Coronavirus

A dirt track in South Dakota says it'll put a race on in front of 700 (!!!) fans this weekend, despite the COVID-19 pandemic ... and the state's governor ain't pleased with the plan.

Here's the deal ... Park Jefferson International Speedway in North Sioux City, SD says it's playing host to a big race on Saturday despite the risks of spreading coronavirus.

The track's owner, Adam Adamson, says they'll take all precautions necessary to keep people safe at the event ... claiming by only allowing 700 people in the 4,000-seat venue, proper social distancing guidelines will be followed.

Adamson also tells the Argus Leader the event will be entirely cashless ... and the clubhouse where large groups of people usually congregate will be closed.

The problem? Even with precautions taken ... 700 people in a small area is a BAD idea at this stage in the global pandemic -- and now, the state's governor is issuing a plea for people to stay away.

Gov. Kristi Noem said in her press conference Tuesday, "I'm going to strongly recommend to the people of South Dakota that they not go and that they stay home."

She added, "We're asking that they be wise and smart to continue on the path and plan we’ve laid out for South Dakota for several more weeks."

Of course, Noem has been widely panned for NOT issuing a mandatory stay-at-home order for the state ... this despite South Dakota having over 1,700 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

As for Adamson, he claims spectators will be fine at the event ... adding, "We intend to go overboard on following CDC guidelines."

UFC fighter Lyman Good says he's 100% recovered after his battle with COVID-19 ... and he's already back in the gym!

Good tested positive for coronavirus back in March while gearing up for his April 18 fight against Belal Muhammad at UFC 249.

The 34-year-old says he's been feeling weak and had trouble breathing.

After a week of symptoms, Good says he began to feel MUCH better. His most recent tests came back negative for COVID-19 and he's been cleared by doctors.

"Now I’m 100%," Good says ... "I’m in contact with Red Cross because I’m in the process of trying to get information so I can give blood donations. So I can get my antibodies to help other people."

"I was fortunate enough to beat this thing, there’s people who aren’t fortunate enough, and it’s a battle for some other people out there. So, I want to be able to do my part."

Good says he resumed his MMA training once he got the green light from doctors -- and he's hoping to get back in the Octagon as soon as possible.

"Once I got word, and the test results came back, I let my coaches know, I let my teammates know and I was back in."

"But, more important than catching the virus again, is to let everybody know that I beat this thing and a lot of people will."

"We will get through these tough times, we just gotta stick together, be positive through everything, and yeah I’m back to work. I’m ready to get back to work and I’m ready for the next fight."

Madonna is on board with Meek Mill, Michael Rubin, Van Jones, Bob Kraft and Jay-Z ... joining the REFORM Alliance's effort to protect inmates and correctional facility staff from COVID-19.

REFORM is partnering with Madge's Ray of Light Foundation to send 100,000 surgical masks to jails and prisons across the country ... especially some hit hard by the coronavirus.

The massive donation includes 50,000 masks for the Cook County Jail and the Illinois Department of Corrections ... where more than 600 prisoners, staffers and deputies have been infected. At last count, 7 people have died.

Another 20,000 masks are going to the Louisiana Department of Corrections, while the remaining 30,000 masks will be distributed between Vacaville Prison in California, FCI Ray Brook in New York and Suffolk Co. Sheriff’s Dept. in Massachusetts.

76ers partner and REFORM Alliance co-chair Rubin tells us ... "It's absolutely crucial that we protect our inmates and prison staff, especially since social distancing guidelines are difficult to abide by in these facilities."

Jessica Alba's husband, Cash Warren, is also part of the effort -- through his company, Pair of Thieves -- to distribute the PPE at a time when the pandemic seems to be intensifying at several correctional facilities. Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Virginia experienced their first COVID-19 deaths in prisons or jails within the past week.

Pick up a pad and a pencil and draw your favorite celebrity nude scene ... your artistry could bring home some serious bacon!!!

The good folks over at MrSkin.com just announced a brand new social media contest, and 3 lucky winners are going home with a cool $1,200 just for drawing, sketching or painting celebs in the buff.

