THE END OF AN ERA

LAWRENCE, told People that the actress died at 1:00 a.m. Thursday morning after suffering a massive stroke. Lawrence said that McClanahan had her "family with her" when she passed away.

McClanahan, who played man-crazed Southern belle Blanche Deveraux on The Golden Girls, is the third star from that hit '80s sitcom to pass away in the last few years. BEA ARTHUR died last year, and ESTELLE GETTY died in 2008. BETTY WHITE is now the only one of the four original cast members still with us. White said in a statement to multiple media outlets, "Rue was a close and dear friend. I treasure our relationship. It hurts more than I ever thought it would, if that’s even possible." Golden Girls ran on NBC from 1985 to 1992, and lives on in syndication.

McClanahan first gained notoriety by appearing on the soap opera Another World. In the seventies, she appeared in Maude, opposite her future Golden Girls co-star Bea Arthur, playing Maude's best friend, Vivian Cavender Harmon. She also portrayed Fran Crowley on Mama's Family before joining the cast of The Golden Girls. She won an Emmy Award for her performance on The Golden Girls in 1987 and also appeared in the spinoff series, Golden Palace.

McClanahan underwent heart bypass surgery last year. She also received treatment for breast cancer in 1997.


CELEBS AND THEIR BIRTHDAY PARTIES!

Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale celebrated Kingston’s 4th birthday, by spending $15,000. 100 guests, bouncy castle, face painter, balloon artist, people dressed up as super heroes, a lemonade stand and a cotton candy machine, as well as the standard burgers, dogs, chicken fingers and fries. Oh and PS Suri Cruise is also 4, and she just got an i-Pad.

IN THEATRES

Here's a look at the new movies opening nationwide Friday:

* Get Him to the Greek -- RUSSELL BRAND reprises his Forgetting Sarah Marshall role of the brash British rock star Aldous Snow. It's up to record executive Aaron Green, played by JONAH HILL, to get Aldous from London to the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles for the first show of his tour. The assignment is easier said than done. ELISABETH MOSS, ROSE BYRNE and DIDDY co-star, while a host of other celebrities, including CHRISTINA AGUILERA, PINK and MARIO LOPEZ, play themselves. Rated R.

* Marmaduke -- The comic strip dog leaps off the newspaper and onto the big screen in a live-action film. OWEN WILSON supplies the voice of the beloved Great Dane, who finds a love interest after moving with his owners to Orange County, California. GEORGE LOPEZ, WILLIAM H. MACY, AMANDA SEYFRIED, JEREMY PIVEN and pop star FERGIE are also part of the voice cast. Rated PG.

* Killers -- KATHERINE HEIGL is a married woman who doesn't realize that her new husband, played by ASHTON KUTCHER, is a spy, whereupon action and hilarity ensue. Rated PG-13.

* Splice -- Genetic engineers splice DNA in order to create a part-human, part-animal being that ultimately terrorizes them. ADRIEN BRODY stars. Rated R.

MTV VMA'S

The always-irreverent MTV Movie Awards will be staged this Sunday at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California. It will represent SANDRA BULLOCK's first public appearance since she filed for divorce from her estranged husband, JESSE JAMES, after he cheated on her. She'll attend the ceremony and accept MTV's Generation Award for her contributions to Hollywood.

The Hangover enters the ceremony with a leading six nominations, including best movie. MTV has added three new categories to the mix this year: "Best Scared-As-S*** Performance," "Biggest Badass Star" and "Global Superstar." Voting for all of the categories will remain open at MTV.com until Saturday, with the exception of the best movie category. You can cast your vote in that category until just before the winner is announced on Sunday.

According to E! Online, MTV will show clips from at least one of the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows films during the ceremony. The first film in the two-part conclusion of the Harry Potter series opens in November.

Comedian and Parks & Recreation star AZIZ ANSARI will host the 19th Annual MTV Movie Awards this Sunday, beginning at 9:00 p.m. Eastern time.