Money

Betty White's 100th birthday is here, and even though she's gone ... people are still honoring her by supporting animal charities -- but Trisha Yearwood's effort went over the top, as she raised a boatload of cash in record time.

The country star hopped on TalkShopLive Monday to contribute to the #BettyWhiteChallenge -- the movement calling on folks to donate to animal shelters and other pet charities ... causes that were near and dear to Betty.

During the 15-minute-plus webcast, TY made a massive impact ... raising more than $24k for an animal charity called Dottie's Yard. Unclear what her final figure will be, because donations were still pouring in toward the end of Trisha's time.

She was joined by her 2 rescue dogs ... who were very well-behaved. Trisha also talked a lot about Betty's life and love for pooches, explaining why she felt compelled to hop on the bandwagon.

Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul?! In a boxing ring?! Well, despite a report the men were deep in negotiations to fight, Iron Mike says it flat out ain't true.

The 55-year-old former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world took to his Twitter page to shoot down the news.

"This is new to me. I just saw Jake in St. Barths and he never mentioned it," Tyson wrote on the social media platform.

Mike was responding to a story published by The Sun on Monday ... where the outlet said Mike and Jake were in "advanced talks" for a $49 million boxing match.

Tyson and Paul do know each other. In fact, Jake became a boxing star on the undercard of an Iron Mike fight ... when the heavyweight stepped in and fought Roy Jones Jr. in November 2020.

That's the night the Problem Child flatlined former NBA star Nate Robinson.

Since, Paul's gone on to KO MMA champ Ben Askren in the first round of their fight ... before beating former UFC champ, Tyron Woodley twice (once by brutal knockout).

Not to mention, Jake just turned 25-years-old TODAY ... meaning Mike is more than 30 years his elder. Also, Paul fights professionally ... and any bout with Tyson would in all likelihood be an exhibition.

You might say Jim Belushi's hitting some high notes for the return of his marijuana farm docuseries ... in fact, ya might say the guy's got the blues over all his green!!!

"Growing Belushi" is coming back for a second season, starting Wednesday on Discovery, as Jim and fellow cannabis farmers try to spark up business, and based on this clip it sure sounds like they're buzzing ... about their potential success. 😉

Jim dips into his past "Blues Brothers" experience to freestyle a weed-influenced remix of the old gospel classic, 'This Train.' He can still blow a harmonica.

This season Jim's taking viewers behind the scenes of what it takes to build and manage his Oregon-based weed farm through lots of challenges ... like harsh weather, mold, pests and politics.

Belushi's farm started off with about 48 plants back in 2015, during Oregon's medical marijuana program... today that same farm takes up a hefty 93 acres.

Jamie Lynn Spears took a hard pass on doing a nationwide tour to promote her new book ... because she's not in it for the money ... so say sources connected to her.

Our sources say Britney's little sis was approached about doing a book tour but she was adamant it wasn't for her.

It's a departure from how most celebs do business ... they usually trek across the country promoting their books, encouraging folks to buy and doing meet-and-greets at book stores.

The sources say Jamie Lynn didn't write her book, "Things I Should Have Said," to make a killing. Instead, they say she wrote it to address her past, heal from it and move on.

We're told, "a portion" of the proceeds will go to a number of charities. They won't say which charities because Jamie Lynn tried to donate profits from the book to a charity last October, but the charity rejected her gesture because of all the backlash. So, our sources say Jamie Lynn doesn't want to name the charities this time around, to avoid a similar outcome.

That said, she'll still pocket some of the proceeds, but the sources insist that's not the motivating factor.

As you know, some excerpts are already being ripped by Britney ... with Jamie Lynn's older sister repeatedly lashing out on social media.

Britney's upset both by Jamie Lynn's interview on "Nightline" and a passage in the book where JLS claims Britney once locked them both in a room with a knife.

We're told Jamie Lynn is not shocked by Britney's reaction, because she knows her sister better than anyone and was prepared for such reactions from Britney and others.

