Money

The search for Ellen's successor didn't take long, and doesn't come as much of a surprise ... "The Kelly Clarkson Show" will take over the slot currently held by "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" after her 19th season concludes.

NBC made the announcement that Clarkson's show -- currently in its second season and airing in all of the network's markets -- is expected to replace Ellen's by Fall 2022.

As we first told you ... Kelly had been penciled in as the front-runner for Ellen's coveted, syndicated hour of television pretty much since her talk show launched in Fall 2019.

The show debuted to huge ratings, and with NBC honchos predicting DeGeneres would pull the plug on her show eventually ... Clarkson seemed like the perfect successor.

Problem is, Kelly's show's ratings dipped big time during the pandemic -- as did a lot of other daytime programs -- so there was some uncertainty if NBC would still go with her, or opt for someone new ... like, perhaps, Tiffany Haddish.

Clearly, the network wanted to eliminate all doubt by crowning Kelly.

Something smells funky ... at least to the company behind those Little Tree car air fresheners, which is suing popular pet food company Chewy for allegedly ripping off its famous product.

Car Freshener Corporation claims Chewy is pimping a dog toy it describes as a “Frisco Retro Tree Freshener Plush Squeaky Dog Toy."

According to docs, obtained by TMZ, the Little Tree company says the dog toy is suspiciously similar in shape, color and overall appearance to its distinctively abstract Tree design.

In the suit, Car Freshener says for over 60 years it has built up its Little Tree air freshener brand ... slapping the tree on t-shirts, hats, socks, stickers and luggage tags, among other products.

What's more, Car Freshener says it's sold third parties like Buffalo Wild Wings, Purina PetCare, Kia and Capital One licenses to use the trees ... but NOT Chewy.

Car Freshener claims Chewy's dog toy copies the shape and basic dimensions of its Little Trees air freshener, while also featuring the white diagonal and horizontal banners emblazoned across the middle and bottom of the Little Trees air fresheners.

Car Freshener's pissed consumers will think it's in bed with Chewy ... although, it's unclear why that would be a bad thing.

Forget Bitcoin ... Kevin Durant's Nets debut jersey could be the next hottest thing in the investment game -- it just hit the memorabilia stock market, and it could net ya a small fortune down the road!

Here's the deal ... the threads KD rocked in his first-ever game as a Net on Dec. 22, 2020 just hit the investment app Otis, and fans can now purchase shares of the uni for $10 apiece.

Reps for the app tell TMZ Sports once all of the initial shares are sold ... it'll go up for trading, and the owners who bought in can hold onto the shares or sell them -- just like a stock.

The current value of the jersey is estimated to be $47,600 ... but experts say it could go up way higher in just a matter of weeks.

After all, Durant's debut with the Nets was a special one ... he put up 22 points in a victory over his former Warriors squad -- and if he's able to win a ring with Brooklyn this summer, the uniform's worth could obviously skyrocket.

In fact, reps for Otis say it's not uncommon to see a 150% to 400% increase on pieces like these.

Former President Donald Trump could soon be criminal defendant Trump ... prosecutors in New York have convened a grand jury that could indict him on criminal tax evasion and other charges related to the Trump org's business affairs.

The Manhattan district attorney recently convened the grand jury to hear evidence and weigh potential criminal charges against the former president ... according to the Washington Post. The grand jury will reportedly sit for 3 days a week over the next 6 months.

Prosecutors are said to be looking into Trump's business dealings before his 2016 election, including whether the Trump Organization manipulated the value of real estate properties to defraud insurance companies and banks.

The investigation was triggered by Michael Cohen's testimony before Congress about hush-money payments to Stormy Daniels. Cohen has supplied prosecutors with a boatload of documents.

Trump, meanwhile, has been keeping busy at his golf properties. The former Prez hit the links at his New Jersey course over the weekend, losing at least one ball into a manmade lake.

Rap phenom Metro Marrs drew a loud ovation after making it rain at his high school graduation ... but the stunt ended up getting him detained by cops.

So, here's the deal ... Marrs graduated from Langston Hughes High in nearby Atlanta and when he crossed the stage Friday, he decided to go out with a bang. You can see from the video he took wads of cash out from his pants and made it rain ... to the delight of his fellow grads.

