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Dave Chappelle's all about making things right, which is why he hand-delivered tickets to a couple who fell victim to a Craigslist scam ... so they could make his Valentine's Day show after all.

The comedian surprised his swindled fans in Charlotte Thursday by showing up at the restaurant they were at and delivering tix to see him perform at the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center that night.

Their story caught Dave's attention after it was reported Wednesday that the woman, Deidra Dickens, thought she had purchased tickets to his V-Day show for her and her husband -- a huge Chappelle fan -- but got scammed.

Dickens claims she paid $500 for 4 tickets to a seller on Craiglist, but after she sent the money ... that person went silent and she never got them.

What they got ended up being way better, though ... because Dave delivered in person. He also chatted and snapped some pics with the couple, but made sure to tell them to get their tickets from reliable sources from now on.

Did you know Ben Affleck made Warner Bros. stitch the No. 12 into his Batman costume during his entire run as the superhero as an ode to Tom Brady?!?

Neither did we ... 'cause it ain't true -- but Affleck joked it was Thursday on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' ... and the TB12 shout-out was hilarious!!!

Ben spoke with Kimmel on the late-night talk show and officially retired forever from playing The Dark Knight ... and to commemorate the moment -- Jimmy said they'd hang his costume in the rafters.

Guillermo -- Jimmy's ultra funny companion on the show -- brought out the bat costume (in his own Robin outfit) ... when suddenly, it was revealed the cape had "Batfleck 12" inscribed on it!!!

Ben said the number was a shout-out to none other than football's G.O.A.T., saying, "That’s Brady’s number. You can’t be a hero unless you wear number 12.”

Affleck added -- jokingly -- Warner Bros. "actually paid $80 million to digitally remove it from every movie.”

It was a funny moment ... but, it was hardly the best part of the skit -- that involved a Matt Damon thong and Affleck's nose.

Yeah, watch the clip.

Geez, Miranda Lambert dumps ONE salad on a woman, and Nashville cops get flooded with frantic 911 calls ... and the recordings are damn entertaining.

The first call came from a staffer at Stoney River steakhouse, where saladgate went down. TMZ broke the story ... Miranda was out to dinner with her mom and a male friend and got into a heated argument with another table of patrons.

As the restaurant staffer put it to the 911 operator, "I have 2 guests about to get into a fistfight. Miranda Lambert got into it with another couple."

She goes on to describe the yelling and cussing and then dropped a dime on the country star, saying ... "Miranda's trying to hit people and she's flipping over on 'em!"

As we told you ... the showdown climaxed with Miranda dumping her salad in the lap of a woman at the other table.

Later, the restaurant's manager placed his own 911 call, begging cops to send help because the fight had totally disrupted his dining room.

Russian president Vladimir Putin hit the Judo mats in Russia on Thursday to train for more than an HOUR -- and if you took one look at his training partner, it's obvious why.

Russian officials told media 66-year-old Putin trained with 2016 Olympic bronze medal winner Natalia Kuzyutina during a session in Sochi. They trained for an hour and officials insist Vladdy's "in very good physical shape."

By the way, Kuzyutina is a total babe -- besides being a world-class athlete, she also does some bikini modeling ... and yeah, DAMN.

The very next day, Putin continued his public display of fitness -- strapping on his skates and hitting the ice for a hockey workout at Shayna Arena in Sochi. No Kuzyutina this time.

Of course, Putin wore the captain's jersey -- and probably scored about 73 goals ... per usual.

Putin's public display of fitness comes just hours after Trump's doctor released the results of his physical to the media showing POTUS is officially clinically obese (he's 6'3", 243 pounds).

So, the whole thing could be an "I'm in better shape than YOU" message to the commander-in-chief.

As for Trump, he's not exactly a slouch -- dude has good blood pressure (118/80) and his resting heart rate is healthy too (70 beats per minute).

He also loves to golf!

So, we gotta ask ...

DJ Khaled hosted a summer cruise music festival a couple years ago -- and now he's back with another one that'll feature Cardi B and Post Malone ... TMZ has learned.

Production sources tell us, DJK has teamed up with Cardi and Post to headline the summer cruise, which goes from Miami to the Bahamas and back again. The ship heads out on June 28, and returns on July 1 ... plenty of time for onboard debauchery.

Khaled teased the announcement on social media, which he'll officially make Friday afternoon.

Just a reminder ... Khaled hosted this same cruise fest back in 2017 with Future, Lil Wayne and A$AP Rocky -- calling it Summerfest Cruise at the time. They passed on back-to-back years, but apparently ... the demand is there to run it again in 2019.

No word on ticket prices, but if a 4-day voyage at sea with Cardi and Post performing throughout sounds good ... the extra perks will win you over completely.

