TMZ.com Home

Nipsey Hussle's sister has filed for legal guardianship of one of his children ... TMZ has learned.

Samantha Smith filed legal docs in L.A. County Superior Court asking for guardianship of 10-year-old Emani Asghedom.

Sources say Samantha believes the child's biological mother is unable to care for the child.

We're told Nipsey cared for Emani before his death March 31 after being gunned down at his L.A. clothing store.

Samantha says she has assisted in the care of Emani throughout her life and wants "to ensure the continued stability for Emani and ensure that she will be able to maintain her current and ongoing relationship" with Nipsey's family.

Nipsey had another child, 2-year-old Kross, with Lauren London. Kross is not the subject of the conservatorship. Kross lives with Lauren.

On April 2, Samantha posted in her Instagram account a tribute to Nipsey, and in it she says, "I got Emani."

11:21 AM PT -- We've obtained the dispatch audio where police seem to identify the possible suspect as a Hispanic male in shorts and a t-shirt. They identify the reporting person -- possibly Jonze -- was waiting in the middle of the street for cops to arrive.

Director Spike Jonze came face-to-face with a home intruder who was armed with a knife ... setting off an intense standoff with police.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ Jonze arrived at his Los Feliz home around 6 AM Tuesday and discovered a man inside. Jonze was able to get out of the house and call the cops. We're told the man was armed with a knife and refused to come out once police arrived.

LAPD and SWAT officers swarmed the home for several hours before the man finally surrendered just before 11 AM.

Our sources say at this time, it does not appear anyone was injured during the standoff. It's unclear how the man got inside Jonze's home or if he has any connection to the director.

12:28 PM PT -- The World Surf League has confirmed Garcia was hospitalized after a suicide attempt.

In the past, Garcia has talked publicly about his struggles with depression and even asked fans for advice on treatment.

Surf legend Sunny Garcia -- a 6-time winner of the Triple Crown of Surfing -- is fighting for his life in a Portland hospital, the World Surf League has confirmed.

The 49-year-old was admitted to the hospital in Oregon on Monday. Details about his condition were not made public.

WSL says Garcia is currently in intensive care.

Garcia is one of the most beloved people in pro surfing. He grew up in Hawaii -- and became close friends with fellow surf stars like Kelly Slater and Jamie O'Brien.

He's an absolute STUD in the water -- winning the World Surf League's world championship in 2000. He was inducted into the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.

Garcia also became the 2nd pro surfer in history to win more than $1 million in prize money -- which is a HUGE accomplishment.

Outside of the water, Sunny had some issues over the years -- he served time in prison in 2007 in a tax evasion case.

Years later, Garcia said the takeaway from that experience was "never trust your CPA ... don't trust anybody for that matter."

Garcia has talked about how much he loved his family and how one of his biggest fears would be to lose them.

He's also a religious guy who attends church "every once in a while."

Garcia has also pushed hard for people to come and surf in Hawaii over the years -- but he's big on people having respect for the Hawaiian culture.

"Come, enjoy and be respectful, yeah -- if you can be that then we welcome you with open arms. But, if you're gonna come and piss in my backyard, you might get a slap in the head."

Soulja Boy was just smacked with a sentence of 240 days in jail and 265 days of community service for violating his probation.

Soulja was in court Tuesday -- and while his attorney said the rapper's had an "awakening" during the last 20 days he's been locked up -- it clearly wasn't enough to convince the judge to let him go easy. Soulja will start the sentence right away ... and has credit for 40 days served.

The judge told Soulja he was originally considering sentencing him to 2 years in state prison but decided to give him some leniency. The judge also acknowledged that Soulja's missed out on business opportunities while behind bars.

As we reported ... the rapper was taken into custody earlier this month after the judge said he failed to do his court-ordered community service and even conspired to falsify evidence he had completed it.

Not helping matters ... Soulja's crib in Agoura Hills was raided in February and cops found ammunition during the search. Cops had initially gone there to investigate a claim by one of his ex-girlfriends that Soulja tied her up and held her captive in his garage.

