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Drake's "Toosie Slide" dance challenge has brought much joy during the coronavirus pandemic, and he took it upon himself to help a group of African kids go viral for their moves ... and spread even more joy.

If you missed it ... the Masaka Kids, comprised of orphans from Uganda who have crazy dancing skills, posted their rendition of the 'Slide' on Friday. When Drake shared it on his Instagram Story the following day, it blew up ... as did the Masaka Kids' social media following.

Suuna Hassan, founder of the organization, tells TMZ ... the children wanted to partake in the challenge because they love the song and hoped Drake would notice, even though it was a long shot.

Fortunately, the kids' rendition instantly began gaining traction on TikTok, Twitter and IG, and Drake did notice ... so he reached out directly to ask if he could post the vid, too.

Hassan says he and the children cried tears of joy at the gesture and spent the next day celebrating and doing what they do best ... more dancing. In fact, they're sharing their most recent performance -- which shows they got a lot more groovin' to do.

Even more awesome ... we're told since Friday, the Masaka Kids Africana account has gained more than 120,000 Instagram followers and the org has received hundreds of dollars in donations.

Shaun Weiss -- famous for playing Goldberg in "The Mighty Ducks" -- seems to be pulling out of his downward spiral, as he's looking much healthier than he has since his most recent meth bust.

Check out this pic of Shaun now ... he's no longer frail and disheveled. Instead, he's in great spirits and has apparently gained a lot of weight. He was having breakfast last month with his close friend, Drew Gallagher, when the picture was taken.

It's a good sign for Shaun who finally went to rehab in March after getting out of jail.

As we first reported ... Shaun's friends said they were desperate to get the troubled child star help before it was too late -- he was living on the streets and dealing with a slew of life-threatening problems before January's burglary and meth arrest.

When he got out of jail he checked into the recovery facility, but we're told he was recently transferred to a different one due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Our sources say Shaun was told he was at a higher risk of catching COVID-19 because he has diabetes and the original facility could no longer keep him with its main population. So, his team found the new rehab center.

This is, hands down, the best we've seen Shaun looking in a long while -- here's hoping he continues getting the help he needs.

"I don't know if I've ever seen any college player better than he played last year."

That's Brett Favre heaping a TON of praise on Joe Burrow ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks the LSU QB's 2019 season was the greatest of all time!!!

Of course, Burrow's stats back up the claim ... the 23-year-old completed 76.3 percent of his passes for 5,671 yards and scored 65 total (rushing and passing) TDs -- but it's still shocking to hear the Packers legend make the claim nonetheless.

Remember, there are some straight-up ICONIC seasons from college football players over the years from dudes like Cam Newton, Barry Sanders, Johnny Manziel, Tim Tebow, Vince Young and Reggie Bush.

But, Favre tells us Burrow's year just tops them all.

"In fact, [Burrow's] team was incredible," Favre says. "Best college team I've ever seen. And, the best play by a college quarterback in history."

So, just how do Burrow's numbers compare with guys like Newton, Tebow, Young and Manziel?

Newton in 2010: 2,854 passing yards, 30 passing TDs, 1,473 rushing yards, 20 rushing TDs

Manziel in 2012: 3,706 passing yards, 26 passing TDs, 1,410 rushing yards, 21 rushing TDs

Tebow in 2007: 3,286 passing yards, 32 passing TDs, 895 rushing yards, 23 rushing TDs

Young in 2005: 3,036 passing yards, 26 passing TDs, 1050 rushing yards, 12 rushing TDs

Yeah, Favre might have a point here!!

As for Burrow's future in the NFL -- ya gotta hear which legendary QB Brett thinks Joe most plays like.

By the way, the Packers legend also reminisced with us about his draft day experience in 1991 ... and he even opened up about that epic draft night photo!!

Before this little boy with a bowl cut was chopping it up as a huge Hollywood actor with the same beautiful head of hair, he was just another cute little kid growing up in Emmett, Idaho.

This grinning little guy has broken out of his horizontal stripes and traded in the turtlenecks. Now, he has cooked up a much more bad boy A-lister look.

He now only goes by his first and middle name ... and dropped his last name (Sturtevant) on his way to the top of the crop!

Can you look past the chubby cheeks and fresh face to guess which Emmy Award-winning actor is in this old school kid pic?

Think Roger Goodell is going to finally make it through a draft without hearing boos????

THINK AGAIN ... 'cause the commish is actually ENCOURAGING the jeers -- and it's all for COVID-19 charity!!

Here's the deal ... Goodell has been booed at EVERY draft for the last decade or so -- mostly because NFL fans hate the way he runs the league.

But, with the coronavirus pandemic ... it seemed the commish was finally going to get a reprieve from it all as the league's draft Thursday has gone completely virtual.

The NFL, though, partnered with its beer sponsor Monday to make sure the tradition stays alive ... with Bud Light announcing it will donate $1 every time the #BooTheCommish hashtag is used on social media this week!

In fact, the booze company says it'll contribute up to $500,000 total to COVID-19 relief efforts to hear you boo the league's head man.

Former Playmate Ashley Mattingly -- a domestic violence victim at the hands of Lane Garrison, who struggled with substance abuse -- is dead ... TMZ has learned.