In addition to the shows, guests will have opportunities for meet and greets with performers, parties with the stars and even a discussion panel. There's also your standard cruise entertainment -- comedy shows, pool parties, casino games, nighttime events ... and a 24-hour buffet.

Floyd Mayweather will STILL not give up his Gucci -- in fact, he rocked one of his expensive Gucci jackets on his jet Thursday night ... despite being trashed by stars like 50 Cent and T.I.

The attacks on Mayweather have been brutal -- besides 50 leading a social media smear campaign, T.I. also recorded an anti-Mayweather track called "F*ck N*gga."

Both stars are furious Mayweather won't join the Gucci boycott after the apparel giant released a sweater many are calling "racist" because it appears to be blackface.

Floyd shot down the boycott earlier this week and dropped a TON of cash at the Bev Hills Gucci store -- which really pissed off T.I. and 50.

This new footage showing Mayweather rocking Gucci on his plane ain't gonna make things any better between the two sides. Guessing he'll continue to rock the brand during his stint in North Carolina.

François-Henri Pinault -- the guy who runs Gucci's parent company Kering -- tried to explain to reporters how the sweater actually made it to market.

"We didn’t understand the sensitivities of the African-American community, which is reflected in that mistake," Pinault told the media ... "We can’t be content with saying we’re sorry."

Pinault also says he will also push for more cultural sensitivity training with Gucci employees.

Meanwhile, 50 dropped a new Mayweather attack on Instagram early Friday morning. This thing ain't going away any time soon ...

21 Savage is not shooting down the buzz that he was targeted and arrested by ICE because of his music, some of which was critical of U.S. immigration policies.

21 appeared Friday on 'GMA,' and he describes in some detail how he was just driving down a street on Super Bowl Sunday when he saw guns and blue lights, and the next thing he knew he was being hauled off to a federal detention center.

21's lawyers have suggested it's no coincidence the rapper was picked up by ICE just days after he sang "A Lot" on national TV. The song criticizes immigration policies, especially with regard to children.

As we reported, his case curiously was sent up the flagpole last week to the Washington D.C. headquarters of ICE, and the honchos there decided he should be held without bond, despite the fact he was absolutely eligible for release.

Lolo Jones is unloading on Ryan Lochte -- fellow Team USA Olympian and 'Big Brother' housemate -- blasting him as an Olympic disgrace ... for no real apparent reason.

Lolo just wrapped up her stint on "Celebrity Big Brother" -- where she and Lochte seemed to get along for the most part. Lolo finished in 3rd place. Lochte was 10th.

But, when a couple of people on Twitter criticized her being a "sore loser" while praising Lochte, Jones fired back by ripping the swimmer and his arrest scandal in Brazil during the 2016 Games.

Here's how the exchange went.

Fan #1: "Who would’ve thought that Ryan Lochte would finish #CBB looking like the most mature and gracious Olympian on the show? I used to like Lolo as an athlete, but now I can’t stand #locoLolo"

Fan #2: "Maybe the difference is Ryan actually wins medals at the olympics while LoLo loses at the games. She needs anger management and to stop being a sore loser."

Lolo: "I also don’t get escorted out of the Olympic games either or lie about a whole country."

Boom.

Question is ... why? After Lochte was eliminated early in the show, she griped to other houseguests that Olympians should stick together. So, why turn on Lochte now?

You gotta admire Ja Rule's gusto because, despite the massive fiasco that was Fyre Festival, he's not giving up on the dream of making it happen ... for real this time.

We got the rapper Thursday at LAX and he says he still hasn't watched either of the popular documentaries on Fyre. As you know, it ended with Ja's Fyre biz partner, Billy McFarland, going to prison, and landing on the wrong end of a $2.8 million suit.

He says he's not laughing off the ordeal, because he lived through it and it was heartbreaking -- but it sounds like he's got a huge redemption story in mind.

Check out the clip ... Ja tells us he's back at it with a Fyre-like app, and has plans for a festival that will actually turn out to be as "iconic" as advertised. We smell another documentary -- maybe with a happy ending this time.

Speaking of which, if Ja's smart he'll get Andy King on the team again!

Floyd Mayweather says the exhibition fight business will be VERY good to him in 2019 -- with 4 or 5 bouts lined up this year, which will pay him around $80 MILLION!!!

Remember, Floyd says he got $9 mil for tuning up Tenshin Nasukawa during a New Year's Eve exhibition match in Japan ... and he's going BACK to Japan to fight again in July.

This time, Floyd says he's fighting a former Japanese boxer (he's not 100% sure who the guy is) -- but tells us he'll cash a $10 million check to go 3 rounds with his mystery opponent.

And, that's just the beginning ... Floyd says he's got more fights lined up too.