The ammunition turned out to be the start of Soulja's real troubles. Having possession of ammo is a huge no-no 'cause Soulja's on probation for a weapons case that dates back to 2014.

He bragged about not going out like Tekashi 6ix9ine but the laughter didn't last long ... 'cause he's been held without bail since the April 11 arrest.

8:45 AM PT -- Sources connected to Pete tell us he felt like Vinnie was overly sarcastic when he told the crowd not to mention Kate or Ariana. They add, Vinnie asked if he could do an opening set, but Pete said no -- because he travels with his own opening comic -- but Vinnie went ahead and did a 5-minute set anyway.

Overall, we're told Pete's camp thinks Vinnie killed the energy in the crowd by giving them the list of no-no's for the show.

Pete Davidson is going to war with a comedy club owner because the guy referred to Kate Beckinsale and Ariana Grande while introducing Pete -- however, the crowd seemed to turn on Pete.

The 'SNL' star was supposed to perform Monday night at Vinnie Brand's Stress Factory in Bridgeport, CT -- but he never made it onstage. Pete claims Vinnie "disrespected me and did something that I told him not to do and I can't perform under those circumstances."

Pete posted a video from his car immediately after bailing on the gig.

Meanwhile, inside the club ... the owner was fuming over Pete's no-show -- and played Pete's IG video on the club's big screen. Even though Pete offered to do a free show for anyone in the crowd ... they were pissed. You even hear someone yell, "F**k you, Pete!!!"

According to clubgoers, Vinnie did mention Kate and Ariana -- but only because he was asking the crowd not to heckle Pete about his girlfriends. Vinnie says those were the ground rules Pete wanted, and they had agreed anyone who did shout anything like that would be removed from the club.

It seems both Pete and Vinnie didn't want a repeat of what happened during one of Pete's shows back in February ... when he was heckled about Mac Miller.

Vinnie did his own act after playing Pete's IG video -- and while it wasn't necessarily funny, it was very angry.

Michael Blackson lost a brother when John Singleton suddenly died ... that's how much the famed director meant to him.

We got Michael out Monday night leaving Toca Madera in WeHo and asked him about the "Boyz n the Hood" director's death Monday -- at only 51 -- after suffering a massive stroke. No doubt Michael's devastated by the loss of his friend.

Check out the clip ... he talks about John and his GF, Rayvon, having a baby a year ago, making things even sadder. He tells us how he first met John and the huge plans they had about working together.

Michael also tells us which of John's classics is his favorite flick. Remember, Michael's a comedian ... so that's your first clue.

11:07 AM PT -- Traci Braxton tells us, "LoLo was more than my niece, she was my daughter; and I, my son and husband are truly heartbroken over her passing."

10:45 AM PT -- According to the police report -- obtained by TMZ -- a friend of Lauren's claims she was talking with Lauren in the kitchen and went upstairs for just 10 minutes. The friend told cops when she returned to the kitchen, Lauren was on the floor and unresponsive.

8:22 AM PT -- Trina Braxton just posted about Lauren's death, saying, "God sent me another angel! Rest in Heaven Lauren "LoLo" Braxton."

Toni Braxton's niece has died in Maryland ... TMZ has learned.

Lauren Braxton -- the daughter of Toni's younger brother, Michael Conrad Braxton Jr. -- died Monday ... according to her father, who tells us her death was related to a heart condition.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... they received a 911 call around noon on Monday, and Lauren -- who went by the nickname LoLo -- was unresponsive when they arrived. She was pronounced dead by paramedics.

Michael -- who is a Maryland native -- is the only son of the Braxton siblings. He and Toni are the elder siblings to Traci, Towanda, Trina and Tamar. Like most of his sisters, Michael is also a singer and songwriter and he's appeared on episodes of his sisters' reality show "Braxton Family Values."

Michael started singing with his sisters in church choirs when they were young.

His daughter Lauren was 24.

RIP

Brazilian model Caroline Bittencourt leaped into action when her dogs fell off her sailboat ... but, sadly, she drowned while trying to make the rescue.

