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Prince Andrew sexually abused a teenage girl he met through Jeffrey Epstein ... this according to a new lawsuit.

Queen Elizabeth's son is being sued for sexual assault in federal court by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who claims she was a victim of Epstein's sex trafficking scheme for powerful men, including Prince Andrew.

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, Andrew is accused of sexually abusing Giuffre in NYC when she was a minor ... at the invitation of Epstein and his alleged co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Giuffre claims she was only 17 years old when Prince Andrew committed sexual assault and battery against her ... and she says the alleged abuse left her with severe and lasting emotional distress.

As we reported ... Prince Andrew was not cooperative with FBI and federal prosecutors in 2019 and 2020, when law enforcement was looking to talk to him about Epstein.

In the wake of Epstein's arrest and death in his jail cell, Prince Andrew went on "BBC Newsnight" and claimed he couldn't remember meeting Giuffre, despite a 2001 photograph where he's apparently posing with her.

Prince Andrew resigned from all public roles in May 2020 over his ties to Epstein.

Richard Donner -- the legendary director of "Superman," "Lethal Weapon" and many other famous films -- suffered from heart disease and died of heart failure ... according to his death certificate.

The document says Donner died at his home in West Hollywood on the morning of July 5, and the immediate cause of death is listed as cardiopulmonary failure.

The death certificate lists atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as an underlying cause of his passing, as well.

On a lighter note ... according to the document, Donner was a film director for 65 years, meaning he started his iconic career in the late '50s.

As we told you ... Donner was one of the most beloved figures in Hollywood who got his big break with 1976's "The Omen," which led to the 'Superman' and 'Lethal Weapon' franchises.

He's also known for flicks like "Ladyhawke," "The Goonies," "Scrooged" and "Conspiracy Theory."

The Kid LAROI revealed he's been locked in a room for 7 days because he has COVID ... only to scrub that announcement from his social media a short time later.

The teenage singer revealed the news in a now-edited Instagram caption Monday in which he was celebrating his #1 hit with Justin Bieber, "Stay," and thanking all of his fans for their support.

LAROI, who hails from Australia, wrote that all he ever wanted was to "make it big" in America and show everyone what folks Down Under have to offer.

He then said he hasn't been home in awhile because of COVID, adding ... "which I currently have rn and have been locked in a room for the past 7 days."

The singer quickly deleted that line in his IG caption, but if it's true -- it means he could have performed at the huge July 29 concert at Lollapalooza in Chicago with Miley Cyrus while infected -- or contracted it while at the festival.

We've reached out to LAROI's rep for some clarification ... so far, no word back.

There are a couple simple things Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez need to do to make their relationship last this time around -- and Simon Cowell has the one-two recipe.

The 'Idol' vet and music producer was out for a bike ride in L.A. with his girlfriend, Lauren, and their son when a photog asked if he had any advice for Bennifer 2.0 as they head down the couple's path once again some 20 years later.

Now, first off ... you'd think Simon's familiar with Jen after her stint as an "American Idol" judge -- even though he'd left the show by then -- but he had no clue about her reunion with Ben.

Lauren sure did, and insisted she'd downloaded him on all the hot gossip. Before Simon could offer his wisdom, she actually chipped in with her 2 cents ... and then he added a nickel's worth.

You gotta hear Simon's POV on how to make romance work. In classic Cowell fashion, the dude kept it as real as ever with his response. He didn't elaborate much on the why, but it sounds like he's speaking from personal experience.

Britney Spears didn't want to wait until September to ask a judge to boot her dad from her conservatorship, but the judge just shut down her request.

The singer's request to move up the hearing to sometime this month or to at least suspend Jamie immediately until the final hearing, was denied ... according to a new court order, obtained by TMZ. There's no specific reason given for the legal "no" ... but it was denied without prejudice, meaning she can bring it up again.

But, at the moment, Jamie's going to stay on.

As for why ... typically the issue is whether waiting for the scheduled hearing would cause irreparable harm to Britney. Her lawyer, Mat Rosengart, said Jamie's presence was taking a toll on Britney's mental health, and he says doctors felt that way as well. But, the judge apparently didn't think there was enough proof that waiting would cause such damage.

Bam Margera's going after his old friends over his ousting from the 'Jackass' franchise he's been a part of for decades ... claiming he was forced to sign an agreement that he claims amounted to psychological torture.

