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Michelle Trachtenberg was a wonderful person who died much too young ... so says her "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" costar.

We spoke with James Marsters -- a veteran actor who played punk vampire Spike in 97 episodes of the hit TV show -- and, he says his heart is heavy today because of the loss of Michelle.

Marsters says the world has "lost a beautiful soul" and remembers Michelle as being "fiercely intelligent, howlingly funny, and a very talented person."

Governor Gavin Newsom's decision to ask the California Board of Parole to review the Erik and Lyle Menendez matter could make next month's up-to-now critical resentencing hearing all but irrelevant.

As we reported, Newsom has asked the Parole Board to conduct a "risk assessment investigation" ... this on the heels of TMZ's "2 Angry Men" podcast in which Erik and Lyle appeared by phone to talk about what they've done with their lives behind bars for 35 years.

The Board will effectively conduct a parole hearing, in which they will assess whether the Menendez brothers pose an unreasonable risk to public safety. By doing so, the Board will necessarily review how Erik and Lyle have conducted themselves in prison.

Karen Huger will serve a year in prison after being found guilty of DUI ... TMZ has confirmed.

"The Real Housewives of Potomac" star was in a Maryland court Wednesday, where she was sentenced to two years in prison, with a year suspended ... meaning she'll only actually serve a year maximum.

The State's Attorney's Office tells TMZ ... Karen will pay $2,900 in fines. She cannot drive at all for a year after her release. She also received 5 years of supervised probation upon release with interlock (once she’s allowed to drive again). If there are no violations it becomes unsupervised after 3 years.

Michelle Trachtenberg’s untimely death at 39 has sent shockwaves through her fans and colleagues -- and her former "Gossip Girl" costar Ed Westwick has posted a tribute to the star.

In a heartfelt post on his IG Story Wednesday, Ed shared a pic of Michelle as Georgina Sparks from the popular teen drama series ... captioning it, "So sad to hear of the passing of @michelletrachtenberg."

He added "sending prayers" with the prayer hand and a white heart emoji.

All beef aside, there's no denying the blonde hair and beautiful curves of Bhad Bhabie and Alabama Barker ... both of these stars may be serving similar aesthetics, but which singer-rapper is comin' out on top?

These pretty pics come from Bhad Bhabie and Alabama's respective social media accounts ... with BB donning a breezy white top and Alabama rockin' an animal print bodysuit. Both photos brought the double-taps from their followers, but there can only be one winner here!

Bhad Bhabie and Alabama aren't the only celebs duking it out ... Take a scroll through our TikTok's Hottest Stars Who'd You Rather?!

Now, go on and cast your vote:

Monica Lewinsky came in hot against Jay Leno ... calling him out as one of the people who went after her the hardest when her affair with former U.S. President Bill Clinton went public in the '90s.

In her "Call Her Daddy" podcast tell-all, Monica told host Alex Cooper about a study done after Leno retired ... revealing she made the list of his top 10 targets during his time hosting "The Tonight Show."

What’s worse, Monica pointed out she was the only non-public figure on the list, making it clear that being the punchline of Leno’s jokes, broadcast to the nation, was a whole new level of cruelty for her.

MMA fighter Sean Loeffler has been charged with sexual abuse and more in Lincoln County, Oregon ... nearly a year after he pleaded guilty to domestic violence-related charges and was given a two-year prison sentence.

Documents obtained by TMZ from Lincoln County Circuit Court show Loeffler has been formally charged with sexual abuse in the first and second degrees, plus two counts of unlawful sexual penetration in the first degree.

The indictment sets a wildly uncomfortable picture, alleging the female victim "was incapable of consent by reason of mental incapacitation or physical helplessness" and was subject to the professional coach and trainer touching her vaginal area, as well as performing oral sex on her.

Donald Trump has already said Gaza would be better off if the U.S. simply takes it over ... and, now he's using A.I. to imagine what it would be like as one of his splashy resorts.

The U.S. president posted a bizarre video to Truth Social Tuesday night which begins with images of war-torn Gaza -- a region that has experienced months of bombing by Israel -- before it transforms into his idea for its future ... "Trump Gaza."

Watch the video for yourself ... it's full of picturesque beaches, high-rises -- and a lot of Elon Musk trying different foods and dancing while money literally falls from the sky. There's even some bearded belly-dancers, and it's all set to a dance club beat.

