You Might Want to Rethink

A snow leopard at the San Diego Zoo has COVID ... and zoo officials are worried about an outbreak among the cats.

A 9-year-old snow leopard named Ramil caught the attention of zoo staff Thursday, after noticing the cat had a cough and runny nose. The COVID test came back positive, confirmed by 2 labs.

They're doing another test, but the staff expects the result to be the same -- positive.

Here's the problem ... Ramil shared an enclosure with 3 other cats -- a female snow leopard and 2 Amur leopards, all of which have been exposed to COVID. So, the 3 big cats are in quarantine now, although real talk -- they're always in quarantine. In this case it means the public won't be able to go near.

Fortunately, Ramil's symptoms haven't gotten worse. Zoo staff is mystified as to how the cat caught the virus. Zoo keepers must wear masks if they're not vaccinated. Eight gorillas caught COVID in January, though none were symptomatic.

Scientists have known for months that cats can contract COVID. Most cases are not serious, but snow leopards are fast dwindling in population. Estimates put the number of wild snow leopards at 4,000 to 6,500.

Morgan Wallen explaining on 'GMA' his rationale behind using the n-word is gibberish ... so says the NAACP Nashville chapter president.

Sheryl Guinn tells TMZ ... she believes Morgan's sit-down with Michael Strahan is the result of Morgan being sorry not for what he said but for getting caught using the racial slur. She says it's a travesty Morgan never thought about the meaning behind the hateful word.

What's more ... Sheryl says his white privilege was on full display for never caring to learn the hurt that word causes. And, she's is dismayed by Morgan trying to contextualize the word ... saying he used it in a "playful" way.

Sheryl does believe Morgan can turn things around ... and she has a punch list.

According to Sheryl ... Morgan can make amends by addressing serious issues, like inequality. Morgan broached the subject a bit when he told Strahan "it would seem" country music has a race problem ... though he hasn't thought about it too much.

Sheryl says he can start in his hometown of Nashville ... where Morgan is hugely influential.

The NAACP honcho says while Morgan's at it, he should encourage his community to get vaccinated. Less than 40% of Nashville got the shot ... and it's devastating marginalized communities.

Morgan Wallen says when he used the n-word after partying with his friends, he thought it was "playful" ... but he admits that's ignorant, and he now knows it's wrong.

The country music star gave his first interview about the scandal, the result of a video shot by a neighbor on January 31 in Nashville and obtained by TMZ ... showing Wallen casually dropping the slur while making fun of one of his friends.

Morgan tells Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America" ... he wasn't using the racial epithet in a derogatory manner, because he insists up until that point in his life he had never thought about it being wrong.

He repeats he was simply ignorant about what it meant, but says he knows now ... after conversations with Black leaders.

Wallen admits he can't fully understand why it makes Black people so upset because he's not in their shoes ... but says he's done a lot of thinking and soul-searching about it, along with a 30-day stint in rehab.

Morgan may have stirred up one more controversy before he was done answering questions, too. He told Strahan "it would seem" that country music has a race problem ... but he hasn't thought about it too much.

As we've reported ... the country singer has mostly remained out of the public eye since the video came out, but has gotten back to performing a little in recent weeks.

No, Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner did NOT apply for unemployment benefits ... but some goon in Michigan managed to defraud the state out of thousands of dollars using the famous names.

So, check this out ... someone filed a couple of unemployment claims back in May 2020 under "Kimberly Kardashian" and "Kylie Jenner" with an address in Traverse City ... four hours northwest of Detroit.

Thing is ... nobody checked if the claims were legit before paying "Kimberly" and "Kylie" some 8 weeks of backdated unemployment pay ... to the tune of more than $7,000 each.

The payouts, BTW, hit the bank accounts just days before the state's fraud management software flagged the claims because the agency needed additional ID verification. But by then it was too little, too late.

Apparently, the unemployment agency's been rife with fraud. As the Detroit News first reported ... the agency approved thousands of claims at the height of the pandemic well knowing nearly 10% would be fraudulent claims.

So, why approve all the claims? Because if the agency had to sort through it all and ID fraudulent claims it would have held up thousands of legit claims.

And that's how this "Kardashian" and "Jenner" got paid ... not to mention some other goofball's fraudulent claim ... which included copies of a fake ID with a photo of "The Office" star John Krasinski.

Michaela Coel is rumored to be in the new "Black Panther" sequel -- now being filmed after Chadwick Boseman's death -- and it's got fans wondering ... curtains for Letitia Wright???

Word of the casting just came down Wednesday via Variety, which says the "I May Destroy You" star is definitely in it ... but that her role, for now, is unknown/unnamed and being kept under wraps. The studio itself isn't confirming either ... SOP for stories like this.

