Money

The cryptocurrency craze is not for Barbara Corcoran -- she's into tried-and-true methods of making boatloads of cash and advises everyone to listen up ... before it's too late.

The "Shark Tank" star was out Tuesday in Union Square in NYC, and she made it clear ... she couldn't care less about Bitcoin's price, Dogecoin surging again or any of the other cryptos ... she's all about property, baby.

Barbara says she's investing every spare dollar she has this year into real estate, because she says it's still very much a buyer's market ... and she plans to get even richer the old-fashioned way. BTW ... it may be a buyer's market in NYC, but it's the opposite in other cities like L.A.

There's a caution -- Barbara suggests striking while the iron's hot, because the market could be totally different by the end of the year.

As for the crypto market, Barbara says the trick is knowing when to get out. She thinks just as many people are losing $$$ investing in cryptocurrency as those who are cashing in.

MMA star Justin Wren says Conor McGregor is just WRONG for trying to paint Dustin Poirier's charity foundation as some shady operation ... and it's more evidence that Conor is simply not a good person.

Wren is widely respected for his charity work all over the world -- in fact, Joe Rogan has praised Wren's "Fight for the Forgotten" foundation for years for all of the work he's done helping impoverished communities in Africa.

So, when Wren learned McGregor was backing out of his $500,000 pledge to Dustin Poirier's "The Good Fight Foundation" -- Wren wasn't happy.

As we previously reported, Conor not only bailed on the donation he had been promising since October -- but he made Poirier's foundation seem like a clown show, incapable of explaining how the money would be deployed to actually help people in need.

McGregor called Poirier a "fool" with "no plan in place" for such a sizable donation.

Of course, Poirier has called B.S. on Conor -- saying his team reached out to McGregor's camp multiple times to address their concerns, but never got a response.

So, who's lying?

Wren says he's personally worked with Poirier's foundation and can vouch that's it's not only legitimate -- but it's made a REAL impact in communities in need in Dustin's home state of Louisiana.

"Dustin is an honorable man, a good character, who’s a family man, who has literally done everything he ever said he was gonna do and more ... and the other guy hasn’t followed through on a lot of the things that he has said. So, I think that this really calls Conor's character into question even more so than it's already been."

Wren says he's been in touch with Dustin and his wife, Jolie, over the past few days -- and they're upset Conor would take such a "cheap shot" at an organization that was created to help people in need.

"I think that this has really changed Dustin's opinion on who Conor is as a person. He’s not a good guy."

Wren adds, "Conor didn’t rob Dustin of anything. What he did was he cheated or stole from the people he would’ve helped."

Serena Williams just found something new to dominate ... 'cause the tennis legend just signed a first-look TV deal with Amazon!!

39-year-old Williams announced the big move on Tuesday ... saying she's pumped to put new and inspiring stories onto the screen -- including her own, via a new docuseries following her life on and off the court.

"I’m very excited to be partnering with Amazon Studios – they are developing some of the most inspiring and important content for a global audience," Williams said.

The deal includes scripted and unscripted content ... which will all be made available via Amazon.

"I have a lot of stories I’m eager to tell, including a continuation of my own, and I look forward to sharing those with the world."

Williams' docuseries -- title TBD -- will be produced by Plum Pictures, Goalhanger Films and Amazon Studios. Williams will also serve as executive producer on the project.

Of course, Williams is one of the best tennis players EVER -- she's won 23 Grand Slams, 73 championships and has won nearly $95 million in prize money throughout her career.

So yeah, Amazon is stoked to have her on board.

As Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke put it ... "Serena has transformed her sport and become one of the most inspiring athletes, entrepreneurs and women of her generation, admired not only for her unmatched prowess on the court but for her dedication to advocacy as well."

Move over, Count Chocula and Cap'n Crunch ... Nick Chubb is coming to the cereal game -- the NFL star is launching a new breakfast treat that's set to benefit an awesome charity!!

The Cleveland Browns running back made the announcement Tuesday ... explaining "Chubb Crunch" is currently in the works with plans to hit grocery store shelves VERY, VERY soon.

Chubb partnered with PLB Sports & Entertainment -- the same people who created Doug Flutie's famous Flutie Flakes -- for the concoction, and Nick's cereal is promising to be amazing.

A spokesperson for the company tells TMZ Sports the food will be similar to Cinnamon Toast Crunch ... and will feature a superhero depiction of Chubb on the box.

The best part of it all? Chubb and the company say a portion of the proceeds will go toward First Candle -- an org. with a mission to eliminate Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

It's a cause close to Chubb's heart ... the 25-year-old reportedly had a nephew tragically die from SIDS -- and he said Tuesday, being able to help that cause with the cereal is huge for him.

