Chris Pratt wore a shirt that repped the "Don't Tread On Me" flag, which has now been labeled by some as "racist" and something white supremacists use ... but that's not entirely accurate.

Here's the deal ... Chris was out in L.A. with his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, earlier this week ... and he was wearing a navy t-shirt with the American flag on it and a rattlesnake superimposed, sitting atop the phrase "Don't Tread On Me." It's a mash-up of Old Glory and the Gadsden flag. 

Chris has been criticized over the past few days for repping the flag and the slogan -- originally created during the Revolutionary War as a message from the American colonies to England. It has since been adopted by the Tea Party and other far-right political groups. 

The Gadsden flag has also been used by some white supremacists in recent years -- most notably in 2014 when the bodies of 2 dead police officers were draped with the Gadsden flag that also bore swastikas. It's also been seen in the same company as confederate and Nazi flags.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled in 2016 that the flag alone could be viewed as racial harassment in the workplace, depending on the context. While it noted the flag doesn't have racist origins, today it can be "sometimes interpreted to convey racially-tinged messages in some contexts." The agency called for further investigation.

The reason why Chris Pratt is being called out might have to do with a Yahoo UK article that flat-out called his wardrobe a "white supremacist" shirt ... making the leap many other outlets wouldn't.

Quavo will think twice and maybe three times before ever stepping foot on Swedish soil again, because he says he -- just like A$AP Rocky -- was abused by Swedish cops.

We got Quavo early Wednesday in WeHo leaving Bootsy Bellows, and the Migos star shared something he's never talked publicly about before ... he and his cameraman were cornered by Swedish cops, put on the ground and almost arrested.

Quavo makes it seem like it happened very shortly after arriving in the country.  

As we reported, A$AP is being treated like a convicted criminal, sitting in a Swedish jail for weeks and authorities haven't even charged him with a crime. He's under investigation for aggravated assault where the alleged victim is a man who was harassing and physically attacking A$AP and his crew before the incident that landed the rapper in jail.

The State Dept. is now involved, trying to get A$AP out of custody while he awaits the decision of Swedish prosecutors.

Floyd Mayweather only had to wait one week to get revenge on Bone Collector's super embarrassing ankle breaking incident -- and this time, Floyd got out alive!!

The Champ took the first L of his career last week ... falling flat on his ass after trying to defend the streetball legend at the $50k Charity Challenge Celeb hoops game at UCLA.

But, Floyd didn't back down on Tuesday when he got back on the court in L.A. for the Quavo x Legends Celebrity Charity Game at the Mamba Sports Academy.

This time, Floyd again matched up with BC -- but didn't get juked out of his jockstrap. In fact, Floyd's team actually won! 

Bone Collector was still able to do his thing, though ... putting 'Wild 'n Out' star Dan Rue in a blender and crossing him up.

But, the best part of the game ... the NFL STARS PUT ON A DUNK SHOW!!!!

Terrell Owens and Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku went HAM on the court -- really impressive stuff. 

Team Quavo ended up taking the title away from Team 2 Chainz ... but the game raised a BUNCH of money for charity, so everyone wins!!

It's a "Black Mirror" episode come to life -- Elon Musk is developing a chip to implant in the brain that allows humans to control computers with their minds ... and says a monkey's already done it.

The tech guru made the stunning announcement Tuesday to employees at his neurotechnology company, Neuralink. While answering a question about testing the chip on animals, Musk said the results have been "very positive," and went on to boast ... "A monkey has been able to control a computer with its brain, just FYI."

Elon didn't elaborate, but some of the results of the testing are expected in a report soon, and he says the company hopes to start testing on humans before the end of the year.

So, what exactly is the goal of this? Musk wants to create a "brain-computer interface," and design a chip that can be implanted in the brain capable of transmitting signals with it.

He says the short-term goal would be to treat various brain disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, but ultimately ... Musk's mission is to achieve "symbiosis with artificial intelligence."