The crowd went absolutely nuts ... and grads were more than happy to raise their arms and catch all the green. But, school officials were not happy campers. You can see several of them get up off their seats to corral the 18-year-old rapper who just recently signed with Quality Control ... the label home to Migos, Lil Yachty and City Girls.

Marrs, though, had a can't-stop-won't-stop attitude ... 'cause he kept going into his waistband for more dough. All-in-all ... he threw around $10k in cash to his cap-and-gown colleagues.

Cops stepped in to escort him out of the ceremony ... and we're told he was detained for inciting a riot and disorderly conduct and then ticketed for the offense.  If you ask us, it's ridiculous -- inciting a riot because the grads grabbed some dough?  Really outrageous.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg gave everything she had in her possession to her children and, interestingly enough, one of her trusted longtime employees ... TMZ has learned.

We've obtained a copy of the late Supreme Court Justice's will ... and it lays it out in precise detail who's getting what from her near $6 million estate. According to the docs, RBG is leaving the majority of her personal effects to her 2 kids, Jane and James Ginsburg, who she also made executors of her will.

Per the will, her personal property includes -- but isn't limited to -- any cars, furniture, books, art, sculptures, paintings, photographs, silver, porcelain, jewelry and clothes in her possession ... and all that stuff is lumped together and valued at $250,000.

She has other personal property that's worth about $5.5 million -- but there's no breakdown of what exactly that entails.

As for the third person in her life to receive a cut ... her housekeeper, Elizabeth Salas, to whom Justice Ginsburg left a cool $40,000 in cash. She was incredibly close to RBG, and even sat next to Biden when the Justice lay in state at the Capitol Rotunda last year. She reportedly worked for RBG for 22 years.

Keep in mind -- what's listed here is simply RBG's probate estate ... we don't know if she had other assets in a private trust separately.

She was 87 when she passed.

The QB room in Green Bay just got a whole lot less awkward ... Aaron Rodgers finally broke his silence on his beef with the Pack -- and he insisted Jordan Love is NOT the problem.

The reigning NFL MVP joined Kenny Mayne for the legendary anchor's final SportsCenter on Monday ... and revealed his issues with his team do not stem from them drafting Love last year.

"With my situation, look, it's never been about the draft pick, them picking Jordan," Rodgers said. "I love Jordan. He's a great kid. Lot of fun to work together."

Many assumed it was the exact opposite ... 'cause after Green Bay took Love in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft instead of a receiver, Rodgers had seemed blindsided.

But, Aaron went on to say during his interview with Mayne that he's more upset with the way he believes the Packers have changed their "philosophy."

"I love the coaching staff, love my teammates, love the fan base in Green Bay -- it's been an incredible, incredible 16 years," Rodgers said. "It's just kind of about a philosophy."

"And, you know, and maybe forgetting that it is about the people that make the thing go. It's about character. It's about culture. It's about doing things the right way."

In other words, it's clear Rodgers is upset his team wouldn't commit to him with a fresh, new contract after his monster 2020 season.

"The wrench was just kind of thrown into it when I won MVP and played the way I played last year," Rodgers said. "So, this is just kind of the, I think, the spill out of all that."

So, where do they go from here? Rodgers -- who partied in Hawaii over the weekend instead of prepping for Packers organized team activities this week -- sure seemed like a guy who was pretty dug in on the ride being over in Green Bay.

Ray J's living proof the rich just get richer ... because his investment yielded a 17,000 percent return on his investment ... yes, 17,000 PERCENT!!!

Ray J was playing a penny-slot game called "Buffalo" and won $17,000. We're told he plunked down a total of $100 so, yeah, it was a good day at the slots.

In case you want in ... Ray hit up the San Manuel Casino in San Bernardino County. It was quite the scene ... a crowd gathered to watch Ray J rake in the dough.

He played the slots because he considers himself an old man now, and that's what old folks do. BTW ... he's 40.

Ray has retired his days as a big gambler on table games, particularly roulette ... and his most recent lucky streak is probably a sign that's a good idea.