Our sources say Jamie Lynn feels it's her story to tell ... and it's important to address what she lived through so she can move forward.

Until recently, you probably couldn't get your hands on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s handwritten draft of his book, but now things have changed ... if you have $225,000 that is!

That's right. Draft pages from the civil rights icon's book "Stride Toward Freedom: The Montgomery Story” are up for sale on momentsintime.com. They'd previously been a part of a private collection.

The book was first published back in 1958 when Dr. King was 29, and the handwritten pages are from chapter 3. Dr. King writes about the significance of the emerging civil rights moment, chronicling how Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white person in Montgomery, Alabama back in '55.

In the handwritten draft, King writes about the bus boycott ... the first large-scale protest against segregation. King wrote, "After a series of telephone calls back and forth ... they agreed that the Negroes should boycott the buses."

Fans from all over the nation are gearing up for what would've been Betty White's 100th birthday ... joining in on a challenge encouraging fans to spread the love to animals in need and donate to local orgs.

Brittany Vizcarra from Paw Works joined us on TMZ live to pitch the "Betty White Challenge." As you know, Betty was a fierce animal rights advocate who spent her adult life tirelessly working for animal rights orgs. Brittany says this challenge is about everybody doing more -- just like Betty -- by caring for abandoned and abused animals.

Paw Works is an animal rescue org that places unwanted animals in L.A. shelters into loving homes.

Since the Betty White challenge has taken off on social media, some orgs have seen an uptick in donations ... and with the help of people like Brittany, those donations are bound to pour in all over the U.S., as the 17th approaches.

Brittany says it's super simple to "be more like Betty" ... folks can volunteer, adopt, foster or find any other way to get involved.

The robe worn by Muhammad Ali in the leadup to his famous 1965 fight with Sonny Liston is up for auction ... and TMZ Sports has learned it's such a rare piece of boxing history, it could sell for over $500,000.

Ali donned the garment on his way to the ring in his rematch with Liston -- which many consider one of the most memorable fights ever.

Ali not only knocked out Liston in iconic fashion in the ring (you've no doubt seen the picture of the KO at this point) ... but the fight also marked the first time he had boxed under the name Muhammad Ali.

You'll recall, following his first match with Liston in 1964, Ali changed his name from Cassius Clay, calling it "a slave name." He never fought using the moniker again.

For the rematch with Liston a year later, just before he won in convincing fashion, Ali donned a white piece with "Muhammad Ali" emblazoned on the back in red letters.

Prince and everything in his orbit at the time of his death is worth a pretty penny -- at least according to Uncle Sam, who's finally settled on a price tag ... and it's in the 9 digits.

The IRS has come to terms with the administrator of Prince's estate, Comerica Bank & Trust, after years of fighting about what exactly the late artist's pot of assets should be valued at ... and the figure they all landed at stands at $156.4 million -- per the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

This number is one that Prince's heirs -- surviving siblings and/or their families -- have also agreed to, BTW ... and not just that, but the Minnesota Dept. of Revenue also signed off.

Of course, $156M is helluva lot more than what Comerica had initially estimated the estate to be worth ... just $82.3 million, which the IRS pushed back on with ferocity in court -- as they argued it oughta be priced north of $160 mil, a figure that would've made taxes due back to them upon distribution balloon into the tens of millions.

In the end ... it appears the IRS was more right than wrong on their numbers, at least on the face of things. And, indeed, the taxes the estate has to pay out will be significant.

With that said, Comerica reportedly filed docs last week acknowledging the settlement was "fair and reasonable," but also insisted they would've prevailed at a would-be trial if the family wanted to press the issue ... but it seems they wanted this to be over and done with.

If you thought all this talk of digital goods and wealth was just some sort of nerdy fad, think again -- because the retail market space is going all in on VR ... including Walmart.

The big-box behemoth has reportedly filed a number of trademark apps in recent months seeking to gain exclusive rights to sell virtual goods on their digital shelves -- and we're not just talking about their website either. Sounds like Walmart is ramping up for a full-blown online experience, where their customers can actually own stuff ... within this dimension itself.