Translation -- our brains would be directly connected to computers for mutual benefit. You'll literally have Google on the brain.

Leo Durocher, EAT YOUR HEART OUT!!!

A 6-year-old "coach" for a college summer league baseball team got his ass EJECTED on Saturday after kicking dirt on the umpire ... and the video is AMAZING!!

The kid is Coach Drake of the Kalamazoo Growlers -- which competes in the Northwoods League -- and when the umpire blew an obvious, Drake WENT HAM ON THE BUM! 

He stomped around. He wagged his finger. He kicked dirt and he got all up in the ump's grill -- so he got tossed. 

But, that's just the beginning ... 

Coach Drake stormed back into his dugout and started throwing bats onto the field. 

The best part is when he grabs a 5 gallon bucket of balls and tries to spill 'em onto the diamond ... and the struggle with the bucket is epic. 

Nipsey Hussle was not going to be prosecuted for any type of gang activity at the time of his death ... the LAPD was trying to curb gang activity in and around his store, but he was never the target, according to law enforcement sources.

As TMZ and the New York Times reported, the LAPD and L.A. City Attorney were investigating Nipsey and his business partners for alleged gang activity at his Marathon Clothing store and the surrounding strip mall.

Sources connected to the 2 agencies now tell us, they weren't specifically targeting Nipsey -- they say the investigation centered around abating gang activity in the area, which has been a long-standing problem.

No one from either agency would be specific as to their end game. And, no one from either agency could explain why Nipsey's name was specifically mentioned in connection with the investigation, especially since they now say he wasn't a target.

One high-ranking law enforcement source tells TMZ, the investigation is now a hot potato in the wake of Nipsy's murder, because the City has hailed him as a hero and someone who was trying to prevent gang violence. 

Nipsey shunned gang activity at Marathon and although he allowed gang members to enter his shop he forbade any violence. As a matter of fact, he employed past felons and ex-gang members to keep them on the straight and narrow. 

By the way ... Nipsey's family closed the Marathon store after his death, but the online shop is still up and running.

Joe Jonas and his bride, Sophie Turner, are still honeymooning under the Southern Italian sun -- and even though they're two weeks deep ... they're treating each day like it's their first.

The couple was spotted Sunday near the shores of the cliffside village of Positano -- and as they made their way down a set of stairs to board a boat ... Joe made sure to capture all the moments.

Sophie had his back too -- he was looking one way firing off shots of the coast, and she was keeping watch on the other side ... making sure he didn't miss anything. Teamwork makes the newlywed dream work!

Before their boat ride, Sophie and Joe enjoyed themselves a couple refreshing spritzers with some smooching in between. It's like they just left the altar!

The couple's been in Italy for at least 14 days now -- they got hitched in late June over in France ... and then jetted down to Italy to soak in some rays ... like just about every other famous traveler, it seems. The also-freshly-married Kat McPhee and David Foster were also honeymooning on a nearby yacht.

R. Kelly isn't the only man who can put a roof over the head of his alleged victims ... Azriel Clary's father is also dangling free rent, if she opens up communication with her family.

Angelo Clary tells TMZ ... he's ready and willing to put his daughter up in her own place in Chicago, as long as she moves out of Kelly's Trump Tower condo and makes contact with her relatives.

Azriel's dad says the deal even extends to Kelly's other live-in "girlfriend," Joycelyn Savage ... if that's what it takes to get the women away from the embattled singer's clutches.

With Kelly in jail for the foreseeable future after the judge denied bond during Tuesday's hearing ... Angelo is making an impassioned plea for his daughter and Joycelyn to finally cut ties with Kelly, and he's trying to sweeten the pot anyway he can.

We broke the story ... Azriel and Joycelyn claim they've recently been cut off from Kelly's funding, but also say they're still living in his high-rise condo, and plan to stay there. We're told Kelly paid rent through the end of the year.

LeBron James brought a pretty special guest to his weekly "Taco Tuesday" dinners ... Anthony Davis!!! 

