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The troubling story about Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches allegedly abandoning his Cane Corso has a happy ending ... because the sweet pooch has found a new forever home.

TMZ's learned the dog, whose name is Jitterbug, has been adopted by a woman named Andrea Johnson and her husband, Keith. Andrea tells us they already have a Cane Corso, and when they heard there was another at a Tampa rescue they drove to meet the pup and interview to adopt her.

Andrea says she explained to the rescue that Jitterbug would be in loving and caring hands because she and Keith are familiar with the breed ... and they have a large home with a big backyard and a pool.

Plus, Jitterbug will have a new canine pal in their other Cane Corso, whose name is Addi.

The rescue group approved and the Johnsons picked Jitterbug up on New Year's Eve after she was spayed. We're told she's doing great ... and enjoyed her first meal of 2020 -- steak and sweet potatoes.

More positive news -- Andrea tells us she reached out to Rakeem's wife about Jitterbug to learn more about her temperament and what she likes, and she was very helpful.

Andrea says the wife filled her in on all the commands the dog knows, what food she prefers, her love of walks and car rides and that she's a great house dog and very chill.

We're told Rakeem's wife claims they had to give Jitterbug away because they are expecting a child, but it's still unclear how the dog ended up abandoned on the side of a busy road.

As we reported ... the Tampa Bay Bucs are looking into the situation.

Ricki Lake's goal in 2020 and beyond is to be free and real -- starting with her hair, which has been a major source of pain in her life ... but she vows no more.

The "Hairspray" star and former talk show host just revealed her new buzz-cut hairdo, and the story that goes with it is both heart-wrenching and inspiring.

Ricki starts with the good news -- her haircut isn't a sign that she's sick or suffering through a mid-life crisis or a mental breakdown, but she has been suffering ... through decades of hair loss.

Lake says the struggle has been "debilitating, embarrassing, painful, scary, depressing, lonely" and adds ... "There have been a few times where I have even felt suicidal over it. Almost no one in my life knew the level of deep pain and trauma I was experiencing."

She says her hair loss began with her role in the 1988 film due to all the treatments and teasing of her locks, but over the years it was due to many other factors -- dieting, dyes, genetics, stress, hormonal birth control, pregnancies and so on.

Ricki says she's tried everything to restore her hair but it hasn't worked, so instead of going through the emotional pain over and over again ... she decided to set herself free.

She says, "I buzzed my hair off and it feels so good!"

The son of the woman who created "Orange Is the New Black" and "Weeds" has died in a skiing accident ... TMZ has learned.

20-year-old Charlie Noxon had an accident on the slopes of Park City, Utah on New Year's Eve. Law enforcement says he fell, and it was apparent he needed immediate medical attention. A helicopter from the University of Utah's Medivac Unit was dispatched and took Charlie to a nearby hospital. He was later pronounced dead.

Aside from saying Noxon fell, there were no other details available concerning the circumstances surrounding the accident.

Charlie appeared in an episode of "Weeds" back in 2008. His mom, Jenji Kohan, and his dad, journalist Christopher Noxon, divorced in 2018 after 21 years of marriage.

Charlie was in Park City with his dad and 2 siblings when the accident occurred.

Lady Gaga may have had the best New Year's Eve of anyone ... gettin' down onstage and off, and -- who's the dude?

Gaga brought the house down in Vegas, performing "Jazz + Piano" at Park Theater. She then beelined it down the strip to NoMad Restaurant and appeared at Brian Newman's "After Dark" show.

In the later appearance, Gaga sang "Fly Me to the Moon," and began a super sexy dance with Newman's wife, former Miss Exotic World winner Angie Pontani.

But then, at the stroke of midnight, Gaga shared a passionate kiss -- not a "friend" kiss by a longshot -- with a dark-haired, bearded dude named Michael. We don't know who he is, but Gaga sure does. She and Michael left hand-in-hand into the Vegas night.

The Weeknd kicked off a new decade by throwing a massive New Year's Eve bash at an $80 million estate.

The party went down in Bev Hills -- the super swanky part -- and the guest list was impressive. For starters, Travis Scott and French Montana attended, fresh off FM's scary, 2-week hospital stay.

In case you're wondering ... Kylie wasn't at the party with Travis. She was down the road in WeHo at Delilah nightclub.

The food was scaled down awesomeness -- tacos, french fries and churros. There was also an open bar.

Post Malone quite literally got the New Year started off on the wrong foot ... because he ate it during his big performance on ABC's big show.

Post was one of the many performances who jumped on stage in Time's Square as the countdown ticked off the last moments of the decade.

