Weird News

"90 Day Fiance" stud Corey Rathgeber is selling himself on the Internet, offering a virtual striptease for the low, low price of only $39 ... because, apparently, a man's gotta eat.

Turns out Corey recently signed up for an account on Fanbound, a website very similar to Cameo and he's selling skin for cheap.

Corey's offering lots of options, but the striptease really stands out ... and it's oddly less than the price of a magic trick ($45) for a phone call ($50) from him. Guess he feels his voice and magic skills are more impressive than his bod.

Corey's marketing the $39 striptease to fans, telling customers it's great for personal use, or for a friend or loved one, and says it's great for birthdays and special occasions. It is Mother's Day weekend!

If possible, keep your mind outta the gutter ... Corey says the striptease is NOT X-rated, and it's only for fun.

If the striptease doesn't tickle your fancy, Corey's also selling a personalized video message for $29.99 and relationship advice for $34.99.

Corey's also throwing up a Hail Mary ... he says he'll promote products for $399.99, no questions asked.

The U.S. Mint's decision to put the American Samoan fruit bat on the back of 2020 quarters probably seemed perfectly innocent ... pre-coronavirus, but now it's kinda creepy.

Here's the deal ... the 2020 quarter, which was put into circulation in February, honors America's Pacific Island territory, and features a cheerful-looking mama fruit bat and her pup hanging upside down.

The National Park of American Samoa is home to the species ... hence the currency shout-out. Only problem is we're all a bit freaked out about bats, considering one widely held scientific belief that the virus jumped to humans from bats sold in Wuhan's wet markets.

Before its release, the U.S. Mint said ... "The image evokes the remarkable care and energy that this species puts into their offspring. The design is intended to promote awareness to the species’ threatened status due to habitat loss and commercial hunting."

Blah, blah, blah ... y'know everyone just see bats and thinks pandemic.

The odd timing of the bat quarter's release is already fueling the conspiracy theory that the government plotted the COVID-19 outbreak.

For those who choose to believe that keep this piece of scientific fact in mind -- the Samoan fruit bats live far, far away from Wuhan's wet markets.

Okay, so maybe murder hornets aren't THAT dangerous ... or maybe it's praying mantises we should truly be worried about. Either way -- nature is damn scary!!!

Here's video of an apparent Asian giant hornet (aka murder hornet) going head-to-head with a mantis and losing its head ... as the greenish-brown beast quickly strikes, kills and starts chomping away.

The years-old video has resurfaced online on the heels of the alarming news that deadly "murder hornets" have arrived in the U.S. and were first spotted in Washington state this past fall.

As we reported ... these giant Asian hornets are a threat to the bee population, as they tear up entire colonies by decapitating them and feeding the bodies to their young. Oh, and this is what one of them did to a mouse.

They also can kill humans with their venom -- reportedly up to 50 people a year die from their stings -- so it's easy to understand why folks are freaking out about them ... even if the executioner wasp is more dangerous.

Little did we know, we just need to sic praying mantises on their asses.

You can breathe a huge sigh of relief, Asian "murder" hornets are highly unlikely to kill you or your loved ones ... according to wildlife expert Coyote Peterson, so you know it's legit!!!

The Animal Planet star showed up on "TMZ Live" and schooled us on the latest buzz surrounding the deadly insects threatening to wipe out human civilization and bee populations as we know them.

Coyote says don't believe the hype ... these little buggers don't even have the most painful sting in the animal kingdom -- that's reserved for the executioner Wasp -- and they're highly unlikely to kill any Americans, despite their menacing moniker and penchant for decapitating bees.

As we told you ... sightings of Asian "murder" hornets are spiking in Washington, but reports from everyday citizens are mostly false.

Coyote says it's important to remember only a single hornet has actually been found in the United States, and it's dead. CP says entomologists are working to find a potential colony, and if they do, the hornets will be eradicated before they can wreak havoc on humans and bees.

As for the hornets' potent venom -- described as hot metal driving through skin -- and the dozens of people who get stung and die each year ... Coyote tells us why that's a little misleading, and why you're unlikely to be another statistic.

Asian "murder" hornets arriving on America's doorstep are creating a mass panic we haven't seen since ... well, last month, and one state is already inundated with mostly false reports ... TMZ has learned.

The Washington State Dept. of Agriculture tells us ... its office has received HUNDREDS of reported sightings from all over the country. The flood of calls came in the last few days ... in the wake of a NYT story about the first confirmed encounters with the giant insects in the Pacific Northwest.

