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Noted Trekkie Sen. Cory Booker's praising a 'Star Wars' franchise, but cut him some slack -- his GF, Rosario Dawson, was in "The Mandalorian" ... and he still wants her to beam up to the USS Enterprise.

The U.S. Senator was on Capitol Hill Thursday when we grilled him about Rosario's debut on the hit Disney+ series as Ahsoka Tano. Not shockingly, he said she was phenomenal, but not only in the role.

CB says she was great at keeping set secrets from him while she was shooting -- including a big one about Baby Yoda. Doesn't sound like he's holding a grudge though (smart man) ... because he's already pulling for her to expand her sci-fi range by jumping to a 'Star Trek' project.

Yes, as a Trekkie, Cory's kinda pulling for the home team ... but he explained why Rosario's already set a big precedent that makes doing 'Star Wars' and 'Star Trek' not so far-fetched.

Hannah Viverette -- the woman whose TikTok recording captured the moment a man allegedly busted into her home -- says she's now stuck between a rock and a very scary hard place due to the ordeal.

Hannah tells us the man who was arrested for stalking after entering her apartment Sunday night still lives in her building. He bailed out of jail after his arrest, and she says his eviction date is still a couple weeks away.

Hannah says she's frightened to live there and has been staying in a safe place since the incident -- but she's desperate to move out for good and find a new permanent home.

Problem is, she claims her apartment complex in Maryland won't allow her to break her lease -- and says she's already dealing with enough hardship as a single mom who lost her job due to the pandemic.

Her attorney, Symone Redwine, tells us she believes what happened to Hannah is grounds for her to immediately terminate her lease without penalty ... and she's talking to the complex to try to make that happen.

As we reported ... Angel Moises Rodriguez-Gomez was charged with 2 counts of burglary, second-degree assault, stalking and malicious destruction of property.

Hannah tells us she also filed for a restraining order a few days after the incident because she was told it would help expedite the process of him getting kicked out of the building. She says his eviction date, as of now, isn't until mid-December.

We reached out to the housing complex, but no word back so far.

"If you want to get some legitimacy in the game, fight somebody with a name!"

That's former boxing superstar Antonio Tarver -- who famously defeated Roy Jones Jr. TWICE -- calling out Jake Paul for a sanctioned fight!

"I want to fight him, because I want to show him there are levels to this," Tarver tells TMZ Sports.

FYI, Tarver is 52 years old and hasn't fought in 5 years. Jake is 23 and coming off a highlight-reel knockout of Nate Robinson.

Antonio -- who famously starred as Mason "The Line" Dixon in "Rocky Balboa" -- says he was VERY impressed with Jake's performance and thinks a fight with Paul would be super entertaining and a lot closer than most people think.

"When you look at Jake Paul's ability, you would be crazy not to believe he's much better than his 2-0 record indicates," Tarver says.

Paul has been calling for fights with guys like Conor McGregor and Dillon Danis ... but Tarver says if he's serious about a career in boxing, he needs to fight a BOXER.

Before this precious pipsqueak was glowing on the stage and a popular Netflix series, he was just another cheesin' child ready for his close up in Jersey City, New Jersey.

This funny fella launched his career by making people laugh with his hilarious stand-up comedy routines -- which he's been successful at working on for over thirty years. He is best known for his featured role in the classic film "Almost Famous."

Now, he has a wildly popular podcast where he interviews actors, comedians, and other entertainers ... his style of radio will leave you thinking 'WTF?'

Gotta hate humans who pollute our oceans and harm animals ... but also gotta love humans who save animals from harm ... like this jet skier who came to this poor dolphin's rescue.

A guy crusin' on his jet ski off Biscayne Bay, FL happened upon a dolphin in serious distress. The video starts with the jet skier, Nick Tuduri, noticing the dolphin flailing in the waters ... before noticing the dolphin's tail is caught in a net.

