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Cardi B's announcement she's covering funeral costs for all the victims of the historically deadly Bronx apartment fire has one man -- who lost 5 relatives -- calling Cardi an "angel."

Haji Dukuray's niece was killed in the blaze, along with her husband and 3 children ... and Cardi is making sure he doesn't have to worry about finding the money to bury 5 family members.

Haji, who used to drive 200 miles from his Delaware home to see his niece and her family in the Bronx, tells TMZ ... Cardi is an angel and his family can't thank her enough for what she's done.

He says it's a huge help to his family to not bear the financial burden ... and he's sending Cardi blessings for stepping up to help so many people she's never met.

As we reported, the inferno engulfed a 19-story apartment building in the Bronx earlier this month, killing 9 adults and 8 children -- the city's deadliest fire in more than 3 decades.

Cardi, a Bronx native, vowed to cover funeral expenses and worked with NYC Mayor Eric Adams' office to make it happen.

Haji says he got word of Cardi's gift from Mayor Adams' people -- and had no idea, initially, the rapper was their benefactor.

Remember, Fat Joe is helping rally celebs for relief efforts, and he told us most of the people living in the building were immigrants who lost everything in the blaze.

We got Jim Jones at Impact Zone Gym in New Jersey and asked him about Cardi's gesture ... and he praised her too, saying he would expect nothing less.

Farrah Abraham is apparently gearing up for a lawsuit against the venue whose guards made her eat dirt — but at the same time, her alleged victim is also showing off what she says are licks she claims Farrah inflicted.

The "Teen Mom" star's attorney, Kia Feyzjou, tells TMZ that she and their team are, at the very least, exploring a civil suit surrounding the events from last weekend ... which ended with Farrah arrested for battery. The reason, we're told, is because Farrah and co. believe she was wrongfully placed under citizen's arrest in the first place by the lounge's staff.

Feyzjou says that the initial citizen's arrest was unlawful so the real cops shouldn't have taken her into custody.

Not just that, but Feyzjou says the venue's security guards who had her pinned to the ground used excessive force in restraining her ... allegedly leaving Farrah in a lot of pain and distress after the fact. That's something else Feyzjou thinks might give her client grounds for a lawsuit.

Farrah, of course, has already spoken her piece in this ... insisting she was unfairly singled out and mistreated.

On the flip side, the security guard whom Farrah is alleged to have hit that night is also speaking out ... sticking to her story that Farrah, indeed, did strike her -- and posting photo evidence she says backs up her claim.

The woman, Megan Armstrong, has thrown up a few different posts on Instagram to air her grievances against Farrah, and the one photo she has of her mug appears to show her rocking a shiner.

On "Wheel of Fortune" you're either a winner or a loser -- but one contestant who many feel got screwed into taking an 'L' ... still managed to scoop up a brand new Audi.

That's right, on Monday Charlene Rubush finally got some justice when she took home a brand new Audi Q3 3, the SUV she would've won when she was on 'Wheel' ... if not for a technicality.

In case you missed it, Charlene lost during a final round last month after solving the phrase "CHOOSING THE RIGHT WORD." The problem is she paused too long before saying "word" -- well, at least that's what Pat Sajak and the 'Wheel' judges deemed. Watch the clip ... easy to see why viewers were outraged.

Anyway, she missed out on taking home a $40,000 Audi Q3 -- but now the Audi dealer in Henderson, NV came through for her. Charlene tells TMZ ... “The car drives so well. I'm loving it!! Much needed since my husband and I have been sharing one car since we moved here 3 years ago!”

After Charlene's episode, Audi actually tweeted that she was still a winner in their eyes. They tracked her down to gift her with the car anyway. And, yes they covered the entire cost ... including taxes!!!

In the beginning, man learned not to trust serpents — but even in the 21st century, they’re still biting us in the ass ... or in Maeta’s case, the face.

The 21-year-old R&B singer -- who's signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation -- dished about what exactly led up to her viral snake bite — of which she shared in BTS footage last month, showing her get nipped on the chin — and apparently .... it wasn’t really her idea to begin with.

