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Before this smiling sweetheart was lighting up audiences' television screens with his bright personality, he was just another cute kid cheesin' for the camera in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

This grinning guy has graced the world with his fierce fashion and dazzling drag for over a decade ... he never shies away from the most iconic, eye-catching looks on the red carpet. Recently, he has made the move to television and even won an Emmy Award for his lead performance.

Now, you can catch him in this award-winning role, which just premiered its third season this past weekend.

Michael Flynn either forgot the words to the Pledge of Allegiance, or he's a master at working for the crowd with MC call-backs ... and a lot of people think it's the former.

President Trump's former National Security Advisor -- and a retired U.S. Army lieutenant general, no less -- showed up Sunday at a pro-Trump rally down in South Carolina ... an event called "Bikers for Trump" which was held at the HonkyTonk Saloon.

At one point, Mike got on stage and led the audience in reciting the pledge ... and he kinda made a big show about it too, which made his weird silence look even worse.

Check it out ... Flynn starts out strong with the memorable words, but once he got past the initial sentence -- he seemed to have gotten his tongue-tied on the exact phrasing, and stopped talking altogether. Luckily, the crowd knew the rest ... and they finished it out.

MF hopped back in at "under God, indivisible." Unclear if he truly forgot -- or if he was doing that for dramatic effect ... but in any case, the pro-Trumpers didn't really mind. They gave him a big round of applause afterward, and it looked like they appreciated the gesture.

Of course, Twitter was having a field day with the awkward moment ... with many cracking jokes at Flynn's expense, saying a lot of guys from Putin's inner circle tend to have trouble with the pledge.

He was also accused of being a traitor -- which harkens back to his early tenure in the Trump WH ... when he was found to have been feeding intel to Russian operatives during the transition, something he lied about to Mike Pence (and the FBI) and ultimately got convicted for amid Robert Mueller's Russia probe.

Vanessa Bryant celebrated what would have been Gigi's 15th birthday by announcing a new clothing line in her name -- and Hollywood was quick to jump on board in support.

A score of stars posted selfies and photos over the weekend, showing them in Mambacita hoodies and other apparel being hawked by Dannijo ... the company Vanessa teamed up with for this launch.

Some of the famous faces who snapped up their gear include Eva Mendes, Kate Hudson, Jimmy Kimmel, Ciara, Lala Kent, Jennifer Garner, Kim Kardashian, Cindy Crawford, Lily Aldridge, Tia Mowry, Reese Witherspoon, Khloe Kardashian, Ellen Pompeo, Michelle Williams, Kelly Rowland ... with even more plugging the brand on their respective socials.

Oh and BTW, the sports world wasn't sleeping on this drop either -- pro athletes like Russel Wilson, Devin Booker, Kyrie Irving and the ENTIRE WARRIORS TEAM (including Steph Curry) were rocking Mambacita wear Saturday ... and Vanessa made sure to shout them all out.

Vanessa explained diving into the new venture by saying she wanted to find a way to celebrate Gigi -- who would've turned 15 on Saturday -- by capturing her spirit ... and she felt putting out an entire line in her memory was the best way to do that.

VB writes, "Gianna was kind, energetic, a leader, and had so much MAMBACITA swag.  When I thought about who would help me capture her laid back yet girly-edge, I thought of female-owned @DANNIJO. Two fun-loving sisters running a successful clothing line, they jumped on the opportunity to celebrate Gigi’s birthday with us, completely pro-bono."

She goes on to say that the details of the line -- even right down to putting #PlayGigisWay on the right arm of each hoodie (Gigi's shooting arm) -- are perfect in every way.

A boat carrying dozens of people capsized in San Diego, killing 2 and injuring several more -- but it's clear the vessel did more than just flip over ... it was utterly destroyed.

The wreckage happened Sunday off the shores of Point Loma, a peninsula jutting out from SD's mainland. It's unclear what caused the boat -- which was reportedly carrying 25 people total -- to tip ... but once it did, emergency crews were called out to assist.

According to local reports, two people were pronounced dead at the scene ... while the 23 others were transported to area hospitals, with some requiring CPR on the spot.