It doesn't take long for Nick to jump into action ... using a knife to free the dolphin's tail from the thick rope. The rope was so thick ... Nick spent 3 solid minutes trying to cut it. He's eventually successful ... and the dolphin swims away, hopefully pain-free.

As if this feel-good story couldn't get any better ... a pod of dolphins can be seen swimming beside Nick. They say dolphins are extremely smart animals ... so one can only guess the dolphins were saying, "Thanks, brah!!!"

Noah Cyrus is taking back a racist remark she fired off, presumably at Candace Owens, when she stepped in the middle of her feud with Harry Styles.

Miley's little sis threw her support behind Styles after his Vogue spread last month -- wearing a dress -- prompted Owens to verbally attack Harry for not being "manly."

Problem is, Noah's choice of words were racially charged -- her IG story post said Styles wears a dress "better than any of u nappy ass heauxz."

If you didn't know, Owens is Black ... something Noah certainly knew, so it's clear she needs a history lesson about the racist undertones of the word "nappy." It sounds like someone gave it to her, because she got a ton of backlash on social media ... and is now apologizing.

She says, "I am mortified that I used a term without knowing the context and history, but I know now and I am horrified and truly sorry. I will never use it again. Thank you for educating me."

Lesson learned ... however, it's not like Harry needed the help, anyway.

He'd already responded to Owens' dig, by sharing a new photo of himself in a powder blue suit eating a banana, captioning it with Candace's own words ... "Bring back manly men."

Owens claimed Styles' clapback is proof she inspires global conversation, tweeting ... "When people try to tell me I don’t have influence, and then [Styles] dedicates an entire post to my tweet."

Rescuers from 3 different conservation groups are sticking their necks out for 8 giraffes that have been stranded on an island in Kenya ... and 2 have already made it back to safety.

Here's what's happening -- the poor Rothschild's giraffes got trapped on an island in Lake Baringo due to rising water levels flooding it ... which separated them from the resources they need to survive.

In order to save them, the Kenya Wildlife Service, a U.S. nonprofit called Save Giraffes Now and an African conservation org called the Northern Rangelands Trust have combined their efforts in an unusual rescue mission ... using a barge built for a giraffe to float them back to the mainland one at a time.

So far, 2 of the 8 giraffes have successfully made the 4-mile trek from the island ... and have been relocated to a special sanctuary where they can survive and thrive.

One of them was a female named Asiwa that was stranded on a more remote part of the island, making her rescue a top priority. However, the president of Save Giraffes Now says there's major urgency to saving the rest as well ... as they are an endangered species in Africa, and only about 800 left in Kenya.

As for the barge, get this ... it was engineered by local community members, who have also learned how to train the giraffes to enter the barge voluntarily.

Here's hoping everything goes well with the other 6.

Boosie Badazz is making the most of what is clearly a gruesome situation -- using his leg injuries from last month's shooting in Dallas to promote a new song.

The rapper revealed the brutal aftermath of not only the shooting, but the multiple surgeries he's needed ... including a procedure to remove bullet fragments, and getting screws put into his foot.

As you can see ... it resulted in swelling, discoloration, and required several staples and stitches running from this thigh down past his knee.

The ghastly sight might leave Boosie's fans speechless, but he's using the video to accompany a new single, "Lost for Words," which he dropped Thursday.

Along with footage of his busted-up leg, the music vid shows the rapper recovering in the hospital and later at home with family.

As we reported ... Boosie didn't let the damage to his leg stop him from hosting events a couple weeks afterward -- on Thanksgiving in South Carolina and 2 days later in Alabama to celebrate his birthday.

Of course, Boosie had to roll into the clubs in a wheelchair ... but he appeared to take it all in stride.

Rihanna really does have love on the brain ... and A$AP Rocky close by her side points to all signs they're an item.

The singer was out for a chilly stroll with the rapper Wednesday night in NYC ... both were bundled up in huge winter jackets. They also covered their faces with masks ... but that's more about the pandemic and NYC's mask mandate than the temperature. They probably thought it would help keep them concealed from photogs ... but to no avail.