According to the legal docs ... Bam's suing Johnny Knoxville, Spike Jonze, Jeffrey Tremaine along with Paramount Pictures, MTV, Dickhouse Entertainment and Gorilla Flicks for his firing.

He claims the 3 men pressured him into signing a "wellness agreement" while he was in rehab in 2019 in order to participate in the upcoming 'Jackass Forever' movie ... but Bam claims he didn't have a chance to run it by an attorney.

According to Bam ... the agreement subjected him to regular drug and alcohol tests and he was forced to take a cocktail of prescription drugs that left him depressed and drained, and restricted his ability to travel, work and live his life.

Ultimately, Bam was booted from the fourth installment of 'Jackass' for failing to abide by the conditions in the agreement, but according to the docs ... Bam got the axe for testing positive for Adderall -- something he says he's been prescribed to take for 10 years.

The lawsuit alleges Bam's treatment at the hands of Paramount and the 'Jackass' team was "inhumane" and "discriminatory." He also likens it to Britney Spears' conservatorship case.

As we've covered ... the past few months have been very rocky for Bam, as he's publicly attacked the 'Jackass' crew and had a restraining order filed against him by Tremaine.

He also previously told us he was "tortured" by his former co-stars before he was fired. Bam's suing for damages and asking for an injunction to block release of the upcoming movie.

Jason Isbell has a simple reason for requiring proof of COVID inoculation or a negative test result to attend his shows ... he wants people to feel safe and survive the virus.

The country star joined us on "TMZ Live" Monday and told us about the new precautions in effect on his tour, and why he's not afraid to do something that might piss off a large portion of his fan base.

Jason says he just wants concertgoers to feel a little safer in a large crowd of strangers and he doesn't want any blood on his hands ... hence the vaccine or negative test requirements.

Naturally, Jason is getting tons of pushback from country music fans who live in areas with low vaccination rates -- but he's also getting heat from other artists after a year that saw them lose concert revenue.

Jason and singer-songwriter Marc Broussard got in a Twitter war over his COVID protocols ... but Jason says he's just trying to help prevent another shutdown so artists don't have to cancel shows in droves as they did in 2020.

Things are looking grim for Joe Exotic -- he fears his prostate cancer has spread to his pelvis and stomach ... and says he will not seek treatment if it's already progressed to an advanced stage.

As we reported ... the imprisoned 'Tiger King' star revealed his cancer diagnosis in May and pleaded with President Biden for a pardon so he could be released and get medical treatment.

Joe says he hasn't received any treatment since then -- and that he's also been waiting for a colonoscopy and endoscopy since October -- and now claims he's been told by doctors his cancer might have spread. His attorney, John M. Phillips, tells us doctors are checking Joe's pelvis and stomach ... he was supposed to have an appointment Monday, but it was canceled because of COVID lockdown.

According to The Sun ... Joe's still awaiting an official diagnosis, but insists he will refuse medical help if his cancer is stage 3 of 4 and "let it take me." He added, he's "ready to die."

The unfortunate news comes about a month after things were looking a little more positive for Joe, with a court ruling resulting in a potentially shorter prison sentence.

Kelly Clarkson will be responsible for the majority of her kids' private school costs, but her money won't be tied up in Montana, thanks to a new ruling from the judge in her divorce.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Kelly will still pay Brandon Blackstock $150k per month in spousal support while the divorce case is pending -- plus an extra $45k/month or so for child support -- but he's responsible for payments on the ranch they bought in Montana.

The judge notes that the ranch expenses run around $81,000 a month -- from taxes to the mortgage and insurance, etc. -- and ordered that Brandon will carry that burden. He's the one living there, and using it as a primary residence.

Other big picture stuff -- the court laid out who brought home the majority of the bacon ... it's Kelly. The judge found Kelly had monthly income north of $1.5 mil -- and Brandon's was drastically less at about $10k per month.

There's also the issue of kid costs -- especially when it comes to school stuff. Sounds like Kelly's going to bear the brunt of the load there ... covering 70% of private school tuition and related expenses.

"Jeopardy!" executive producer Mike Richards is letting his coworkers know, he did NOT discriminate against pregnant models when he was an exec on "The Price Is Right" ... and insists he would never stoop to that level.

Mike blasted out a memo to the "Jeopardy!" staff Monday, addressing the recently resurfaced allegations and reports that he's going to become the next host of the famous game show.