That's scared the crap out of people, but fortunately, we're told most if not all of the reports to the WSDA have been erroneous. It's usually not the Asian giant hornet (gov't name for "murder" hornets) folks are seeing, but instead ... its Western cousin, the European hornet -- which isn't nearly as scary.

The main differences between the two are pretty noticeable -- so hopefully this helps people chill out and STOP blowing up phones at the WSDA. The agency wants people to contact their own local agriculture agencies. We're told staffers are even getting calls from Great Britain.

As for how to tell which is which -- the European hornets, a dime a dozen in the States, are actually LARGER than the Asian "murder" hornets, and they look different too, if you look closely. European hornets' thoraxes and abdomens feature more yellow, while the Asian hornet is mostly black/dark brown in appearance ... with a yellow stripe closer to its stinger.

Of course, that all assumes you can safely observe the bugger up close.

For an even closer look at what European hornets look like -- here's a shot of one a Philly-area resident took over the weekend, mistakenly thinking it was Asian. He reported it to the Pennsylvania Dept. of Agriculture ... and they assured him it wasn't a "murder" hornet.

What appears to be an Asian "murder" hornet took a mouse's life within seconds in a wild struggle that was captured on video ... seemingly proving how deadly these things are.

This video just resurfaced this week and is spreading in light of the news that the deadly version of these insects from across the world has touched down in our own backyard here in North America in the past few months.

A new influx of hornets from Asia -- which have NOT been seen here in the States until recently -- pose a massive risk to our domestic bee population, not to mention humans. With them roaming the wild ... much of the natural order of the animal kingdom is in danger

It's unclear if this is, in fact, a murder hornet -- as we don't know exactly when the clip was shot, or where -- but it certainly seems to reflect what these giant bugs are said to do ... MURDER.

It's crazy to see the mouse fight for its life and try to squirm away -- but it's no use, 'cause the hornet is all over it and stinging/biting away until finally ... the mouse stops. The hornet then flies away and starts coming for the cameraman -- that's when the video cuts out.

Elon Musk seems super serious about selling off almost all of his physical possessions and not owning a home ... because he just put a pair of mansions on the market.

The Tesla honcho listed two of his Bel-Air estates for sale Sunday, this only days after telling the world he would shed most of his possessions and own no home.

Elon's seeking a combined $39.5 million for the properties -- listing a massive 16,251-square-foot estate for $30 mil and a home previously owned by the late Gene Wilder for $9.5 million.

And, get this ... Elon's selling without a realtor. The homes are both for sale by owner.

Gene's former haunt is a quirky, unique and charming ranch-style property overlooking the stream, trees and white sand traps of the 13th green and 14th fairway on the Bel-Air County Club Golf Course. The 5-bedroom, 2,756-square-foot home comes with an oval pool and private guest cottage.

Elon says there's one stipulation for buying Willy Wonka's old house ... "It cannot be torn down or lose any of its soul."

Elon's other listing sits on a private knoll overlooking the Bel-Air Country Club, with sweeping views of the city and Pacific ocean. It's a sprawling property with 6-bedrooms, including a master suite with separate dual closets and baths.

The crib is decked out with a family wing, 2-story library, 2-room guest suite, theater, wine cellar, gym, lighted championship tennis court, pool and a fruit orchard!

Plenty of room to park those Teslas in the motor court with a 5-car garage.

Elon ignited the selling spree Friday with a Twitter storm ... announcing, "I am selling almost all physical possessions. Will own no house." Elon says "freedom" is behind the sale.

Musk bought the two properties for about $24 million combined back in 2012 and 2013 ... and the homes are part of a six-house collection Elon owns outside Bel-Air Country Club.

Thank God these grownups got the monkey off this toddler's back -- because a fierce primate was about to make off with them in a wild, would-be kidnapping getaway.

Check out this video that was supposedly taken in an alleyway in Indonesia, where it shows a circus-like, small simian rolling up to a group of kids on a mini motorbike ... which it jumps off of right in front of them, and then attempts to take the runt of the litter.

It's a wild scene -- something out of a damn movie, but this rogue little bastard does his own stunts! -- and it only gets scarier the more you watch. The monkey, at first, loses its grip on the child (who's screaming) but then goes back and starts dragging them by the hand.

The monkey decides yanking the kid by the hair would make for a better escape and tries that -- and it even gets pretty damn far with the child too ... before some reasonable adults FINALLY step in and scare it off. You can hear it shrieking in the distance as it runs off.