Check it out ... Maeta tells us the whole snake idea came courtesy of the directors who worked on the video to her single, “Habits,” which she says she just rolled with. And, as for the snippy snake itself, she actually says there’s no hard feelings!

Fortunately for her, the reptile wasn’t venomous ... nor were its fangs all that long. Still, Maeta says the little bastard’s bite did indeed draw blood — but she doesn’t hold anything against it. Sounds like it was just a freak thing from Mother Nature.

While she says it was scarier in the moment than after the fact — considering the sheer shock value of getting chomped on — Maeta does have this to say about the prospect of ever working with these slithering creatures in the future ... hell to the no.

She’s taking a page out of Adam and Eve’s playbook ... and ditching snake play for any other projects going forward.

Antonio Brown is finally addressing his mental health, adamantly claiming there's absolutely NOTHING wrong with his mental well-being ... during an in-depth sit-down interview with Brandon Marshall.

The 7x Pro Bowler joined Marshall's "I AM ATHLETE" show with ex-NBA star Nick Young and former 1st round NFL draft pick Jared Odrick ... where they chopped it up about everything from AB's future in the league to whether he has regrets about the end of his Bucs tenure.

Brown -- who has heard endless fans and experts refer to him as "crazy" -- also addressed his psyche ... and he didn't mince words.

"Why every time something happens bad, or how someone reacts, 'Aw, he's crazy, there's something wrong with his mental health,'" AB asked.

"There's nothing wrong with my mental health. Someone told me to get the f**k out of here. I'm not passive-aggressive."

Of course, Brown is referring to the reaction after he took his jersey, pads, and shirt off in the middle of the game for the Jets, before walking off the field.

During the interview, AB again put the onus on Bruce Arians ... insisting the Bucs head coach knew he was injured, but just didn't give a crap, and attempted to force him to play with a serious injury.

"An NFL Super Bowl team coach told a guy on the team who's playing hurt 'get the f*** out of here.'"

AB's 2021 season is obviously over. Question is, does AB -- one of the greatest WR's of his generation -- ever play another down of NFL football?

During the interview with Brandon and the guys, sources tell us Antonio makes it crystal clear he wants to play, but accepts it's also dependent on an NFL squad signing him.

That could a long shot after the way his tenure in Las Vegas, New England and Tampa Bay ended.

Before this rosy-cheeked runt was casting spells on audience members everywhere, he was just another blonde boy dressed up in a suit and bowtie in Epsom, United Kingdom.

This cute kid was only a few years older than this when he scored the role of a lifetime in a fantastical film series ... where he could be quite the snake at school. The adapted novel is one of the best-selling books around the world.

Just a few weeks ago, he joined the entire cast for a long-awaited reunion special to discuss the magical experiences of the epic franchise.

Chris Daughtry's daughter Hannah Price died from suicide by hanging, while under the influence of narcotics... this according to her family.

TMZ broke the story ... Hannah was found dead in her home back in November, although the cause of death was uncertain at the time. The Daughtry family now says Hannah took her own life.

Deanna and Chris said Hannah struggled with mental illness and later turned to drugs and found herself in abusive relationships, adding, "We did everything we could to support her and get her the help she needed to recover from these tragedies and get her life back on track."

Law enforcement told us Hannah's boyfriend Bobby was arrested the same day her body was found... at the time, police didn't reveal the reason behind his arrest.

Chris and Deanna now say the morning of her death, she contacted her parents in fear for her life... claiming her boyfriend had physically abused her. When officers arrived, they concluded she was fine. After her death, Bobby was arrested on an unrelated matter.

Chris Daughtry said he was absolutely devastated and heartbroken, in an emotional Instagram post... and canceled his concert tour.

Chris and his wife Deanna met back in 2000... Deanna had two children-- Hannah and her brother Griffin -- from a previous relationship. Chris and Deanna later had twins Adalynn Rose and Noah James.

The creator of "Full House" is selling his house for a fortune ... and it's got a lot of history to it.

