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You can count Bob West, the original voice of Barney, among the minority who are feeling the reimagined purple dinosaur, and he tells us the new -- let's say more energized -- look is exactly what the franchise needs.

Bob, who became the voice of Barney way back in 1988, tells TMZ ... it's really exciting to see Barney making a comeback after 14 years off the grid, and the friendly dino's spruced-up image fits with the times.

Of course, Bob's reaction is a far cry from the popular sentiment being shared online ... with most folks dragging the rebooted Barney all over social media.

But Bob, who voiced Barney on "Barney & Friends" on PBS from 1992 to 2000, says the franchise needed fresh programming and a fresh image ... and he's excited to see what the future holds for the new Barney.

Mattel says the new show won't debut until next year, and Bob tells us he's hoping to voice the character again ... he even did the classic voice for us, and he's still got it down! He hasn't been contacted or spoken to anyone from the production yet, but he'd love to chat with 'em if the role's still open.

Bob says there's a balance between honoring tradition and bringing Barney up to date ... and he thinks his voice work could bridge that gap.

It's funny ... Bob says lots of parents who introduce their kids to the OG Barney hire him to send Barney voice messages to their kids, but all they have to show their children are old VHS tapes and grainy footage.

Underneath this famous fuzzy face is someone who wears many hats in Hollywood and is deemed quite the trendsetter ... going all the way back to the 70s! Even Kim Kardashian has been vocal about her admiration for this fashion icon.

As someone who has been working her tail off for over 6 decades, she definitely deserves a day off to enjoy the outdoors in sunny Malibu. This pop goddess definitely knows how to welcome her audience to a burlesque show, with the company of Christina Aguilera of course!

Richard Gere is recovering in Mexico this weekend after he caught a case of pneumonia -- this while vacationing with his family -- but the good news is ... he's gonna be alright.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the actor is down near Nuevo Vallarta this week -- where he's celebrating the 40th birthday of his wife, Alejandra Silva, with their kids. Alejandra posted a photo Thursday showing her and the kiddos walking toward a beach.

We're told that, before the trip, Richard developed a bad cough ... and it continued while he was there as well. Our sources say it got so bad, he had to check himself into a hospital ... where we're told he was diagnosed with pneumonia and treated in an overnight stay. Unclear what day he went in, but we're told it was during his vacay -- which is ongoing.

Fortunately, he was out the following day ... and we're told Richard was given antibiotics to help keep the illness at bay. For now, our sources say he seems to be doing much better.

Interestingly, Alejandra herself alluded to a sickness that apparently continued to dog Richard. In the IG post from Thursday ... she said the whole family had been ill for 3 weeks.

However, her IG Story post from Saturday seems to confirm what we're hearing about RG's condition -- namely, that he's okay. You can see her, Richard and one of their kids walking ... and she notes it's another beach day for them. Richard is seen wearing a mask.

Frankie Muniz landed quite a bit higher than just the middle in his big race car driver debut ... nearly cracking the top 10 at a semi-pro series that was all gas, no brakes.

The actor-turned-driver raced in the ARCA Menards Series Saturday at the Daytona International Speedway down in Florida -- marking his first time revving up among other professionals. It was an 80-lap journey, with around 40 drivers going round and around.

Muniz placed 11th overall when it was all said and done ... and the final lap proved to be quite dramatic, with Frankie climbing back from 12th place. Even before that, though, he was doing incredibly well ... cracking the top 10 several times throughout the course.

Frankie himself detailed the ride, saying he was ecstatic and proud of himself for being able to rank as high as he did ... pointing out that at one point, he was 24th place.

He writes, "Holy moly!!! That was the most insane thing I've ever done. Got up into the top  3 before getting turned and causing damage. Went to the back and went from 24th to 11th in the final 2 laps. I'm so grateful to my team and @hairclub and sponsors for making my dream a reality!"

During the race, Frankie was getting props from the broadcasters for avoiding what could've been a major accident ... so, yeah, he was hanging tough with the best of them out there.

FM has been racing for years now, but it wasn't until recently that he decided to pursue it full-time ... forgoing his acting career, for now, and opting for the smell of burned rubber instead.

We actually talked to him last month about his foray into a whole new industry, and he made it clear to us that he was over the moon about the opportunity, and planned to take it seriously. Considering how well he's done for his first official outing, probably even more so.

