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"Seinfeld" star Michael Richards is not looking for a redemption arc -- even though he's finally coming out of hiding -- but he does want to clarify a few things related to his infamous Hollywood Laugh Factory incident.

The actor's rarely been seen since the 2006 rant when he shouted the n-word and other racial insults at an African-American man who was heckling him during his standup routine.

Michael told People Mag he was immediately sorry in the aftermath of that meltdown -- and nearly 2 decades later he insists ... "I'm not racist. I have nothing against Black people. The man who told me I wasn’t funny had just said what I’d been saying to myself for a while. I felt put down. I wanted to put him down."

Cassie has just spoken out about the horrific video of her then-boyfriend Diddy brutally beating her, and her words were clearly chosen carefully given the NDA she signed to settle her lawsuit.

Cassie posted on Instagram early Thursday ... "Thank you for all of the love and support from my family, friends, strangers, and those I have yet to meet. The outpouring of love has created a place for my younger self to settle and feel safe now, but this is only the beginning. Domestic Violence is THE issue. It broke me down to someone I never thought I would become."

She goes on ... "With a lot of hard work, I am better today, but I will always be recovering from my past. Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to take this matter seriously. My only ask is that EVERYONE open your heart to believing victims the first time. It takes a lot of heart to tell the truth out of a situation that you were powerless in."

Ben Affleck toyed with the paps Wednesday, by hiding the one body part that has mesmerized the public!

Ben was out and about L.A., picking up his son Samuel from school, with a bunch of paps in tow. As the photogs train their cameras on his left hand, Ben cleverly hides the appendage in his sweater.

Of course, what the photogs were looking for was his ring finger. Ben has flipped back and forth over the last few weeks, sometimes wearing his wedding ring and sometimes not.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard has achieved her biggest post-prison goal ... meeting Kim Kardashian!!!

The new season of Kim's Hulu show dropped Thursday, as well as a new teaser for what's to come -- showing GRB chit-chatting with KK.

Check it out ... Kim, who's wearing a chestnut, shearling-lined coat, beams as she goes in for a hug with Gypsy. The moment ends there -- hey, it's called a teaser, folks.

Shohei Ohtani is putting his historic contract to good use -- the Dodgers superstar just snagged a ritzy mansion in Los Angeles for $7.85 million ... a place formerly owned by comedian Adam Carolla.

Details on the deal were released this week ... with the L.A. Times reporting the Japanese two-way athlete is the buyer of the La Cañada Flintridge digs.

The pad -- built in 2013 -- is perfect for a guy like Ohtani. It's a three-story, five-bedroom, six and 1/2-bathroom home that comes with a decked-out kitchen, private movie theater, basketball court and gym ... as well as a pool and spa.

"Naked and Afraid" contestant Sam Mouzer is convinced he's cursed -- or at least his penis is -- after suffering another phallus injury ... and this one's more gruesome than the first!

TMZ got an exclusive look at Sam's return to the franchise -- this time he's on "Naked and Afraid XL" -- and he wasted no time making history yet again, as the clip shows him getting a "d**k tick" while out in the Colombian Badlands.

It would be a painfully remarkable event, no matter whose junk picked up the little hitchhiker -- but Sam makes it, well ... maybe the worst luck of all time.

A Texas teacher tried to break up a fight between students at their school ... but she wound up getting roughed up herself in a major way!

Check out this video making the rounds on social media ... it opens with two boys going at it in a classroom at Hurshel Antwine Middle School in El Paso on Monday.

The female instructor is standing between them, attempting to stop the brawl as one of the youngsters throws a flurry of punches at his rival.

"The Simpsons" may have a reputation for making pop culture predictions that come to fruition, but in the case of Diddy's downfall, the Fox cartoon made no such prophecy.

The cartoon's showrunner, Matt Selman, explained it all to TMZ after an "AI fake" of Diddy drawn as a 'Simpsons' character fleeing cops in a pink suit made the rounds online.