The report -- assuming it's true -- might not seem like much on its face ... but there's a lot of background here causing some eyebrows to be raised in suspicion. Fact is, Marvel's been slow to formally announce who the heck is actually going to be in the new movie, like for sure for sure -- which is weird, because the flick is literally filming in Atlanta right now.

The assumption is that a majority of the cast from Pt. 1 will return -- like Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, etc. -- but none of them, including Letitia (who had a major role the first time around) are sure things at this point ... and in light of this news, it's giving folks pause for LW's sake.

Here's the deal ... Letitia is the only member of the OG cast who's been embroiled in controversy lately -- and there's a ton of circumstantial evidence that seems to point to her having bad blood with Marvel and perhaps Disney at large.

Based on tweets she's liked in the recent past -- before scrubbing all her social media entirely not too long ago -- all signs point to her possibly not returning ... and that recasting her might be on the horizon, which is why the Michaela addition is fueling theories.

Pile on the fact she was accused of being an anti-vaxxer just this past December -- this after retweeting what many called conspiracy theory videos questioning the legitimacy of the jab -- it just adds even more reason to believe that Letitia may be done with the franchise.

That's a huge deal, and a potential huge blow (for Letitia) if it turns out Michaela is, in fact, going to play an older version of Shuri (T'Challa's sister in 'BP'). The reason ... Shuri actually becomes the new Black Panther after T'Challa passes on the torch in the comic book series.

While the plot details of the "Black Panther" sequel have yet to surface -- ya gotta imagine they're going to go that route since their lead man isn't around to do it anymore.

Sam Asghari appreciates the congrats for his "engagement" to Britney Spears, but notes it's a tad late, 'cause they've been man and wife for a minute now ... insert tongue in cheek here, please.

Britney's BF was getting showered Wednesday with well-wishes from a pap outside a Jeep dealership in Westlake, CA. The photog was under the impression the couple would be walking down the aisle soon -- all 'cause of some pics that surfaced over the weekend.

ICYMI ... Britney was photographed flashing a big rock on THAT finger Sunday while picking up some java at a Starbucks -- which so very OBVIOUSLY means Sam popped the question, especially in light of Brit making it clear recently that this is exactly what she wants.

Well, that's certainly what this photog thought when he caught Sam on the way out -- but rather than correct him ... SA played it gracefully, busting out his acting chops and going along with the gag pretty convincingly. He even dropped (alternative) facts that the pap -- and the rest of us, for that matter -- are learning for the first time. #BREAKINGNEWS!!!

You gotta watch the clip to see what we mean -- long story short, Sam says the pap is about 5 years tardy on giving him props.

Before the #FreeBritney folk start celebrating too hard .. Sam's kidding, especially about the pair of mini-mes they brought into the world. 💀

Beary scary situation in Tokyo ... 'cause a wild bear has broken into the Olympic softball stadium -- and it's STILL ON THE LOOSE!!!

Officials in Fukushima are furiously searching for the wild animal with games underway ... after the Asian black bear was spotted twice inside the Azuma Sports Park earlier this week.

Security at the venue is reportedly trying like hell to find and capture the bear -- blaring music on the speakers and even letting off firecrackers in hopes of scaring it out of hiding ... but so far, no bear.

Of course, there are no fans in the stands at the games ... but ya gotta give props to the teams for being brave and still playing!

Fortunately, the bear didn't make an appearance as the opening round kicked off on Tuesday ... but here's hoping all the rest of the games don't get an unexpected visitor!

There are growing calls for a city councilman in Alabama to resign after he stood up in the middle of a meeting, and loudly asked, "Do we have a house n***er in here?"

John "Tommy" Bryant blurted out the racial slur in a Tarrant City Council meeting Monday night that was open to the public -- and he showed zero remorse afterward even as residents and city council members alike reacted with shock and disdain.

It all started when Mayor Wayman Newton, who is Black, brought up some of Bryant's wife's controversial social media posts. At one point you can hear a resident also chime in before Bryant finally stands up and, in a shockingly comfortable manner, drops the epithet.

You can hear gasps in the room after Bryant drops the n-word. Now, he claims he only repeated it because Newton allegedly used the word during a previous meeting.

Bryant doubled down and defended his actions ... telling CBS42 it's "ok for me to repeat it because as I said before, I wanted everybody to know what the mayor had said. He said it in a derogatory manner. I said it so that people would know what the mayor said."

Joe Pytka -- the director of Michael Jordan's original "Space Jam" -- is going off on LeBron James' reboot, calling it an uninteresting mess ... and that's about the nicest thing he has to say.