Now, for a little context ... the guy who shot this video spoke to a local media outlet, and said owning monkeys is actually illegal out there -- but people still do keep 'em as pets and use them for entertainment 'cause the consequences are so minimal.

If anything, hopefully, this serves as a wake-up call to Indonesian officials -- these hominids don't just play nice and play accordions ... they're literally capable of taking your children.

Monkey see ... monkey abduct!!!

If you thought pirates were just out at sea being bad, you'd be wrong -- Washington state cops say there's piracy happening on their own porches ... by none other than nurses!!! Fake nurses, rather.

This story comes to you from Kennewick, Washington ... where the local police department released photos of two women dressed as nurses that they say are going around to local neighborhoods and STEALING packages off people's doorstep. In broad daylight, no less.

KPD says of the crimes ... "Officers are currently investigating a case of porch piracy and need your help. Both suspects have been reported as stealing packages delivered to Kennewick residences," going on to tell folks to contact 'em if anyone recognizes these gals.

They also make a point to say that they don't believe the perps are actually nurses -- even though they certainly look the part in their full scrubs, gloves and lanyard badges. The department takes a dig at them and gives a shout-out to real nurses, saying ... "The nurses we are fortunate to know only give their time, lives, and take the vitals of their patients (not their property)." And, it gets even weirder.

One of the residents who had a package swooped from her porch says she played back the surveillance tape she had and describes one of the ladies arriving at her front door, only minutes after a FedEx driver dropped off her package, and casually walking off with the goods. Not a batted eye, not a fumble ... all very smooth and calculated.

The glowing dolphin phenomenon is closer to shore than ever before in Southern California's own backyard -- now, we got some coastal dolphins lighting up the night sea!

Check out this video from photographer Patrick Coyne, who -- like last time -- tracked down more flipper swimmers out near Newport Beach, who were lighting up with blue fluorescence underwater in the pitch-black dead of night ... and pretty close to land too.

In the vid, he makes a distinction between these dolphins -- which are bottlenose (AKA coastal) dolphins -- and the ones he caught on camera about a week or so ago, which are just common dolphins, and go further out in the water than these little guys do.

As we've explained ... the way the dolphins can glow the way they do here is attributed to bioluminescence. Basically, phytoplankton in the water have been doused in this, and they make the surrounding water shine bright in the dark. That includes anything swimming in the ocean as well, obviously.

If you ever wondered what 50 Cent would look like as Veep Mike Pence ... well, here you go.

An Australian artist created a Pence-ish looking painting using Fitty as his inspiration and it's, well, interesting.

50 seemed to approve, saying ... "This f***ing guy won’t stop, SMH. I guess i’m not wearing a mask because i’m tested frequently."

He was referring to Pence's ridiculous defiance when he went to the Mayo Clinic this week, ignoring protocol as he was the only one in the room not wearing a mask. He says he was tested, but that really doesn't make a difference. They told him to wear one and he didn't.

The artist who painted the Pence pic -- Lushsux -- has a history with 50. He's turned him into Donald Trump ... something that clearly doesn't sit well with the rapper/mogul.

A deadly species of hornets from across the world has landed in our own backyard -- and the timing couldn't be worse with the coronavirus pandemic in full swing.

An epidemiologist named Chris Looney gave a detailed report to the NYT this weekend, outlining the first sightings of these giant Asian "murder" hornets here in North America -- first spotted in Washington state this past fall -- and the joint effort to eradicate them before they wipe out our bee population, not to mention any human casualties along the way.

The report says the giant Asian hornets tear up entire bee colonies by decapitating their heads with their jaws and feeding the bodies to their young. Up until around Novemer, the so-called "murder hornets" hadn't been seen here in the U.S., but now ... it seems they've arrived, and scientists are working on a way to get rid of them since summer's approaching, when the hornets are expected to be much more active.

The hornets kill people too, BTW -- the Times says up to 50 people get stung by them and die each year ... and their potent venom has been described as hot metal driving through people's skin. A queen hornet can measure up to 2 inches long -- so they're big.

The good news (we think) is that the entomologists and other experts working on this issue have been setting up homemade hornet traps in hopes of keeping the population at bay, and they've also created a grid of where they think the hornets are.

For those they do catch, the scientists plan to use radio-frequency identification tags on the insects and track where they go with the idea being they'll lead them to the nest(s). Then, they could potentially destroy them and take out entire colonies at a time.