Former President Jimmy Carter has apparently been in and out of the hospital of late -- pertaining to a number of ailments and injuries -- but now ... he's entering hospice care.

A statement issued by the Carter Center reads in part, "After a series of short hospital stays, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter today decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive hospice care instead of additional medical intervention."

It adds, "He has the full support of his family and his medical team. The Carter family asks for privacy during this time and is grateful for the concern shown by his many admirers." It's unclear what Carter's recent hospital stays are related to -- but it's sad news nonetheless.

The obvious implication is that Carter is on his last legs, and may well pass away soon -- that's usually what entering hospice care means ... so, naturally, the well-wishes and salutes to his legacy are pouring in all over social media right now.

In 2019, Carter suffered a hard fall that left him rattled and in need of stitches. At the time, he also received surgery to relieve pressure in his brain, the result of internal bleeding from that same fall. Carter also beat skin cancer, which he'd been diagnosed with in 2015.

Carter, who's now 98 years old, served as the 39th President, beating incumbent Gerald Ford. He served one term and was succeeded by Ronald Reagan.

Lauren Sanchez is opening up about her relationship with Jeff Bezos for the first time -- and based in her own words, here's the story ... of a lovely lady.

The former newscaster dished a lot of details about their life together to the Wall Street Journal Saturday -- and, indeed, she refers to her dynamic with JB as 'Brady Bunch'-esque. Namely, she's got 3 kids of her own, he's got 4 ... and they're very much a blended family.

Of her home life with Jeff, she says ... "On a typical Saturday, we hang out, we have dinner with the kids, which is always fun because you never know where the conversation is going to go with this many kids. We are the Brady Bunch." On Sunday, Jeff makes pancakes.

A couple other notable takeaways here ... she says she met Jeff piloting helicopters, and that their romance blossomed from there. Lauren also says she helped Jeff overcome a fear of flying, following a chopper crash in 2003. Now, he's getting his own pilot's license.

Also of note ... Lauren just recently started a production company -- Adventure & Fellowship -- that actually produces a lot of Blue Origin's original videos ... and she's aiming to break out into docs and scripted content as well, separate from any Bezos-related company.

On top of this, Lauren is also going to be one of the passengers in an all-female mission into space on one of Blue Origin's rockets in 2024 -- and says she's super excited about it.

Last but not least ... Lauren gave more details about Jeff -- noting he's incredibly funny and very dedicated to his workouts. She also says they do just about everything together nowadays ... which we kinda already knew. She also says he gives her a lot of business/boss pointers -- including how to handle meetings (aka, let everyone else talk first).

She says of their partnership ... "Living with Jeff is like having a master class every day. What he’s really taught me a lot about is management." Lauren also talks about how she's had to rein in her natural inclination to overshare now that she's in the spotlight 24/7.

Their joint charitable efforts are also discussed in the profile, and there too ... they're in lockstep when it comes to how best their money will be put to use -- for climate change and other causes they care about. Sounds like Lauren is in the weeds on all of it.

Based on how she's dishing here, we wouldn't be surprised if these two get hitched. They truly seem to be a match made in heaven -- and it's clear she's head over heels for the guy ... and he for her.

Roald Dahl's classic books are apparently too dated for the 21st century -- because his former publisher and his own posthumous company have edited the crap out of them.

Puffin and the Roald Dahl Story Company -- which oversees his collection -- teamed up with Inclusive Minds last year ... tasking them to pour over RD's published works (specifically, ones for kids) and to alter passages as they see fit, to remove offensive language.

According to reports, hundreds of changes have been made in everything from "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" to "James and The Giant Peach" ... and other Dahl books in between.

One of the more noticeable tweaks that many are pointing out is the fact that Augustus Gloop -- the gluttonous kid who falls in the river of chocolate and gets sucked up a tube -- is no longer described as "fat," which is what Dahl had previously referred to him as.

Here's an old passage describing Augustus ... "A nine-year-old boy who was so enormously fat he looked as though he had been blown up with a powerful pump. Great flabby folds of fat bulged out from every part of his body, and his face like a monstrous ball of dough.'

The 2022 re-write goes like this ... "A nine-year-old boy who was so enormous he looked as though he had been blown up with a powerful pump. Great folds bulged out from every part of his body, and his face was like a ball of dough." In this instance, they got rid of "fat."