Per CNBC, 7 separate applications were filed of late ... and in addition to being able to hawk Walmart-related products in this forthcoming virtual reality, they're also apparently gunning to offer their own lines of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and even a unique cryptocurrency.

No word on what those tokens might look like ($5 DVD bin NFT, perhaps?) or when all this is supposed to be rolled out ... but it seems they're getting their 4D ducks in a row for what most everyone in Corporate America is scrambling for ... a seat at the metaphysical table.

Several different companies have been doing the exact same thing recently -- including other big shots like Nike (which is said to be developing a VR venture called "Nikeland"), Gap, Under Armor and even smaller outfits like Urban Outfitters, Abercrombie and Ralph Lauren.

Essentially, everyone took Zuckerberg's announcement about the metaverse last year and ran with it ... looking to protect their brand within this new frontier ... and to make money there too, obviously, if they can. So far, it seems to be a very popular/lucrative endeavor.

Funny enough, Walmart actually had a vision for what an augmented shopping reality might look like in their cyberworld about 5 years ago, when they commissioned a tech company called Mutual Mobile to create a demo of Walmart in the metaverse ... before that term was even a thing.

Living like Logan Paul has now become slightly cheaper ... TMZ Sports has learned the YouTuber-turned-boxer has knocked $1 million off the asking price of his sick L.A. mansion.

Paul initially put the Encino palace on sale back in November for $8,995,000 ... but this week, he relisted it for $7,995,000.

Expensive, for sure, but it appears to be worth it ... considering what it all comes with. As we reported, it's got 7 bedrooms and 9 bathrooms ... and has 7,667-square-feet of living space.

It also features a massive yard, swimming pool, wine cellar and a billiards room for entertainment purposes.

Unclear if Logan plans to drop the price further if there are still no takers ... but he still appears to be in good shape to make some profit off the property when it eventually sells. Paul originally bought it for over $6.6 million in 2017.

The Playboy Mansion would be crawling with hookers and celebs on Thursday nights back in its heyday -- and a new documentary claims Hugh Hefner himself cooked up the weekly event.

Hef dubbed the traditional gathering "Pig Night," and it started with 2 pimps bringing in carloads of prostitutes from Sunset Blvd. ... according to his former girlfriend, Sondra Theodore, and others who worked at the mansion.

Sondra says she tended to look the other way while Hugh did all sorts of "crazy stuff," but this ritual stood out to her and got her attention.

The upcoming A&E series, "Secrets of Playboy" ... describes "Pig Night" as a sort of dinner party that served as a jumping-off point for sex parties.

According to the mansion insiders, Hugh would sit at the head of the table smoking his famous pipe while the hookers drank and ate with movie and TV stars. They say the girls would get ratings and quick medical checks before slipping out of the room for sex rendezvous with the celebs.

Bengals star Joe Mixon went all out for his first playoff game ... ordering more than $400k worth of jewelry to commemorate the big day!!!

TMZ Sports is told ... the Pro Bowl running back wanted to do something extra special for his first postseason appearance, so he hit up his go-to guy Gabriel The Jeweler last week to whip something together.

We're told the order -- a special made Cuban link chain, iced-out Audemars Piguet, and diamond ring -- would usually take about a month to complete ... but Gabriel's team worked late for 8 straight days to come through for Mixon.

The finished product is incredible -- the chain has 170 carats of VVS diamonds (including emerald cuts), and the rose gold AP has 36 carats of diamonds with emerald cuts on the band.

And, check out how the diamonds dance on the ring!!!

We're told the order was finished early Saturday morning and was flown to Cincinnati just in time for the game. No word on how much Mixon shelled out for the bling, but we're told the 3 pieces are worth a total $400k!!

Gabriel tells us he'd do anything for his guy, Joe ... and he definitely proved that with the speedy delivery.

Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli are now crime victims ... because we've learned their house was hit by burglars who walked away with a million bucks in jewelry.

