Kobe Bryant isn't talking about his injury and how it affected his performance Sunday night against Denver -- he scored only 16 points -- however we found out he was in such agony, the team doctor gave him an injection in his wrist to numb the pain, but it hardly worked.

Kobe tore a ligament in his right wrist during the first pre-season game against the Clippers.  Sources connected to the team tell TMZ ... the pain has been excruciating.  Our sources say he's gotten a numbing shot before each game since the injury, and as a result the pain was tolerable during play.  But we're told the shot did almost nothing Sunday night, and as one source put it, "It was a miracle that he even played."

Our Lakers sources tell us ... in addition to the numbing shots, Kobe's regimen is now to play with a cast, get physical therapy after each game and wear a flexible cast at all times off the court.

One source put it this way ... "If it was anyone else but Kobe, if they did play they'd come up goose eggs on the scoreboard.  It's incredible he's playing at all."

Yesterday's door-knocking incident was a huge wake up call for Lindsay Lohan -- who's now in the market to ramp up security at her L.A. home ... with surveillance cameras ... and even a new bodyguard.

Sources close to Lindsay tell TMZ, the actress loves her Venice Beach house ... but with random scary people walking right up to her front door, she's convinced it's time to invest in some extra security upgrades for the property.

On top of adding additional security cameras -- we're told Lindsay wants to hire a full-time bodyguard to stay with her for a period of time ... until she feels safe again.

As for the man arrested for trespassing outside her house on Sunday -- Lonnie Short -- we're told he shares a bizarre connection with Lindsay's alleged stalker David Cocordan.

According to sources, when Short knocked on Lindsay's door yesterday, he announced he was friends with David and needed to explain some things.

Clearly, Lindsay wasn't up for a chat -- and minutes later, cops arrested Short for trespassing. He's still in custody on $1,000 bail.

Live Nation is firing back at the guy who sued the concert company over a taping of "Making the Band" in 2008 -- claiming if he really did get hit in the stomach with a microphone, it's Diddy and MTV's fault ... not Live Nation's.

Live Nation filed a response to Kevin Faraday's lawsuit in New York Supreme Court -- denying its involvement with an injury Kevin claims he suffered in the crowd at the Hammerstein Ballroom, where "Making the Band" was being taped.

According to Kevin's lawsuit, some guy ran on stage, grabbed a microphone, and somehow hit him in the abdomen with it.

Kevin is suing a comically long list of defendants over the incident -- including Diddy, MTV, Live Nation, and about a dozen other people and companies -- but Live Nation insists they're innocent.

According to LIve Nation, if Kevin did actually hurt himself ... it was probably his own fault -- but Diddy, MTV, and others also had an obligation to prevent this kind of thing from happening ... and they failed to uphold it.

Live Nation wants Kevin's lawsuit dismissed.

If you're wondering why Octomom's Facebook, Twitter, and Ustream accounts have all been suddenly deleted ... it's because the mother of 14 has just been dropped by her management team -- TMZ has learned.

Sources close to Nadya Suleman tell us, it's all because Octo was the ultimate flake -- her management team would book her on paying gig after paying gig ... and Nadya "would find any reason" to cancel last minute ... often claiming she couldn't find a babysitter.

We're told Octomom was great the past year -- raking in lots of dough through appearances and different celebrity events -- but getting her to work the past couple months has been like pulling teeth.

By the end, we're told it was nearly impossible even to reach Octo by phone -- and her managers had just about enough ... so they dropped her this weekend.

We reached out to Octomom's now-former manager Gina Rodriquez -- who replied, "I quit on her because she is unmanageable. She would not reply to anything work-related we would call or text about especially if it was not paid."

Gina added, "Regardless of the $70k we made her, she still claimed to not be able to pay any of her bills. We no longer wanted a part of any of it and we feel sorry for the children."

Attempts to reach Nadya were unsuccessful.

Nelson Mandela's daughter just lost a $7.5 million battle in court -- because that's how much a judge ordered her to pay an L.A. boxing promoter ... after she allegedly flaked on a deal to organize a Pacquiao/Mayweather fight.

TMZ broke the story ... a guy named Duane Moody sued Nelson's daughter Zindziswa Mandela for $7.5 million earlier this year -- claiming she hired him to organize a Pacquiao/Mayweather bout for her father's birthday ... but ultimately flaked on the deal ... and the fight never materialized.

The fight was expected to rake in $100 million -- and Duane claims Zindziswa promised to pay him a 15% commission on all proceeds ... but fell off the radar as he was trying to organize the match.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Zindziswa never responded to Duane's complaint -- so an L.A. judge entered a default judgment, awarding the promoter $7.5 million in damages ... plus costs.

Duane's lawyer tells us, “We haven’t heard anything from any representative for Ms. Mandela. It appears she feels hiding in South Africa means she can avoid her obligations in the U.S.”

A rep for Zindziswa tells us her lawyers plan to challenge the judgment.

Bone Thugs rapper Flesh-N-Bone knows his marriage is at a crossroad ... so now that he's cleared up that whole domestic violence arrest thing, the rapper says he's ready to do whatever it takes to fix his marriage. 

As TMZ first reported, Flesh (real name Stanley Howse) copped a plea deal in his domestic violence arrest from January -- pleading guilty to false imprisonment and getting sentenced to 3 years probation and 100 hours of community service. 

Howse continues to maintain his innocence, telling TMZ, "She and I both know that I never hit her. It was just bad argument. I am very upset that this whole situation turned this messy."