Here's the deal ... it's called the #MrSkinChallenge and there's a chance to win an extra stimulus check. All you gotta do is depict a famous nude movie scene or sexy celeb moment, then post your art on social media with the hashtag.

The nude scenes are already rolling in, and ya gotta see some of the submissions ... there are famous moments from "The Shining," "Basic Instinct," "Titanic," "The Wolf of Wall Street" and even a drawing of Kim Kardashian's infamous Paper Magazine cover.

The contest is open to U.S. state residents ages 21 and over with valid social media accounts, and 10 finalists will be announced May 3 with a special post on MrSkin.com.

Once it's down to the top 10, people will vote on the best submissions and the 3 artists with the most votes get $1,200 a pop!!!

If you're unfamiliar with MrSkin.com or haven't discovered it yet in quarantine, the website is a famous online source cataloging movie nudity scenes, and it even got a shout-out in Judd Apatow's romantic comedy, "Knocked Up."

Sarah Stage is like most parents who've had to celebrate their kids' birthdays under quarantine -- ya gotta go virtual, but unlike most, she still ended up spending a bundle!

The fitness-focused model threw her 5-year-old, James, a party at their L.A. home last week -- which was quarantine-friendly ... as it was technically just her and her two kids, including the birthday boy. That doesn't mean she didn't go above and beyond though.

Sarah got all of James' friends and closest relatives, including his Grammy, to hop on a video message to wish him happy birthday. On top of that, she got his inner circle of pals to do a drive-by laser gun shoot-out. All from a distance, of course.

That stuff doesn't take the cake, though ... the "Sonic the Hedgehog" pastry does, 'cause that's what Sarah ordered for James -- not to mention curbside balloon service to deliver a bunch of balloons and party favors for his at-home shindig.

Last but not least ... Spider-Man!!! Mom hit up Super Fly Ent. and dropped a couple hundred bucks for a personalized video message from the web-slinger, and a 1-hour virtual dance party for the kids ... which you can see was money well spent.

Sarah says she went with SFE because the company's giving back to frontline workers. For every party booked through them, they throw a free party for someone helping in the COVID-19 fight.

All in all, Sarah dropped about $1,000 for the digital blowout, and despite the distancing ... she says it's the best party James ever had. Hey, if the kid's happy, everyone's happy. Even virtually.

It's another swing and a miss for R. Kelly -- the judge shot down his 2nd attempt to get released from jail due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The federal judge acknowledged the disease has spread at MCC Chicago, where Kelly is being held awaiting the first of many trials. However, the judge said Kelly's motion for release on bond did not present enough evidence the singer is uniquely at risk to contract the coronavirus.

As for Kelly's argument, he's not a flight risk because he's previously showed up for scheduled court appearances ... the judge wasn't buying that. She said Kelly is now facing more serious charges, including allegedly tampering with witnesses ... so again, no dice on release.

TMZ broke the story ... Kelly's lawyer told the judge the singer's in a vulnerable position at MCC Chicago especially after claiming an inmate on Kelly's floor has recently been hospitalized for COVID-19.

He also insisted Kelly is NOT a flight risk because the singer doesn't really have the means. They pointed out Kelly owes nearly $2 million to Uncle Sam, and any money he does make from royalties is going to pay bills.

The judge's decision didn't reference his financial trouble, but she did address Kelly's insistence he would lay low -- while wearing a GPS monitor -- and stay off social media. She said due to the pandemic and law enforcement resources being stretched ... "They cannot ensure that a defendant with a history, incentive and opportunity to interfere with potential witnesses will not do so."

Life ain't all that beautiful in 2020 ... another music festival is getting scrapped due to concerns over the novel coronavirus.

Life is Beautiful, a three-day outdoor festival in downtown Las Vegas celebrating music, art, food and comedy, has just been canceled due to COVID-19.

The festival was scheduled to take place on multiple stages in Sin City Sept. 18-20, but event organizers say they're taking a one-year hiatus and intend to return in 2021.

Life is Beautiful is still gonna try and make an impact on Vegas even though no bands are coming and no murals will be painted ... festival organizers say they're putting resources towards the local community instead of the event.

