Money

Mark Salling got a big fat check from his bank Thursday ... payable to the clerk of the court where he is on trial for possession of child porn.

The former "Glee" star clutched a cashier's check for $100,000, made payable to the Clerk of the US District Court.

Although it's possible the check is a fine connected to a plea bargain, the more likely scenario is that it's the bail he's required to post when he appears Friday in court for his first hearing.

Phillip Phillips is deep in the doghouse with "American Idol" ... which says he owes them a ton of cash, and he's been holding out on them for years.

19 Entertainment, which produces 'Idol,' also manages Phillips and the other winners. According to the suit filed against Phillips ... he's not paying up for 19's managerial services. The company says he's withholding about a million bucks -- and they want it now.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, 19 says the 2012 'Idol' champ stopped paying management fees when he filed a 2015 complaint with the Labor Commission -- begging out of his contract, claiming it violated California law.

That dispute hasn't been settled -- it was delayed when 19 filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. The company thinks Phillips should pay up the money now because it still has a valid contract with him until a court says otherwise.

One of the Pointer Sisters got the best possible outcome from her divorce -- she's getting to keep the fruits of her music career.

Bonnie Pointer's divorce from Motown producer Jeffrey Bowen was just finalized and, according to docs, she's getting her music royalties ... which she called her only separate property.

Despite 35 years of marriage ... Bonnie said they have no community property. Jeffrey didn't dispute that ... as the judge entered a default judgment in Bonnie's favor.

Neither will have to pay spousal support.

If you want to taste her kisses in the night ... Bonnie's available.

A bunch of "Sons of Anarchy" stars say they got burned by a promoter who made off with a ton of money from people who paid to see a cast reunion -- but they rallied for their fans.

We got Rusty Coones -- Rane Quinn on 'SOA' -- returning to LAX from the disastrous event in Houston. He says the cast, including Charlie Hunnam, got duped by one of the promoters. He and co-star Kristen Renton broke it down -- saying the guy stiffed 'em with bogus paychecks.

The bigger problem -- the throngs of fans who came from around the world, forking over a total of $800k according to Rusty. Check out how they handled the messy situation.

TMZ spoke to Dave Altman, who says he worked closely with Hunnam to set up the event -- and he says the cast eventually got some dough, but nowhere close to what they were promised.

Hard time hasn't taught Teresa and Joe Giudice a damn thing if you ask the state of NJ ... which says the 'Real Housewives' stars owe a ton of income tax.

According to docs obtained by TMZ ... Teresa was hit with a tax lien for $23,365 in February, just two months after she got sprung from prison. Of course, Joe started his 41-month prison stint in March ... but still managed to get nailed in April for $238,269 of unpaid taxes.

The Giudices' lawyer, James Leonard Jr., tells TMZ Joe and Teresa have set up a schedule to pay off the debt in full.

In a new promo for 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' ... Teresa promises she's leaving all her problems in the past. Ooops. Again.

Dressing up as Donkey Kong was no monkey business for a guy who claims the poorly designed costume left him injured.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Nintendo of America hired Michael Oconitrillo to play the famous gorilla at a mall in Culver City, CA. He says even though the Kong suit was "poorly ventilated and unreasonably and dangerously hot" ... he had strict orders to keep it on.

It may sound like a typical Halloween, but Michael says he suffered permanent damage, as well as mental and emotional distress -- though he doesn't list any specific injuries.

Don't pity the loser ... especially when the loser's made more than $100 MILLION ... so says Riff Raff.

The rapper (and NBA superfan) was out in NYC when we asked if he feels bad for Kevin Durant after the OKC Thunder failed to close out the Warriors, despite big leads in games 6 and 7.

Long story short ... Riff says Durant's still his homie -- but it's hard to feel bad for a guy who's still RICH.

Also, Riff says it's not entirely KD's fault -- blaming Lil B for sticking him with the Based God curse.

Oprah didn't get filthy rich by ignoring golden opportunities ... which could explain why she's riding Beyonce's lemonade bandwagon straight to the bank.

O recently made a move to expand merchandising rights of her personal "Oprah's" brand to include bottled water, energy drinks, coconut water ... and lemonade.

Always the savvy entrepreneur, Oprah filed the docs -- obtained by TMZ -- a few weeks after Bey's "Lemonade" album became a smash hit.

Mama June will be hitting the road this summer, headlining a strip club tour and making a ton of cash in the process.

