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Sarah Palin is totally wrong about what happened when Sacha Baron Cohen interviewed her -- at least according to Dr. Billy Wayne Ruddick ... the character Sacha was playing at the time.

Cohen just released a letter addressed to "Vice-President Palin" ... so, right off the bat y'know it's gonna be funny. Sacha, aka Dr. Ruddick, says he's the one who interviewed her, and adds ... "I was in the service -- not military, but United Parcel ... and I only fought for my country once -- when I shot a Mexican who came onto my property."

You'll recall, Palin blasted Cohen for pulling a prank on her that will, apparently, air on his new Showtime series, "Who Is America?" ... which premieres this weekend. She said she was especially incensed that he had posed as a disabled military vet.

Look, fact is Sarah inadvertently gave his show huge promotion, and now he's following through with this in-character rebuttal.

Countess Luann de Lesseps, one of the stars of "The Real Housewives of New York City," has another legal mess on her hands with a lawsuit from none other than her ex and their kids.

Luann's ex, Alexandre de Lesseps, and their 2 adult children -- Noel and Victoria -- are suing her claiming she didn't keep her end of the divorce deal signed back in 2009.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, they say Luann treated herself back in 2013 to a luxurious $3.1 mil pad in the ritzy town of Sag Harbor, NY, but never followed through with creating a trust giving the kids half of the house. That was part of the divorce deal.

Now, they say she's threatening to sell the house and use the cash to buy herself a new crib in upstate NY ... which would mean the kids never got their cut. They want the court to declare she's in breach of the divorce and move forward with an injunction blocking the house sale.

Will Smith just one-upped literally EVERYBODY who's been partaking in the Drake-inspired viral dance challenge taking the web by storm ... by nailing it on top of a bridge.

The 'Fresh Prince' posted a video Thursday of his own #InMyFeelingsChallenge -- also dubbed The Shiggy after comedian Shoker, who started the challenge -- based on the song of the same name from Drizzy's new "Scorpion" album. But instead of hitting the streets, Will danced on top of Budapest's Széchenyi Chain Bridge. Needless to say, it was epic.

Big Willie notes that what he's doing is probably illegal, but considering the wide shots he gets from what appears to be a drone camera ... we'd say the bridge-climbing was worth it.

LeSean McCoy called police on Delicia Cordon in July 2017 after an argument over jewelry -- with the NFL star claiming she refused to return several high-end items she had borrowed.

It's all in police reports obtained by TMZ Sports ... which show cops responded to at least 3 incidents at their Georgia home over the past year.

But the most interesting incident took place on July 3, 2017 -- when the NFL star called the Milton Police Dept. to the home after a "domestic dispute" with Cordon.

When cops arrived, they saw McCoy standing in front of a large mound of D's clothes -- and he explained that they had been having issues and had broken up after she accused him of cheating on her.

Then McCoy brought up the issue of jewelry. Here's the quote from the police incident report.

"He went on to advise us that jewelers often times loan them high end jewelry items to wear for events. He stated that Cordon had some of these jewelry items and had not returned them."

"He stated that he has asked her multiple times for them but she has not yet returned them."

According to the police report, McCoy expressed serious concern that Cordon might make false accusations about him.

"He stated that he was trying to be very careful about being around her given the climate of domestic abuse in his profession."

Cops eventually spoke to Cordon. At the time, neither party made any allegations of physical abuse.

The case could be relevant since Cordon claims the assailant who broke into her home and pistol whipped her on July 10, 2018 demanded specific items of jewelry. Cordon told police she believed McCoy was behind the attack.

Stormy Daniels can chalk this one up as a quickie -- the charges from her Columbus, Ohio strip club arrest have already been dropped.

Prosecutors say the "touching" statute only applies to strippers who "regularly appear" at the establishment. Stormy was merely a featured guest dancer, so she's in the clear.