Seems festival honchos saw the writing on the wall ... Life is Beautiful says there was just no way the festival could happen as planned due to the health and economic impacts being brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

Killer Mike thinks Georgia's jumped the gun with reopening on Friday -- potentially risking lives -- so, he is NOT rushing to open doors at his chain of barbershops.

The rapper joined us Tuesday on "TMZ Live" and told us he's concerned about Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's plan to lift much of the state's lockdown restrictions Friday, allowing barbershops, salons, gyms and several other businesses to reopen.

Killer Mike and his wife, Shay, own a string of barbershops in Atlanta, called The Swag Shop, but tells us they're opting to keep all the locations shuttered.

While he sees strong incentives to reopen the shops -- businesses are around to make money -- Mike says concern over the health and safety of his employees and customers outweigh the company's bottom line.

He also admits race is a factor, because African Americans are being impacted by COVID-19 at a very high rate, and that's the community he serves -- so he doesn't want to put anyone in danger by opening too soon.

Sounds like Killer Mike thinks Dr. Anthony Fauci is right when he says lifting restrictions too soon could backfire. Mike's hoping governors and mayors can get on the same page, and formulate a better plan. So far, that hasn't happened in Georgia ... where several mayors are vocally opposed to the Gov. Kemp's move.

Until then, Mike has a message for the average American worker who feels they might need to rush back to work.

Another complete loser deliberately coughing at someone during the coronavirus pandemic, but the good news this time is -- this one's already spending time in jail.

A British woman was caught on video coughing at a police officer earlier this month while he was arresting her on suspicion of assault and property damage.

The woman, 39-year-old Charlene Merrifield, was stopped by the cop in South Tyneside following a call that a woman had attacked a man with a knife and damaged his car.

Merrifield angrily questions why she's being arrested and not the other guy, and the cop points out she was "going absolutely berserk" while holding bricks when he showed up ... so that's why.

She continues protesting as she gets in the police van and bumps her head, then proceeds to wildly cough in the officer's direction without covering her mouth. The cop loses his patience with her at that point and threatens her with jail.

Turns out, he was just foreshadowing where she'd end up ... because about a week after the incident she reportedly admitted to the assault of an emergency worker along with other offenses. Merrifield was sentenced to 21 weeks in jail.

Of course, her disgusting act is just the latest in a series of them ... including a Florida man coughing at a cop during an arrest, a Baltimore cop coughing at residents, a Canadian guy licking a bank door, and a Pennsylvania woman coughing on produce at a grocery store.

Rachel, Ross, Joey and the other "Friends" are the latest to dive into the All In Challenge -- the stars of the show are giving folks a chance to watch them reunite on camera at long last.

Jennifer Aniston and the rest of her costars made the surprise announcement Tuesday -- notifying their followers of the "The One Where You Meet the Entire Cast of 'Friends'" ... which, of course, might just be the biggest All In Challenge yet -- if you're a fan, that is.

Jen took to Instagram to explain, writing ... "We’re inviting you and five of YOUR friends to join the six of us on Stage 24. Be our personal guests in the audience for the taping of our @HBOMAX reunion, as we reminisce about the show and celebrate all the fun we had 🥳 ... and get the whole Friends VIP experience on the Warner Bros. Studio Tour."

She went on, "Can’t wait to meet and hug you guys when this is all over 🥰 Until then, keep Facetiming, calling, DMing, and texting your friends and family. We gotta stay connected 🙏🏼" Everyone else said something similar, and the official description's almost word for word the same thing. Bottom line ... a VIP "Friends" experience like none other.

If you're unfamiliar at this point, the All In Challenge is pretty simple -- you purchase "entries" into any given contest (there's a lot now) in increments of $10, $25, $50 or $100 ... with the more you buy, the more the chances you get of getting selected to win. Most contests only allow one purchase of $100 per person, so you can't go crazy and guarantee a win.

All the money goes to a bunch of charities and causes pertaining to helping fend off COVID-19 and feed people in the process -- 76ers partner Michael Rubin got it started ... and the challenge has taken off since then with a bunch of celebs offering one of their own.