"It's always been a dream to have my own cereal," Chubb said, "especially that it benefits a cause that is close to my family."

Sharon Tate would be upset by the handful of fraudulent items being sold in her name on eBay ... this according to her sister, who insists they never belonged to her late sibling.

Here's the deal ... there's a handful of eBay listings for jewelry and dresses -- including a ring with a $180,000 asking price -- with product descriptions claiming they were owned and worn by Sharon ... but her sister says it's all a scam.

Debra Tate tells TMZ ... none of the items with Sharon's famous name attached were ever worn, owned or given to her sister, and the sellers' tactics are "disgusting."

Sharon's sister says attempts to have eBay take down the fraudulent items have so far been unsuccessful.

As you can see, some of the items Debra claims have no connection to Sharon include antique jewelry, a 14k yellow gold necklace allegedly from her mother, and a white dress.

Debra believes the sellers are trying to hawk items that look like something Sharon might have once owned, but Debra says Sharon would have never been caught wearing the dress.

It's interesting ... Debra thinks interest in "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" might be driving up the prices for phony Sharon Tate items.

The internet is ablaze with fury that Usher allegedly made it rain on strippers with fake ass money -- with his face on it, no less -- but take a breather, because that's not how it went down.

You might have caught wind of this today -- a dancer going by the handle @beel0ove on IG posted photos of three "Usher bucks" that came in $100, $20 and $1 denominations ... all with Mr. Raymond's face in place of the usual dead Presidents.

She posed the question ... "Ladies what would you do if you danced all night for usher and he threw this??" The insinuation was she actually got the bogus cash for services rendered, and called for Usher to be "blasted" for passing the funny money.

She kinda got her wish, based on all the Usher memes out there now -- BUT, turns out there's way more to the story ... according to people directly involved.

For starters, this all happened at Sapphire in Vegas -- and a rep for the club tells TMZ Usher did NOT tip the strippers with this fake money, and actually dished out authentic greenbacks, while also going on to tip the staff at large quite generously.

We're told Usher and co. ended up spending thousands on the dancers (REAL thousands, mind you) and also enjoyed bottle service ... which he definitely didn't cover with these Usher bucks. It goes without saying ... Sapphire tells us they'd love to host him again, anytime.

Now for some more intel on what the hell actually happened here -- sources close to Usher tell us that somebody in his crew (not him) left some stray Usher dollars behind on the stage as a bit of a gag ... both to be joke-y, but to also promote his new Vegas residency.

We've been assured by folks in the singer's camp that he did, in fact, tip the girls who danced for him ... and that the Usher bucks in question weren't used for payment AT ALL.

DMX's family is NOT strapped for cash, and is NOT asking the public to chip in for burial expenses -- and if you see anything online saying otherwise ... it's total bunk.

X's direct family members tell TMZ ... there's been a lot of unfounded rumors circulating after DMX's death last week, including a particularly absurd one -- namely, that his inner circle is raising money to help pay for his upcoming funeral.

This one's pretty easy to throw water on, because we're told family members are absolutely not raising money, and they actually want the public to know any campaigns suggesting the contrary are completely bogus, and not connected to the fam at all.

The family says it's aware there is any number of flat-out scammers out there soliciting money in X's name ... and they just want fans to be wary.

Here's another thing folks should be on the lookout for ... our sources say X's family is also NOT selling any DMX merch at this time, so if you're seeing stuff hitting the market now -- his family didn't authorize it, and they're not profiting from it.

One last wild theory that's been floating around -- you might've heard Jay-Z and Beyonce bought DMX's masters for a cool $10 mil with the idea of making sure his kids can reap the profits down the line. Yeah, the family's also setting that record straight, and ... it's BS.

The family says X's masters aren't in play with Jay and Bey at all. Yes, some are still under Def Jam control -- but not owned by Jay outright.

Thus far, X has been honored in a few unofficial ways since his passing -- fans created a makeshift memorial outside the hospital he was being treated, and there was also a prayer vigil held a few days before he died.

Another bad look for Conor McGregor ... who's admitting he never forked over the $500,000 donation check to Dustin Poirier's charity, despite promising to make the payment before they fought back in January.

In the lead up to their main event scrap at UFC 257, McGregor repeatedly publicly declared he would send the sizable donation to Poirier's "The Good Fight Foundation," a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides resources to underprivileged youth in Poirier's home state of Louisiana.

McGregor initially pledged the money in October 2020 -- repeated the $500k promise again in November ... and vowed to cut the check again in the days before the fight.

But, Poirier revealed Sunday night his organization NEVER got a cent from Conor's team -- claiming McGregor's team went MIA on Poirier's charity "after the fight" in January.

