1:57 PM PT -- While the teenager might be the ringleader of the hack, 2 others have been arrested for it as well -- 19-year-old Mason Sheppard from the U.K., and 22-year-old Nima Fazeli of Orlando.
UPDATE
The 2 men were charged in California federal court, though it's unclear if they are facing as many felonies as Clark.
Some of the most high-profile celebs, politicians and business leaders can thank a Florida teen for hacking their Twitter accounts ... according to cops, who've busted the alleged mastermind.
Graham Ivan Clark was arrested Friday morning in Tampa following an investigation into the hack that appeared to be part of a massive Bitcoin scam ... and the 17-year-old is facing a whopping 30 felony charges.
The State Attorney's Office in Hillsborough County says Clark is responsible for the July 15 hack, which as we reported, saw Twitter accounts for Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Kanye West, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Jeff Bezos, Mike Bloomberg and Kim Kardashiantweeting out a message asking users to send $1,000 to the same Bitcoin address in return for $2,000.
The scheme was pretty lucrative ... authorities say the hack reeled in more than $100,000 in Bitcoin.
Clark was arrested and booked shortly after 6:30 AM Friday ... according to jail records.
While Clark is only 17 years old, Florida law allows minors to be charged as adults in some cases of financial fraud.
Twitter says the hackers fooled its employees into handing over high-level administrative credentials over the phone in a "spear-phishing attack," which allowed the hackers to target other Twitter employees with access to account support tools and ultimately tweet from the celeb accounts.
11:54 AM PT -- WE tv tells us ... 'Get Ya Life!' will air as it was intended -- the network will not be changing the show or further editing based on Tamar's complaints.
Tamar Braxton's upcoming reality show will still be released, but the network says it's honoring her request and severing ties with her going forward ... following her recent suicide attempt.
WE tv says ... "Tamar Braxton has been an important part of our network family for more than a decade. As she focuses on her health and recovery at what is clearly a difficult and personal time, we will work with her representatives to honor her request to end all future work for the network."
The network adds that it wishes her nothing but the best, and confirms with TMZ that Tamar's new series, 'Get Ya Life!,' will premiere Sept. 10.
Remember, the show was supposed to debut July 30, but got postponed after Tamar's apparent suicide attempt on July 16 at an L.A. hotel. Tamar called it "my attempt to end my pain and my life."
As we reported ... Tamar opened up about the incident, claiming years of mistreatment in reality TV pushed her to the brink. She claims over 2 months ago, she wrote a letter to WE tv asking to be freed from her contract because of the "demise" she was experiencing ... but says her cry for help was ignored.
Sources close to Tamar told us she was upset over her portrayal on the first episode of "Get Ya Life!" and felt she was lied to by producers.
Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse are giving away money ... or so it seems after nearly 200 people in Rhode Island mistakenly received tax refund checks signed by the Disney duo.
The hilarious technical error was discovered when some people received checks with a Mickey signature under the general treasurer line, and Walt's name signed under state controller.
Hold on to your mouse ears hat -- Rhode Island officials say this was a technical glitch. The Disney signatures are used by the Rhode Island Division of Taxation on test files. They were never meant to be stamped on the 176 live checks mailed out ... mostly to business owners.
For the record, officials mailed out new checks with the correct signatures. And, in case you're wondering -- Seth Magaziner and Peter Keenan are the state's real treasurer and controller, respectively. Chill out, guys ... you haven't been replaced.
And, here's a fun fact raised by The AP in its report on the tax flub: "Mickey Mouse is the cartoon character that was animator and producer Walt Disney’s first big hit."
Ex-NFL receiver Eric Decker is still making miraculous catches in retirement .... but instead of snagging footballs, he's grabbin' handfuls of his stunning wife!!
The 33-year-old former Broncos and Jets star hit the pool with Jessie James Decker -- sporting a cheetah-print bikini -- and the pics will highlight your Friday.
Of course, Decker retired from the NFL in 2018 ... but you wouldn't be able to tell byhis body-- dude is still JACKED!!!
As for JJ, the country singer threw on a skimpy bikini while taking a break from promoting her new cookbook, which hits shelves in September.
The couple even tried throwing the football around for a bit ... and it's safe to say Eric is the only one in the family who was blessed with hands.
Eric and Jessie James got married back in 2013 and have 3 kids together ... and they're proving their marriage is hotter than ever.
A Seattle woman flipped out on a photographer using a drone for real estate photos, accusing him of secretly recording women ... but he thinks her rant was really about seeing a black guy on her block.
The photog, Thomas Samuel, shared video of the incident, in which the latest "Karen" accosts him as he was, in his words, "working and minding his own business."
The vid starts with the woman, who ID's herself as Katelyn, complaining about a drone coming down on her house. She acknowledges that she came out cussing at Thomas and claiming he's filming women.