Richards, who was named in two lawsuits, says the claims in the suits came out of employment disputes and don't "reflect the reality of who I am or how we worked together on The Price is Right."

Mike was accused of making insensitive comments about pregnant models, but he says ... "I would not say anything to disrespect anyone's pregnancy and have always supported my colleagues on their parenting journeys."

The pregnancy discrimination allegations resurfaced in the wake of reports Mike is expected to take over hosting duties from the late Alex Trebek and usher in a new era of "Jeopardy!"

In his memo, Mike says he's humbled and honored to be asked to host but says "no final decisions have been made" and it's not his call even though he's the EP.

As we reported ... Mike guest-hosted 'Jeopardy!' back in February and absolutely crushed it. He's hosted other game shows before, including "The Pyramid" and "Divided" as well as producing more than 4,000 hours of game shows.

There's been some fan outrage to reports Mike's taking Trebek's place ... and other guest-hosts this season included Aaron Rodgers, LeVar Burton, Anderson Cooper, Mayim Bialik, Katie Couric and George Stephanopoulos.

Christine Quinn could sell a lot more than real estate these days -- the "Selling Sunset" star might wanna bottle her post-birth workout regimen, 'cause she hit the beach to show off some tremendous results.

The real estate agent -- who's featured on the Netflix reality series -- was on the beach in Taormina, Sicily ... cruising the shore with her newborn son, Christian, in hand -- who's just about 3 months old at this point.

Check out the photos ... Christine was cradling her baby boy in her arms, and even got into the water with him -- holding Christian and an umbrella pretty seamlessly.

Cute mom and son moment, no doubt, but the other takeaway is how good Christine's looking. She had to have an emergency C-section during delivery in May. Three months later, as they say ... baby and mom are doing fine. Really fine!!!

Christine hasn't been shy about showing off her fitness during her Italian getaway.

Tyson Fury is asking for prayers ... after the boxing champ says his newborn daughter needed to be placed in intensive care.

The 32-year-old announced the birth of baby Athena on Sunday ... but immediately requested prayers for the little girl. Fury did not go into further detail.

The fighter did say, though, that he's hopeful the baby will be released from the ICU later Monday.

"Massive thanks for all the messages and support," Fury said on his social media page. "The baby is [in] a stable position & doing well."

"Hopefully she comes out ICU today. Please keep baby Athena in your prayers."

Fury added that his wife, Paris, is "doing great" after giving birth to the baby girl.

Athena is Tyson and Paris' sixth child ... the couple -- who got married in 2009 -- already had three sons and two daughters.

Fury, meanwhile, is still in the middle of prep for his massive fight with Deontay Wilder, which is set to go down on Oct. 9.

The fan accused of hurling the n-word during Sunday's Rockies game might've gotten a raw deal -- because upon further review ... it appears he was screaming to the team's mascot, Dinger.

A new video has surfaced, and showing the fan in question sitting behind home plate, and apparently waving/screaming to the mascot ... Dinger the dinosaur who was across the way. Notice how the dude waves and where he's looking.

And, as you listen ... it does, indeed, sound like he could've been saying "Dinger!" ... instead of the n-word. Some still aren't convinced though -- saying they can't quite hear the "d" sound -- but in our minds ... this context pretty much clears it up, and clears the man's name.

Frankly, someone would've pointed him out in the moment if he had, in fact, said the n-word. That kinda explains why the Rockies said they hadn't located the dude after the fact.

While the team came out and fully condemned what most people thought they'd heard at first, it now appears it's perhaps much ado about nothing. Understandable that the confusion arose in the first place, however ... because during the broadcast, it DID sound bad.

As we reported ... the alleged slur was heard toward the end of the game, when Marlins OF Lewis Brinson was at-bat at the top of the 9th -- having taken ball 2 and already clocking a couple hits in the game. He did appear to turn around and acknowledge the yelling.

Anyway, good to know where the team and the media members who cover the team stand on the issue -- namely, against racism and racist rhetoric -- which is encouraging to hear. But, with that said ... maybe it's time to consider a new face/name for the franchise in light of this.

Dinger might be just a little too close to something else, it appears.

R. Kelly is trying to score a win in his federal sex crimes case by citing public health laws in order to get the herpes-related charges tossed.

The singer's filed new legal docs in the Eastern District of NY, obtained by TMZ, asking the court to throw out charges for knowingly exposing sexual partners to herpes because ... he says the legislature didn't include herpes in the law because it's "Not An Acute, Bacterial Venereal Disease."

