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Lindsay Lohan's art of the book deal consists of agreeing to write it, getting a huge sum of money and then failing to turn in a draft ... at least according to a new suit.

Publishing company HarperCollins is going after Lohan, claiming she breached a contract she signed way back in March 2014 to write a book. According to the legal docs -- obtained by TMZ -- Lohan and her production company promised she'd have it completed by May 2015 ... but it never happened.

Instead, HarperCollins claims it revised the due date to March 2017, and even paid her a $365,000 advance against future royalties.

However, HarperCollins claims the deadlines came and went, and Lindsay never delivered a manuscript. So, the publisher says it informed her in Sept. 2018 the book deal was off, and it wanted its money back. There's a lawsuit, so you guessed it ... HC says LiLo never refunded the cash.

Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson just came through in the clutch for each other's cities ... by donating meals to frontline workers in KC and Houston before facing off in the NFL season opener.

The Chiefs and Texans are set to kick-off the 2020 campaign Thursday night ... and the 2 quarterbacks decided to help their opposing team's city by sending some local grub to those battling the pandemic.

The reigning Super Bowl MVP decided to send some grub from Cool Runnings Jamaican Grill -- a Black-owned restaurant in Houston -- to workers at Harris Health System via Postmates.

Watson returned the favor by hooking up workers at the Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City with meals from Niecie's Restaurant, a local Black-owned soul food joint.

Let's not forget -- the last time these guys faced off on the field, the Texans blew a 24-0 lead in the divisional round of the playoffs as the Chiefs went on to win, 51-31 ... eventually winning the Super Bowl.

President Trump's threat to defund schools implementing the "1619 Project" in history classes is just another divisive election tactic, but he's fighting a losing battle ... so says the creator of the progressive U.S. history initiative.

Nikole Hannah-Jones is the investigative journalist directing '1619,' and she's pushing back on the President's opposition of the project by suggesting he has racial motives ... and not the best interest of the U.S. in mind, as he has claimed.

Nikole joined "TMZ Live" to clarify what the project is all about, and quell the notion being stirred by Trump and others that it's a mission to change history and make people hate America.

Instead, she says its goal is to help Americans learn from their true history -- starting with the year African slaves were first brought to U.S. soil. Nikole says learning the truth about something rarely taught in traditional history classes will provide the perspective Americans need to strive toward the ideals upon which the country was founded.

Just as importantly, she says it will help Americans better understand why millions are marching and protesting today for social justice.

Nikole also points out that despite Trump's threats, he's powerless to direct what is taught in schools ... and can't pull funding as he's threatened to do in California.

"The truth is, the '1619 Project' is already being put into practice in many schools across the country, teaching students about the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans to the nation's history."

Jussie Smollett still insists the alleged assault he suffered in January 2019 is not a hoax, but now says there's evidence to back it up ... and suggests there are forces working against him to keep the truth hidden.

The former "Empire" star opened up about the infamous "hate crime" that went down in Chicago -- more than a year and a half ago -- in a rare interview, because he's over staying quiet about the case.

Jussie tells activist Marc Lamont Hill he doesn't believe the City of Chicago or law enforcement will ever stop going after him, and he believes they are trying to make an example out of him ... even though he claims he didn't do what he's accused of doing.

Smollett blasts police for focusing on winning the case instead of trying to solve it based on truth, and hints there may be a conspiracy against him because of that. As he puts it -- law enforcement is willing to throw people under the bus, get people to lie, and switch the narrative based on their agenda.

As for the lack of video evidence of Jussie being attacked ... he claims it's out there. He also says there are 2 witnesses who can corroborate his story of seeing 2 white men -- one of them carrying a rope -- before he was attacked.

Smollett says this evidence has been buried by a bunch of lies and misleading information, but there's more. Jussie claims there's a tape that shows the action leading up to his alleged assault, but it cuts off right before it happens.

He doesn't say outright who may have doctored the tape, but strongly implies the Chicago PD may have had a hand in it.