It's not like he needs money ... Ray's Raycon earbuds hit a milestone earlier this year ... 1 million unique customers who paid between $80 and $150 a pop. Translation ... he made a fortune, and that's just on one product.

Rapper Mo Fayne's song and dance about needing to get out of jail to fix a bum wing and send his daughter off to college didn't fly ... 'cause the judge just denied his request.

The "Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta" star had a hearing Monday in Georgia, where prosecutors argued Fayne should remain locked up behind bars until sentencing in his federal bank fraud cause ... for which he's already pled guilty.

For starters, prosecutors said Fayne should NOT be let out of jail because long before he was locked up he had already been looking for ways to finagle his way out of jail by Googling which countries he could head to without fear of extradition.

Prosecutors also said Fayne's a hardcore fraudster who talked about swindling other people. They called him a menace and a danger to the public.

The judge shared the feds' concerns about Fayne's online travel search, as well as allegations he'd bragged to a witness he wouldn't end up spending a day in jail.

Fayne's been locked up since December after violating the terms of his bond for allegedly contacting a potential witness. He's slated to be sentenced in September.

TMZ broke the story ... Fayne pled guilty to 6 counts of federal bank fraud after prosecutors say he funded a lavish lifestyle during the pandemic with a Paycheck Protection Program loan. He's accused of using the money to pay off debts, like child support.

The man who claims to have found and returned Daniel Sturridge's stolen dog in 2019 is now suing the soccer star ... alleging the athlete has STILL not paid him the reward money he promised.

Foster Washington spelled it all out in a new lawsuit, obtained by TMZ Sports ... saying Sturridge owes him reward money -- which was reported to be around $37,000 -- for helping him get his Pomeranian, Lucci, back nearly 2 years ago.

Washington says after Sturridge claimed the dog had been stolen in a July 2019 burglary in Los Angeles ... Washington found Lucci on the street.

Washington says because Sturridge reportedly offered a reward, he reached out.

In the suit, Washington says he got in touch with Sturridge and ultimately returned the dog expecting the reward money in exchange.

The problem? Washington claims Sturridge -- who's reportedly made over $40 million in his soccer career -- never paid him a dime ... so now he's suing him over it, claiming Sturridge breached a contract by not living up to the reward offer.

The WNBA has suspended Connecticut Sun head coach Curt Miller over an "offensive" comment he made about an opposing player during a game ... when he complained to a ref that she weighs "300 pounds."

The player he was talking about is Las Vegas Aces star Liz Cambage -- who says she weighs 235 pounds and was deeply offended by the comment.

Here's the backstory ... Cambage -- the #2 overall picking the 2011 WNBA Draft -- claimed Miller crossed the line when complaining to the refs about her during Sunday night's game in an effort to get a call against her.

Cambage claims she overheard Miller saying something like, "C'mon, she's 300 pounds!"

Cambage unleashed a fiery post on social media ripping Miller -- saying she's "very proud of being a big bitch" ... and "I will never let a man disrespect me, ever, ever, ever, especially a little white one."

Miller apologized Monday morning -- saying, "I made an inappropriate and offensive comment in reference to Liz Cambage's height and weight. I regret what I said in the heat of the moment and want to sincerely apologize to Liz and the entire Aces organization."

He added, "I understand the gravity of my words and have learned from this."

Now, the league has dished out punishment -- issuing a 1-game suspension against Miller and tacking on a $10,000 fine.

Kim Kardashian's maintenance and cleaning crew have come together to go after her in court for allegedly failing to pay wages, provide meal breaks and cover expenses ... but Kim claims she's the wrong target, and the vendor is the one who short-changed the workers.

According to the legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- 7 staffers who say they worked for Kim at her Hidden Hills property are suing her, claiming they were told upon hire they were full-time employees ... but they say they were treated as independent contractors instead and got screwed out of full-time employee benefits.

However, a rep for Kim tells TMZ ... she hired a third-party vendor for the ongoing maintenance/cleaning services, and she's not privy to the agreement made between the vendor and the workers. The rep insists Kim “is not responsible for how the vendor manages their business and the agreements they have made directly with their staff."

The rep adds ... "Kim has never not paid a vendor for their services and hopes that the issue between these workers and the vendor who hired them can be amicably resolved soon."