However, somebody posted footage of the aftermath ... and it appears the boat got torn to pieces in the accident, with people onboard being washed ashore -- not to mention all the debris floating in the water as well. In the video, you hear someone say the boat "blew up."

The severity of the injuries isn't entirely known at this point, but officials have said different people were taken to different hospitals.

A search and rescue mission is underway at the moment to see if there's anybody else still in the water -- and an investigation will ultimately be headed up by the feds, as this appears to have happened in their jurisdiction.

Some things you never forget, even if you're losing your memory -- just ask an elderly Tennessee couple who broke out of an assisted living facility ... using Morse code.

A husband and wife -- each of whom reportedly suffer from either dementia or Alzheimer's -- were able to successfully escape from a secure memory unit in March out in the city of Lebanon ... all 'cause the hubby somehow was able to conjure his military experience.

According to the Tennessean, the guy would listen in on staffers as they punched in the security key for the front doors ... and he managed to figure out the exact combo using his trained Morse code ear. It appears they hatched a plan together and walked out on a Tuesday ... having gone undetected and unaccounted for about 30 minutes or so.

The paper says somebody found them walking down the street about a few blocks away -- and they were eventually returned to the facility in one piece. Still ... a helluva scheme!

Now, the facility -- known simply as Elmcroft -- didn't walk away from this without punishment. The Tennessean reports they got dinged by the state with a fine ... but it wasn't a whole lot. Just a couple thousand bucks for screwing the pooch here -- this coulda gone south fast.

They told state regulators that they'd make sure this doesn't happen again by checking in more frequently on their guests, and by changing the security keys early and often.

An elementary school principal went full 19th-century headmaster on a 6-year-old student -- paddling her a few times ... all while the mom recorded it.

This is coming out of Clewiston, FL ... where Central Elementary School Principal Melissa Carter and her clerk, Cecilia Self, were captured on video bending a little girl over and giving her a few whacks with an old-school paddle ... all in front of the kid's mom, who filmed it.

The student's mother says she was called to the school recently, with a claim that her daughter had damaged a school computer ... with a repair cost of nothing more than $50.

The mom says she was told by the school that her kid would be getting paddled as punishment, with her and a "deputy" present ... but says she didn't understand the process as it was being explained to her, as she doesn't speak much English.

Anyway, when the mom showed up to pay the fee and get her daughter ... she says she was led to a room where Carter and Self were present, along with her child. No law enforcement deputy was in sight. Before she knew it, Carter was meting out a beating.

The mom, who hasn't been ID'd for privacy, insists she didn't step in because she felt she would get in trouble ... and figured the only thing she could do was to document it to expose the abuse. So, that's what she did ... secretly filming the encounter and standing by.

The mom justifies her action -- or a lack thereof -- by saying she felt she needed to "sacrifice" her daughter to blow the lid on what was going on there.

Billie Eilish might as well be a human butterfly -- because she's undergone a metamorphosis for the cover of British Vogue ... and looks absolutely incredible for the final product.

The pop star shed her green wig and baggy sweaters and swapped them for something a little more skimpy and steamy for the upcoming June issue ... and it's just about the most jaw-dropping thing we've seen in a good while.

BE looks like a pinup model from the '20s and/or '50s -- and yes, there are big-time echoes of Marilyn Monroe here ... at least in our eyes. Indeed, she's achieved bombshell status.

Now, we've seen Billie without the green hair of late and even without the loose clothing too -- but we haven't ever seen her quite like this ... where she's showing off her physique for a magazine shoot. There's something to be said there too, which Billie did in her interview.

She talked about body image issues -- and not necessarily ones she had for her herself ... but ones the media placed on her as she was thrust into the spotlight over these past couple years. Billie posted a quote of hers from the Vogue issue, and she talks about the freak-out that some outlets had when Billie stepped out in anything other than her signature look.

Billie says, "Suddenly you’re a hypocrite if you want to show your skin, and you’re easy and you’re a slut and you’re a whore. If I am, then I’m proud." She adds, "Me and all the girls are hoes, and f*** it, y’know? Let’s turn it around and be empowered in that. Showing your body and showing your skin -- or not -- should not take any respect away from you"

In other words ... her message seems to be, do whatever the hell you want, and look however the hell you want, regardless of what others expect. Good advice right there.