While some words were removed, others were completely added in anew -- so, not Dahl's original text -- including one new passage from "The Witches." In that book, there's an idea about witches hiding in plain sight ... who are actually bald under their wigs.

The main character is describing his plan to ID witches in public to his grandmother -- going around and pulling women's hair to see if they're a witch. In the original text, the grandma replies ... "'Don't be foolish,' my grandmother said. 'You can't go round pulling the hair of every lady you meet, even if she is wearing gloves. Just you try it and see what happens.'"

The rewrite is wild ... "'Don't be foolish,' my grandmother said. 'Besides, there are plenty of other reasons why women might wear wigs and there is certainly nothing wrong with that.'"

There are countless other examples circulating on Twitter right now -- including ones where Inclusive removed gendered terms, like "female" -- and a lot of people are saying these changes are ridiculous -- and just another example of woke culture going too far.

Amy Robach and T.J. Holmes continue to be attached at the hip, even after getting the boot -- taking their romance south of the border ... and still looking very much in love.

The former 'GMA3' cohosts -- who recently exited ABC with compensation packages -- are in Mexico enjoying a little baecation in Puerto Vallarta, where we're told they were spotted early Wednesday by some fans ... and even stopped for a little facetime and chitchat.

In these photos, obtained by TMZ, they're standing shoulder to shoulder and hand in hand -- looking pretty chipper, as they greeted folks in the street. And, of course, as they strolled away ... they showed off some PDA, holding on to each other's waists.

It's more of the same from these two ... whether they're in NYC or just about anywhere else -- they always seem to be together and maintaining good attitudes amid a somewhat tumultuous time ... at least professionally, anyway.

Remember, they recently got shown the door at their former network ... and, for now, they're without jobs -- although, we know they got nice little payouts from their contracts.

Based on their outings, it would appear they don't have a care in the world and are very much enjoying one another's company -- that's certainly how they come across from the outside looking in ... this despite reports indicating that their friends and inner circles are concerned they're being a little too cavalier about the directions their lives have taken.

The blowup between Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly may have been the oldest modern source of conflict -- DM's.

Megan found DM's and text messages on MGK's phone that led her to believe he was having an affair ... according to the New York Post.

No word on what the DM's or texts said or who was on the other end, but it was reportedly. enough for Megan to go ballistic.

As we reported, Megan posted lyrics from Beyonce's "Pray You Catch Me," obliquely referencing Jay-Z's alleged cheating ... "You can taste the dishonesty it's all over your breath."

She also unfollowed everyone, save 3 -- Timothee Chalamet, Harry Styles, and Eminem, who has major beef with MGK ... speaking of ... all pics of MGK were deleted from Megan's Insta.

Thing is ... as quickly as it seemed to end between the engaged couple, they tried picking up the pieces. On Valentine's Day, they were at an office building together for 2 hours -- the building has a bunch of therapists' offices, so it all seems to align.

The next day they were seen together in the same car, and apparently were at MGK's home.

Former NFL player, Greg Hardy started his new career in the boxing ring Friday night ... but he wound up getting his ass whooped.

Hardy was duking it out with Josh Watson in the "Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship: Knucklemania 3" and, by the second round, he was eating the canvas.

Hardy's nightmare started at the end of the first round when he got punched so hard by Watson, he went flying into the ropes, nearly crumbling to the ground.

Then, in the second round, Watson landed a crushing left hook that put Hardy flat on his back. He tried to get to his feet, but he couldn't as the ref counted him out.

Last year, Hardy signed with BKFC, which promotes boxing without gloves. He previously had a deal with the UFC, but his contract was not renewed.

Kyle Jacobs seemed upbeat and happy in his last social media post -- giving no hint whatsoever he would take his own life just one day later.

The husband of American Idol alum, Kellie Pickler posted a message to Instagram Thursday celebrating the success of country music star Lee Brice's fifth album, "Hey World." Jacobs produced the album and played guitar on it.

Jacobs wrote, "Platinum?! SWEEEET!!! An amazing crew of incredibly talented peeps put this one together."

He continued, "Deeply honored to be a creative part of it…Thank you Jesus!!!"

TMZ broke the story ... the next day, Jacobs died by suicide after shooting himself inside the home he shared with Pickler in Nashville, Tennessee.