As for the "Friends" reunion prize ... it's a perfect combination of TV bliss and advertising for HBO -- which is rolling out its new streaming service, HBO Max, very soon. Great timing!

Sadly, it doesn't sound like this reunion will be an actual episode or anything -- just the cast sitting around reminiscing on the show. So, yeah ... we're still left with this final scene.

Still cool though ... and it's for a great cause.

Jesse James is gonna have to wait a little longer to unleash the monster in his garage ... his reality show reboot is being put on ice because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Jessie is currently sheltering-in-place at his home in Austin, Texas and with a ban on large gatherings brought on by COVID-19 he can't assemble a crew for the return of "Monster Garage."

In an interview with Graham Bensinger, Jesse says 'Monster Garage' is being put on hold at least until the end of the month. Jesse says they already have a pilot episode in the can, but they are in a holding pattern until his crew of about 30 people is safe to congregate on set.

TMZ broke the story ... Jesse is returning to reality TV following a 14-year hiatus, bringing 'Monster Garage' back to Discovery Channel after traveling the world and expanding his skill set in forging and blacksmith work.

When the dust settles and restrictions are lifted, Jesse says he and his crew have 7 builds ready to go.

Blake Griffin's body might be in game shape ... but his jumper??? Not so much.

Here's video of the Detroit Pistons superstar comically airballing and bricking shots in a pickup game with his kids ... and it's adorable and maybe even a little embarrassing all at the same time!

BG got out of his L.A. pad with his daughter and son Monday ... but when it came time to score against the children -- Blake's ball was social distancing itself from the net.

Check out the clips ... Blake airballed one shot so poorly, he had to sheepishly go collect the rebound from a dude on another court.

HOPE YOU SANITIZED YOUR HANDS AFTERWARD, BLAKE!

Afterward, Griffin hit nothing but iron on two other shots as well.

Obviously, BG wasn't taking things too seriously ... he was out enjoying the day with his kids and getting in a little quarantine exercise

Plus, it ain't like Griffin's not in hoops shape ... did you see his bod over the weekend?!?!

Lululemon's cut ties with one of its art directors for promoting a "Bat Fried Rice" shirt many feel is racist and designed to push anti-Asian sentiment amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The popular exercise apparel brand apologized Tuesday for its involvement in the controversy, which ignited Sunday after Lululemon employee Trevor Fleming shared a link to the shirt for sale by California artist Jess Sluder.

As you can see, the white and red long-sleeve t-shirt features chopsticks with bat wings on the front and a Chinese takeout box with bat wings on the back ... along with the words "No Thank You" on the box and down the sleeves.

Sluder was selling the shirt for $60 and thanked buyers for their support and sense of humor in a now-deleted post, adding ... "Where did COVID-19 come from? Nothing is certain, but we know a bat was involved."

Though the COVID-19 virus is believed to have come from bats, reports of violence against Asians have increased since the start of the pandemic due to its apparent origin of China.

Lululemon responded to the outrage over its affiliation with the "Bat Fried Rice" shirt by firing Fleming and rebuking the shirt's message as inappropriate and inexcusable.

The company says, "We acted immediately, and the person involved is no longer an employee of Lululemon." It added that the shirt design is not a Lululemon product and it opposes "any discriminatory behaviours."

Diamond Dallas Page thinks Georgia's moving too fast when it comes to reopening businesses ... so don't count on him to do it.

The pro wrestling legend tells TMZ ... he's a big fan of Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp. In fact, he voted for him, but he's not down with Kemp lifting much of Georgia's lockdown restrictions. On Friday, gyms, barbershops, spas and several other businesses can reopen, but DDP says he's opting to remain closed.

Instead, he says he'll err on the side of caution with his Diamond Dallas Page Yoga Performance Center in Smyrna, GA -- about 20 minutes outside Atlanta. That being said, DDP isn't blasting other business owners who will open their doors.

As he put it ... "if it works for other people, then let them do it." But, personally speaking, he's advising friends to remain home and continue to social distance until health experts get a better grip of the coronavirus.