Ashley's sister, Christy, and twin brother Billy tell us she took her own life Wednesday at her home in Austin, Texas and she left a suicide note.

We're told Ashley was found unresponsive Friday after a friend called the Austin Police Department for a wellness check after Ashley went radio silent. We're told police took the note as part of their investigation.

Ashley's family tells us she had been living in Austin for the past two years, and she was struggling with substance abuse. We're told she had demons and battled alcohol abuse, but she was trying to get her life back on track.

The shelter-in-place order in Texas did not help Ashley, her family says, even though Ashley recently adopted a 9-month-old golden retriever puppy to help with her loneliness. We're told the pup, Miss Jean, is now with Ashley's family.

As we reported ... Ashley, who was Playboy's Miss March in 2011, was charged with DUI back in 2016 after allegedly plowing her golf cart into 4 parked cars while she was wasted.

As you know ... Ashley was a victim of domestic violence. Lane, her ex-boyfriend, was convicted of domestic battery in 2012.

The last time we saw Ashley, back in 2015, she seemed to be in good spirits.

Ashley's relatives also tell us they're thankful her friend called police for the wellness check ... and they hope her story can raise awareness about suicide.

Ashley was 33.

Ticketmaster pulled a fast one on concertgoers by retroactively changing its refund policy ... so claims one of its customers in a new lawsuit.

Derek Hansen filed the class action suit claiming Ticketmaster, which is a division of Live Nation, had a policy stating customers get a refund on ticket purchases "if your event is postponed, rescheduled or canceled.”

But, according to docs, obtained by TMZ, Hansen says Ticketmaster retroactively revised its refund policy after the coronavirus outbreak forced the cancellation or postponement of most large events and public gatherings. The policy now states it'll only allow for refunds for canceled events ... which, according to the lawsuit, excludes postponed or rescheduled ones even if those delays are indefinite.

That's a problem, Hansen says, because Live Nation's president recently predicted live events will not occur again until fall 2021 at the earliest. And, in the meantime, customers like Hansen say they have to eat the money, which could be used for more important things.

Hansen claims he bought 2 tickets in February to see a Rage Against the Machine concert in Oakland originally scheduled for April. He says he unloaded almost $600 for them ... and now he's looking for a refund because the show's been indefinitely postponed.

Tom Lester -- best known for playing Eb Dawson on the '60s sitcom "Green Acres" -- has died of complications from Parkinson's Disease ... TMZ has learned.

We're told the longtime actor died Monday morning in Nashville at the home of his fiancee and longtime caregiver, Jackie.

After moving to Hollywood from Mississippi in the mid-60s, he began acting in plays and soon landed an audition for the Eb character on "Green Acres." He beat out 400 other actors for the part, as the story goes, because he was the only one who could milk a cow in real life thanks to his farming background.

Along with starring as the young farmhand on the show for all 6 seasons, Lester appeared on its sister series "Petticoat Junction" and also had a few crossover guest spots as Eb on "The Beverly Hillbillies."

After "Green Acres" ... Tom went on to land supporting roles in 2 popular animal movies -- "Benji" in 1974 and "Gordy" way later in 1994. He also had a guest spot on "Knight Rider" in the '80s.

Lester's last acting credit's for a 2014 comedy called "Campin' Buddies."

He was the last surviving regular cast member of "Green Acres."

Tom was 81.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry pled with Thomas Markle to stop blabbing to the media before their Royal wedding ... according to text messages sent by the Sussexes.

Meghan and Harry's pleas to Thomas leading up to their nuptials have just been made public in Meghan's lawsuit against an English tabloid, and the text messages spell out the family drama bubbling over before the ceremony.

According to legal docs, obtained by TMZ, Prince Harry texted Meghan's father 5 days before the wedding and 2 days after Thomas was caught staging photos with the paparazzi, saying ... "Tom, it's Harry and I'm going to call you right now. Please pick up, thank you."

Another text from Harry to Thomas reads ... "Tom, Harry again! Really need to speak to u. U do not need to apologize, we understand the circumstances but 'going public' will only make the situation worse. If u love Meg and want to make it right please call me as there are two other options which don't involve u having to speak to the media, who incidentally created this whole situation. So please call me so I can explain. Meg and I are not angry, we just need to speak to u. Thanks."

Remember, Thomas was awfully chatty with the press after it was announced he would not be attending the Royal wedding.

Another text from the Sussexes to Thomas says ... "Oh any speaking to the press WILL backfire, trust me Tom. Only we can help u, as we have been trying from day 1."

The docs also reveal texts Meghan sent to her father in May 2018, asking which hospital he was being treated for a heart attack and offering him protection.

Meghan wrote ... "I've been reaching out to you all weekend but you're not taking any of our calls or replying to any texts… Very concerned about your health and safety and have taken every measure to protect you but not sure what more we can do if you don't respond…Do you need help? Can we send the security team down again? I’m very sorry to hear you're in the hospital but need you to please get in touch with us… What hospital are you at?"

The Duchess followed up with another text telling her father she and Harry were "dispatching the same security guys you turned away this weekend to be a presence on the ground to make sure you’re safe."

The docs say Thomas rebuffed the offer, even though Harry "pleaded with Mr. Markle to let them help him."