Pytka -- who's also known for directing popular music videos and commercials in the '80s and '90s, including the "I Am Tiger Woods" ad -- tells TMZ ... "Space Jam: A New Legacy" is so boring, he couldn't finish it in one sitting.

In fact, he says it took him 5 separate sessions to complete its 2-hour runtime.

The director has several issues with the reboot, starting with LBJ. Pytka points out when "Space Jam" was made in 1996, MJ wasn't just the best basketball player ... he was the biggest celebrity in the world.

Joe says LeBron's an incredible athlete and a very good actor, but adds ... "The truth is that LeBron ain't Michael." On top of that, Pytka says his film tied the plot to MJ's personal life -- retiring from hoops to play baseball -- while the new movie's missing a personal connection to LeBron.

Pytka's just getting started ... he feels the 1996 "Space Jam" featured a far superior supporting cast with Charles Barkley, Muggsy Bogues, Shawn Bradley and Bill Murray. In 'New Legacy' ... he says he can't even remember one thing Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard or the others did.

The director also thinks the reboot's soundtrack is "insignificant" while the OG's is classic, but his biggest beef is what happened to Bugs Bunny. No spoilers here, but Joe sees Bugs' role in 'New Legacy' as "heartbreaking."

Pytka says this new BB has no connection to previous depictions -- something they paid close attention to with the OG "Space Jam." In short, he says the new version "looked like one of those fluffy dolls you buy at an airport gift shop to bring your kid when your business trip has taken too long."

Take all this with a grain of salt, because Joe acknowledges his "Space Jam" was mostly panned by critics -- just like this reboot -- but it still became a cult classic.

Sports fans are still demonstrating very bad behavior while attending games, but one Yankees fan really paid the price for his shenanigans ... by getting completely owned by a security guard after running on the field.

The chaos went down during the top of the 6th inning against the Phillies Tuesday night, when the fan made his way onto Yankee Stadium field and started racing across the outfield.

He made it to center field before a stadium security guard took him down with an impressive tackle ... then kept slamming him to the ground as he tried to escape.

The security guard's apparent wrestling skills were enough to contain the fan -- who NYPD has ID'd as 25-year-old Leonardo Lertora-Leiva -- until about half a dozen other security workers showed up to help escort the guy off the field ... to the delight of the crowd.

NYPD tells TMZ ... Lertora-Leiva was arrested for running onto the field of an active MLB sports event and disrupting it. He was booked for 3 misdemeanors, including criminal trespass.

As we reported, another Yankees fan was just banned for life from attending MLB games in the Bronx -- or anywhere else for that matter -- after he threw a ball onto the field Saturday night during a game against Boston, and hit Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is tearing Jeff Bezos a new one after he thanked Amazon employees and customers for footing the bill for his trip to space.

We got the Congresswoman Tuesday on Capitol Hill, and asked what she made of the richest man in the world giving major props to workers and online consumers for literally paying for his roughly 10-minute rocket voyage this morning.

ICYMI ... it was an awkward moment, and one Jeff didn't seem to realize came off as tone-deaf. There wasn't much context to his comment, but AOC thinks she has a good idea of what he meant -- as she says that's right up Amazon's alley (AKA, free rides on the backs of others).

You gotta watch her go off here ... it's beyond scathing, this is downright brutal -- calling Bezos out for allegedly overworking employees, busting unions and, of course, avoiding paying taxes via loopholes in the law.

We asked her if there was a silver lining in the fact that Bezos made a $100 million donation to Van Jones and organizations/causes he sees fit -- but it sounds like she thinks it's mostly an empty gesture.

Norway's women's beach handball players gave a big middle finger to their sport's uniform double standards over the weekend ... ditching their required bikini bottoms for shorts during a game -- and the stunt resulted in a fine.

The team had reportedly been planning the protest for weeks ... hoping to put the spotlight on the differences in what the men and women are told to wear during competition -- men can wear much longer shorts, while women are forced to wear skimpy bottoms.

The players decided on Sunday's game to make their statement ... with the whole team rocking shorts during their bronze medal matchup with Spain at the European Beach Handball Championships in Bulgaria.

The European Handball Federation fined each player 150 euros -- a tad short of $177 -- for the uniform violation ... which the Norwegian Handball Federation has vowed to pay.

Norway officials claim they've been pleading with the higher-ups for YEARS to adjust the regulations ... but the EHF says any change has to come down from the International Handball Federation.

There's been plenty of controversy surrounding what women can and cannot wear during competition -- as we previously reported, Paralympic star Olivia Breen claimed an official called her sprint shorts "inappropriate" during an event over the weekend.