To sum it all up ... Smollett says he now realizes he was set up from the beginning to look like he was lying, and he thinks it has something to do with "the MAGA of it all."

It seems Jussie believes if his alleged attackers hadn't yelled something suggesting they were Trump supporters, things would be different ... but he concedes he doesn't know that for sure.

What he does know for sure is he's done trying to convince people ... and the truth will eventually come out.

We broke the story ... on Wednesday, the City of Chicago requested the FBI hand over its records about the Bureau's probe into the "hate crime" and what may have led up to it.

So Jussie's right ... this case isn't going away anytime soon.

Paris Hilton still loves her Boss Babe title but it seems as though she's eyeing a new role that may trump it all -- Boss Babe with a Baby ... as in MOM!!!

The OG influencer talked to our fearless reporter, Charlie, and revealed these days she's prioritizing family and relationships ahead of her business. When Paris is straight-up asked if she'd rather talk baby over billions ... Paris flashed her billion dollar smile and said yes.

Now, this isn't to say Paris is ready to get pregnant right now, but she certainly makes it seem like the conversation may be steering that way. In any event ... Paris makes it crystal clear she's focused on what really matters and is focused on the next phase of her life.

These are just some of the many topics she'll cover in her upcoming YouTube Originals documentary, "This is Paris" ... slated to be released Monday. The hotel heiress and entrepreneur also talked about how happy she is in her current relationship with businessman and family friend, Carter Reum.

Check out the video ... Paris -- who just released her 27th (!!!) fragrance -- also talked about regret when asked about her infamous sex tape. You'll recall her ex-BF, Rick Salomon, filmed a sex tape with her in 2001 and released it 3 years later and just before Paris' TV series, "The Simple Life," aired.

Paris says the video still brings an incredibly sour taste when she thinks about it ... adding she wishes she had never met Salomon, whom she ultimately sued for releasing the tape.

In any event ... sure seems Paris has put all of that behind her and has grown for the better. It helps that she looks like a billion bucks.

A bunch of 'Big Brother' houseguests don't like being under the same roof as Ian Terry ... simply because he's autistic.

Ian's been pretty outspoken this season about being on the autism spectrum, but now his fellow houseguests, Christmas Abbott, Dani Briones, Nicole Franzel and Memphis Garrett, were caught on the live feeds yukking it up about Ian. They openly, and cruelly, mocked his self-soothing technique -- rocking back and forth during conversations --- and said it turns them off.

Dani was caught on the live feeds saying she can't even look at Ian sometimes because his constant movement stresses her out ... and Nicole agrees.

Christmas and Memphis join in the bullying and make things worse ... Memphis describes Ian as the "red rum" of the house, a reference to "The Shining."

The group shares a big ole laugh when Memphis claims he might have nightmares of Ian standing over his bed, rocking back and forth.

Unfortunately, this kind of bullying has become par for the course on 'Big Brother' -- which has dealt with multiple racist and misogynist issues over the years.

Folks online and BB alum aren't letting these houseguests off the hook, though ... calling them out for their "Mean Girls" like mocking of Ian.

No one in Beirut is taking a chance this time -- a massive fire is burning again in the city's port, immediately triggering large-scale evacuations ... coming just 5 weeks after that deadly explosion rocked the city.

The Lebanese army reportedly ordered the area evacuated Thursday and major roads leading to the port have been shut down after a huge fire engulfed what officials believe to be a tire warehouse. Although authorities said this blaze would NOT trigger another explosion, people aren't buying it, and video shows hundreds running like hell to get out of the area.

A reporter tweeted a video showing thick, black smoke filling the air and said, "Some of these buildings still don't have windows after the #BeirutBlast a month ago and now they are being engulfed by (likely poisonous) black smoke."

Just over a month ago, in this very same area of the port, 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate had been sitting unsecured for 6 years in a warehouse and exploded. The blast obliterated Beirut and killed more than 190 people and injured nearly 7,000 others.

Chuck Norris is going after a company that's using his iconic action star status and masculine reputation to sell boner pills ... according to a new lawsuit.