Anyway ... it seems RiRi and Rocky -- friends since at least 2013 when he opened for her Diamonds World Tour -- started fueling dating rumors after they were seen having dinner together with friends at the Beatrice Inn in NYC over the Thanksgiving weekend.

That they've spent time together's nothing new. Again, they're longtime friends. In fact ... she included him in her Fenty Skin campaign earlier this summer and conducted several interviews together promoting the collab.

But, now that we've seen them out together -- just the two of 'em -- it's certainly all but confirming what they've yet set out to do ... announce they're a new couple.

Smokey Robinson's going to bat for the American Red Cross ... with a moving new rendition of a classic he calls one of the best songs ever written.

The Motown icon joined "TMZ Live" Thursday and, in true Smokey fashion, beautifully and meticulously explained why he and other stars joined forces to drive donations to the American Red Cross.

Smokey -- along with Leona Lewis, Tori Kelly and Sam Fischer -- got together to cover Burt Bacharach’s 1965 classic, “What the World Needs Now” ... in an effort to spread a message of hope during one of the most unimaginable years in recorded history.

The org, you should know, is in dire need as it combats a myriad of catastrophes around the globe ... from the COVID-19 pandemic to natural disasters like hurricanes and wildfires.

The song -- which features a touching music video showing Red Cross volunteers tending to this year's disasters around the world -- is available for purchase and streaming on multiple platforms, and all proceeds will go to the Red Cross. There are other ways to donate too ... including here.

A quick-thinking cop found herself in the right place at the right time ... saving a woman from jumping off an overpass, and the tense interaction was captured by the officer's body cam.

Pensacola PD officer Lana Checkak responded to a report of a woman sitting on the rail of the overpass. The body cam footage starts with Lana identifying herself as PPD and the woman, visibly shaken and crying, walking on the sidewalk.

You can hear Lana ask the woman if she's alright. The woman mutters something and then, out of nowhere, she tries to climb the railing but the cop reacted swiftly ... pulling her down and asking her to get down and roll over.

Cops say the woman was taken into protective custody and evaluated in a mental facility. She was not arrested or charged with anything. Neither the woman nor the cop suffered any injuries.

One of the big cats at Carole Baskin's Big Cat Animal Rescue in Tampa took a big bite into a staffer's arm, and it sounds like she's lucky to be alive.

Hillsborough Fire Rescue says it received an emergency call around 8:30 AM Thursday at Baskin's tiger sanctuary for an individual who suffered a serious bite to the hand, as well as an arm injury.

Carole and Howard Baskin tell TMZ ... one of their longtime volunteers, a woman named Candy Couser, stuck her hand into the enclosure of Kimba the tiger, to open the door for feeding time ... and Kimba bit into her hand and started thrashing.

We're told Candy's arm was nearly torn off at the shoulder. The Baskins say when other staffers ran over to the scene, Kimba let go of Candy's arm. Three employees applied a tourniquet and pressure to the wounds until paramedics arrived about 15 minutes later.

The medics continued treatment on the scene, attempting to stabilize Candy, and then transported her to a hospital. Despite the incredibly violent attack, we're told Candy is expected to survive.

Carole and Howard tell us Candy was conscious during the ambulance ride and said she didn't want Kimba to be harmed. They say the tiger will be kept in quarantine for the next 30 days as a precaution -- but they add the animal was "just acting normal" because there was food present.

As you know ... Baskin and her Big Cat Rescue became famous earlier this year thanks to the 'Tiger King' docuseries on Netflix, and her feud with Joe Exotic.

The Baskins say, at the time of the attack, Kimba was in an enclosure that's behind 2 guillotine-style tunnel doors. Candy had opened the first, but when she got to the second it was clipped shut.

