Money

Singing/kissing Russian schoolgirl duo t.A.T.u. would be FORGOTTEN if not for one industrious manager -- so says the manager, who claims he's responsible for bringing the girls back from obscurity ... and now, he's suing for more than $20,000,000.

The group's popularity declined in 2003 -- following the massive hit "All the Things She Said" -- and Lena Katina (red hair) and Julia Volkova (black hair) eventually broke up years later, but a manager named Tristram Buckley insists he's responsible for bringing them back together.

Buckley has sued t.A.T.u. member Lena Katina (the redhead) as well as the group's founders, claiming he managed Lena from March 2012 - March 2013, and completely turned around her dwindling career. Buckley says his hard work culminated last year when t.A.T.u. reunited.

When he met Lena, Buckley says the singer was depressed and directionless -- her solo career was losing money, and she was "arrogant, abrasive, confrontational and rude" to fans -- and he rebuilt her image from the ground up.

But Buckley claims he was hung out to dry ... wrongfully terminated after just one year, and never paid for his services.

He's now suing for fraud, breach of contract, defamation and more -- demanding more than $20,000,000 in damages. Calls to Lena's camp were not returned.

Allen Iverson has a date this week with the judge who earlier this year called him a horrible parent ... and seeing as his ex claims he owes $40,000 in child support ... this new hearing will probably go as poorly for Iverson as the last one.

As TMZ first reported, when Iverson's divorce was finalized back in February, the judge in the case tore Iverson's parenting skills a new one ... saying, "He does not know how to manage the children" and he "has been a hindrance to their spiritual and emotional growth and development."

Now TMZ has learned Iverson's ex, Tawanna, has filed docs with the court saying that Iverson has failed to honor the child support agreement that was handed down back in January. The order stated that Iverson was to pay $8,000/month in support for their 5 kids ... but Tawanna claims Iverson has missed every payment he was supposed to make.

The two are set to be in court this week, where Tawanna wants the judge to order Iverson to fork over the $40,000 he owes in support and even suggest the judge lock Iverson up for his actions.

Two of Nate Dogg's baby mamas are trading legal blows over child support payments ... with one trying to block the other's attempt to get more money from his estate ... TMZ has learned.

According to docs filed this week in Los Angeles Superior Court, Rhoda Mouton is asking a judge to deny Omena Norris' request for an increase in support for the child she had with Nate back in 2006.

In the docs, Mouton (who has a teenaged son with Nate) claims Norris lied in her filing when she said her son received no Social Security payments from Nate's estate ... arguing that Norris and her son receive $694/month.

Mouton claims since Norris lied about that -- and since she never adequately states why she needs her support bumped up to $1,846/month (from $1,624) -- the judge should toss the request out entirely until Norris can file a new (and correct) request.

Mouton even takes it a step further, and says the judge should cut Norris' support all the way down to $802/month.

Todd Bridges is not a wealthy man ... this according to Todd Bridges.

The former "Diff'rent Strokes" actor just filed new docs in his divorce from longtime wife Dori Bridges, stating that he only makes a grand total of $22,500 per year from his career as an actor ... and that's BEFORE TAXES.

It's a bit of a problem for Bridges ... who, in the docs, claims he spends roughly $4,306 per month ... including a $1,520 monthly mortgage payment.

Todd says Dori was making $1,750 per month ... but combined with Todd's income, it still wasn't enough to cover their average monthly spending

It appears the beef is over how much child support Todd will have to ante up.

Tony Parker and his fellow San Antonio Spurs are poised to snatch the NBA championship title from the Miami Heat ... but a victory could cost Tony a fortune.

As you know ... the Spurs are up 1-zip in the finals, and the odds are they could win the whole shebang, because let's face it ... the Heat players are a little haggard.

Tony is in the middle of a $20 million lawsuit over the blowout fight between Drake and Chris Brown at W.i.P. Nightclub in NYC. Parker says he suffered lacerations to his cornea when a glass shard from a bottle struck him in the eye.

When Parker filed the suit, he was halfway through a $50 million contract with the Spurs ... and his future seemed uncertain given the eye injury.

Parker is suing the club, claiming it was negligent in not preventing the brewing brawl.

Now here's the problem ... Tony played a fantastic season this year. He could have won MVP if he hadn't sprained his ankle ... and if LeBron James had suddenly retired.

So the $20 million damage claim kind of goes out the window, especially if Tony gets a ring.

Here's the good news -- In a year, he'll sign a new deal, and $20 mil may look like chump change.

Ciara is being sued by a West Hollywood gay bar ... which claims the singer left them high and dry when she backed out of a gay event during L.A. Pride week ... TMZ has learned.