The deadly accident happened Sunday in Sao Paulo ... where Caroline was on a catamaran with her husband, Jorge Sestini, and their 2 dogs. While out at sea, a huge storm -- with reported winds over 60 mph -- rocked the boat and knocked the pooches off the catamaran into the rough water.

Bittencourt jumped in after the dogs and her husband soon followed, but he couldn't find her. It's unclear if the dogs were ever found. Sestini was rescued a few hours later and Bittencourt's body was found late Monday near a beach.

Bittencourt's 17-year-old daughter, Isabelle, confirmed the death on social media, saying, "We are grateful for the support and affectionate messages we have received from Carol's friends and fans. This energy drive fills our hearts with so much love."

"Game of Thrones" Battle of Winterfell left fans cheering and complaining -- the latter due to it being too damn dark -- but the cinematographer wants to make it clear ... the gripes aren't his fault.

Fabian Wagner -- who was also the cinematographer on lauded 'Thrones' episodes like "Hardhome" and "Battle of the Bastards" -- tells TMZ, he's aware folks are upset that "The Long Night" looked TOO nightly, and he has an explanation.

First, Fabian believes the pixelation and muddy dark colors fans saw on their TVs and mobile devices are due to HBO's compression of the episode ... which leads to poorer visual quality. This is made worse if it's being viewed on a streaming service with a weak connection ... or in a room that's too bright.

As Wagner puts it ... "[GoT] has always been very dark and a very cinematic show" and should be watched in a dark environment. Ideally, this means viewing it like you would a movie -- in a dark theater.

Since that's not realistic for 'Thrones,' Fabian suggests making your viewing room at home as dark as possible, avoid watching on your phone or in places that are lit up ... and adjust your TV settings.

The cinematographer also points out ... the showrunners and director wanted the episode to be dark. Wagner says the battle scenes were intended to be intense, claustrophobic and disorienting -- like they would be in real life -- but not confusing.

Fabian says, "We tried to give the viewers and fans a cool episode to watch," and he believes they did, adding ... "I know it wasn't too dark because I shot it."

10:15 AM PT -- The Riverside County Health Department says its labs and STD programs have not seen any spike in herpes cases during Stagecoach or Coachella.

To clarify ... HerpAlert was NOT saying its surge of cases -- 114 at Stagecoach and 250 at Coachella -- were all for new patients. Some of that data includes old patients just seeking prescriptions.

There was a surprise guest riding through Stagecoach this weekend ... herpes.

According to big wigs at HerpAlert -- an online diagnosis and treatment website for the STD -- there's been another spike in people looking to get treated for herpes in the areas surrounding the festival grounds, but it's not quite as bad as the outbreak during Coachella.

HerpAlert's been helping folks out for over 2 years, with doctors issuing prescriptions to pharmacies after people upload photos of their junk for doctors to review. The turnaround time is super quick ... we're talking just 2 hours.

We're told HerpAlert noticed a surge in people seeking prescriptions for herpes during Stagecoach. Over the weekend, there were 114 cases reported in Palm Desert, Coachella Valley and Indio ... which is about half of the nearly 250 cases reported in the same areas during Coachella Weekend 1.

It's still a massive spike ... because HerpAlert tells us they typically handle 12 cases a day in SoCal.

Bottom line ... if you got down at Stagecoach, you might want to giddy-up to your local clinic.

Jeff Goldblum's trip to Hawaii isn't all sunshine and rainbows ... because he claims he got his belongings straight-up jacked from a hotel locker while he was taking a dip in the ocean.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Jeff filed a police report over the weekend after his personal items were stolen out of a locker at the Outrigger resort in Waikiki, and cops are investigating.

We're told the "Jurassic Park" actor crammed a bunch of his stuff into a locker before diving into the Pacific, and when he came back to shore his stuff was nowhere to be found ... so he called the cops.

As you can see ... Jeff was still dripping wet when he was talking to police on the beach. Talk about a buzz kill after frolicking around in the salt water.

CNN's Don Lemon says he wasn't shocked to see President Trump congratulate Nick Bosa on being the #2 pick in the draft -- while ignoring Kyler Murray -- in part because Bosa is white and Murray is black.