They tell us, "This is our universal signal NOT to open a gate without the coordinator coming to assist, but Candy said she just wasn't thinking when she reached in to un clip it. It is against our protocols for anyone to stick any part of their body into a cage with a cat in it."

We're told Candy's been a volunteer for 3 years at Big Cat Animal Rescue.

New York City's best efforts to keep people from congregating in close quarters for the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting may have actually made it worse ... at least in one spot where folks could still catch a glimpse of the tree.

There was no crowd allowed for the 2020 lighting of the famous tree due to COVID-19 being totally out of control, and barricades and NYPD buses were used to keep people at bay. Authorities even tried to keep them from watching the ceremony from far away ... but it didn't work.

As you can see ... those lustful for Xmas lights found a spot between the buses where they could hold up their phones and capture the glory.

There's reason to block big celebrations, because the virus is so out of control the hospitals may not be able to treat everyone who becomes seriously ill.

In New York, where the positivity rate is around 5%, public health officials are urging people with underlying health conditions or otherwise at risk to stay home, except for essential trips.

On the other coast, things are just as bad. L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti made it clear Wednesday ... "My message couldn't be simpler ... it's time to hunker down. It's time to cancel everything. And if it isn't essential, don't do it."

George Clooney's giving all the doubters proof he really does cut his own hair ... with a Flowbee, and Jimmy Kimmel got to see it up close.

As you've no doubt heard, George made headlines by revealing he's a longtime user and fan of the DIY-haircutting device -- famously lampooned in "Wayne's World." It's shocking 'cause Clooney's hair's kinda been his thing, and no one knew ... which is why plenty of folks weren't buying it.

But, he did a live demo Thursday night as George and Jimmy each busted out their own Flowbee. Kimmel's a rookie, but the Cloons gave him a free tutorial on how it's done.

It seems this specific Flowbee has an extension on it that's too long for George's liking, but as he says ... all ya gotta do is turn the buzzer on and "go to town."

Looks pretty easy, but if you try it at home maybe pop in some earplugs ... the dang thing's loud!

This sea turtle deserves to live after amazingly fighting off a hungry tiger shark -- captured on video -- just long enough for a couple of dudes to save his shell.

The 2 men were fishing in the waters around the Bahamas when they noticed the turtle desperately trying to escape the jaws of the shark ... in fact, it looks like it was about to lose the battle. The razor-sharp teeth were biting into the back end of the shell, but the turtle was still trying to swim away.

The turtle then made a serious power move ... trying to swim up onto the back of the boat. When the shark fell back for a moment, the fishermen sprung into action -- they had just enough time to pick up the turtle.

It's unclear if the guys waited for the shark to disappear ... but they eventually released it back into the water. One helluva save, for sure!!!

G Herbo and his associates perpetrated a massive fraud to go on fancy vacations, fly on private jets and even buy "designer puppies" ... so claim the feds.

According to a new federal complaint, G Herbo -- along with his music promoter and other members of his crew -- allegedly conspired to defraud numerous businesses with stolen credit cards over the course of a 4-year period.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, the feds claim Herbo specifically conspired to get a private villa in Jamaica back in July 2017 by contacting music promoter Antonio Strong to arrange it and provide a stolen credit card to pay for incidentals.

What's more ... the feds allege the rapper was in cahoots with Strong to use an alias and a stolen credit card to purchase 2 "designer puppies" from a luxury pet store. The feds allege the other defendants also scored private jet charters to fly women, private yacht charters, exotic car rentals and luxury hotel and vacation rental accommodations.

Herbo's been charged with 1 count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 2 counts of aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft. Antonio was also slapped with several counts, including wire fraud ... and was arrested back in September, but it's unclear if Herbo has plans to surrender.

His attorney provided a "no comment" when reached by the Chicago Tribune, which first reported the story.

The news comes on the heels of Forbes naming Herbo to its 30 under 30 list in the music category. The publication praised the rapper for his recent music success and launching a youth mental health initiative.