Anna Nicole Smith's 14-year-old daughter Dannielynn Birkhead is the spitting image of her late mom ... so much so, it's kinda shocking.

Dannielynn and her dad, Larry Birkhead, attended the Kentucky Derby as they have nearly every year, but this time heads turned, because of Larry's daughter's uncanny resemblance to her mom.

Larry made it clear ... his daughter is growing up ... "She said she wanted to wear something entirely different than she had in the past. I guess that means no more “little girl” dresses?? She cleaned out the chocolate brownies, ice cream and nachos while at the same time critiquing my outfit."

Travis Scott touched down in Miami in a brand-spanking-new private jet ... and it's ridiculously big!!!

Travis came back from Nassau, Bahamas where he was celebrating his 29th birthday on a yacht. He goes big by sea and by air!

He apparently got the jet last Xmas, but just looking at it now ... well it's so big it looks like he's flying commercial.

Travis got some goodies for his birthday ... including this humungous Hermes bag!! You can't say he doesn't travel in style.

Now, it's not like it's a competition ... BUT, it looks like Travis' jet might be bigger than Kylie Jenner's, and that's saying something. She reportedly plunked down $72.8 million for her flying machine.

Several protesters near the Kentucky Derby were arrested Saturday as they protested the killing of Breonna Taylor ... but as for why they got arrested -- well the cops won't say.

Around 50 protesters marched by the entrance of Churchill Downs with signs that read, "We haven't forgotten Breonna."

The protesters ended up at La Chasse restaurant, and suddenly a man dining on the patio pulled out a gun and trained it on the group. There's no evidence from the video that the man was threatened.

Kentucky is an open carry state, so when cops came he was in the clear. But then, there was a foot chase and cops corralled 3 protesters and arrested them.

We contacted the Louisville PD and asked why the protesters were arrested. They wouldn't say but told us to file a public records request and even then they might not tell us. Sheesh.

As you know, none of the cops have been charged for Breonna's death and her family is especially upset that the grand jury proceeding was a sham. Attorney General Daniel Cameron told the media his office had instructed grand jurors on possible homicide charges when grand jurors said they had not been so instructed.

Ben Crump, attorney for George Floyd's family, says Derek Chauvin has no chance to successfully appeal his guilty verdict ... and it's all because of what at least one juror is saying about the murder trial.

Crump tells TMZ ... Juror #52, Brandon Mitchell, shed a lot of light on the Chauvin deliberations and, in the process, "completely obliterates" any argument the defense is planning to make about outside public opinions swaying the jury.

You'll recall, Chauvin's defense attorney, Eric Nelson, asked Judge Cahill for a mistrial because Rep. Maxine Waters had encouraged folks to "get more confrontational" while protesting if Chauvin wasn't found guilty.

Nelson felt that her remarks might pressure the jury to return a guilty verdict, but Judge Cahill wouldn't bite -- and now, Crump says Brandon confirms that didn't happen.

He told Gayle King this week ... he and his fellow jurors felt no outside pressure to reach a guilty verdict, and reached their decision based on the facts presented in court.

Crump says Brandon's comments will play a big factor when and if an appeal is filed.

As you know, the jury found Chauvin guilty on all counts and he could get up to 40 years in prison when he's sentenced in June.

There was a spectacular site above the Gulf of Mexico early Sunday, when the SpaceX Dragon capsule careened and then floated into the sea with 4 astronauts on board.

The 4 astronauts -- 3 from the U.S. and 1 from Japan -- ended their 167-day mission ... the longest ever for a crew capsule launching from the United States.

The Dragon capsule -- named Resilience -- had a welcoming party at the ready. Several ships were nearby to recover the capsule and the astronauts. It was a perfect landing, judging by how close the capsule touched down next to the ships.

The seamen jumped into action and recovered the spaceship in a half an hour. Some people were so impressed with the speed, they likened it to a pit stop at a car race.