You might recall, federal prosecutors accused Kelly of exposing 2 people to an STD in March 2020, and the charges were tacked on to his already long list of federal charges for allegedly sexually exploiting underage girls and young women.

According to the new docs, however ... Kelly's legal team claims herpes does not fall under the umbrella of STDs -- like syphilis or gonorrhea -- based on how the term has been defined by the New York State Dept. of Health and the World Health Organization.

He points out those orgs classify herpes as a virus, not a bacterial venereal disease -- and therefore, he wants the herpes-related counts dismissed.

As we've reported ... Kelly's also gearing up for his criminal trial in Chicago, and dealing with the recently added allegations that he groomed and molested a 17-year-old male he met at McDonald's.

Cops are so livid over the way they say Jaxson Hayes fought them during his arrest last month ... they're now strongly urging NBA commissioner Adam Silver to take action against the Pelicans star.

It's all spelled out in a letter, obtained by TMZ Sports, written by the Los Angeles Police Protective League -- a police union representing 9,000 rank and file LAPD officers -- to Silver and New Orleans Pelicans owner Gayle Benson.

In the note -- which is four pages in length -- the police union says 6'11, 220-pound Hayes became combative on July 27 after they responded to a domestic disturbance call involving the hooper.

Law enforcement says Hayes refused orders, hurled the n-word at officers, and pushed one cop so hard into the wall, the basketball player injured the "much physically smaller" man.

We’ve obtained photos of the cop's alleged injuries ... and they appear to show the officer's elbow was swollen and bloody following the incident.

LAPPL went on to say in the letter that after a review of body camera footage from the night ... they strongly believe Hayes was out of line, and criminally assaulted an officer during the arrest.

"Mr. Silver," the officers said in the letter, "the actions of your player were unlawful, completely unacceptable and are as clear a prima facie case of violating several of the National Basketball Association policies as we have seen."

"We respectfully request that you immediately initiate a thorough investigation into Mr. Hayes' actions before, during and after the incident and to take appropriate corrective action to hold Mr. Hayes accountable."

They continued, "The video is clear. Your swift action in this incident is warranted."

The union also says in the letter Hayes' alleged use of the n-word was completely unacceptable ... saying it's on the same level as when NBA player Meyers Leonard used an anti-Semitic slur during a March video game stream.

"We ask you to investigate Mr. Hayes' use of the 'N-word' during the incident," cops said, "and based on the obvious evidence, hold him accountable for the blatant violation of the NBA's values of 'equality, tolerance, inclusion and respect.'"

LAPPL concluded the letter asking Silver and the NBA to "send an unequivocal message that assaulting police officers will never be tolerated by the NBA."

"Given the severity of this incident, we sincerely hope you take decisive action in this case."

As we previously reported, Hayes was arrested following the altercation with cops ... and was booked on a resisting arrest charge.

The 21-year-old has claimed cops used excessive force on his neck, causing him the inability to breathe at some points during the arrest.

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck aren't shying away from their love here in La La Land -- as if their big date night on Saturday wasn't enough ... here's more evidence from the day after.

Check out these photos TMZ obtained of Bennifer holding hands for a romantic stroll on the beach late Sunday afternoon ... one that's kinda tucked away in Malibu near Paradise Cove, below what we're told seemed to be a private home (perhaps one of theirs, or a pal's even).

Unclear who exactly the guy third-wheeling with them was, but eyewitnesses tell us he seemed to be part of their crew as they took a walk to remember. We *think* that looks like someone we recognize -- and who Ben certainly recognizes too. That you, Matt Damon???

Anyway, we're told the couple stopped and chatted with a few others along the way, and then the trio made their way up some stairs.

Feels like Ben and Jen might've wanted to get away from paps, as there didn't appear to be any in sight here -- unfortunately, they're just too damn famous and hot not to notice. Sorry guys!

Still ... it's a pretty romantic outing, even away from the public eye so to speak -- which speaks volumes about where they are right now (aka, head over heels in love). Remember, they'd just hit the town the night prior in a big "we're here" type of way.

Before the big Bev Hills debut, they'd only been seen getting publicly affectionate on their Euro vacay -- but after this, something tells us we're gonna see a lot more Ben/Jen PDA.

The more the merrier, we say. ❤️