So, why not book another full 12-round pro fight with a real contender? Floyd says he can make real money doing the exhibition fights with much less risk to his health.

"It's all about being smart. My faculties are very important."

Kenny G's living proof any man can whip up an unforgettable Valentine's Day gift for his spouse in the 11th hour, as long as he knows incredibly famous people ... and has incredible luck.

The legendary saxophonist tells TMZ, his V-Day treat for Kim Kardashian West wasn't something Kanye spent months planning out. Instead, he says it all came together the night before.

That's right, Kenny says he got emails from friends of Kanye around 11 PM Wednesday, informing him Ye wanted him to perform for Kim. Fortunately for Kanye, Kenny was in town, happens to live nearby and most importantly ... was stoked to do it.

Granted ... Kanye still had to set up the incredible assortment of flowers.

Mr. G also runs down the songs he picked for the private show and says he was just flattered to be a part of their intimate moment. Sounds like he and Kanye became fast friends, too ... and there could even be a collab coming.

Kenny played it cool when we asked if he got an appearance fee -- but, then he gave us a free show. Soooo ... enjoy!!!

George Lopez is ripping Sen. Ted Cruz to shreds over his idea to use money seized from El Chapo to fund President Trump's border wall.

We got the comedian Thursday at LAX, and asked him about Cruz's suggestion that the billions seized from El Chapo's drug cartel should be used to secure the southern border. Needless to say, George has very strong feelings about the wall, Ted and ... the senator's head and ass!!!

El Chapo was found guilty on 10 federal drug charges Tuesday, and the Mexican drug kingpin is now facing life in prison. Prosecutors are seeking $14 BILLION in drug profits and assets from El Chapo's Sinaloa Cartel.

3:30 PM PT -- Police raided the home of the 2 men who cops picked up at the O'Hare Airport Wednesday night ... this according to WBBM TV reporter Charlie De Mar, who says he spoke to the family of the 2 men. Both men are Nigerian and were extras on "Empire." Based on what the cops have already said, it appears these are the same men who were captured on the surveillance video.

According to the report, police seized 5 bottles of bleach, a red hat, 2 laptops and other items.

The family said the 2 men left for Nigeria the day of the alleged attack. This is consistent with what law enforcement sources previously told TMZ ... that the men left for Nigeria and returned Wednesday night, and the police tracked their travels and were waiting for them when they landed in Chicago.

By the way ... when we broke the story about the various details of the alleged attack, our Jussie sources said the actor identified the 2 men as white. We do not know the skin color of the 2 men from Nigeria.

Important to note ... the red hat may be a red herring, because Jussie never said the men were wearing MAGA hats ... rather, he says they screamed "MAGA country."

2:50 PM PT -- Chicago PD has confirmed ... the 2 men taken in for questioning are the same men in the surveillance video screen grab. The PD confirms transportation records, along with interviews with Jussie and other witnesses, led to the ID of the 2 men.

Jussie Smollett is being questioned again by Chicago PD ... and officers are also talking to another man, an actor who has also appeared on "Empire" ... TMZ has learned.

Sources connected to the case tell us the actor, not Jussie, was picked up by Chicago PD Wednesday night right after he flew into O'Hare Airport. We're told Jussie was brought in Thursday morning for additional questioning. Another man who was with the actor at O'Hare was also taken in for questioning.

The two individuals are being questioned as "persons of interest." Police won't say if they are the same 2 people seen in the grainy image released last month. But, law enforcement sources tell TMZ, they believe the 2 people were at the scene of the alleged attack.

As for how cops ID'd the 2 people they're questioning -- we're told they used rideshare and/or taxicab records to track their locations the night of the alleged incident.

Jussie is on record saying he believes the 2 men in the grainy image are the ones who attacked him.

Story developing ...

Strongman and actor Hafthor Bjornsson -- aka "The Mountain" from 'Game of Thrones' -- picked up a barbell weighing 1,042 FREAKIN' POUNDS ... and it's straight-up ridiculous!!

Thor -- who's 6'9" and 400-ish lbs. -- is a legendary strongman. He won the World's Strongest Man, Europe's Strongest Man and Arnold Strongman Classic ... all in 2018.

So, he's literally the strongest person in the world (4x WSM winner Brian Shaw and '17 WSM champ Eddie Hall might disagree).

The lift went down earlier this week at Bjornsson's gym in his home country of Iceland ... and according to Thor, it's the heaviest deadlift ever done in a gym.

BTW, Thor ain't the only guy in the room with superhuman strength ... the ripped shirtless dude is YouTube star/powerlifter/bodybuilder/strongman Larry Wheels -- who was throwin' around 220 lb. dumbbells earlier this week.

Just watching this will make you stronger.