The Kardashians

Kim Kardashian is turning into a real bad ass ... she's telling friends she thinks Kanye West was spot on when he lunged and swore at a paparazzo in Bev Hills.

Kim -- who is always impervious to the gaggle of photogs who chronicle her every move -- thinks Kanye was justified when he bolted out of a restaurant and went all Incredible Hulk on an unsuspecting camera guy.

As you know ... Kanye had a close encounter with a metal sign as he walked to 9021PHO, slamming his forehead UFC style with a souvenir that will probably last for a week.

Kim is telling friends ... the paparazzi have become increasingly aggressive with both of them since she became pregnant. She's especially upset because on Monday a photog chased her down while she was driving and she had to swerve into another lane to avoid him and almost got into a bad accident.

Bottom line ... Kim is encouraging Kanye to take care of business when a photog crosses the line. The problem with her theory -- in the case of the sign, the photogs held their distance and Kanye just didn't look where he was going.

The truth hurts.

Kanye West could have simply laughed off banging his head into a sign -- but that would mean the clumsy move was his fault ... and it's obvious the stupid sign is to blame! Right, Kanye?

As Kim Kardashian continues to grow and grow, Kanye West is now sporting a bump of his own ... on his forehead.

Kanye was spotted in Beverly Hills early this morning with the giant bruise ... a souvenir from his run-in with a street sign on Friday.

As TMZ previously reported, Kanye walked smack dab into a metal sign post while out with Kim Kardashian. After first showing some restraint with the paps over the incident, he later exploded on one guy ... who claimed he wasn't even there when Kanye hit his head.

PART ONE

PART TWO

2:45 PM PT -- Turns out Kanye did end up going NUTS on a photog a short while after this video was taken. Check it out.

This isn't the start of a joke, Kanye West really did walk into a bar ... a street sign, to be exact ... and he was really, REEAALLLLLY MAD.

Kanye and Kim Kardashian were strolling along in Bev Hills this afternoon when Ye, who was ducking his head to avoid getting his picture taken, slammed dome-first into a metal sign post.

From the sound of it, it hurt ... a lot.

Kanye clenched his head in pain ... and seemed prime for a FULL KANYE-style ragefest on the photogs ... but instead, he composed himself and walked away.

Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom were just swatted ... TMZ has learned ... and this one was dramatic, with cops racing to the scene with guns drawn.

Sources tell TMZ ... 911 dispatch received a call claiming Lamar and a friend were arguing inside his home, and the friend shot the bballer.

When cops arrived ... they found Lamar at home alone and he was unharmed.

An eyewitness on scene tells TMZ ... this was a full police response.

Sources tell TMZ ... the group responsible is the same one that has targeted multiple celebs over the last few months, including Diddy, Magic Johnson, Clint Eastwood, Rihanna and Chris Brown.

So much for a cooler, calmer Kanye ...

West just emerged from a restaurant in L.A. and exploded on a photog -- not a TMZ guy -- screaming at the cameraman to stop taking photos, ASAP.

Minutes before the incident, Kanye had banged his head into a metal sign while trying to hide his face from a pack of paparazzi ... and blamed it on the snappers.

West restrained himself from going after the paps in the moments after the head-slamming, only to emerge from the eatery minutes later ... even angrier than he was before.

The pap told West he had just arrived on the scene -- and meant no harm.

West eventually turned around and went back into the restaurant. It's unclear if Kanye ever laid a hand on the photog.

Everyone has a tequila story, and Khloe Kardashian and Kris Jenner had theirs Thursday night ... with an evening that started at a Mexican restaurant and ended with them getting KICKED OUT of Kim's house ... TMZ has learned.

According to our sources, Khloe and Kris went out for a girls' night and hit up Casa Vega in the Valley for some dinner and a few margaritas (FORESHADOWING!!!!). The ladies had a good time and K&K even posted a pic of the pair wearing sombreros and captioned it "She's wild man" (see above).

We're told the pair took a car service and went straight from the restaurant to the popular West Hollywood bar The Abbey to shoot a scene for "Keeping Up With the Kardashians." The only problem ... they smartly decided they were too drunk to shoot ... so they left without even getting out of the SUV.

According to Abbey patrons, the ordeal pissed off management because they had roped off a prime section for the shoot.