Nashville PD said Pickler got worried when she awoke and couldn't find Jacobs. She and an assistant searched and came upon an upstairs bedroom door, which they couldn't open. After they called 911, police gained entry and discovered Jacobs' body inside.

Kellie Pickler's Nashville home is the center of a tragic crime scene, as a man has shot and killed himself on the property.

A rep for The Nashville Police Department tells us they got a call to Pickler's home Friday afternoon for an apparent suicide after a male shot himself.

It's not yet been revealed who the man is, but we know Pickler and her husband, Kyle Jacobs, live at the address.

Pickler placed 6th on Season 5 of "American Idol" back in 2006 ... but went on to have a fairly successful country career of her own. She currently hosts SiriusXM's "The Highway" radio show throughout the week.

Story developing ...

Bill Maher did it again ... he didn't just call out politicians for being increasingly hateful toward each other, he offered a solution -- do it like the movies!!!

The "Real Time" host made a compelling point ... it's only a matter of time before we see fistfights on the House floor. After all, we've seen video after video of brawls erupting in parliaments around the world, and the trajectory of Washington D.C. leads right to that doorstep.

As for evidence ... it started when Obama was interrupted during a State of the Union address.  Then look at Biden's recent address ... Republicans, especially the crazy ones, were acting like it was a football game ... booing, jeering and so on.  How long before that contempt becomes physical?

So Bill's solution -- take a page out of Hollywood. He gives enough evidence to win a trial -- stars who were paired in some of the greatest movies of all time despised each other, wouldn't even look at each other, yet when it counted they delivered and no one was the wiser.

T.I.'s had enough of being the "King of the South" and he's touting his next album -- "Kill the King" -- as the official funeral for his famous tagline!!!

TMZ Hip Hop chopped it up with T.I. this week and, for now, he's adamant "Kill the King" will be his last solo album.

The ATL rap icon explains he adopted that regal label after hearing Mystikal refer to himself as "Prince of the South" on the 2001 album "Tarantula." Tip says he spotted a void for the throne and claimed it.

He then got the blessings of legendary peers Outkast, Scarface, 8Ball and MJG ... but Big Boi warned him the "Kang" title would come with a supersized can of worms, which T.I. admits it did.

The royal title sparked a short-lived beef with Ludacris' camp, among other debacles, and T.I. says he's fully confident with deflating his own ego.

There's no timetable to rush greatness, but he revealed Jermaine Dupri just blessed him with a banger so the album is coming along as we speak.

In addition to recording his last hurrah, T.I. has plenty of other projects in the works.

He recently signed on as a brand ambassador for Cignature, a lifestyle brand that provides smoking products to adults, and is also looking ahead toward the 20th anniversary of his classic breakout album "Trap Muzik" ... which will coincide with the Hip Hop 50th celebration in August.

For the 15th anniversary, T.I. and Grand Hustle debuted the now monumental, Trap Museum in Atlanta, but he's keeping details for the upcoming celebration under wraps for now.

There's no question A-lister, Brad Pitt has put in his time and earned a top spot in Hollywood. Now is YOUR chance to roll up your sleeves and see if you can work your way to finding the differences between these two shots!

The Hollywood hunk was recently snapped in NYC on the set of his most recent project "Wolves." Swagged-out from head to toe, the actor was lookin' like quite the cozy king. Your sole purpose here is to find the minor changes in the two BP shots ... you've got this!

Tiger Woods is being called out by a women's empowerment group for his tampon prank at a PGA Tour event ... saying how dare he, especially with a daughter at home.

Kara Sugar, CEO of the Women's Global Empowerment Fund, tells TMZ ... Tiger's tampon moment was not only misogynistic but also tone-deaf and straight-up disrespectful to women and girls all over the world.

Sugar ripped the golfing legend, wondering if he's intimating "periods are embarrassing or shameful or a sign of weakness?"

As you know ... Tiger was playing his Friday round at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles with Justin Thomas when he hit his ball further than Justin and handed a Tampax to his friend and competitor. The misguided sentiment -- Justin hits "like a girl."

The women's group says it's sad to see Tiger do this because he's a grown man with a daughter ... and they feel the joke distracts from the serious issues involving mental health and periods, which women and girls around the globe face.

Tiger gave an apology/non apology, saying "It was supposed to be all fun and games. Obviously it hasn't turned out that way. If I offended anybody in any way, shape, or form, I'm sorry."  In other words, not really an apology."