The nightclub going after Ciara is "The Factory" -- which, according to one Yelp reviewer, is always packed with "gays" who "know how to party."

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Ciara signed a $10,000 deal to appear at The Factory on June 7 (tonight) ... one day before she's supposed to perform on the main stage at the 2013 L.A. Pride parade.

Factory says Ciara had mentioned that she couldn't "perform" at Factory due to restrictions in her contract with the L.A. Pride event ... but made it seem like making an "appearance" would be totally kosher.

But Factory says ... Ciara unexpectedly pulled the plug on the whole thing on June 3, leaving the nightclub without a star for its big Friday night pre-gay parade bash.

Now, Factory is suing Ciara for breach of contract -- and want her to pay for all the money the club spent to promote her appearance PLUS the cash they're losing out on thanks to Ciara's last-minute bail.

8:40 AM PT -- Ciara's rep tells TMZ ... the lawsuit is bogus because Ciara backed out before a deal was ever finalized.

A rep for the singer tells us, "Ciara's commitment to perform at L.A. Gay Pride on Saturday night prevented her from making such a Friday night appearance. Despite being notified early last week that Ciara could not appear, the Factory continued to market and promote Ciara's appearance."

"The reason for the continued marketing/promotion is unclear, as it is not known why the Factory would intend to continue to mislead the public, to cause damage to the L.A. Gay Pride festival and to attempt to portray Ciara in a negative light.”

New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner found himself in a compromising position yesterday -- two homeless guys asked him for money ... but he only had ONE dollar bill remaining.

Weiner -- who was leaving Nello's -- DID have a wad of larger bills, but A.W. made it clear ... George Washington was the only president he was willing to part with.

In the end ... only one guy got Weiner's dollar. The other guy -- well, he got the shaft.

Paris Jackson has been in meltdown mode for nearly a year ... this according to sources connected to her exclusive private school.

Our sources from the exclusive Buckley School in the San Fernando Valley tell TMZ ... school officials were aware Paris was dealing with a "major family trauma" when the school year began last September. Based on the timeline, it appears the issue involved Katherine Jackson's mysterious "disappearance" last July.

There were reports Michael Jackson's siblings were holding Katherine as part of a money grab -- something they deny. Paris confronted several of the siblings in a heated argument outside the family's Calabasas home.

Sources connected with Buckley tell TMZ ... when Paris came back to school in September, her grades started dropping and, as one source said, "she stopped caring."

A school official told one of our sources ... what really sent Paris over the edge was when she got an offer to do a movie but certain family members went on an all-out campaign to block it. The source says a school official said, at that point "Paris broke down."

There have been reports Paris was bullied at Buckley and that's what caused her downward spiral. We're told a top school official is adamant ... Paris was NOT bullied and she made the claims to get attention.

Lindsay Lohan is no longer a deadbeat ... at least in the lawyer dept., because we've learned she's paid Shawn Holley the fortune she's owed her in legal fees.

TMZ broke the story ... when Lindsay fired Shawn back in January, LiLo owed the lawyer $150,000. As we reported ... when Shawn agreed to come back last month, she demanded assurance she'd get paid, and we've now learned that's exactly what happened.

Sources connected with Lindsay tell us ... the actress has made good on the debt and is earmarking money for future services so she doesn't fall behind again.

Good move Holley. It worked!

Ferraris apparently aren't fast enough for Justin Bieber .... 'cause the singer has just been booked on a ROCKETSHIP DESTINED FOR SPACE ... so says Virgin Galactic honcho Richard Branson.

Branson himself confirmed that Biebs and manager Scooter Braun are on the V.G. manifest, tweeting this morning: "Great to hear @justinbieber & @scooterbraun are latest @virgingalactic future astronauts. Congrats, see you up there!"

Branson's venture just completed its first rocket-powered test last month, and the company is planning to start commercial flights next year -- plenty of time for Bieber to order a tacky, blinged-out astronaut suit.

Tickets reportedly start around $250k ... but it's unclear if JB is paying for the ride himself ... or if the trip will be comped.

No word on when Bieber is scheduled for lift off.

NBA star Lance Stephenson isn't going to the Finals ... or to Disneyland -- but it's ok, because he did get to see a roomful of naked chicks at a famous Miami strip club ... TMZ has learned.

Just hours after Lance and the Indiana Pacers lost game 7 to the Miami Heat Monday ... the shooting guard eased his pain at King of Diamonds -- the gentleman's club where Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, and Rihanna frequently make it rain.

Lance on the other hand ... made it sprinkle. Our KOD sources say the 22-year-old stood in the corner most of the night, only got 2 lap dances, and dropped a grand total of about $1100.

Not that $1100 is chump change, but typically we've seen celebs shower dancers with $5,000 to $10,000.