But it doesn't end there ... Khloe and Kris then had the brilliant idea to go from the bar to Kim's house ... because who doesn't love partying with drunk women more than a PREGNANT CHICK?!?!?

It predictably didn't go well, and Kim told the girls to take a hike.

Rob Kardashian just pled NOT GUILTY in his paparazzo battery and theft case ... but the headline here is that he was represented by Robert Shapiro ... the famed lawyer who represented O.J. Simpson along with Rob's father.

TMZ has learned ... Rob appeared in court today with Shapiro and pled not guilty ... just like O.J. ... except he didn't say "100% not guilty."

Here's another twist --there's a Lindsay Lohan connection ... the judge who took the plea is none other than Marsha Revel, the recipient of Lohan's famous "f**k you" fingernail stunt during one of her many criminal court appearances in Bev Hills.

Rob Kardashian has been charged with battery and petty theft after allegedly attacking a photographer in L.A. back in March and stealing her camera equipment, TMZ has learned.

According to the criminal complaint, Rob was charged with one count of each crime -- both misdemeanors.

TMZ broke the story ... the photog filed a robbery report following the alleged attack, claiming Rob jacked part of her camera at a West Hollywood gym ... all because she snapped shirtless pics of him. The photog has since sued Rob for robbery and assault.

Rockin' a chic maternity floral slipcover, a very pregnant Kim Kardashian camouflaged her growing baby bump and wowed the A-list fashion crowd at the Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC on Monday.

The theme of the stylish event was punk rock ... and what's more anti-establishment than going as the kouch in your beloved Aunt Sylvia's finished basement in Van Nuys circa 1986?

Farrah Abraham is a backdoor crowd pleaser for sure ... because there was such intense, pent-up interest in her porn video, it crashed Vivid's site.

According to our porn sources ... Farrah's 70-minute debut, "Backdoor Teen Mom," lured in more than 2 million visitors in just 12 hours Monday ... annihilating the record previously held by Kim K and Ray J -- which attracted 600,000 during the same time frame.

Farrah swamped Vivid's servers so hard ... the site went down Monday morning for 9 minutes ... which is more than enough time to satisfy most of the buyers -- trust us ...

Vivid honchos tell us they were able to access additional servers to handle, as they put it, "the immense load."

For the record ... Farrah also handled the immense load.

Rob Kardashian has just been sued for allegedly assaulting a photographer and stealing her camera equipment ... as she was lying in wait to get pics of the shirtless wonder.

TMZ broke the story ... the photog filed a robbery report last month, claiming Rob jacked part of her camera at a West Hollywood gym ... and she claims it was all because she snapped shirtless pics of him.

The photog -- not a TMZ employee -- says Rob, who is neck deep in a weight loss program, snatched the memory card out of the camera.

Andra Viak's lawyer, George Gallegos, tells us, "While this case is still in the preliminary stage, it is clear from our investigation that Robert Kardashian’s violent behavior and his use of force towards Ms. Viak was completely unjustified.”

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West are bona fide HEROES ... this according to a Chicago Children's Hospital which says the money raised by the couple will be used to treat sick babies.

TMZ broke the story ... Kim and Kanye are urging friends and family members to abstain from sending baby gifts -- instead, they're asking well-wishers to send donations to the Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.

Now, reps for the hospital are hailing the couple for the generous move -- saying, "Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago would like to extend its sincerest gratitude to Kim Kardashian and Kanye West for their thoughtfulness and support of the hospital."

Like a lot of sunbathers in Europe, Bruce Jenner went topless on the beach in Greece on Monday.

Throwing modesty out to sea, the 63-year-old showed off his smooth and supple Olympic gold medal-winning chest and rippling abs while paddleboarding in a pair of festive high-waisted board shorts on the Aegean Sea.

Kendall isn't the only Jenner showing off in a bathing suit.

Kim Kardashian wants her friends to know ... SHE DOESN'T NEED YOUR BABY GIFTS ... but there's a hospital in Chicago that sure does.

TMZ has learned ... Kim and her baby daddy Kanye West want to make it clear to family, friends and fans there's NO baby registry -- despite the slew of fakes popping up on the Internet -- and they don't want any presents.

Instead, the couple is asking all well-wishers to cut a check to the Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago, where Kanye grew up.

We all know Kanye and Kim have a TON of rich friends -- hopefully, they'll actually follow directions.