The "Walker, Texas Ranger" star's suing a company he believes goes by a couple different names -- Bio-Molecular Solutions and Biogenetics -- claiming it's using his famous name and face to promote a product called Provitra ... which is like Viagra.

Norris claims his wife, Gena -- who's also suing the company -- discovered the scam in June, when she saw an online ad with a provocative headline, "A Tragic End Today for Chuck Norris."

According to the docs ... once the ad is clicked, the reader is taken to another site that looks very similar to a Fox News article with the headline, "Big Pharma In Outrage Over Norris' New ED Product...Chuck Kicks Back With This!"

Norris claims the phony article -- which features a photo of him and his wife -- includes completely false assertions throughout, including that he "revealed his new Erectile Dysfunction cure on the Dr. Phil Show."

Finally, the phony article includes a call to action to receive a free bottle of the ED pills, and all the hyperlinks take the reader to a third website -- a point-of-sale page for Provitra ... according to the lawsuit.

Norris says neither he nor Gena have ever authorized the company -- or any others in the boner biz -- to use their names, photos or likenesses and are not receiving any compensation for the ads.

He also says this isn't the first time they've had to do battle over scam ads. According to the suit, they tried to stop a similar illegal scam in 2019 and were successful for awhile ... but it recently came raging back.

Joe Exotic's team has great timing -- or awful, depending on your perspective -- as they're handing his pardon request to President Trump on a day when there's A LOT going on in the Oval Office.

The Tiger Team leader, Eric Love, flew into D.C. Wednesday night with Joe's lawyers, packing a 257-page document he calls 4 months worth of hard work ... and he tells us it fully proves Joe's innocent.

As Eric says, this is the team's second major attempt to grab the President's attention ... but this time around they have more than a huge bus to persuade him to pardon Joe, and are even more optimistic about their pitch.

We asked him if going to the White House as the President's embroiled in controversy over his recorded convos with Bob Woodward was a good idea.  Eric thinks this timing could work in Joe's favor, and Trump's too.

As we first told you, Joe's 257-page case argues various reasons why he should be pardoned from his 22-year murder-for-hire sentence ... including a claim that he was sexually assaulted behind bars.

Love apparently has an in at the White House to deliver the goods, and he tells us Joe is so focused on the mission, he's even moved past hating on his rival Carole Baskin ... and wishes her well on "Dancing with the Stars."

Dame Diana Rigg -- the legendary actress with epic roles in "Game of Thrones" and the UK's 'Avengers' TV series -- has died.

The British actress rose to prominence in the 1961 TV series, "The Avengers," and became a worldwide phenomenon as a Bond girl in the 1969 Bond film, "On Her Majesty's Secret Service."

For the younger generation ... Dame Diana, of course, earned critical acclaim for her role as Lady Olenna Tyrell in the HBO hit show, "Game of Thrones." Sad to say ... she admitted in 2019 she never watched the show, but that's neither here nor there. Rigg earned an Emmy nomination for her role in 2018.

BTW ... her Bond role was pretty historic. She played Tracey Bond ... James Bond's wife. She was the only Bond girl to ever get him to the altar, never mind the character was killed shortly after the wedding.

In "The Avengers," she played the incredibly desirable Emma Peel and earned an Emmy nomination in 1967 and 1968.

Rigg, who grew up in India after her father accepted a job there, trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and made her acting debut in "The Caucasian Chalk Circle" at the 1957 York Festival. She'd later join the Royal Shakespeare Company and earned several roles but perhaps none more important than as Cordelia in the touring production of "King Lear."

Dame Diana was a highly-respected stage actress ... earning a Tony Award nomination for her role in "Abelard and Heloise." She'd later join the National Theatre Company ... earning a second Tony nomination for her role as Celimene in "The Misanthrope."

She finally won a Tony Award in 1994 for Best Actress for her role in "Medea." That same year, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her work in drama at the 1994 Birthday Honours.

Rigg had already been made a Commander of the order of the British Empire at the 1988 New Year Honours.