When Thomas explains he's working for the real estate company Redfin, the woman doesn't buy it ... and angrily says she's going to go call them to verify.
Thomas wrote after the confrontation ... "Just had this woman come at me accusing me of being a criminal and a pervert/creep with my drone bc I was taking pictures of her neighbors house smh."
He added ... "I was hired and working a job, notified the homeowners that I was there and got approval to fly, not to mention I have my FFA Part 107 license to fly drones."
Thomas went on to allege the woman thought the worst of him because he's black.
The irony of it all ... Karen's "Live United" t-shirt.
1:09 PM PT -- Brown has accepted his suspension and does not plan to appeal, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network.
Antonio Brown asked for it ... and now he got it -- the NFL is suspending the All-Pro WR a whopping 8 games after finishing its probe Friday into a myriad of AB's off-field issues.
The half-a-season ban will begin as soon as Brown signs on with a new team ... the league announced.
"Antonio Brownwas notified today by NFL Special Counsel for Conduct Todd Jones that he has been suspended without pay for the first eight regular-season games of the 2020 season for multiple violations of the NFL's Personal Conduct Policy," league officials said.
"As part of the discipline, Brown was directed to continue his programofcounseling and treatment, and that he is expected fully to cooperate with his clinicians.
They added, "Brown was advised that any future violation of the Personal Conduct Policy will likely result in more significant discipline."
Of course, Brown had been under league investigation for nearly a full year for several reasons ... most notably after he was accused in a civil lawsuit of raping his former trainer.
In the suit, Britney Taylor alleged Brown sexually assaulted her on 3 separate occasions ... including a violent rape in 2018.
AB has adamantly denied the claims ... and has fought the suit in court for most of the past year.
Brown was also under investigation after he allegedly sent menacing text messages to a different woman who had accused him of sexual misconduct when she went to his Pittsburgh-area home to paint murals on his wall in 2017.
The NFL also looked into Brown's assault case ... in which he was arrested for allegedly beating up a moving truck driver outside of his Florida mansion in January.
Brown has tried his best to play nice -- apologizing to the league, his family and even cops over the past few months -- but just last week, he went off on the NFL for its investigation.
He claimed the league was dragging its feet ... and it was hurting his career.
With the probe now over ... Brown -- who hasn't played since being cut by the New England Patriots last September -- is free to sign with any team.
Racial tension is boiling over -- this time in Brooklyn between a cyclist and a driver, and it ended in a sparked hateful tirade against Asians.
The racist rant started when the guy who recorded this video admits he gave a "light honk" to the biker, who he says was swerving all over the road.
The biker quickly goes racial and hurled so many ethnic and homophobic slurs and stereotypes, you'd think he was trying to win racist bingo.
Basically, the cyclist's lame-ass defense was he's from that neighborhood, and no one should be honking at him on his bike, especially not Asians. Naturally, he pulls the get-out-of-my-country routine.
There were also threats of violence and hatred towards other minorities in this case of serious racist road rage.
Here's Novak DjokovicFINALLY wearing a mask out in public -- and all it took was global public shaming after he contributed to an outbreak!
Remember, Novak blew off social distancing advice and hosted a tennis tournament in Croatia back in June -- and shocker -- a bunch of people tested positive!
Both Novak and his wife contracted the virus -- and while they eventually recovered, they were still spotted out in Spain just a few weeks ago without masks!!
But now, Djokovic has come around ... kind of!
The #1-ranked men's tennis player in the world was masked up during a shopping trip in Cadiz, Spain with his wife, Jelena, this week.
AMAZING, RIGHT?!
All it took was 674k reported global coronavirus deaths before he wised up!
Novak dropped his mask during part of the outing -- but hey, progress is progress.
Breonna Taylor's mother knew in advance her daughter would become the first person other than Oprah to appear solo on the cover of O magazine ... because O told her herself.
Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Oprah's team reached out to one of Breonna's family attorneys, Ben Crump, several weeks ago to see if she could get in touch directly with her mom, Tamika Palmer.
We're told there was no hesitation on the part of Breonna's family ... Oprah got Tamika's number and gave her a call in early June ... shortly after O posted a birthday tribute to Breonna on Instagram.
Waiting for your permission to load the Instagram Media.
We're told it was the first time the two women had spoken, and it was just them on the call. That's when Oprah revealed her plan to Tamika to feature Breonna on the cover and ask for her blessing.
Our sources say Tamika was "in complete awe" of Oprah's gesture -- calling it an unbelievable moment -- and of course, she's honored O's doing something she's never done before as a tribute to Breonna.
As we reported ... Breonna's cover is historical, as it's the only time Oprah has not been on it. She stepped aside for one of her final print editions and dedicated it to Taylor by declaring, "If you turn a blind eye to racism, you become an accomplice to it." Emblazoned on the cover are the words ... "HER LIFE MATTERS."
