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This could be the dumbest, most ridiculous woke move ever ... Sarah Paulson is getting dragged for wearing a fat suit portraying Linda Tripp in "Impeachment: American Crime Story," because some critics think the role should have gone to someone with Tripp's body shape.

Yes, there are people who think an actor of Linda Tripp's size was denied a role that rightly should have gone to her.

Now, this is not to say it's not legit to debate actors wearing fat suits. But, is it essential to the role? As Sarah says, "There's a lot of controversy around actors and fat suits, and I think that controversy is a legitimate one. I think fat phobia is real. I think to pretend otherwise causes further harm. And it is a very important conversation to be had."

But, saying size matters in casting a role ... that's another thing altogether. What about actors who use prosthetics? What about a blonde actor who plays a redhead? Or an actor who gains or loses a lot of weight for a role ... a la Christian Bale or any other method actor???

Sarah brilliantly shut down the haters ... "I do think to imagine that the only thing any actor called upon to play this part would have to offer is their physical self is a real reduction of the offering the actor has to make."

She goes on ... "I would like to believe that there is something in my being that makes me right to play this part. And that the magic of hair and makeup departments and costumers and cinematographers that has been part of moviemaking, and suspension of belief, since the invention of cinema. Was I supposed to say no[to the role]."

Sarah was vague at the end, saying now that she knows what she knows, she would respond differently if offered the Linda Tripp part. She says, "I think the thing I think about most is that I regret not thinking about it more fully ... Should I have known? Abso-f***ing-lutely. But I do now. And I wouldn't make the same choice going forward."

A woman fleeing Afghanistan gave birth on a Turkish Airlines flight headed for the U.K. ... but the citizenship of the baby is something of a mystery.

Soman Noori, a 26-year-old Afghan with 2 kids, was on board the jet when she started having contractions. As the plane cruised at 33,000 feet above Kuwait, she gave birth.

The baby's name is Havva -- in English, Eve.

There have been other births during the evacuation as well.  Several other Afghan women gave birth either on a U.S. aircraft or at a U.S. military base in a foreign country.

One woman gave birth on a U.S. military plane that landed in Germany. Medics jumped on board when the plane landed and tended to her. The parents named the newborn girl Reach ... the call sign of the C-17.

According to the State Dept's Foreign Affairs Manual, "A U.S.-registered aircraft outside U.S. airspace is not considered to be part of U.S. territory," thus "a child born on such an aircraft outside U.S. airspace does not acquire U.S. citizenship by reason of the place of birth."

If a child is born over U.S. airspace, they would become a U.S. citizen.

It's unclear if a baby born on a military base in a foreign country would be eligible for U.S. citizenship.

Young Thug must've been a huge fan of the "SimCity" video game series as a kid ... 'cause the tiny town he envisions building feels like an awesome mini metropolis.

So, here's the deal ... the rapper turned 30 earlier this month and among the fancy gifts that came his way were 100 acres in the greater Atlanta area ... gifted to him by his manager, Geoff Ogunlesi.

Atlanta realtor, Trey Williams, helped Geoff lock down the land deal and the plan's for Young Thug to subdivide the property with the name, "Slime City." Trey tells TMZ ... YT wants to build really nice homes, a waterpark, perhaps a camping site and so much more.

Young Thug wants to host his annual "Slime Fest" on the property. Hence ... "Slime City." YT has hosted "Slime Fest" every year -- sans 2020 for obvious reasons.

Trey says Young Thug will include a dirt bike trail on the property ... where people who love riding bikes and 4-wheelers can cut loose.

Trey says Young Thug's already been chopping it up with architects and engineers. There are a few permits they're waiting on ... but as soon as they get the green light, it's game on.

We're told this is just one way Young Thug wants to give back to his community. Just recently the rapper bought his mom a new home in the ATL ... and he plans to do the same for his dad. As for how much YT dropped for the property ... Trey wouldn't say.

Evander Kane is accusing his estranged wife of being a husband beater ... claiming the woman has punched him in the face multiple times in past -- and now, the NHL star has obtained a domestic violence temporary restraining order over it all.

It's all spelled out in court documents, obtained by TMZ Sports, which show Kane was granted a TRO earlier this month after he alleged Anna Kane had been violent with him in the past.

Evander says in the docs that the physical altercations first began in 2019 -- about a year after they were married -- saying Anna got so upset with him during an argument that she hit him "7-8 times in the face with her fist."

In Oct. 2020, Evander says Anna again struck him in the face after they had an argument while Anna's mother was visiting.

Less than a year later, in April 2021, Evander says his wife exploded on him again ... after she had gone through his phone.