The TV producer tells TMZ ... "In the current era of digital misinformation, The Simpsons 'predictions' (or, more accurately, 'coincidences') have become meaningless. Any goofball can whip up an AI image based on a current event and say 'The Simpsons predicted it!' — and decent-but-easily-misled folks will believe it because they so very want it to be true."

Victor Wembanyama might be the biggest nerd on the planet -- literally -- 'cause the 7-foot-4 NBA superstar was just spotted shopping for Pokémon cards and Manga books at a San Antonio store!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the Spurs center visited Heroes & Fantasies -- a collectibles shop some 20 minutes away from the Frost Bank Center -- on Tuesday night in search of adding to his personal collection.

The store's vice president, Adam Conley, says Wemby arrived just before close ... and was "super friendly" as he looked at everything from Pokémon to Magic: The Gathering.

We've got some juicy TMZ TV hot takes that are sure to get you through this hump. So, settle in!!!

First up, on "TMZ Live," Harvey and Charles discuss 50 Cent's new Diddy docuseries ... which officially has a new home at Netflix.

Before this little girl decked out in princess attire turned into a leading lady in Hollywood, she was putting on plays in the garage, and watching J Lo in "Selena" on replay -- with big dreams of landing Hollywood stardom!

Perhaps her big break came when she starred in "Short Term 12" however her role playing a kidnapped woman scored her an Academy Award! She also grabbed wide attention with her superpower performance in "Captain Marvel" -- which was made into a wax figure!

If you follow her on Insta, you'd know she enjoys dancing and pilates!

Ben Affleck's close friend Jason Mewes ain't buying into the swirling speculation the actor's marriage to Jennifer Lopez is crumbling ... not based on what he's seen.

We got Jason out Wednesday in L.A., and he told us after witnessing Ben and Jen's genuine affection at their wedding less than 2 years ago, he'd be downright shocked if the rumors were true.

Jason expresses some frustration over people immediately jumping to split speculation ... suggesting there's probably a more practical explanation -- most likely work-related -- behind Ben moving out of their marital home.

7:30 PM PT -- Boeing is denying the most troubling parts of the Daily Mail report. The company says, "This story is misleading and reckless. It makes incorrect connections and sensationalizes the standard regulatory process that has helped ensure air travel is the safest form of transportation. This is not an immediate safety of flight issue."

The Boeing spokesperson continues, "There are multiple redundancies designed into modern commercial airplanes to ensure protection for electromagnetic effects. The 777 fleet has been operating for nearly 30 years, and has safely flown more than 3.9 billion passengers."

BTW, a source familiar with FAA procedure tells us the agency's March memo regarding potential "electrostatic discharge" was a Notice of Proposed Rule Making ... which is a description of a proposed rule, and NOT a final rule.

The attempt by someone to foreclose on Graceland is about to become the subject of multiple criminal investigations ... TMZ has learned.

Multiple sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Graceland officials, along with people from Riley Keough's camp, were in touch with the FBI Tuesday, and we're told the agency is "interested" in conducting a criminal probe.

We're also told the would-be victims are in the process of contacting the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Nicole Brown Simpson's mother Juditha took on the daunting responsibility of telling Nicole's children about her death ... her sister Dominique revealed in a new interview.

Ahead of the 30th anniversary of Nicole's murder, her sibling shared with People insight into how the family operated in the wake of their tragic loss. Per Dominique, Nicole's kids Sydney and Justin, who were just 8 and 5 at the time, were told "Mommy's in heaven" by Juditha.

Dominique recalled how she and her sisters stepped in to help with Sydney and Justin, whom she tried to protect from the horrifying realities of the situation.

Britney Spears is back with another rambling IG post ... and this time she's talking about forgiving those she claims contributed to her health woes.

In particular, the troubled singer gets candid about the nerve damage on the right side of her body, which she says is so severe she can't think straight sometimes -- and that it's left her with loads of trauma.

She's spoken about the health issue before, so it's not anything new ... but she essentially says in her post Wednesday she's digging deep to forgive those she believes have caused her suffering.