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar usually has family dinner on Tuesdays with his wife, Savannah, and kids -- but this time, he made some room for his new 6'10" superstar teammate. 

And, if you think AD got out of screaming out "Taco Tuuuesday" like the rest of the fam ... you're wrong!"

In fact, Bron is such a Taco Tuesday superfan, he wore a brand new "Taco Tuesday" t-shirt to dinner ... which is like wearing a shirt of your favorite band to your favorite band's concert.

Weird, never saw Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram or Josh Hart at Taco Tuesday ... and now it seems like we never will!

Bron and Davis have been growing close ever since he signed with the Lakers -- we even spotted the two shooting around on the set of "Space Jam 2" earlier this summer. 

The real-life Peter Parker is staying true to the comics -- cuddling up with a beautiful blonde who's reminiscent of Spidey's first love, and who's also a big fan of beer!

"Spider-Man: Far From Home" star Tom Holland was spotted Sunday hanging out with a mystery chick at British Summer Time Hyde Park Festival in London, where the pair could be seen double-fisting beers and what appeared to be water cups as they went off to watch music acts. 

We're told Tom and his lady friend were spotted watching The Black Eyed Peas and Robbie Williams at different points. Based on what we see here, things seem pretty romantic between 'em.

The woman is definitely rocking a Gwen Stacy vibe, and was pretty handsy with Tommy boy ... putting her arm around his waist, and even giving him a pat on the booty. As they strolled along, they got closer and closer -- practically linking arms.

Funny enough, Tom's way more of a smooth operator here than he is on camera opposite Zendaya -- who plays MJ. As Petey P, Tom's a goofy, awkward teen navigating love. 

Here, he's more like notorious playboy Bruce Wayne (pardon the Marvel-DC crossover).

UFC stud Jorge Masvidal will NOT get a crack at Conor McGregor, despite his record-breaking victory over Ben Askren ... so says Dana White. 

"Hell no," White told us ... explaining that Masvidal is a welterweight fighter (170 lbs) and he's simply too big for take on the smaller McGregor, who fights at lightweight (154 lbs). 

"There's plenty of fights for him in his weight division without Conor," White said ... "He's too big for Conor. [McGregor] doesn't belong in 170."

"[Conor] has the balls to fight at 170, but he doesn't belong there."

So, when WILL Conor return to the Octagon and who will he fight? 

White says he expects to see Conor back in action either at the end of 2019 or early 2020 -- but he won't commit to an opponent until Khabib Nurmagomedov fights Dustin Poirier in September.

McGregor will NOT automatically get the winner of that fight -- but White says it will be easier to matchmake after that fight goes down. 

"A lot of things will shake out and we'll see who's next."

Conor hasn't fought since UFC 229 back in October 2018 when he lost to Khabib -- and he's currently nursing an injured left hand he busted up during a recent training session. 

San Francisco born Taran Noah Smith was only 7 years old when he shot to stardom for playing the youngest Taylor son, Mark, on the clumsy construction comedy "Home Improvement" from 1991 to 1999. 

Taran Noah Smith was cast alongside an awesome ensemble of on-screen family including Zachery Ty Bryan as his brother eldest Brad, Jonathan Taylor Thomas as the middle child Randy, Patricia Richardson as the level-headed mom Jill and of course Tim Allan as the hilarious dad Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor.  

Since his long run on the classic '90s comedy, Smith has stayed out of the entertainment biz.

Da Brat is going to bat for Jermaine Dupri ... she sees a silver lining in his controversial comments about today's female artists, even though he said they sound like "strippers rapping."

Da Brat was at LAX Tuesday when a photog asked about Jermaine stirring up controversy and firing up Cardi B ... DB says his hot take is part of a master plan to start a discussion that's a long time coming.

In case you missed it ... last week Jermaine said Da Brat paved the way for women in the rap game, but when he was asked about his favorite contemporary female artists, he said the industry is filled with the same content from different voices, and they all sound like strippers.