In the docs, the 30-year-old San Jose Sharks player says Anna "started uncontrollably throwing things at me" ... before she punched and slapped him repeatedly in the head and face.

Evander says in July, there was yet another incident of violence ... claiming when he was trying to get away from Anna after an argument in San Jose, she pushed him and also violently tugged on a bag he had thrown over his shoulder.

During that same incident, Evander also says Anna dangerously swung around their baby daughter.

Evander was ultimately granted a temporary restraining order against Anna ... and is now seeking a permanent one against her. A hearing on that matter is scheduled for next month.

As we previously reported, Anna filed for divorce from Evander back on July 16 ... and accused him of being a deadbeat dad who had bet on his own NHL games.

"FBOY Island" star Jarred Evans is reimagining the old adage "nice guys finish last" ... 'cause in the end, co-star CJ Franco chose him and their relationship's on 🔥🔥🔥.

Jarred tells TMZ ... he and CJ are most definitely still in a relationship since the HBO Max reality dating show finale aired 2 weeks ago, though the show was filmed in March and April in the Cayman Islands.

We're told, for now, Jarred and CJ are trying the whole long-distance thing. She's visiting him in Miami very soon. They've sporadically posted stuff on social media since the finale, but Jarred tells us that's all going to change soon ... vowing to post more on TikTok with CJ and pictures of them together.

Jarred makes it clear ... he and CJ are still very happy together. But, have they exchanged the 3 words every person in a relationship wants to hear? Not yet ... but Jarred did reveal a move to L.A. is imminent. Get ready, CJ!!!

For the uninitiated ... CJ had an up-and-down relationship with Casey Johnson, dubbed the "FBOY." When Casey got the boot from the show ... fans had a feeling she would still pick him. Nevertheless ... Jarred "the nice guy" entered the pic and CJ chose him.

The prize? Well, besides the blossoming relationship ... Jarred and CJ split the $100k pot. We're told he used it for his high-end tea company called Le Bon Thé.

Jennifer Coolidge's good looks were meant to be seen on-screen!

Here is a 40-year-old version of the beautiful babe at the premiere of "Legally Blonde" in Los Angeles, CA back in 2001 (left). That same year Coolidge also starred in "Down to Earth," "Zoolander" and "American Pie 2."

And, 20 years later ... the actress -- who is spending this weekend celebrating her 60th birthday -- is currently starring in HBO's 'White Lotus,' and was recently seen looking platinum at the premiere of the show in Los Angeles just last month (right).

"Best In Show."

The question is ...

This week's Summer Hot Shots comes from high up in the Hollywood hills where Ella Rose added some color to the landscape in a floral bikini while laying out at an incredible home in Los Angeles.

When this model mom isn't creating fire warnings with her hot hilltop photos, Ella Rose loves to get lost in a good book, share life's treasures with her adorable daughter, Lily and experiment in the kitchen while creating her own recipes.

Delish!

We are continuing to whip up our Summer Hot Shots for 2021 from a distance and have collaborated with some mind-melting hotties from around the world for your viewing pleasure!

Justin Bieber has left every other artist on Spotify in the dust -- hitting a major milestone by attracting the most listeners ever, which begs the question ... is he MJ's heir apparent???

The Biebs broke a record this week ... raking in the most monthly listeners on Spotify over the course of the streaming platform's history, with a whopping number of 83.3 mil -- the first time that's been accomplished -- this as his "Justice" album continues to surge on the charts.

And, don't get us started on his hit single with The Kid LAROI, "Stay," which continues to cruise at #1 several weeks after its release. Safe to say, August has been good to JB.

BTW, as far as Justin's Spotify lead ... he's far ahead of the rest of the pack by millions of listeners. The Weeknd clocks in at #2 with 74.5 million monthly listeners, Ed Sheeran is #3 with 72.4. And his female contemporaries are even further behind ... in the 60s.

The record before this was around 82 mil monthly listeners -- held by Ariana Grande for a good while. In any case, some major congratulations are in order ... and maybe some title-bestowing too. A lot of people are throwing around the term "Prince of Pop" right about now.

There's some controversy with that ... some feel he isn't deserving (for a variety of weird reasons) -- but the numbers don't lie, and Justin's longevity speaks for itself. So yeah, he may just be the modern-day prince of the genre ... behind the all-time king, Michael, of course.

Speaking of MJ, the dude's music continues to hit new benchmarks in its own right ... even today, more than a decade after his untimely death. "Thriller" was just certified 34X Platinum this week -- yep, people are still playing that classic.

President John F. Kennedy had an affair with a 20-year-old college student on-and-off for years -- until he phased her out, making her feel used ... so claims the alleged mistress.