Breonna was killed by Louisville police on March 13 in her own home in a botched raid over a "no-knock" warrant. So far, her death has resulted in no arrests, which sparked countless protests ... along with the death of George Floyd.
In an interview with "CBS This Morning," Oprah expressed her desire to protest as well, saying ... "if it were not for COVID I would be marching in the streets."
Fortunately, she found another impactful way to do her part.
The sight of a George Floyd 3D hologram is pissing off racists -- at least one of whom flew into a rage and spewed the n-word at spectators.
The disturbing altercation went down in Richmond, Virginia where the Floyd hologram was projected above the site where a Robert E. Lee statue had stood a month ago. As a crowd gathered for the event, a white woman started yelling, "This is my city" ... prompting some people to push her away.
The video, shot Tuesday night, really amps up, though, when she screams ... "Look at that n****r s**t!"
A nearby man immediately told her to get lost (that's the clean version) -- at which point several people shoved her away from the event ... narrowly avoiding more violence.
The event was dubbed "A Monumental Change: The George Floyd Hologram Memorial Project." As we reported ... the hologram first appeared in Richmond and it'll make stops at 5 other sites including some in North Carolina and Georgia.
The tour will pretty much follow the same route as the 1961 Freedom Rides during the Civil Rights era -- hopefully, with far fewer racists outbursts.
More than 100 years too late, the Bronx Zoo is apologizing for its horrific treatment of Ota Benga, a Central African man, who was actually on display in the zoo's monkey house ... with an orangutan.
The Wildlife Conservation Society -- the organization that runs the zoo -- is formally apologizing for the 1906 imprisonment and caged display of Benga for one week.
The WCS says ... "We deeply regret that many people and generations have been hurt by these actions or by our failure previously to publicly condemn and denounce them."
The apology was clearly prompted by the social activism since George Floyd's murder, and the WCS added ... "We recognize that overt and systemic racism persists, and our institution must play a greater role to confront it."
Benga was a member of the Mbuti people of the present-day Democratic Republic of Congo, and for several days during the week of Sept. 8, 1906, he was held in inhumane conditions, forced to live with an ape ... and was only allowed short periods of time outside.
Benga started to resist and threaten zoo attendants, and was only released after a delegation of local black churches demanded it. When he was finally freed, Reverend James Gordon took him in at his Brooklyn orphanage ... but Benga died by suicide 10 years later.
The WCS also denounced past racism of 2 of its founders, and is making all records related to Benga publicly available in an effort to be more transparent.
Yeah, it's a cheap publicity stunt for a pasta company -- but you can't fake the excitement the girls had when their tennis hero showed up out of nowhere!!
BACKSTORY -- During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, 13-year-old Vittoria and 11-year-old Carola went SUPER VIRAL for their rooftop match, which took place on top of two buildings in Liguria, Italy.
The video was shared all over the world -- with people giving 'em huge props for finding a way to play even though courts were closed.
Fast forward to July ... the girls were told they were going to be interviewed by the news media about their viral moment -- not knowing Roger Federer was secretly waiting behind the scenes!
During the interview, both girls praised Roger as their favorite player -- with Vittoria saying, "If I were to meet him, I would jump on him or I would be starstruck!
That's when the current #4-ranked player in the world appeared out of nowhere -- AND THE LOOK ON THE GIRLS' FACES IS PRICELESS!!!
"We cannot believe it, Federer is on our rooftop!!!"
The moment was awesome -- they took selfies, they chatted ... and then they played rooftop tennis!!!
Federer and the girls successfully volleyed for a bit ... but naturally, some shots came up short and became a hazard down below.
No one cared about that though -- the lost balls are probably collector's items now!
The whole surprise was coordinated by the Barilla pasta company --which explains why everyone scarfed down noodles after the match!
Federer also hooked up his new friends with another incredible experience -- 2 entries to Rafael Nadal's tennis camp!!
Things have gotten way too personal for TikTok's most-followed personality, and after getting an online threat ... her family's hired round-the-clock security.
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Charli D'Amelio got a scare on July 8 when someone posted on social media, claiming they were going to show up at her house.
No one followed through on that threat, apparently, but we're told cops are investigating. The situation alarmed Charli and her fam enough to hire cops to keep an eye on things.
Our sources say the family is paying the OT to have police officers surveil their property for the foreseeable future, because this isn't the first frightening incident they've experienced.
We're told Charli's also been the victim of multiple "swatting" calls, where random people have falsely reported an emergency at her home ... then authorities show up to nothing.
Charli is a dancer who has quickly become a sensation on the social media platform. Since first posting her dance videos in the summer of 2019, she's amassed nearly 75 MILLION followers ... making her the most popular TikTok account.