In the docs, the workers allege they were not given pay stubs, not paid on a regular schedule, not given meal and rest breaks, not properly reimbursed for expenses, not provided a system to record their hours, and thus ... were not paid for all of their hours, including overtime.

According to the lawsuit, one employee also claims he was fired after he inquired about his rights and those of his son ... whom he says was only 16, but worked more than the maximum hours allowed for a minor under California labor law.

Again, we're told Kim's stance is this is an issue with the vendor ... and she's not the one workers should be going after. As one source put it, Kim's never missed a cellphone bill payment, let alone payment for workers at her home.

Stephen Curry's incredible Bruce Lee-inspired kicks just sold for more than $62,000 at an auction ... and the proceeds are going to families affected by recent anti-Asian hate crimes.

Remember, the Golden State Warriors superstar rocked the custom pair of his signature Curry 8s against the Atlanta Hawks last month ... as a tribute to the martial arts legend and to show solidarity with the Asian community.

Curry promised to part ways with the special sneaks to help the families of the 8 victims who were killed in the Atlanta shooting on March 16 ... and on Saturday, they sold for an impressive $62,730 at Goldin Auctions!!!

The kicks are dope -- Curry partnered up with the Bruce Lee Foundation for the shoes ... which feature amazing portraits on each shoe of Lee and his family.

Curry recently explained his decision to channel the legend at the time ... applauding what Lee "stood for in terms of unifying people, speaking on the collective harmony of everybody from different backgrounds, different races but especially his Asian heritage."

"I think he has a lot of quotes and just narratives and themes that he spoke of consistently that still ring true today and I know his foundation do a lot to live that out, to impact people's lives and continue to spark change."

Lee's daughter, Shannon, was honored by the former MVP's tribute ... saying the gesture was a "beautiful example of allyship and solidarity in action."

Ice Cube has some cash that's long owed to someone who made dozens of beats for him over the years ... so claims the guy, who's now taking the rapper to court over it.

Producer Sir Jinx just sued Cube for what he claims are unpaid royalties he recently discovered are due to him for production work he provided to IC. If you're not familiar, SJ helped make a bunch of Cube's beats dating as far back as his first album in 1990, "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted."

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Jinx says he's produced upward of 28 tracks for Cube ... and that it wasn't until 2019 that he realized he wasn't getting his fair share of the profits.

So, to make things right, Jinx says he reached out to Cube's team to let them know there was some back pay that needed to come his way ... but in the end, Jinx claims Cube never forked over the dough.

Jinx claims he's incurred damages north of $100k ... and he's asking a judge to get a proper accounting in place, and to award him whatever he deserves according to his contracts.

Sir Jinx has a list of what songs he believes he got stiffed on -- and they include some of Cube's best-known songs, including ... "No Vaseline," "True to the Game," "The Bomb," "It's a Man's World," "The Funeral," "Who Got the Camera?" and several more.

As time went on and Cube continued to make albums into the 2000s and beyond, Jinx was featured less and less. It looks like he was mostly influential in Cube's early sound after leaving N.W.A.

There's a diehard Disney fan out there who's sleeping easy underneath the mosaic from the Disneyland Sleeping Beauty Castle -- a rare piece of memorabilia that did not come cheap.

The folks over at the Van Eaton Galleries auctioned off the handcrafted mosaic for a whopping $363k!!! That's an astonishing number to begin with, but especially since Van Eaton estimated the piece going for around $30,000 to $50,000.

The mosaic was part of the original Sleeping Beauty Castle before it was renovated in 1983. It had been prominently featured in the early years of Fantasyland but later removed during renovations. The stunning piece features hundreds of individual tiles with the image of Sleeping Beauty and Prince Phillip.

The anonymous collector nabbed it during the 2-day "Rediscovering Disneyland" auction that took place over the weekend ... with well over 1,200 other items and collections from early Disney Theme Park artifacts up for grabs.

Some of the other items included a loan agreement signed by Walt Disney and his wife, Lillian, in 1954 ... when Walt borrowed $60k against his own life insurance policy in order to build the "Happiest Place on Earth." Holy return on investment, Batman!