83-year-old Diana de Vegh detailed the romance that she claims started up in '58 -- when JFK was still a U.S. Senator -- and carried on for four years into his presidency until 1962 ... a year before he was assassinated.

de Vegh -- who recounted her story for Air Mail -- says Jack approached her at a political event while she was still a student at Radcliffe College ... and says they started banging soon after that -- supposedly either at his Boston apartment or at the Carlyle Hotel in NYC.

She says she was swept up in the whole thing ... but as time went on and JFK got more involved in politics (and eventually a presidential run) DDV says she saw him less and less -- with John slowly starting to "put her back on the shelf" ... this as rumors of several other affairs surfaced in the same period, which de Vegh admits made her jealous at the time.

After a final meeting either at his home in D.C. or in the Oval -- following JFK's discovery that he was working with her banker dad for policy advice and a hesitation she says she sensed -- de Vegh says she never saw him again. A year later, the Prez was gunned down.

de Vegh says there was nothing particularly special about the relationship -- she suggests it was mostly chit chat, empty sweet talk from him, some sex ... and then sending her home. Of course, this was all going on while Jack was married to Jackie -- something de Vegh says she didn't even register or process at the time, because he apparently never brought it up.

In hindsight, de Vegh says she's only speaking out about this now because she feels that -- despite progress made in #MeToo -- women can still be beholden to powerful men, and she wants them to put themselves first.

In the same breath, she brings up Harvey Weinstein and other men who've been accused of late for abusing their power with women ... telling the NYP, "The whole idea of conferred specialness -- 'You go to bed with me, I’ll make you special' -- we’ve seen a lot of that with Harvey Weinstein, Roger Ailes, show business."

As if it wasn't obvious before, Adele is officially in LeBron's orbit -- because she was partying alongside him, his NBA buddies and his agent/her BF ... all to celebrate the King's wife's bday.

Savannah James hit the big 3-5 Friday night ... and she and her Lakers superstar hubby hit the town for a bash that became a who's who of the NBA -- and of Hollywood at large, it seems, seeing how Adele dropped in with Rich Paul ... whom she's dating at the moment.

A clip of her rocking out inside The Classic Cat restaurant in WeHo -- where the party was thrown -- has surfaced ... and it looks like Cardi's "WAP" was blasting through the speakers as Adele bobbed back and forth.

She and Rich tried keeping a low profile on the way out -- but paps caught 'em getting into a waiting SUV. Adele attempted to obscure her face, but the cat was outta the bag ... and Rich didn't seem to care either way as he buttoned up his shirt and faced the flashing lights.

If ya thought this would be a quick thing, think again ... because Adele and Rich have been going strong for a while now -- even before they went public earlier this year, apparently.

As for the rest of the shindig ... it was a rager and a half, with Savannah as the glowing star. LeBron filmed his wife getting down on the dance floor, and she got major love from just about everyone in attendance. He even booked singer Giveon to perform!

Kanye West and Drake's beef has trickled into real life harassment -- some fan(s) of the latter took it upon themselves to hit up Ye's childhood home with some hateful words in tow.

Photos surfaced this weekend of three different signs that appear to have been left on the front steps of the South Shore Chicago house that Kanye grew up in ... and which he bought in recent years and is reportedly in the process of renovating.

It also served as the centerpiece of his latest listening event there in town -- with Ye creating a replica version of the crib to help tell the story of his "Donda" album. Now, it's tainted.

Somebody left signage touching on Drake's lyrical shots that he fired last weekend ... in which he called Kanye "burnt out," among other things. One sign echoes those words exactly, while another warns that Drizzy's album, "Certified Lover Boy," is coming soon.

And, the middle sign randomly takes a swipe at Justin Laboy -- a social media influencer who's been relaying a lot of Kanye "Donda" news lately ... seemingly on his behalf.

Luckily, no real damage to the home was done ... but it still feels like crossing the line into a space that's obviously sacred to Ye. Unfortunately for him, the address is widely public ... and doesn't seem to have any barricades or security around to keep nosy prowlers out.

The fact someone had the gall to go to Kanye's actual house to do this perhaps speaks to the stunt he pulled on Drake this week ... posting the dude's Toronto address publicly.

Matthew Mindler, the child actor who went missing earlier this week, has died ... law enforcement tells TMZ.

The college he attended confirmed his death with an announcement to the student body ... "It is with a grieving heart that I let you know of the death of 19-year-old Matthew Mindler from Hellertown, Pennsylvania, a first-year student at Millersville University. A search had been underway for Matthew since Thursday, after he was reported missing. Matthew was found deceased this morning, Saturday, August 28, in Manor Township near campus."