TMZ has learned June was such a hit at strip clubs this past year that she has booked 4 June appearances -- Baltimore, Oklahoma City, Los Angeles and Vegas -- that will cash her out over $20k total!

Mama June is no Blac Chyna when it comes to her rider demands, only asking for a hotel room and business class air fare. However, when she heads to Vegas she will be flying on a private jet with the other hosts of the night -- porn star Jesse Jane and "Little Sassee Cassee."

Leave your dollar bills at home though ... June's just doing meet and greets.

The wife of hot yoga mogul Bikram Choudhury didn't just score fancy whips in their divorce ... she also made sure she was off the hook in all his pending lawsuits.

According to legal docs ... Bikram is facing at least 10 lawsuits. As we previously reported ... at least 6 of those allege rape and sexual assault.

His divorce from his wife of 31 years, Rajashree, was finalized earlier this month, and a key provision in their settlement was she will not pay for any of his misdeeds. In case she gets sued over his hijinks and loses, he has to pay what she owes.

As for the rest of their property, it looks like Rajashree got most of what she wanted ... including their Bev Hills and L.A. pads, the Ferrari, Mercedes 550 and a Bentley.

Zoe McLellan, from "NCIS: New Orleans," is about to shell out some major cash to her ex-husband, but she's not down with monthly payment plans.

According to her divorce settlement, obtained by TMZ, Zoe forked over a one-time payment of $30k to Jean Pierre Gillain, and he agreed not to hit her up for any further spousal support. That's it for the ex, however Zoe will fork over $4k a month to support their 2-year-old son.

After a fierce custody war they agreed on a visiting schedule that suits their living situation in New Orleans and Los Angeles, where Jean Pierre lives. They've also divvied up all their assets.

What's in a name? Apparently a ton of cash, according to NBA legend Dominique Wilkins, who says he totally trademarked his iconic nickname ... and loves that Kobe Bryant followed suit.

FYI, Bryant's company, Kobe Inc., recently filed to trademark "Black Mamba" -- the nickname Kobe's been using for years. Question is ... did he wait too long to make his move?

We posed that very question to 'Nique -- who famously trademarked his legendary handle "The Human Highlight Film" back in the day. Check out what he says.

Blac Chyna and Rob Kardashian's first kid will fetch an insane amount of loot ... more than the wildest dreams of an Ace of Diamonds stripper.

We've surveyed the photo agencies that market celeb baby pics, and they say the first pics will pull in a million bucks. There's a G-string attached ... Rob and Chyna will be part of the shoot, and the pics have to be intimate ... a sappy interview, "candid" home photos with a sprinkle of Kardashian secrets.

Rob and Chyna rank right up there with Jamie Lynn Spears and Nicole Richie on the baby pic cash pole ... each received around a million for the first photos of their daughters.

That pales in comparison to the offspring of J Lo, Marc Anthony, and Brad and Angelina ... they got $6 and $11 million respectively for the first shots of their twins.

Zoe Saldana has moved into one of the biggest celebrity pockets in L.A. ... TMZ has learned.

Our real estate spies tell us Zoe just closed on a 6,400 square foot home in a super exclusive gated community in Bev Hills.

Zoe, with her ubiquitous realtor Brett Lawyer, got the crib for $8.7 million. It was listed at $10.5 mil by agent Ginger Glass.

As for Zoe's neighbors ... Jennifer Lawrence, Cameron Diaz, Nicole Richie, Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis and new neighbor Adele.

"Everybody Loves Raymond" star Madylin Sweeten dragged a soap opera creator's name through the mud ... according to him, and now he wants her to cough up $1.5 million.

In the suit, Bryan James says Sweeten smeared his name and business when she sued him ... claiming he duped her into investing in "Youthful Daze" ... an Internet soap.

James is asking the court to dismiss Madylin's lawsuit, and he wants the $1.5 mil for damages to his business and reputation.

It's time for a lesson in Jurassic swag, courtesy of UFC fighter Derrick "The Black Beast" Lewis ... who dropped $125k on the a golden T-Rex motor thingy ... and TMZ Sports has the pics.

Lewis hit up Joseph McCamish of Etune Autosports in Houston and told the man he wanted "the baddest T-Rex he could build" ... and was willing to pay big bucks for it.

We talked to McCamish who tells us his guys were up to the task and created a one-of-a-kind ride for the Octagon god.

What'd they do? A full air ride system, custom-made leather seats, a black suede steering wheel, JBL audio system, a custom fabricated body kit and the piece de resistance ... a custom gold body wrap.

Final price for the whole thing ... $125k!!