Hundreds flocked to the state capitol building in Connecticut on Wednesday seriously pissed off over the cancelation of H.S. football ... and the scene was WILD!!

Just days after the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference announced it was unsafe to play football amid the coronavirus pandemic this fall ... nearly 1,000 players, coaches and parents overran the government building to try to get the ruling reversed.

Check out video from the protest ... it's pretty intense -- with everyone screaming "Let us play!" in unison while holding signs, flags and even football helmets.

Some of the players that were interviewed on the scene voiced their displeasure with not being able to play this season ... with one telling WFSB, "I'm really mad about it."

Seems Gov. Ned Lamont is willing to at least listen to arguments for an overturning of the decision ... he said after the protest he's organizing a meeting with local officials to hear both sides.

That summit will take place on Friday, Lamont said ... before he added, "I want to see football being played and I also want to see it being played safely."

"Big Brother" fans are trying to rig the game by yelling over the show's studio wall to help certain houseguests with outside info ... and now CBS is beefing up security.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... several fans have been posting up the last several weeks a stone's throw away from the 'Big Brother' house, using bullhorns to send messages to try and help certain houseguests advance.

Our sources say the fans watch the show and scour the live feeds, so they're aware of cast members' game plans ... and the whole thing is becoming very disruptive.

We're told CBS security and LAPD were initially tasked with keeping an eye out on the fans, but things weren't getting better so CBS recently brought in a private security firm to help.

Our sources say security got into a foot pursuit with a male fan who attempted to scale a studio fence, but the guy ended up getting away after jumping into a getaway car.

BTW ... we're told the folks trying to send messages to houseguests are mostly in their 40s, with no young fans in sight.

With season 22 still in production, our sources say the LAPD is also becoming more visible in the area and keeping a close eye on the area where the fans keep gathering.

We're told there was also a drone scare and a rumor floating around social media that someone was going to hurl a banner over the fence ... but so far the fans on bullhorns are the biggest nuisance.

'BB' has been down this road before ... we're told in past seasons fans resorted to throwing tennis balls inscribed with messages over the fence and onto the studio lot in hopes of reaching contestants.

Now, this is a story all about how Will Smith's life got flipped-turned upside down 30 years ago today ... and now "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" is going the fashion route to celebrate that momentous occasion.

All the chillin' out, maxin' and relaxin' all cool began for Will on September 10, 1990, when NBC aired the first episode of what would go on to become a quintessential '90s show.

To commemorate the premiere and the show's cultural impact ... a nostalgic 'Fresh Prince' clothing line -- featuring jackets, tees, sweatshirts, sweatpants, sock, hats, masks and bags -- just launched. It's inspired by Smith and his music partner, DJ Jazzy Jeff.

The "30th Anniversary" collection includes 30 items that either pay homage to Smith’s Philadelphia roots or his Bel-Air experience on the show ... like starring on the Bel-Air Academy basketball team.

Of course, the whole line is also dripping with '90s fashion trends.

The clothing launch comes amid a very exciting few weeks for 'Fresh Prince' fans, as the cast is reuniting to film an HBO Max special to air around Thanksgiving ... and a 2-season order was just picked up for a dramatized reboot of the classic sitcom.

Jazzy Jeff says... "This is really a celebration of a legacy and it’s incredible watching the series evolve into a fashion brand and influence an entirely new generation."

The limited-edition apparel is available now at the newly-launched Fresh Prince Store website.

Shaun Weiss -- famous for playing Goldberg in "The Mighty Ducks" -- is looking like a million bucks ... 'cause he's got brand new pearly whites and he's now over 200 days sober!!!

Shaun's friend, Drew Gallagher, tells TMZ ... Shaun received some full dental sponsorship offers from all over the country after we posted Shaun's story about being 170 days sober ... but needing new chompers.