The folks at Mission Control were ecstatic ... sending a message to astronauts ... “We welcome you back to planet Earth and thanks for flying SpaceX. For those of you enrolled in our frequent flyer program, you’ve earned 68 million miles on this voyage.”

Spacecraft Commander Mike Hopkins was more than willing to accept the perk ...“We’ll take those miles. Are they transferrable?”

Charles Manson's original booking sheet following his arrest for the grisly Manson Family murders is up for sale ... but anyone looking to add it to their creepy crime collection is going to have to drop almost $100k, and maybe more.

The booking docs are 2 pages long and list Manson's physical details along with his hometown (Cincinnati, spelled incorrectly), his address (Transient), his occupation (Musician), but most notably ... the fact he was arrested for robbery and homicide and was facing 7 counts of murder.

The form is dated December 9, 1969 -- a few months after Manson's followers killed Sharon Tate and 6 others in August in Los Angeles -- and the second page includes 2 of Manson's fingerprints. The officer who fingerprinted him is listed with the last name Tate.

The second page also includes the name Juan Flynn at the top, presumably the same Juan Flynn who stayed at Manson's Spahn Ranch and testified Manson told him shortly after Tate's murder ... "Don't you know I'm the one who's doing all these killings?"

The booking form is on sale by Moments In Time, with an asking price of $95,000. We're told the site acquired the documents from a collector of historical crime items.

As you know ... Manson and 3 of his followers were convicted in 1971 of murder and conspiracy in the 1969 killings after a 9-month trial, the longest murder trial in history when it occurred.

Iowa Hawkeyes star Luka Garza -- voted the best college basketball player in 2021 -- is letting his haters be his motivators ... telling TMZ Sports he's using all the doubters as fuel to becoming a true NBA star.

The 6'11" big man was an absolute beast on the court this past season ... averaging 24 points and 8 rebounds a game.

Some experts have wondered whether 22-year-old Garza's athleticism will hurt his chances at success in the quickly evolving NBA ... but he tells us he's heard all the negativity and is ready to prove he belongs at the next level.

"I love it!" Garza says. "I love to hear it. I love to see it. It's fun for me! They don't know it because they probably don't like me, but it's helping me."

Garza says he's heard the naysayers throughout his career ... and he'll continue to put in the work needed to be a valuable asset to any team willing to take a chance on him.

"I have full confidence in myself that I can be an effective guy for any organization because I play hard as I can, I work as hard as I can."

"I'm excited about the process, it's gonna be a lot of fun and I'm excited to make my dreams come true."

Garza says he's working "harder than ever" as he focuses on the NBA Draft ... and is hoping to prove he's a first-rounder.

"I think they're gonna get a player who's gonna play every single game like it's my last. I'm a hardworking dude. I'm open to criticism."

But, Garza isn't just busting his ass on the court -- he's been working non-stop to help star athletes monetize their likeness as well ... creating his own NFT group in hopes of making that happen.

Garza says the NCAA should hop on board with the movement ... especially since it wouldn't take any money from their pockets.

"I think that's the biggest draw to it is for the NCAA, we're creating a new revenue stream that we don't have to take away. We won't have to get a salary from the university."

"We won't have to bother any of the advertisement deals they already have or the TV contract they have. That's still theirs but this is a way that we can make money for ourselves with not even touching the NCAA's money and what they've been able to do."

Ellie Kemper's good looks are truly something to celebrate!

Here is a 28-year-old version of the comedic actress looking bangin' at a party in Los Angeles back in 2009 (left). This was the same year Kemper landed the role of Erin Hannon on NBC's "The Office".

And, 12 years later ... she has a lot to celebrate -- including her 41st birthday which is this weekend -- she's been sharing snaps of her life on Instagram and posted a pic earlier this year showing off her famous smile (right).

The talented star has since worked on a number of projects, including her show "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt".

She gets the Dundie for ageless looks.

The question is ...

Hidden within this eye-catching photo is an award-winning actor who made a big splash on Hollywood after being in a number of iconic films throughout his career.

This famous fella started his acting career in the '80s and went on to star in major blockbuster films such as that have included forests, islands and other big roles! He's made appearances on television shows and is also known for his voice acting.