In Lance's defense ... he's only a 3-year pro who's hardly making LeBron dollars.

Or maybe he just adheres to the laws of BBD.

Jim Carrey has declared VICTORY in his fight with the State of NY -- after the actor proved he's not the careless insurance-denying art studio boss he was made out to be.

TMZ broke the story ... Carrey had been slapped with a $72,000 fine for failing to provide workers' comp insurance at his art studio for all of 2012.

At the time, a Carrey rep told TMZ it was a clerical error on the state's part ... but now, we've learned Carrey backed up his story with real, actual, legitimate documentation!

In fact .... after Carrey provided the paperwork to NY officials proving his 2012 coverage, the NY Workers' Compensation Board sent Carrey a letter saying the penalty has been RESCINDED.

In conclusion -- Jim Carrey is NOT a bad boss ... he DOES care about his employees ... all is well in the State of NY.

Dina Lohan better hang on to the $50k she scored by screaming at Michael Lohan on a talk show last week ... because she's about to get sued for stiffing a charity ... TMZ has learned.

Lindsay Lohan's mom hobnobbed it with some rich folk at a Ferrari charity event last year in East Hampton. The shindig was held at Andrra Waterside Restaurant and Ferrari owners and nearby yachters were out in force.

Edmond Chakmakian, the lawyer for the restaurant tells TMZ ... Dina and her brother showed up and went to town, drinking up a storm and buying drinks for lots of people at the event. By the end of the night, Chakmakian says Dina ran up a $2,500 tab. Dina also pledged $1,500 to The Clamshell Foundation, which funds local charities that help underprivileged kids.

Chakmakian says Dina left without paying a cent, and he has sent her multiple emails demanding payment ... but got no response.

So Chakmakian says he's filing a lawsuit Monday against Dina on behalf of the restaurant for the $4K she didn't pay.

Chakmakian says, "She feels very privileged and entitled because of who her daughter is. She acted like she was doing them a favor by showing up."

Sounds about right.

One of Michael Jackson's biggest fans is SO CONVINCED there's something fishy about his death ... that she dropped $16,800 on her credit cards to have conspiracy-theory banners flown all over the L.A. area ... TMZ has learned.

The message-towing planes mysteriously started buzzing L.A. 2 weeks ago with banners like, "FOLLOW THE $ TO MICHAEL JACKSON'S DEATH" ... and "LAPD -- HONOR BOUND TO TELL TRUTH FOR MJ."

Sources connected to AirSign, the company flying the banners, confirmed to TMZ ... a Hollywood costume shop worker paid for 11 flights over several locations including the downtown L.A. courthouse where Michael's wrongful death lawsuit is going on right now.

The woman, who wants to remain anonymous, tells us ... "I'm hoping that someone will look at those messages and say, 'If someone feels that strongly about it, maybe this is worth looking into."

As for the massive cc debt ... she says she can handle it because she's single and kid-free.

And in case you think she's totally nuts ... she does have one connection to MJ. The shop where she works supplied some costumes for "This Is It."

Totally worth it.

Former UFC fighter Rampage Jackson is BACK -- officially signing a brand new deal with TNA wrestling and rival MMA company Bellator ... and he tells TMZ, the new contract blows his UFC deal out of the water.

Rampage tells TMZ, "When you look at my deal in the UFC, and the scope of what my deal with Bellator and TNA is, this is a dream come true."

He adds, "When other fighters get the chance to see everything I'm able to do with this deal and the benefits it provides, you're going to see a big change in MMA. I guarantee it."

Rampage left the UFC earlier this year on bitter terms ... telling us, the UFC treated him like crap and screwed him over financially. UFC honcho Dana White shot back, implying Rampage was an overpaid wash-up.

Under his new multi-year deal with Spike TV, Rampage will compete in Bellator and also appear on TNA's "Impact Wrestling." He also gets a reality show. So far, no word on how much he's getting paid.

Stephon Marbury's ex-mistress is hell-bent on collecting her hush money from the ex-NBA star ... even if that means going after his precious assets, like a couple of luxury cars.

TMZ broke the story ... Marbury and Thurayyah Mitchell -- the personal chef he boinked, while he was married, back in 2006 -- had an agreement: she would keep quiet about the affair, as long as he coughed up $900,000.

Problem is ... Marbury stopped making payments around the $600,000 mark, so Mitchell dragged the NBA star to court earlier this year, where a judge ordered him to pony up the remaining $331,584.50.

According to new court docs ... Mitchell claims Marbury still hasn't paid, so she wants a judge to force Marbury to turn over his Mercedes-Benz, his Land Rover and liquidate some of his assets to settle the debt.