Now, Flesh says he wants to work it out with his wife, with whom has two small children (ages 2 and 6 months), telling us, "I have to prove myself to her now and won’t have anymore heated arguments. I love my wife and going to try and put everything in my power to make it right."

The man arrested outside Lindsay Lohan's house in Venice Beach yesterday is old enough to be her dad ... at least according to several pics taken of the man in handcuffs.

The photos were snapped yesterday around 6:30pm outside Lindsay's pad -- where the white-haired man was arrested for trespassing.

TMZ broke the story ... cops were called to Lindsay's house after the man knocked on her front door, demanding to speak to the actress.

Lindsay refused to open the door. Cops showed up soon after and handcuffed the guy. He's still in custody.


10:30 AM PT: The suspect's name is Lonnie Short -- and according to his booking documents, he's 64 years old. He's being held on $1,000 bail.

Magic conch shells, healing tea leaves ... Steven Tyler and his new fiancee spared no supernatural expense when they blessed their home last week -- and TMZ has learned all the details behind the spiritual experience.

The woman wearing the leaf hat -- or Ley Po'o in Hawaiian -- is Reverand Alalani Hill ... the lead spiritual Kahuna in Maui, who specializes in all sorts of Hawaiian blessings.

Hill tells TMZ, Steven and his fiancee Erin Brady reached out to her recently after buying their house in Hawaii -- and she accepted their invitation, blessing their new home as well as their blossoming relationship.

But it wasn't just simple a simple blessing -- an elaborate ceremony was involved in the spiritual cleansing process. According to Hill, Steven had to blow on a conch shell (below) to call to the surrounding mountains, ocean, land, and heavens to protect him and his wife ... and their new home.


Steven and Erin also had to wear tea leaves and a kukui (indigenous nuts) to represent light and a new beginning, and sing songs to bless the house.

Alalani tells us, many whales and turtles emerged from the oceans to bless Steven and Erin -- adding, “This was a magical experience!”

LAPD officers swarmed and handcuffed what they described as a "person of interest" in the Los Angeles arsonist spree that has left thousands of residents scared out of their wits for days.

Fire officials say "it is too early to speculate" if this is the person responsible for the fires.

Police have already released surveillance video showing the alleged suspect -- a ponytailed Steven Seagal lookalike (below). As you can see in our video ... the man in custody sports a ponytail



Cops previously said 39 fires could be linked to the recent rash of arsons ... and another 11 were reportedly set last night.

It's not 100% clear from the footage -- but several witnesses confirm what appears to be a creepy smile on the man's face as he sat in the back of the squad car (below).



6:19 PM PT: The man has been identified as 24-year-old Harry Burkhart, a Hollywood resident. During a news conference moments ago, Mayor Villaraigosa said Burkhart is currently being held without bail.

According to Villaraigosa, the arson fires that ravaged Hollywood the last 4 days -- over 50 in total -- have caused over $3 million in damage.

L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca said, "The serial arsonist, I believe, has been caught" -- but LAPD Chief Charlie Beck pointed out ... it's still unclear if the arson fires were a one-man operation.

12:10 PM PT: Police say the man has been arrested and is currently being booked.

9:32 AM PT: Riding in an equestrian unit this morning at the Rose Parade, LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said, "We are we are very confident we found our man."

8:13 AM PT: Police say fire-starting materials were found in the man's van, which displayed Canadian license plates. According to reports, the materials include charcoal.


8:00 AM PT: There are reports the man may be a German national, who is angry that his mother is being deported from the US. An immigration agent helped identify him.

A newly engaged Steven Tyler exercised his right to bare chest yesterday in Maui -- celebrating the New Year with a topless Speedo-clad snorkeling excursion ... not far from his new fiancee.

Steven and his lady Erin Brady have been spending a lot of time in Maui recently -- and as TMZ first reported ... even hired a local spiritual leader to come bless their new Hawaiian home.

TMZ broke the story ... Steven and Erin got engaged on the DL last month -- and Steven's family was pissed they got left out of the loop.

Most people sign up for some spin classes ... but "Biggest Loser" host Alison Sweeney is taking that 26.2 steps further for her New Year's resolution -- telling TMZ, she plans to run the L.A. Marathon this year.

She's got 76 days left to get ready -- the marathon is scheduled for March 18 -- but Alison tells us, she already got a head start ... beginning her training two months ago.

Sweeney says she plans to hit the pavement with several "Biggest Loser" alums on the big day. Now that's commitment.

Unlike most wizards, "Harry Potter" star Tom Felton -- aks Draco Malfoy -- didn't freeze his wand off New Year's weekend ... hitting up Miami with his hot girlfriend instead.

Fun facts: Tom's GF Jade Olivia worked as a stunt assistant for the Potter flicks ... and even made a cameo as Draco's wife Astoria Greengrass in "Deathly Hallows: Part 2."

Cops were called to Lindsay Lohan's Venice Beach pad earlier this evening -- after a strange, unidentified man came a-knockin' ... and Lindsay freaked the hell out.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ, the man -- an older gentleman -- arrived at her home around 6:30pm and began knocking on the front door.

We're told Lindsay came to the door and asked what he wanted -- and the man responded cryptically ... that he needed to speak with her.

Unnerved, Lindsay asked the man to leave, but he refused, demanding she open the door. Police received a call minutes later about a trespasser on Lindsay's property. It's unclear if Lindsay made the call.

According to law enforcement sources, cops showed up soon after and arrested the man for trespassing. The man is currently being booked.