Real estate sources tell TMZ ... sitcom creator Jeff Franklin is moving on and is inviting buyers who are interested to make an offer ... buyers, that is, who have $85 mil to spend.

The house sits on the land where the Manson Family slaughtered Sharon Tate, Abigail Folger, Steven Parent, Wojciech Frykowski and Jay Sebring back in 1969. The house was razed in 1994 and a new mansion was built in its place.

There's more recent history ... Jeff hosted the reception for Bob Saget's family after his funeral last week.

The home is 21,000-square feet with 9 bedrooms and 19 bathrooms and sits on 3-acres, with a jetliner view of the city.

The modern estate is decked out with a movie theater, spa, gym, hair salon, billiards room and a bar ... and the backyard features a 75-yard pool with 3 waterfalls, 2 Jacuzzis, a 35-foot water slide, swim-up bar, private grotto, koi pond, lazy river, cabana, BBQ area and fire pits.

Oh and we didn't mention the detached guest house and an underground garage with room for 16 cars.

Former professional skateboarder Evan Hernandez was just smacked with a 97-month federal prison sentence ... after pleading guilty to selling nearly 2 pounds of methamphetamine.

35-year-old Hernandez -- who's from Long Beach, CA -- also admitted to laundering Bitcoin for other dark web drug traffickers.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Hernandez "distributed narcotics, conspiring with drug dealers to distribute the controlled substances over one of the world’s largest darknet marketplaces" from (at least) March 2018 to March 2019.

The DOJ claims EH sold 1.97 lbs. of methamphetamine to a federal informant for $5K in 2018, unbeknownst to him.

Back in the day, Hernandez skated for the popular brand, Baker. His social media page also claims he's signed to Lil Wayne's brand, TRUKFIT.

In addition to supplying drugs himself, the DOJ says Hernandez also supplied illicit narcotics to other drug dealers like William Glarner IV, who received a 10-year prison sentence himself for slinging drugs.

Federal officials say Hernandez "was involved in a highly sophisticated drug-trafficking operation, where he personally took on various roles to ensure its success: obtaining multiple types of narcotics, selling them directly to customers, and laundering money on the backend in a sophisticated manner."

The man who allegedly stabbed an L.A. woman to death this week has been arrested ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Shawn Laval Smith was arrested Wednesday morning in Pasadena for the murder of Brianna Kupfer.

We're told a random citizen saw the man on the street and he felt it matched the wanted picture, so he called the police. Cops raced to the scene, found the man who did indeed match the description, took him back to the station. We're told police have now confirmed the person arrested is Smith.

As we reported, the 24-year-old woman was working in a high-end furniture store in L.A. when a man came in wielding a knife and repeatedly stabbed her. The killer was seen casually walking away in a nearby alley.

Cops say the culprit was Smith, who was seen on surveillance video an hour later buying a vape pen at a 7-Eleven.

The murder sent shockwaves through L.A. ... which has been experiencing a crime wave, along with many other problems.

Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon came into 2022 as a married man -- announcing he secretly tied the knot with his fiancé on New Year's Eve!!

"SURPRISE 🥂 WE ARE MARRIED," the 32-year-old said alongside photos with his new hubby, Jussi-Pekka Kajaala, on social media Wednesday.

"One afternoon JP and I looked at each other and said the very classic *romantic* phrase of let’s just go do it now.' So we did."

Rippon says the two got hitched right in Los Angeles on NYE ... with their Pitbull mix, Tony, in attendance.

"It was just the three of us," Rippon said, "and it was perfect 12/31/21."

Rippon and the 34-year-old real estate broker got engaged in December 2020 -- after meeting on Tinder in 2018.

Rippon retired the same year they met. During his career, he won the bronze medal in the 2018 Winter Olympics, two World Junior Championships, and the Four Continent Championship.

Rippon also won season 26 of "Dancing With The Stars" with Jenna Johnson -- and was on the list of TIME's 100 Most Influential People of 2018.

Jesse Williams is in the legal hot seat after a woman claims he fled the scene of a car accident -- but the actor's attorney is firing back, claiming she's making the whole thing up in an attempt to make big money.