What's unclear ... was Post already in the crowd when he lost his footing or did he flat-out fall off the stage? What is clear ... security had to help him up.

Whatever happened ... Post seemed to take it in stride as he smiled to the crowd.

And, this may be nothing, but check this out. We got Post out Tuesday morning and he was wearing the same pinstripe suit he wore when he was talking to Ryan Seacrest.

Kendall Jenner and Ben Simmons shared the New Year's Eve festivities together, further fueling rumors they're back together.

Kendall and Ben were in downtown Philly, where he rented out Attico, the rooftop restaurant, for an NYE bash. K & B strolled in at around 11:30 PM and stayed for the Cinderella moment.

Ben and Kendall have been dating on and off since 2018. They broke up shortly after Kendall was photographed making out with Anwar Hadid, Gigi and Bella's little bro.

It seems they were only apart for a short time because as early as January 2019, she was hanging out at 76ers games with Ben's mom. They also spent Valentine's Day together last year.

The American star of the Australian reality show, "Bride and Prejudice," is dead.

26-year-old Micah Downey died suddenly Saturday -- it appears he died in the U.S. The cause of death has not been revealed.

Micah was engaged to Milly Johnson. The premise of the show is following couples planning on tying the knot when their families disapprove.

As for Micah and Milly, she's pregnant with their second child but said back in November they had broken up. There were reports -- unconfirmed -- that the relationship fell apart because of his alleged drug addiction.

Milly posted, "It is so sad & unbelievably surreal that i am making this post ... I am struggling to put into words how sad & heartbreaking this is. I just hope he is at peace wherever he is & that he will always be watching over his babies."

She ended by writing, "A bad, bad dream ... I can't believe you're not here. Rest in Peace, Micah."

Woooooooo!!!!!

WWE superstar Charlotte Flair is ringing in 2020 ... with a ring!!!

The 10-time WWE women's champ is officially engaged after her WWE superstar boyfriend, Andrade, popped the question on New Year's Eve!

"She said siiiiiiiiiiiiii!!!" 30-year-old Andrade announced late Tuesday night.

"Si," Flair posted herself a few minutes later.

Charlotte -- one of the biggest stars in pro wrestling and daughter of WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair -- went public with her relationship with Andrade back in April, when the two walked the red carpet at a Wrestlemania 35 event.

Andrade -- real name Manuel Alfonso Andrade Oropeza -- is having a pretty good week ... he won the WWE's U.S. title on Dec. 26 after defeating Rey Mysterio.

The Mexican-born wrestler turned pro back in 2003 and worked the lucha libre circuit for years before eventually signing with WWE back in 2015.

DaBaby, Diddy and DJ Khaled wanted to make it clear to the world ... New York was not the only place to jettison our last night in the decade ... Miami was in full-tilt celebration.

Lots of celebs crammed into Story Nightclub ... among them, Fat Joe, Winnie Harlow and Meek Mill and Jonathan Cheban. DJK and DaBaby both performed.

Story wasn't the only place to celebrate in the Sunshine State ... a short distance away, the Jonas Brothers were performing at the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami Beach. They were joined on stage by their wives -- Sophie Turner, Priyanka Chopra and Danielle Jonas -- and toasted the crowd with some bubbly.

This is not part of the Jonas Bros tour ... it was a one-off for New Year's Eve. It wasn't cheap either ... $300 a pop.

Bryshere Gray -- aka Yazz, aka Hakeem Lyon on "Empire" -- told cops he engaged in a food fight with a 7-Eleven clerk ... after she falsely accused him of spitting on the floor.

According to police body cam footage -- obtained by TMZ -- the actor was questioned about his altercation inside the Orlando store last month, which Gray claims started because the guy he was with spit on the floor and the cashier didn't approve. Imagine that.

Bryshere says she snapped, and even after he started cleaning up his friend's spit she continued to bark at him ... and then allegedly threw something at him.

Yazz says he returned fire by hurling a bag of chips at her before deciding to leave ... and he's sure the store's security footage will back up his claim she attacked first.

However, the clerk clearly points the finger at the "Empire" star as the spitter when she speaks with police, and tells them she wants to press charges because he cussed her out and threw stuff at her first. She's also confident the cameras will prove her right.

Law enforcement sources tell us no arrests were made due to the conflicting statements and a lack of physical injuries ... but the clerk does want to press charges. Gray told cops he didn't want to go that route.

A Dollywood guest heading back to the hotel at the end of the day ended up in the hospital instead, thanks to a reckless trolley driver ... according to a new suit.

The woman claims she hopped in the trolley at Dolly Parton's famous Pigeon Forge, TN theme park in late December 2018 to travel to Dollywood's DreamMore Resort ... but driving conditions sucked.