It went down January 3 ... we're told Lori and Moss were not home. The break-in and theft were discovered by a housekeeper.

Law Enforcement sources tell TMZ ... the thieves smashed a bedroom window at their L.A.- area home. They were dressed in all black and wore masks. Cops know this from surveillance cams. Once inside, they stole Lori's jewelry box which contained super-expensive bling.

Cops don't know if Lori and Mossimo were specifically targeted or if this was a random burglary.

Cops believe a South American burglary crew pulled off the heist ... apparently, they travel to America, hit locations and then quickly leave the country.

Lori's camp tells TMZ ... Lori's thankful no one was hurt. Interestingly ... Bob Saget's death helped put the burglary in perspective for her ... she says material stuff isn't the most important thing in life, it's family and love.

Since the incident, Lori has beefed up security ... they'll be there around the clock, at least for the time being.

Maya Angelou's son is applauding Whoopi Goldberg for fighting to get his famous mother on paper money ... and he wants Ida B. Wells to get the next honor.

Here's the deal ... the U.S. Mint is now circulating an Angelou quarter, but Whoopi used her "View" platform, pushing to honor Black women with paper money instead of just coins.

Maya's son, Guy Johnson, tells TMZ ... he's grateful his mother is being featured on the quarter, and while he understands others are beating the drum to get her on the $20 bill, he's reminding folks change is almost always incremental.

Guy admits he would have loved to see his mother on the $10 bill, or the $20 or the $100 ... but he says America is only a couple years post-Trump ... and Maya would still see her quarter as a wonderful honor.

Maya's son says the famous poet would have this message ... keep pressing forward, because there's a path to go before justice is applied equally in America.

Whoopi mentioned the ongoing battle to get Harriet Tubman on the 20, and Guy says Ida B. Wells should get her proper due with recognition on paper money as well.

Guy says he approved the final image -- showing Maya spreading her arms with a bird, a nod to her famous "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

Jake and Logan Paul were money-making machines in 2021 ... with the YouTube superstars-turned-boxers reportedly raking in a combined $63 MILLION over the past year.

Forbes just released its list of highest-paid influencers on the social media platform on Friday ... with the Problem Child coming in at #2 with an astonishing $45 million estimated in earnings.

The outlet reports about $40 million of that moolah came via the boxing ring -- with Jake beating up on Ben Askren in April and Tyron Woodley in August and December.

Whether Jake is considered a "real" boxer or not, the serious money he's pocketing is not up for debate -- his income in 2021 would have put him among the top-earning athletes last year ... making more than Canelo Alvarez, who reportedly brought in $34 million.

As for Logan -- who came in at #8 on Forbes' YouTube list -- he reportedly made $18 million in 2021 ... large in part to his fight with Floyd Mayweather, his "Impaulsive" podcast, and other business opportunities.

Kelly Dodd and her hubby Rick Leventhal have just snagged a pad in the Palm Springs area for about $715k, and they plan to give it a major makeover ... TMZ has learned.

Kelly and Rick are undecided if they're going to keep the 3 bed, 3 bath estate for themselves or put it back on market, but either way, they'll be renovating the property ... picking out all the materials themselves.

"The Real Housewives of Orange County" alum and the former Fox News Channel correspondent tell TMZ ... they bought the home back in November 2020, after making an all-cash offer.

We're told the renovations include redoing all the landscaping, building a Castina on the property, and gutting all the bathrooms and the kitchen ... they'll also blow up the pool, adding a spa. And, this is kinda awesome ... they're adding a pickleball court in the backyard.

Home owning isn't a new gig for the couple. Kelly and Rick still own a home in Newport Beach, and they rent out a home they own in the Hamptons.

They started dating back in August of 2019 and got engaged three months later. They tied the knot pandemic style in October 2020. Kelly's known for her time with the franchise ... which lasted 5 seasons.

She's off the show now, but perhaps HGTV and flipping houses could be in her near future?! 👀