Sarper Güven says a guy having a huge body count is great for a relationship ... 'cause no woman on Earth can tempt him away from his partner Shekinah Garner.

We caught up with the "90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way" stars Tuesday ... and, we had to ask all about Sarper's claim that he's slept with 2,500 women -- and if Shekinah would recommend dating a dude who has slept with that many ladies.

Garner -- who defended her man's colorful past in an interview with us last year -- says it all depends on where the guy's at in their single journey ... 'cause if they're in the throes of the promiscuity, it's best to stay clear.

Diddy says his legal archenemy, attorney Tony Buzbee, has no business filing lawsuits against him in at least one federal court ... and he wants a judge to shut him down now.

Buzbee, of course, has filed dozens of lawsuits on behalf of clients accusing Diddy of sexual assaults and more -- but, in particular, 22 of those cases were filed in federal court for the Southern District of New York ... a district where Buzbee isn't authorized to practice law.

Normally, this is not a big deal -- it happens all the time -- and attorneys, like Buzbee, would just file a pro hac vice, asking a judge for permission to practice in that jurisdiction. However, in new docs, Diddy's team says Buzbee's filed lawsuits before getting a judge to sign off on his pro hac vice ... a major legal no-no.

Governor Gavin Newsom is ordering an investigation into whether Erik and Lyle Menendez are fit to return to public life ... TMZ has learned, and he says it's a critical first step before he, or anyone else, can decide if they get out of prison.

This is a major, unexpected development in the Menendez brothers' fight for freedom. It seemed the Governor was going to take a back seat until the courts ruled on Erik and Lyle's fate, but all that has now changed.

The CA Gov. tells us, he's directing the Board of Parole Hearings to conduct a "risk assessment investigation" on the Menendez bros., which he says is their version of a "parole hearing" -- but before the Board weighs in, a "Comprehensive Risk Assessment" must be done.

TMZ Sports has obtained body cam footage of Carson Beck and Hanna Cavinder's interaction with cops after two cars were jacked from the quarterback's home ... with the college sports stars calmly breaking down what happened.

Miami-Dade police officers arrived at Beck's home around 7:30 AM on Thursday, Feb. 20 ... after receiving a call about three vehicles being moved from the property.

Once on the scene, a Miami Hurricanes football staffer greeted the cops ... introducing Beck as "our quarterback."

Video of two A.I. chatbots recognizing each other, then switching to a computer language has human viewers online scratching their heads ... as no one else can possibly decipher what they're saying!

It's something approaching a dystopian technological nightmare -- two chatbot assistants realize they’re both A.I., and take their conversation to a more "efficient" mode to communicate. What we hear next is disconcerting.

Here’s the deal -- a viral video on social media has garnered millions of views, showing a smartphone A.I. agent introducing itself to book a hotel. The hotel's A.I. agent on a laptop computer responds, identifying itself, and cheerfully offers to take the conversation to another language  -- Gibberlink Mode, a communication system developed to enhance artificial-intelligence interactions.

BigXthaPlug -- one of rap's biggest rising stars -- has been arrested on a marijuana charge in Texas ... TMZ has learned.

BigX was arrested Wednesday morning and was being held at the Arlington City Jail. He's been charged with possession of less than 2 ounces of marijuana.

Arlington PD tells TMZ ... around 12:05 AM local time, BigX was driving with expired tags and got pulled over by cops. The officer reported he could smell marijuana as he approached the vehicle and asked BigX and the passenger -- Cleodist Landum -- to exit the car.

A TikToker who openly called for Elon Musk's assassination is feeling the heat -- fast ... 'cause it looks like an investigation against her might be in the works.

In Sarah C. Roberts' vid -- reshared by X’s right-wing account Libs of TikTok -- she not only threatened the billionaire with a throat-slashing gesture and explicitly called for his murder, but also casually admitted to skipping filing her taxes for years.

Sarah’s social media accounts have since been deactivated, but the damage may be done. With the video making the rounds online, it’s now on the radar of some powerful figures -- like D.C.’s top prosecutor, Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin.

Matthew Perry's final days were flooded with ketamine -- 27 doses in the three days before his tragic death in October 2023, a bombshell new documentary has revealed.

Peacock's "Matthew Perry: A Hollywood Tragedy" was released Tuesday, with U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada -- who led the investigation -- pointing fingers at the people who allegedly supplied Perry with the powerful anesthetic.

According to Estrada, these weren't just medical professionals -- they were opportunists who "should have known much better."