what they made together too ... writing, "The People say all energy is borrowed and someday you have to give it back. I see you, Jon.” The Na’vi -- the main alien tribe from their hit movies "Avatar" and "Avatar: The Way of Water" -- are also known as "The People."

Khyree Jackson's death shocked the sports world ... and, now TMZ has photos from the scene showing the aftermath of the tragic crash.

The Minnesota Vikings cornerback was driving in a Dodge Charger alongside Isaiah Hazel and Anthony Lytton earlier Saturday morning when the crash occurred ... and photos now show that Dodge Charger completely disfigured.

Pictures show the car being loaded onto the back of a tow truck ... flattened with the back part of the vehicle severed from the rest of the cab.

Khyree Jackson -- the Minnesota Vikings cornerback -- was killed Saturday along with two other people in a vehicular accident in Maryland, according to authorities.

Maryland State Police tell TMZ ... Jackson, Isaiah Hazel and Anthony Lytton were driving in a maroon Dodge Charger in Upper Marlboro early this morning when they collided with two other automobiles.

During their preliminary probe, investigators learned that one of the other motorists in a silver Infiniti rammed into the Charger while trying to change lanes at a high rate of speed. That sent the Charger crashing into a moving Chevy Impala before barreling off the roadway into a bunch of trees where the car finally came to a stop.

Judy Belushi-Pisano -- an actress and producer who was married to legendary comedian John Belushi -- has died ... according to posts on John's official social media.

A Facebook and Instagram post shared early Saturday morning announced the tragic news ... saying Judy recently passed away while lauding her for her creative genius and for honoring John in the decades following his overdose death.

The social media posts also mention Judy's involvement with "The Blues Brothers" -- the iconic musical-comedy film starring JB and Dan Aykroyd which Judy was helping to make into a television series, according to IMDb. No cause of death has been revealed.

Actor Mike Heslin, who had a role in Taylor Sheridan's 2023 show "Special Ops: Lioness" has passed away at 30.

Heslin's husband Scotty Dynamo released the sad news on his Instagram account Friday ... telling the public the budding actor had died on Tuesday, July 2nd from an "unexpected cardiac event."

Dynamo stated that the young actor was in "perfect health" and the doctors have no explanation for what happened.

'Great British Baking Show' 2022 contestant Dawn Hollyoak has died at the age of 61.

Dawn's death was announced on her Instagram page on Friday, July 5.

Dawn hailed from Bedfordshire and was an IT manager before she joined the show ... and appeared on seven episodes.

Sad news is coming out of the YouTube community ... Pretty Pastel Please, an Australian content creator known for her fashion hauls and travel videos, has died.

The news was shared on her IG page on Friday, July 5 ... revealing the online star, whose real name was Alexandra, died in June. Although the cause of her death wasn't disclosed, her loss was described as "sudden, unexpected, and devastating to all who knew her."

The statement, accompanied by a pic of Alex holding her pet bird with "In Memoriam" written above, requested privacy for all who knew her to navigate their grief.

The caption read: "We would ask that you respect their wishes — they appreciate all of your support but need time to heal in private. A memorial will be posted on YouTube and here on Instagram in due course. Thank you for understanding in this difficult time."

Alex had accumulated over 690,000 YouTube subscribers since she uploaded her first video in Dec 2017. She had recently joined Twitch as well, sharing her last live stream there on June 25.

Some of Alex's popular content included eating only 7-Eleven food in Japan for a week, which garnered over 4M views. She also had a popular video where her bird "whispered" into her microphone for 5 mins straight.

She had also opened up about deeply personal matters -- back in July 2023, she discussed her divorce from her husband Dan. The year before, she spoke out about dealing with trolls.

Alex was 30

Comedian Tony Knight died following a freak accident ... when a large tree branch fell on top of him and several others at a festival in France.

Knight died in June while attending the "Rock'&'Cars" festival in Lavaur, France, a family member told Fox News Digital.

The family member says, “He was fit, healthy, happy and had everything going for him. He was charismatic, funny, passionate and so very loved by [his partner] Hayley, his family and his friends all over the world.”

Late Crazy Town frontman Shifty Shellshock was sober and happy a few months before his accidental drug overdose ... and seemed committed to staying on the wagon.

TMZ obtained footage from one of Shifty's final interviews before his sudden death, and he was talking sobriety with Mayra Dias Gomes.

The singer -- real name Seth Binzer -- was an invited guest at a Rock to Recovery benefit concert last August at the Fonda Theater in Hollywood, but he made a rare public appearance.

A piece of Willie Mays' historic career is hitting the auction block ... and the winning bid could end up being a fortune!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... Mays' game-worn and autographed threads from the 1969 All-Star Game -- when Mays played for the San Francisco Giants -- are up for grabs via Heritage Auctions.

The No. 24 gray, orange and black jersey features the SF name on the front ... with a sweet John Hancock from the "Say Hey Kid" himself. It also has "Mays 42/3 1969" and the "W.A. Goodman & Sons" label on the front tail.

Danny Trejo's saying farewell to his beloved Chihuahua Dixie ... a mini-yet-mighty dog that certainly made fans laugh, but Danny tells TMZ she also struck fear into the hearts of his other pets.

Dixie died this week at 16, and Danny's obviously heartbroken -- but he told us he's also full of joy for the smiles and laughs the tough-as-nails pooch provided by scaring the hell out of his pit bulls and Rottweilers. As he puts it, Dixie ran his house!

DT says fans used to be baffled when they saw him with Dixie ... most assuming he would be holding back two massive, brutish K-9s, but Dixie was his baby and always slept with Dad.

Shocking new video makes it clear Florida rapper Julio Foolio had almost no time to react when gunmen approached him outside a hotel and fired into his car, killing him.

The shooting went down in Tampa on June 23 just -- 2 days after the Jacksonville native's 26th birthday -- and this surveillance video from the shared parking lot of a Hilton and a Holiday Inn shows the gunman waiting for Foolio's black car.

Foolio had been in town celebrating with friends when the party moved from an Airbnb to the hotel ... a move he chronicled all over his IG shortly before the shooting.