The official did not disclose the cause of death or whether foul play is suspected.

Matthew starred opposite Paul Rudd in "Our Idiot Brother."

Matthew had not been seen since Tuesday night after failing to return to his dorm room. He was reported missing late Wednesday.

Police say Matthew was last seen walking away from his dorm at 8:11 PM Tuesday, wearing a white Millersville University hoodie with black stripes on the arm, a black backpack, jeans and white sneakers.

Cops say Matthew went to classes Monday and Tuesday but hadn't returned on Wednesday.

Matthew's credits include an episode of "As the World Turns" and "Frequency." He also appeared in the 2016 TV movie, "Chad: An American Boy."

Matthew was 19.

Eric Clapton is putting his anti-vaccine sentiments into song -- the guy just released a ditty that's all about resisting COVID vaccines and restrictions ... and it's surreal.

The legendary rocker and guitarist debuted his new track, "This Has Gotta Stop," Friday ... which at first feels like a social justice-like protest song -- based on the lyrics and visuals. But, when you read between the lines and read up on EC's recent COVID remarks ... it's clear what he's talking about.

The chorus goes, "This has gotta stop, enough is enough // I can't take this BS any longer // It's gone far enough, you wanna claim my soul // You'll have to come and break down this door." His first talks about knowing something was wrong when the proverbial man started laying down the law ... which Eric says made him apprehensive and break out in sweat.

He goes on to talk about what he thinks this future (of COVID mandates, vaccine requirements, etc.) will mean for his kids down the road. There's also a lot of animations of people being controlled by strings and hypnotized ... so it's clear what he thinks of it all.

Of course, that's no surprise ... Eric made his feelings known about a month ago when he announced he wouldn't perform at venues with vaccine requirements ... going on to liken it to "discriminated audience(s)." Even before that, he's been pushing anti-vaccine rhetoric pretty much all throughout the pandemic -- so, now, it appears he's channeling that in music.

Kim Kardashian's wedding dress cameo at Kanye West's "Donda" show wasn't a total kumbaya for the pair's marriage, but things behind the scenes are drastically improving for the former couple.

Sources close to K & Y tell us ... there actually is a chance they could get back together. They've been spending time together privately and "working on rebuilding the foundation of their relationship."

While our sources say their divorce is still on, it's possible Kim might withdraw the divorce petition. There's obviously a lot of love and history between the former pair, but many areas of disagreement that have to be worked out.

We're told one of the glimmers of hope is that both Kim and Ye want what's best for their kids, and if they can work things out it's a win for the entire family.

Our sources say Kim and Kanye's main focus is to keep a healthy and sturdy foundation of love and support for their 4 kids ... and Kim bringing them to all 3 of Ye's "Donda" listening events demonstrates that.

A Marine Corps lieutenant colonel was swiftly disciplined after railing on the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other military leaders for bungling the disastrous exit from Afghanistan.

Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller, a 17-year-veteran who has served in Afghanistan, says he knew the brass would come down on him like a hammer, but he felt it was his duty to publicly demand accountability for failing to protect the troops.

Lt. Col. Scheller was relieved of his duties after posting his video, in which he says, "People are upset because their senior leaders let them down. And, none of them are raising their hands and accepting accountability or saying, 'We messed this up.'"

The lieutenant colonel, who says he had a personal relationship with one of the fallen soldiers, says he knew his criticisms would result in a high cost to him, his family and his career, and also said he was urged by some of his fellow Marines not to say publicly what they were all feeling privately.

The Lt. Col. zeroed in on what he believes was a fatal error ... not securing the Bagram Air Base before evacuating our soldiers and Afghan allies.

The Marine brass said they disciplined Lt. Col. Scheller because they lost trust and confidence in his ability to command.

James Corden hit the streets with Camila Cabello Friday for a skit that was fun and funny, but maybe not COVID-safe.

James and Camila were in West Hollywood for a Cinderella spoof. James played the mouse, Camilla was Cinderella and Billy Porter was the Fairy Godmother.

When the skit was over, James grabbed a blunt from a passing driver and took a hit. Not a great idea with the Delta variant raging in L.A. County and pretty much everywhere else in the country.

And, there's this ... you gotta see James/the mouse thrusting his hips to "Let's Get Loud" ... as an onlooker captures it on video.  Pretty hilarious.

Hopefully, James is OK. The skit will presumably air next week.

BTW ... James appears in the upcoming flick, "Cinderella," which was in production back in February 2020. It was shut down for months due to the pandemic, but it's in the can now.