Lemon was leaving the CNN building after his show Monday night when we asked about Trump's congratulatory tweet to Bosa ... who had been very vocal about his support for #45.

"Bosa is a supporter of Trump," Lemon said ... "[Bosa] doesn't like Kaepernick. It's everything this President is about."

Lemon added, "I think we should be congratulating the #1 person [Kyler Murray] as the #1 person made history."

Of course, Murray became the first person to be selected in the first round of the NFL and the MLB draft ... an amazing accomplishment.

"Don't forget the #1 person [Murray] is also black," Lemon added.

As for Bosa, he had previously called Kaepernick a "clown" on social media -- but later deleted the tweet.

When pressed about Kaepernick at his first press conference with the San Francisco 49ers, Bosa backtracked ... saying the name-calling was a bad decision.

Bosa also said he "respects what [Kaepernick] has done" and apologized for the initial tweet.

Tamar Braxton's learning the hard way lending money to family is not always wise ... especially when they filed for bankruptcy.

Tamar's older sister, Towanda, hit a rough patch ... filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy -- that's the serious kind. In the docs, you have to list your various debts -- and that includes owing Tamar a cool $35k for a personal loan. And, to add to her problem, Towanda says she's only bringing in an average of $4,692.50 in monthly income but estimates her monthly expenses at just over $6k.

And, it's just the tip of the iceberg. According to docs ... Towanda's on the hook for $547,056.39 but only has $277,650 in assets. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the math doesn't add up in her favor.

Pharrell Williams and Usher were really rollin' last week ... and brought along family and friends for the ride as they skated into a star-studded music festival weekend.

The 2 co-hosted a private party at the Haygood Roller Skating Center in Virginia Beach Thursday night in anticipation of Pharell's first ever Something in the Water fest in his hometown.

The event was attended by just over 100 people, including Pharell's parents and relatives, Pusha T, Fergie, D.R.A.M., Young Money Yawn, Bruce Smith, Aaron Rouse, Dallas Austin and Pernell "Sweet Pea" Whitaker ... and Usher even hit the rink to make sure everyone was having fun.

Haygood was gifted a parting souvenir for holding the bash -- a roller skate signed by the big names in attendance.

As for Pharrell's festival ... it got off to a rough start when the first day was canceled due to weather, but kicked into high gear Saturday night with guest appearances during his set by Jay Z, Diddy, Snoop Dogg, Missy Elliott, Busta Rhymes, Timbaland, Charlie Wilson and Tyler, the Creator.

Usher and Pusha performed as well, of course ... and fans are already pumped for next year's fest.

Sorry Patriots fans ... the guy who filled in for Rob Gronkowski in 2016 ain't interested in doing it again in 2019 -- with Martellus Bennett telling TMZ Sports he's retired for good.

Bennett -- who had 5 catches for 62 yards in the Super Bowl that season -- announced his retirement from the NFL in March 2018.

But, that was BEFORE Gronk decided to hang up his cleats ...

Remember, it was just back in February Marty joked about rejoining the Cowboys during a monster workout session in the gym. Dude still looks like he can play!!

So, when we spotted Marty B out in NYC Friday afternoon, we had to ask if he would consider putting the jersey back on for another stint with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.

The long story short ... the 32-year-old says his mind is made up -- and it's a hard no.

"It's not me, I'm not the one," Bennett told us.

Instead, Bennett tells us he's focusing on his multimedia production company -- he's doing everything from book publishing to animated features and more.

Michael J. Pollard was in his late 20s when he played the tattooed half-wit, C.W. Moss -- who goes from a gas station attendant to a criminal accomplice -- in the classic 1967 biographical film "Bonnie and Clyde."

Michael J. Polland was part of a star-studded cast for the flick with Warren Beatty as Clyde Barrow, Faye Dunaway as Bonnie Parker, Estelle Parsons as Blanche and Gene Hackman as Buck Barrow.

Pollard's performance was so strong amongst the A-list roster, it landed him a nomination for best supporting actor at the 40th Annual Academy Awards back in 1968.