The woman, Paula Bruce, just filed a personal injury lawsuit against the "Grey's Anatomy" star claiming he caused a January 2020 accident in L.A., and then fled the scene. Bruce says she's suffered emotional distress and lost out on wages because of injuries suffered in the crash.

However, Jesse's attorney, William Briggs, tells the story differently -- admitting Williams did rear-end Bruce but absolutely did not "flee" the scene.

Briggs tells us after the crash, Bruce told Jesse she was alright, and when Jesse called the cops they advised both parties to simply exchange insurance info, as there were no injuries. Briggs says Jesse stuck around to take photos of the crash (which he provided to us) and got Bruce's insurance and license info.

After all info was exchanged, Briggs says Jesse's assistant came and waited at the scene for a tow truck, and Jesse left to avoid the paparazzi arriving.

Briggs tells us Jesse checked in on Bruce a few days after the crash -- who allegedly still said she was fine -- and he thought it would all be handled by insurance.

Briggs says all was quiet until a couple weeks ago when Bruce's attorney contacted Jesse's insurance to demand $1.6 million for a "hit and run." Briggs says he attempted to speak with Bruce's attorney, who informed him the lawsuit was going to be filed.

Baker Mayfield finally had surgery on his injured shoulder Wednesday ... and he said it went so well, he's hoping this is a step toward getting back to his "true self."

The Cleveland Browns QB initially injured the shoulder in September while trying to make a tackle following an interception ... and he never seemed to be quite right afterward.

He struggled all year long ... throwing 13 INTs to just 17 TDs, and the Browns ended up missing the playoffs.

But, Baker said just hours after surgery wrapped that he's confident he can now get back to his pre-injury level -- even though the rehab road promises to be grueling.

"It's not going to be an easy one," Mayfield said, "but it's going to be one I'm going to remember, and it's going to be a special one."

Baker added, "This is not the end of my story."

Alec Baldwin is being dragged to court by the family of a Marine killed in Afghanistan ... they claim the actor falsely accused one of them of being a January 6th rioter and sicced his fans on them.

Alec is being sued by relatives of late Marine Rylee McCollum, who was one of the 13 U.S. service members killed in last August's bombing outside the Kabul airport during the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, McCollum's family claims Alec found out about the Marine's death and sent his widow $5,000 via the marine's sister ... but they say the nice gesture turned into a nightmare for the family.

In the docs, the McCollum family claims Alec went on a social media rant ... commenting on a picture the Marine's sister posted of her at the Washington Monument on Jan. 6, before the riot at the Capitol.

According to the suit, Alec commented ... "Are you the same woman that I sent the $ to for your sister’s husband who was killed during the Afghanistan exit?"

The family claims Alec then began exchanging direct messages with the Marine's sister, accusing her of being a "January 6th rioter" and telling her to "own it."

In the docs, the family says Alec even posted a photo of the Marine's sister on his Instagram, which led to tons of his 2.4 million followers threatening and harassing the McCollum family online.

The Marine's sister claims she did not participate in the Capitol riot, adding she didn't even go to the Capitol ... and says she's already been interviewed by the FBI and was cleared of any wrongdoing.

According to the suit, the family claims Alec's social media behavior was negligent and reckless and he should have known making allegations against them in front of his followers would cause the family harm.

The Marine's sisters and widow are suing Baldwin for defamation, negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress and more ... and seeking more than $25 million in damages.

NBA superstar Devin Booker might not be the most athletic person in his relationship after all ...

Here's video of Kendall Jenner absolutely carving up a mountain on a snowboarding trip in Aspen on Wednesday -- reaching high speeds and hitting jumps with ease!

The supermodel (and Booker's girlfriend) posted the footage of her epic run to her social media page ... and it's clear, she's got skills on the board.

Kendall flew down the mountain and stuck the landing on two jumps ... and then nearly landed a third one flawlessly before she skidded to a stop on her backside.

Of course, the Shaun White-style athleticism shouldn't surprise anybody -- Kendall's got great genes (thanks, Caitlyn Jenner!) and is one of the most in-shape people on the planet.