Happy Friday ... here's a filthy, but happy, Jason Momoa getting hosed down after riding on a dune buggy.
The Hollywood hunk and star of the upcoming "Dune" remake flaunted his hot bod in a series of photos ... where he's caked in mud ... giving a thumbs up while trying to clean him off.
Jason captioned the pics ... "like a pig in sh**." He added ... "hard to explain this one. but i had an amazing day. now i need a dune buggy. dune coming soon aloha j."
The actor's dune buggy escapades clearly are designed to promote the new feature adaptation of Frank Herbert's science fiction novel ... which costars Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, Timothee Chalamet, Dave Bautista, Josh Brolin, Oscar Isaac and Javier Bardem.
But, who really knows -- or cares. Bloody Marys are a good idea for heading into the weekend ... but might we suggest Muddy Momoas instead?
5:44 AM PT -- 7/31 -- After the game, LeBron James credited Colin Kaepernick for inspiring the kneeling demonstration -- and said, "I hope we made Kap proud."
UPDATE
"I hope we continue to make Kap proud. Every single day I hope I make him proud on how I live my life, not only on the basketball floor, but off the floor."
UPDATE
LeBron James on kneeling during the anthem to protest systemic racism: “I hope we made Kaep proud.” LeBron then explains his gratitude for the military pic.twitter.com/FHYWyD06Hm
"I want to always speak out against things that I feel like are unjust. I always want to be educated on things and go about it that way."
UPDATE
LeBron added, "Kap was someone who stood up when times weren't comfortable, when people didn't understand, people refused to listen to what he was saying. If you go back and go look at any of his postgame interviews when he was talking about why he was kneeling, it had absolutely nothing to do with the flag. It had absolutely nothing to do with the soldiers, the men and women that keep our land free."
UPDATE
"He explained that, and the ears were closed, people never listened, they refused to listen, but I did."
UPDATE
"A lot of people in the black community did listen, and we just thank him for him sacrificing everything that he did to put us in a position today, even years later, to be able to have that moment like we had tonight."
UPDATE
6:20 PM PT -- LeBron Jamesand all his Lakers teammates participated in the kneeling demonstration during the anthem before they tipped off against the L.A. Clippers.
UPDATE
The Clippers also took a knee ... along with all of the coaches, staffers and referees working the game.
UPDATE
4:44 PM PT -- NBA commish Adam Silver is addressing both teams' decision to kneel before the game, saying they will not face punishment for the gesture.
UPDATE
"I respect our teams' unified act of peaceful protest for social justice and under these unique circumstances will not enforce our long-standing rule requiring standing during the playing of our national anthem."
Courtesy of NBA
Powerful moment from the NBA restart -- where every single player on both the New Orleans Pelicans and Utah Jazztook a knee in solidarity during the national anthem.
It was quite a statement Thursday evening in the first official game of the NBA restart -- which tipped off in the bubble environment at Walt Disney World in Orlando.
All of the players were wearing "Black Lives Matter" shirts -- and were standing behind the BLM art at center court.
The anthem was performed by musician Jon Batiste -- an instrumental rendition featuring heavy guitar and piano elements.
The players were arm in arm during the anthem -- some players raised their fists.
After the anthem, Shaquille O'Nealpraised everyone involved -- saying the kneeling was "beautifully done in unity -- nice to see."
He added, "We have to continue to fight, continue the movement ... now we have to go vote."
Charles Barkley also weighed in ... saying, "If people don't kneel, they're not a bad person. I want to make that clear."
Barkley added that if a person chooses not to kneel, "they should not be vilified."
Of course, the kneeling movement was started by Colin Kaepernick who says the point of the demonstration is to put a spotlight on police brutality and social injustice.
The NBA allowed players to replace their names on the back of their jerseys with social justice messages.
Zion's jersey says "Peace." Lonzo Ball's says "Equality." Brandon Ingram's says "Freedom." Mike Conley's says "I Am a Man."
Sharon Osbourne says seeing is believing when it comes to paranormal activity and other-worldly beings ... she wants to believe we're not alone, but needs her own hard evidence.
Sharon joined us on "TMZ Live" and we wanted to know if she's a UFO believer like her son, Jack.
JULY 2020
TMZ.com
While Sharon says she's seen our footage of a possible UFO over the skies of Long Beach -- lots of folks reported seeing something flying over L.A. too -- she tells us why the video alone is not enough to convince her 100 percent.
Sharon's getting the hard sell on UFOs back at home ... the famous family has a new show on Travel Channel, "The Osbournes Want To Believe," where Jack tries to convince her and Ozzyabout the existence of aliens, Bigfoot, poltergeists, haunted dolls and other strange beasts.
Sounds like Sharon is ready to chalk most footage up to visual tricks, but she tells us what Jack showed her to change her perspective on one scary phenomenon.