Paralympic star Olivia Breen is firing back at a female official for calling her sprint shorts "inappropriate" ... saying women should not have to feel self-conscious about what they wear during competition.

The 24-year-old 2-time world champion claims the comment came after the long jump events at the English Championships in Bedford on Sunday ... an interaction that left a bad taste in her mouth.

"I am always very grateful to the incredible volunteers who officiate at athletics events," Breen said on Twitter. "They do an amazing job and make it possible for us to compete."

"However, tonight I feel quite disappointed because just as I finished my long jump competition at the English Championships, one of the female officials felt it necessary to inform me that my sprint briefs were too short and inappropriate."

"I was left speechless."

Breen explained her shorts are made by Adidas and specifically designed for competition ... which she has worn for many years.

In fact, Breen -- who has cerebral palsy -- says she intends to wear the same shorts when competing for Britain at the Tokyo Paralympics in August.

"It made me question whether a male competitor would be similarly criticized," she added. "I hope no other female athletes had similar issues."

Breen notes she's all on board with having rules and regulations for what people wear during events, but says "women should not be made to feel self-conscious about what they are wearing when competing but should feel comfortable and at ease."

Breen told CNN that England Athletics has been supportive and in communication with her following the incident ... and she plans to file a complaint.

Just when you thought things couldn't get much worse for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics, Keigo Oyamada -- one of the composers for the opening ceremony -- has pulled out ... following claims he bullied a disabled classmate.

Even worse -- he made the claims himself ... in interviews back in the 1990s.

It's truly disturbing, but Oyamada -- now 52 years old -- once bragged to local news media that he forced a disabled boy to masturbate in front of others and eat his own feces.

The interviews were conducted when he was not yet famous, but they resurfaced recently when it was announced he would be involved in the opening ceremony.

Oyamada -- who writes under the name "Cornelius" and is popular in Japan for creating the Shibuya-kei beat -- has apologized for his "very immature" behavior ... and is backing out of the gig.

As you know ... the Summer Games have faced many challenges -- mostly related to the COVID-19 pandemic -- including star athletes being forced to miss them for one reason or another, ongoing protests, and even scrutiny about its beds.

A New York Yankees fan who drilled Red Sox star Alex Verdugo in the back with a baseball this weekend is now banned from attending MLB games FOREVER.

Yanks and MLB officials confirmed the decision Sunday ... after the fan hurled a ball at Verdugo from his seat in left field during the Boston vs. NY game Saturday night.

The scene was wild ... Verdugo tossed a baseball into the crowd to give a souvenir to a young fan, but seconds later, a man in a Yankees shirt heaved it back at him while he wasn't looking.

The ball plunked the Sox outfielder ... and he was FURIOUS over it, pointing up at the fan and yelling with rage.

Ultimately, the fan was booted from the game ... and then hit with a perma-ban from ALL MLB ballparks by officials less than 24 hours later.

"While the Yankees appreciate the spirit and passion of our fans in our various rivalries -- especially with the Red Sox -- reckless, disorderly and dangerous behavior that puts the safety of players, field staff or fellow fans in jeopardy will not be tolerated," Yankees officials said in a statement.

"There is absolutely no place for it at Yankee Stadium. The safety of everyone at Yankee Stadium, including guests in the stands and players on the field, will always be the top priority for the Yankees organization every time we open our doors."

Both the Red Sox and Yankees managers, Alex Cora and Aaron Boone, denounced the fan's actions ... with Boone calling it all, "awful, embarrassing" and "unacceptable."

The fan was somehow not arrested, NJ.com reported over the weekend ... though it's unclear if criminal charges are being pursued.

Sheree Whitfield's in talks to rejoin the cast of "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" after a few seasons away, but only if she's guaranteed lotsa screen time ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to production tell us she's been communicating with 'RHOA' producers over the past several weeks about coming back, but reports that she's 100 percent confirmed to return are inaccurate.

We're told it's looking good, but she only wants to be part of Season 14 if she's cast as a regular housewife again ... and won't sign on the dotted line unless producers are on board with that.

You might recall, Sheree was a full-time housewife during seasons 1 through 4, but returned in season 8 as a "friend of the show." She regained full-time status for seasons 9 and 10 before leaving once again.

As we first told you ... Sheree got back together with her old BF, Tyrone Gilliams, earlier this year after he was released from prison. Our sources say her relationship with him will be a major storyline if Sheree returns, and that she wouldn't have even considered coming back if he was cut out of the picture.

Tyrone was sentenced to 10 years in 2013 for wire fraud, but got sprung early due to COVID. He's still on home confinement in Philadelphia, so he'd only be featured when Sheree's visiting.