Poirier later explained, "We thanked him because his team reached out fight week to initiate the process but ghosted us the past 2 months after the fight."

"My foundation has reached out 3 times since with no reply. We've moved past it! We will be announcing our next goal soon! It's a big one."

Conor sheepishly replied on Twitter with allegations of his own -- saying, "A donation, not a debt. We’ve been awaiting the plans for the money that never came. I do with all my donations. Know where it’s going dot for dot. Otherwise it goes walking. As is the case with a lot of these foundations, sadly. You took the McG over the belt shows I was right."

McGregor is trying to paint Dustin as more interested in money than legacy -- both in and out of the ring.

He's insinuating Dustin only took the Conor fight because of the massive check -- instead of taking a fight with another opponent that would have brought him closer to winning the UFC lightweight title.

Dustin responded to Conor early Monday morning ... saying, "100% never a debt. You offered, we accepted, and like I said your Team never responded to our emails regarding the process of where funds would be put to work! July 10th you will taste defeat yet Again."

So, here's the long and short ... McGregor is suggesting Poirier's charity is shady -- which is a pretty heavy allegation to make publicly.

But, McGregor had MONTHS to do his own research before making a public declaration to donate such a hefty amount.

Props to Dustin for dealing with the situation with class.

Madonna just plunked down a small fortune, and now she's proud of The Weeknd's Hidden Hills Estate.

Madonna paid $19.3 million for the home, which is in Kardashian Country. It's been on the market for a long time -- The Weeknd listed it back in June, 2020, for $24,995,000, so there was a significant price reduction.

The Weeknd bought the house back in 2017 for $18.2 million, so with commission at best he broke even.

The house has plenty of room, with more than 12,000 sq ft of living space, 9 bedrooms and 9.5 bathrooms. It sits on 3 acres with a giant pool in the backyard as well.

But don't worry, The Weeknd still has a place to rest his head, he scooped up a $25m penthouse bachelor pad back in 2019.

Harvey Weinstein's been indicted on sexual assault charges in L.A. and now faces extradition from New York, but he's hoping to stay put because his health is failing... so claims his legal team.

The disgraced movie producer appeared Monday for his extradition hearing via video conference along with his attorneys, Mark Werksman and Norman Effman, who argued against him being sent to L.A. for "humanitarian" reasons.

Effman claims Weinstein is technically blind and has major dental issues -- he's allegedly lost 4 teeth and is in danger of losing more. According to his lawyer, prison officials in NY have scheduled 2 medical procedures for Weinstein ... one for his sight and one for his teeth.

On top of all this ... Effman says his client's still suffering from cardiac issues, diabetes and back pain, along with sleep apnea.

For all of these reasons, Weinstein's team's asking the judge to allow him to remain at the medical unit he's been confined to at the maximum-security prison in New York, where he's serving his sentence for rape.

The judge set the next hearing for later this month, so for now Weinstein will stay put in his prison cell.

As we've reported, despite his 2020 conviction in New York, Weinstein was still facing criminal charges in Los Angeles ... where a grand jury recently indicted him on 11 counts of sexual assault connected to alleged assaults of 5 women.

Ellen DeGeneres made quick work of the Beverly Hills home she just put on the market ... but she didn't cash in quite like she probably hoped.

The talk show host unloaded the massive, secluded property she bought just 2 years ago from Maroon 5 frontman, Adam Levine, for a whopping $47 million ... but she was asking for way more than that.

As we first told you ... Ellen listed the 10,000 square-foot mansion for $53.5 mil just over a month ago, which would have netted her a decent profit because she and her wife, Portia de Rossi, purchased it from Adam for about $45 mil.

Instead, it's more like a break-even transaction ... but we're told DeGeneres went ahead with it anyway because she spends very little time in L.A. outside of shooting her show. She's now living full-time up in Montecito.

As for the new buyer -- represented by Brian Lane & Bob Safai of Madison Residential -- they just scored a gorgeous, ivy-covered estate with a resort-style pool, outdoor kitchen and pizza oven, fire pit, dining room bar, 50-foot living room with stone fireplace, indoor gym, spa and a guest house.

There's also a sunken tennis court, as the home used to also be owned by tennis legend Pete Sampras.

The woman caught on video pointing a gun out of her car window, then firing it out of her sunroof at a busy L.A. intersection has been charged with 3 felonies ... and she's still sitting in jail.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ ... Ashley Tamika Greenwade's been hit with one count of assault with a firearm for the April 6 incident, along with one count of discharge of a firearm with gross negligence, and one count of having a concealed firearm in a vehicle that's not registered to her.

We're told the first charge is due to Greenwade allegedly aiming her weapon at a person from her vehicle before she fired it up in the air.

