Dead at 66  —  Comedian Garry Shandling died at an L.A. area hospital on Thursday ... TMZ has learned.  —  The 66-year-old star was not suffering from any illness ... as far as we know ... so, it appears this was sudden.  A source connected to Shandling says he was healthy and speaking to people on Thursday morning.

Trump revs up Heidi Cruz attacks  —  over the Republican presidential rival's wife after she slammed his statements for having “no basis in reality.”  —  Trump shared an image on Twitter around midnight Wednesday comparing his wife, Melania, a former model, to Cruz's wife, stating, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

Microsoft is deleting its AI chatbot's incredibly racist tweets  —  Microsoft's new AI chatbot went off the rails Wednesday, posting a deluge of incredibly racist messages in response to questions.  —  The tech company introduced “Tay” this week — a bot that responds to users' queries …

Davenport man protesting law that requires him to pay for another man's child … DAVENPORT, Iowa- A Quad City man is protesting a child support law that requires him to pay for another man's child.  —  Joe Vandusen thought it was a joke when he received a certified letter from the Iowa Department …

Mother shoots intruder who entered south side home through baby's window  —  INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (March 24, 2016) - A homeowner shot an intruder who tried to break into her Indianapolis home Thursday afternoon.  —  According to police dispatchers, officers received the call around 12:10 p.m …

World's oldest living animal, 184-year-old tortoise named Jonathan, has first ever bath  —  A giant tortoise living on the British outpost of St Helena is given a clean-up ahead of Royal visit.  —  The world's oldest living animal, a 184-year-old giant tortoise, has had its first ever bath.

North Carolina Overturns LGBT-Discrimination Bans  —  DURHAM, N.C.—The North Carolina General Assembly called lawmakers back to Raleigh on Wednesday for a special session.  The reason wasn't a pressing budget crisis, a natural disaster, or court-mandated redistricting.  (That happened last month.)

A PR boss who asked a Muslim woman to ‘explain Brussels’ has been arrested on suspicion of inciting racial hatred.  —  Matthew Doyle, an LSE alumnus and partner at a south London-based talent agency, sparked outrage on social media after he ‘confronted’ a Muslim woman about the Brussels attacks which killed 34 people.

Colorado School District to Begin Distribution of Satanic Materials to Children  —  After coming under fire from atheist groups for the distribution of free Bibles, the Delta County School District (DCSD) has approved the circulation of atheistic, secular and Satanic literature to middle and high school students.

Ga. parents offended by the ‘Far East religion’ of yoga, get ‘Namaste’ banned from school  —  “We need to direct our attention inward and connect to the breath,” yoga instructor Rachel Brathen writes in her New York Times best-selling book about the practice.

Biden accuses GOP of threatening democracy in Supreme Court standoff  —  Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday cast the Senate's refusal to consider Judge Merrick Garland's nomination to the Supreme Court as a viral dysfunction that would infect other branches of government and threaten the American democracy.

In N.F.L., Deeply Flawed Concussion Research and Ties to Big Tobacco  —  The National Football League was on the clock.  —  With several of its marquee players retiring early after a cascade of frightening concussions, the league formed a committee in 1994 that would ultimately issue …

Obama's tango ripped on ‘Morning Joe’  —  On Wednesday evening, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama danced the tango at a state dinner in Argentina.  By the next morning, a bipartisan chorus of disapproval of the optics was bursting out on MSNBC's “Morning Joe.”

Apple's First Foray Into Original TV Is a Series About Apps  —  Apple's ambitions to go head to head with Netflix and create its own lineup of exclusive movies and TV shows has long been the subject of much chatter and speculation.  —  But its first original TV project …

Shadow campaign to deny Trump his delegates begins  —  When South Dakota's Republican activists convened in Pierre to pick their delegates to the Republican National Convention, they got an unexpected visitor.  —  Merle Madrid, senior aide to Ohio Gov. John Kasich, had flown in from Columbus …

Microsoft's ‘teen girl’ AI turns into a Hitler-loving sex robot within 24 hours  —  What happens when you introduce an innocent Artificial Intelligence chat robot to Twitter?  Well, it's kind of predictable - you get an evil Hitler-loving, incestual sex-promoting, 'Bush did 9/11'-proclaiming robot.

McConnell: Trump ‘very cordial’ to me  —  has been polite with him, even as the GOP front-runner's controversial comments make headlines.  —  “He's never said anything caustic about me, and he was very cordial,” McConnell told a local Kentucky radio station on Thursday.

Two Lawyers Walk into a Bar.  And Get Kicked Out for Being Black.  —  Issues :  —  Racial Justice  —  We began the evening on a quest for a good karaoke night, and went to a bar called Brig. After waiting for more than half an hour to sing, we started to wonder when our number would be called.

You know you're in trouble when you say what Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley just said  —  Trump loves to say these ‘facts.’ Here's where he's wrong. … State of the 2016 race  —  In the hours after a former friend and fired top cop told the media he could prove Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley …

'I'm still cheering Bernie on,' Elizabeth Warren says  —  QUINCY, Mass. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren waded deeper into the presidential primary debate Thursday, sharpening her criticism of Donald Trump and cheering on Bernie Sanders.  —  The Massachusetts Democrat described …

CBO trims tally for ObamaCare enrollment  —  The Congressional Budget Office on Thursday slightly lowered its projections for ObamaCare enrollment, trimming its tally by about 1 million people.  —  About 12 million people are now expected to have ObamaCare coverage by the end of 2016, according to the nonpartisan budget office.

SHOCKING CLAIMS: Pervy Ted Cruz Caught Cheating — With 5 Secret Mistresses!  —  The romps that could destroy his presidential campaign!  —  Presidential candidate Ted Cruz is trying to survive an explosive “dirt file” on the finger-wagging conservative senator!

Pope washes feet of Muslim migrants, says ‘we are brothers’  —  CASTELNUOVO DI PORTO, Italy — Pope Francis washed and kissed the feet of Muslim, Christian and Hindu refugees Thursday and declared them all children of the same God, as he performed a gesture of welcome and brotherhood …

Donald Trump Hates Women  —  It's the one position he's never changed.  —  Donald Trump holds one core belief.  It's not limited government.  He favored a state takeover of health care before he was against it.  Nor is it economic populism.  Despite many years of arguing the necessity …

Trumpism After Trump  —  There is now no possibility that the Republican Party will survive its rendezvous with Donald Trump unbroken.  —  If Trump is the party's nominee, the best-case scenario — the best case! — for G.O.P. unity probably involves a host of Republican officials withholding …