We're told Shaun ultimately decided to go with Dr. Gabe Rosenthal in L.A., who offered a full dental sponsorship valued between $50k-$100k. We're told the entire process takes up to a year ... since he had to get a handful of teeth removed back in July. The teeth were infected ... causing him pain. Shaun got upper implants Tuesday and will get his lower implants in a few weeks, but the improvement has been drastic ... he just can't stop smiling.

As if that wasn't already great news ... Shaun's got more reason to smile since he's officially 265 days (and counting!!!) living a sober life. BTW, Drew had previously started a GoFundMe to help pay for the dental work and Shaun's rehab. Now that the teeth were fixed for free, the money raised will go a long way and help pay the rehab facility plus living expenses and towards getting him a car.

TMZ broke the story ... Shaun's sober living facility in Woodland Hills changed his life, and he's staying clean and attending outpatient meetings 5 days a week. At the time, he was looking much better and happier. But, since our July story, Shaun's looking a lot more like his former self ... and dude couldn't look happier.

Awesome!!!

Rumors of a looming discrimination lawsuit against Bravo has absolutely nothing to do with NeNe Leakes whatsoever ... TMZ has learned.

A source close to the reality star tells us ... NeNe is in no way ramping up to file suit or any type of legal action against Bravo at this time, nor is she "teaming up" with other women of color who might be considering such a move. Any notion to the contrary simply isn't true.

We're told NeNe is focused on herself and her own career right now -- specifically, fleshing out her newly announced show with E!, "Glamsquad Showdown," while also trying to work through negotiations with Bravo on potentially coming back for another season of 'RHOA.'

We're also told that NeNe is seeking a larger role in the NBCUniversal TV-sphere, and that those talks take a while. So no, she ain't biting the hand that feeds in the meantime.

As for why folks might've thought something was brewing with NeNe in the first place ... well, that might have to do with her own words and a whole lot of innuendo. NeNe herself has alluded to mistreatment during her tenure there, both explicitly and implicitly.

She recently hopped on her YouTube channel to air some grievances about how she felt some of the showrunners and execs were treating her differently than some of the other ladies come reunion time. Not only that, but she also fueled intrigue when she dropped some suggestive comments about the 'Vaderpump' racism scandal from a few months back.

On top of that, former 'RHOA costars of hers, like Eva Marcille, have also been throwing NeNe's name around when mentioning this supposed lawsuit that's coming down the pike.

She recently did just that while talking on Rickey Smiley's morning show ... and while she didn't exactly connect the dots, one could assume NeNe was in on the suit by the way she was talking.

Fact is, there is no connection ... period. Seems like NeNe still has plans with Bravo on the horizon that she very much wants to keep intact.

New police video obtained by TMZ Sports shows La'el Collins' car accident was more serious than initially believed ... the Cowboys star complained of neck pain while 2 vehicles sat mangled in a street nearby.

The NFL O-lineman was initially described as fine after he was involved in a wreck on Aug. 20 in Little Elm, Texas ... but you can see in the new footage, Collins was definitely aching.

As he and a responding police officer broke down how his 2015 Cadillac Escalade collided with a Volkswagen ... the 6'4", 320-pound Dallas player said his neck wasn't feeling well.

"Should I go to like a hospital or like a, what do you call it? An emergency room?" Collins asked the officer, before adding, "I mean, my neck -- my neck is hurting right here."

Of course, it ain't too difficult to see why Collins was in pain ... the damage on the two vehicles involved in the crash suggests a pretty violent collision took place.

Collins' driver's side quarter panel and front wheel were destroyed -- with one cop describing the rim on video as "broken" with a "complete crack" in it.

The other driver's car, meanwhile, had its whole front bumper ripped off.

According to the accident report, the other driver "failed to yield the right of way" after coming out of a stop sign and turned right into Collins' ride.

As for Collins' neck ... the Cowboys ultimately put him on injured reserve to start this season ... though they claim it's unrelated to the crash -- saying a hip problem he had been previously dealing with was the reason for the move.

Collins -- who will be out at least the first 3 weeks of the season while he's on IR -- is one of the Cowboys' best players and is considered a top-five right tackle in the league.