According to the docs ... it was foggy, raining and dark, and the trolley's windshield was all fogged up. The woman alleges some of the 35 passengers onboard warned the guy driving it was hard to see ... but he kept going.

The trolley then crashed into a concrete pole, according to the suit, a little after 8 PM. The woman claims she and 5 others were injured in the accident, and she was transported by ambulance to a nearby medical center.

According to her, the trolley driver was negligent and reckless and caused the collision. She's suing Dollywood, along with the driver, for her injuries, medical expenses and pain and suffering. She's seeking $250,000.

We've reached out to the theme park ... no word back, so far.

Here's a guy who's THRILLED to get out of 2019!!!

Boxing superstar Anthony Joshua rang in the new year on a beach in Barbados -- flexing and smiling ... and honestly, we can't really blame him!

Joshua had his worst moment as a pro fighter in 2019 -- when he got the snot beat out of him by Andy Ruiz back in June. It was AJ's first loss ... and it was really bad.

But, Joshua basically locked himself in the gym after that -- and redeemed himself in December ... outboxing Ruiz in the rematch to win back all 4 of his heavyweight belts.

Now, he's back on top and on track to fight either Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury in what could be one of the biggest fights EVER.

He's also agreed to be Fury's sparring partner to help Tyson train up for his Feb. 22 rematch against Wilder. No word on when Joshua will head to Detroit for that work.

There can be a little bit of sticker shock when you start to think about buying into all the newest wellness and beauty trends applying itself to the new year, new you craze.

Peel into our gallery of celebrities wearing adhesive eye masks to see which stars have slapped on some of the cool cosmetics and shared their tacky selfies on social media in hopes to unload some of that heavy 2019 baggage.

Pope Francis was almost held back in 2019 by an overzealous fan, who grabbed a hold of him and wouldn't let go ... that is, until Francis gave her a swat and a scolding.

The Pontiff was down in Vatican City Tuesday, ready to ring in the new year with a line of adoring fans and worshippers -- many of whom he was happily greeting and shaking hands with along his route. It was all going great, up to the point some woman got handsy.

Check it out ... it's a pretty surreal scene, especially seeing how PF handles it. Kinda feisty!

You see Francis going down the line -- and as he approaches the grabber, she actually ramps up by doing a crucifix blessing on herself in anticipation of making contact. Sure enough, he ends up shaking her hand, but she clamps on to his arm and yanks him back.

It definitely took the Pope by surprise, and not in a good way either. He slaps her hand a couple time and when his handlers finally step in, she releases him. Looks like his Holiness wasn't too pleased either ... walking away with a stern look on his face 😡

Oh, and that wasn't the only incident along the guard rails either. Apparently, some kid fell right in front of the Pope as he was walking along, and Francis was quick to attend to him and give him a pat on the head once he realized he was alright.

Tekashi 6ix9ine is hard to reach these days, which is why a Danish rapper who sued him 8 months ago wants a judge to help him do just that to close the book on a legal matter.

The artist, Sleiman, just filed new court docs ahead of the new year -- asking for a default judgment against the incarcerated MC ... because he says T69 never got back to him after filing an OG lawsuit back in April. As such, Sleiman wants this buttoned up in his favor.

You'll recall ... Sleiman claimed Tekashi and co. were muzzling a track the two artists made together in 2018, despite Tekashi allegedly signing away the rights for a cool $100k.

Sleiman wants to release the song, titled 'Red Bandnna/Black Hoodie,' but says he's gotta go through the red tape first to make sure it's on the up and up. Along the way, he alleges he's been losing out on money and opportunity as long as it isn't out. He also wants it decreed ... the song belongs to him alone -- and not to any entity affiliated with 6ix9ine.

If you're curious what the song sounds like, it's possible it'll be similar to another one they apparently did together called "R.E.D." Unclear if this is the tune in question, but it appears to be the only project right now with both of their names attached.

Now, Sleiman insists Tekashi was properly served this past September with the help of a court-appointed U.S. Marshal -- and once again ... the guys' asking for a judge's help in sending this final notice. Sleiman says he's gotten default judgments against everyone else who was a defendant in his final version of the suit, and Tekashi's the last domino.

It's funny ... Sleiman and his lawyers acknowledge they can't actually get the lawsuit closed out by default until they do this one last step -- and they even offer Tekashi's inmate number to help out whoever gets sent to the federal prison he's locked up in.

Of course, Tekashi isn't due to walk free until mid to late 2020 ... so it's understandable this dude wouldn't want to wait 'til then. A judge still has to sign off on the order, BTW.

We've reached out to Tekashi's legal team ... so far, no word back.