Comedy

Jim Abrahams -- one of the creators behind classic comedies like "Airplane!" and 'The Naked Gun' -- has died.

The writer, producer and director died early Tuesday morning at his home in Santa Monica ... according to his son, Joseph.

We're told Jim had been battling leukemia for 20 years, and the cancer was a contributing factor in his death. His son says Jim was in remission at one point during his cancer battle, but the disease came back and he was always battling the cancer.

Actor-comedian Paul Rodriguez's best friend died in his L.A.-area home Thursday ... and cops are saying the death looks natural, with nothing nefarious suspected at this point.

We spoke with Paul ... who tells us his longtime friend Donald Serrato had just sold his house in Torrance and was moving to Montana -- but, before he moved, he needed a place to stay for a few days.

PR gave his friend a place to stay, and -- this morning -- he left around 6 AM to go work on a movie. He called Serrato around noon to see if he wanted to grab lunch, but received no response.

Pete Davidson isn't keeping a low profile after inaccurate rumors about his personal life circulated on the Internet ... including a false claim he was in rehab after suffering a heartbreak.

Check it out ... the "Saturday Night Live" alum was all smiles while sitting courtside at the Brooklyn Nets game at Barclays Center Tuesday evening. Dressed in a brown Lehigh Athletics sweatshirt, white beanie, and jeans, Pete looked to be in high spirits ... which may've been because his mom, Amy, was by his side.

The Nets had a good game, defeating the Charlotte Hornets 116 to 115 in the Emirates NBA Cup face-off. So, Pete had plenty to smile about Tuesday night.

Joe Exotic isn't offended one bit by Bowen Yang's impersonation of him on "Saturday Night Live" ... in fact, he's hoping to use the exposure to his advantage.

The "Tiger King" star tells TMZ ... he's given Bowen's impression his stamp of approval, praising the comedian for his accurate take. Not only does Joe think 'SNL' nailed his look -- applauding the mullet and the mustache -- he feels Bowen came very close to matching his voice.

He notes Bowen did a much better job at impersonating him than John Cameron Mitchell did in Peacock's "Joe vs Carole."

Pete Davidson is not nursing a broken heart in rehab ... this according to his falsely alleged ex-girlfriend, Maria Georgas, who shut down the growing rumors about the actor.

ICYMI ... a report circulated Sunday that the comedian had allegedly checked himself into rehab after finding himself in "bad shape" after splitting from "The Bachelor" alum.

However, this is all a bunch nonsense, as Maria posted on her Instagram Stories amid the gossip ... setting the record straight about her relationship with Pete and weighing in on his sobriety journey.

Jay Leno's such a badass, he did a comedy gig with an eye patch, a black eye, a bandaged wrist and a swollen face ... after taking a nasty fall near his hotel.

We got Jay arriving to the Comedy for Koby event in Beverly Hills on Monday night and our photog asked him the obvious ... what the hell happened to his face?!?

Jay tells us he was staying at a hotel on a hill and wanted to go to a restaurant at the bottom of the slope ... and instead of taking a winding path down, he tried to take a shortcut ... and it ended with him tumbling down the hill.

"Wicked" star Cynthia Erivo is known for her super long talon nails, leading to this question from Dax Shepard ... what's it like wiping your butt with those things?!?

Dax asked Cynthia straight up how she cleans herself after pooping during a funny exchange on Monday's episode of his "Armchair Expert" podcast.

Cynthia is annoyed by the question but she basically plays along and says she folds tissue paper and uses the pads of her fingers -- not the tips of her nails -- to wipe.

Michael Blackson says the real reviews of a comedy club can't be found online, but in the parking lot ... 'cause you only need to look at a comic's car to judge his talent.

We caught up with the comedian at LAX Thursday ... and, he was picking up someone in a pristine white Rolls-Royce -- a car he says cost him a hell of a lot of money.

Blackson claims the car proves he's super funny ... 'cause hilarious comedians get paid big bucks -- and can buy very expensive cars.

John Krasinski is People magazine's 2024 Sexiest Man Alive, and some people are pissed about the selection ... but one of JK's pals from "The Office" is firing back.

Here's the deal ... John graced the cover of People on Tuesday wearing a T-shirt and jeans, sitting on the bumper of a NYC Yellow cab ... and social media was instantly divided, with some loving the pick, while others bitched JK is cute, sure -- but NOT sexy.

Kate Flannery -- who played Meredith Palmer on the hit series -- tells TMZ ... she was thrilled when she heard John got the honor -- and had a feeling sooner or later he would be recognized for how hot he became for his roles in "Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan" and "13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi."

The comedian who caught hell for his "garbage" joke about Puerto Rico has released his post-speech reaction, recorded the night after his appearance at Madison Square Garden.

In an episode of "Kill Tony," the podcast and live show hosted by Tony Hinchcliffe, he's onstage performing ... and he goes into a bit about his freshly controversial set from the night before.

You'll recall ... at a Donald Trump rally at Madison Square Garden in NYC on October 27, Hinchcliffe was warming up the crowd -- one of his jokes was, "I don't know if you know this, but there's literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it's called Puerto Rico."

Before this cute kid smiling from ear to ear was onstage making his audience chuckle, he was just hitting the beaches of Boca, playing the double bass and grabbing hold of his music degree from Berklee College of Music ...

Hi first broke into the comedy scene in 2003 and was the creator and host of his own show, which ran for 6 seasons! Don't worry about having FOMO if you haven't seen him live ... his Instagram content is full of comedy relief, and he's not afraid to push the limits!

Need one more clue? "Disenchantment" on Netflix!

Elon Musk's not laughing along with the "Saturday Night Live" cast ... calling them out for being sore losers after Dana Carvey impersonated him on the show last night.

Here's the deal ... during the 'SNL' cold open, cast members pledged their undying allegiance to Donald Trump -- claiming they'd always supported him, so there's no reason for him to retaliate against them.

At one point during the bit, Kenan Thompson jokes that -- worst-case scenario -- we can always just bail on our planet and go to Mars with Elon Musk ... which is when Dana runs out in dressed as the Tesla billionaire.

'SNL' sucked up to Donald Trump in a pretty hilarious way Saturday night!

The show's cold open was a handwringing of sorts, where the cast groused about D.T.'s election victory. They called it "shocking." They called it "horrifying."

But then they worried Trump might seek "vengeance" against his political enemies, of which 'SNL' is a card-carrying member. And then the pivot! Kenan Thompson chimed in ... “We at SNL would like to say to Donald Trump, we have been with you all along.”

Taylor Swift had a LOOOOONG dinner Friday night with pal Zoë Kravitz, and at the end of the evening it kinda showed!

TS and Zoe hit up Chez Margaux in NYC's Meatpacking District. The photo agency says they were there for 8 hours ... seems a little overblown, but it was apparently a long night.

On her way out, the superstar seemed a bit unsteady ... after all, how could wine not have been on the menu for a great French meal!?!

Dustin Hoffman had a wild run-in with the paps -- not by clashing with them, but by playing hide-and-seek in plain sight!

The actor was in full peek-a-boo mode at the Country Mart in Brentwood Thursday, hilariously hiding behind a shop sign and putting his Oscar-winning skills to work by peering around the corner, checking if the cameras were still lurking.

Dustin made it crystal clear it was all fun and games -- after a few seconds, he popped back into full view, chuckling to himself, waving at the photogs, and strolling over to the valet area.