Greenwade is still in police custody. She's being held on $35,000 bail ... and is facing up to 4 years behind bars.

As we reported ... the surreal road rage scene went down last week. The suspect was recorded screaming at someone off-camera before whipping out a handgun and loading it.

As she pointed it, she asked .... "Anybody wanna die now? Anybody???" Then, she unloaded several shots straight up through her sunroof.

Jennifer Lopez is missing a ring worth nearly $2 mil, but it wasn't a jewelry heist ... it's actually a mystery surrounding her engagement to A-Rod.

J Lo posted a pic of herself Saturday on the set of the movie she's shooting in the D.R.  The movie's called "Shotgun Wedding," and speaking of ... where's her engagement ring?

She captioned the pic, "Keep calm and work on the weekend." The emerald-cut ring with a massive diamond was MIA. BTW, the ring's worth an estimated $1.8 mil, but the issue's not the cost ... it's the whereabouts of the bling.

As you all know by now ... J Lo and A-Rod hit a rough patch recently, seemingly calling off their engagement for a nanosecond and then saying they're working through things. As we reported, their people told us they had briefly called it quits, although they say they never broke things off.

A-Rod flew to the D.R. after the breakup story broke ... and it seemed like they were patching things up.

The family of an aspiring actress just received a whopping $29.5 million verdict, after the woman became a quadriplegic after suffering a severe allergic reaction and not getting proper care from paramedics.

Chantel Giacalone was in great distress back in 2013 when she went into anaphylactic shock after eating a peanut butter pretzel. At the time, she was at a convention at the Mandalay Bay South Convention Center in Vegas, modeling clothing at the MAGIC Fashion Trade Show.

Paramedics from MedicWest Ambulance were on-site and attempted to help Chantel, who appeared in "The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations" and "Hollow Walls." The problem ... the paramedics did not have IV epinephrine, an adrenaline treatment, which Nevada law requires paramedics to have on hand. She lost oxygen for a period of time, which ultimately devastated her body.

Chantel now lives in her parents' dining room and must be fed through a tube. She can only communicate with her eyes and requires round-the-clock care.

Chantel's mom said after the verdict, "At least my daughter will be taken care of. I'm happy about that." Her dad added, "All the anguish that we've been through for the last eight years, I'm not happy about. I just hope MedicWest changes their ways."

The launch of Dolly Parton's new ice cream flavor had folks screaming for a scoop, but not quite enough to drop a grand on it ... despite the efforts of online hucksters.

Here's what's going down -- the country music legend teamed up with Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams to create her very own flavor, Strawberry Pretzel Pie, and it created pandemonium this week ... both on Jeni's website and at its actual store locations.

Because so many customers and Dolly lovers were clamoring for her new ice cream, those who apparently managed to get their hands on some tried to cash in ... by listing pints on eBay for $1,000!!!

Talk about rich ice cream!

As beloved as Dolly is, nobody was desperate enough for the Strawberry Pretzel Pie to shell out that kinda dough for ice cream in the mail (delivered on dry ice) ... but that didn't stop people from trying to hook a buyer.

That's not all -- other eBay users were hawking the "Specially made for Dolly Parton" ice cream posters from Jeni's ... but at a much more modest $35. Some of those actually sold.

ICYMI ... Dolly's flavor was released April 8 to benefit Imagination Library, a program she founded to gift free books to children from birth to age 5.

Two extremely rare, insanely valuable collector's items -- a Tom Brady and a LeBron James trading card -- just hit the auction block ... and are expected to sell for over $5 MILLION!!!

Yes, $2,500,000 each ... $5 million total. That's equivalent to the cost of 24 brand-spankin' new Lamborghini Huracans.

Let's start with the King James card ... a 2003-04 Upper Deck "Exquisite Collection" Exquisite Rookie Patch Autograph card -- 1 of 99 ever produced.

The card features Bron's signature ... and an actual NBA logo patch from a jersey LBJ rocked during his incredible rookie year with the Cavs in 2003.

The card was rated a mint 9 by Beckett -- one of the top grading companies in the business -- meaning it's essentially in brand new condition.

As for the Brady card ... it's a 2000 Playoff Contenders #144 Signed Championship Ticket Rookie card -- 1 of only 100 ever made.

The TB12 is considered the "holy grail" of modern football cards ... it was graded an 8.5 (near mint +) by Beckett ... and the autograph was awarded a perfect 10 (pristine) rating.

If you think $2.5 mil for each card is crazy ... it's not. In fact, a lower graded version of the Brady card recently sold for $2.25 mil.

Also, a different version of the same Bron card sold for $1.84 mil in 2020 -- and the card collectibles market has exploded recently.

Both cards are part of Goldin Auctions' latest auction ... which went live Friday.