As we reported ... Stormy was arrested Wednesday night after motorboating an undercover police officer while performing at Sirens. According to police docs, Stormy put both hands on Officer Mary Praither's butt and breasts, and then put her breasts in the officer's face.

A judge has already signed off on the dismissal of charges.

Stormy's lawyer, Michael Avenatti, said the incident reeked of a sting operation. TMZ broke the story ... sources connected with the club tell us the undercover officers waited in the back of the club for Stormy to take the stage, appearing as if they were gunning for her.

However, police say they were there investigating complaints of alleged prostitution and drug activity. They say two other strippers, who were also arrested, were the first offenders -- with one of them motorboating and groping Officer Praither.

They say Stormy's touchy-feely performance came later -- around 11:30 PM -- and she actually motorboated all 3 undercover cops, not just Praither. After Stormy's performance, she and the other 2 were arrested at the same time.

Charlamagne Tha God is furious over new reports suggesting he sexually assaulted a teenage girl more than 17 years ago, since he was already cleared in a court of law ... and now he's lawyered up.

"The Breakfast Club" star's 2001 case is back in the headlines -- with his accuser now claiming she wants "closure" nearly 2 decades after officials dropped the criminal sexual assault with a minor charge against Char.

For the record, officials had always maintained that Charlamagne cooperated with the investigation and took a DNA test ... which did not produce any evidence that he had sexual contact with the girl.

Charlamagne did, however, plead guilty to contributing to the delinquency of a minor due to underage kids (including the accuser) drinking alcohol at the party he threw. He was sentenced to probation.

Now, Charlamagne -- real name Lenard McKelvey -- believes someone is dredging up the old case and fudging the facts in an effort to smear his name.

He's lawyered up with famed celebrity bulldog attorney Marty Singer and Michael Weinsten who tells TMZ, "More than seventeen years ago, Charlamagne was accused of a sexual assault. He never had sexual relations or any physical contact with the accuser and even provided DNA to prove it."

"At the time of these claims, Charlamagne cooperated fully with authorities, and after the investigation, this charge against him was dropped."

"Charlamagne has spoken about this many times over the years in public, including in his book. While Charlamagne has empathy for all sexual assault victims, he cannot take responsibility for a crime he did not commit.”

The victim in the LeSean McCoy home invasion told police she believes her ex-boyfriend "set her up" ... suggesting the NFL star sent the gun-wielding masked man into her house.

The Alpharetta Police Dept. just released more info about the incident -- including the description of the suspect ... a black man wearing a mask and dressed in all black.

According to the report, the caller (Delicia Cordon), told police ... she "thinks her ex boyfriend poss set her up."

She also notes that a window was open in her son's room, "and a sheet is tied like some went out from the 2nd floor."

Cordon advised police that her neighbor has surveillance cameras.

As we previously reported, Cordon has lawyered up and is strongly insinuating McCoy had a role in the attack.

Cordon was hospitalized with injuries to her face and arm after she claims the assailant pistol whipped her and demanded jewelry she had previously received from LeSean.

So far, no arrests have been made.

George Lopez's pee prank on Donald Trump's Hollywood star isn't sitting well with a bunch of people who are begging LAPD to arrest GLo.

Law enforcement tells TMZ ... LAPD's received a slew of calls and emails -- more than 50 -- from citizens ticked about George's "sick, deplorable, offensive and disrespectful" act. They're not just Angelenos, either ... some complaints are coming from as far away as Virginia.

TMZ broke the story ... George unloaded on Trump's star with a water bottle held between his legs. One complaint accused George of indecent exposure, even though he never unzipped or unbuttoned his pants.

Another complaint said, "If this was any normal person they would be arrested for indecent exposure. [Does] the Hollywood elite think they're above the law and you guys took a oath to obtain the Law."

Pissed citizens aside, cops say it's just a prank and no crime was committed.

Anthony Bourdain and his hit show, 'Parts Unknown,' will be in the spotlight at the Emmy Awards, because he's up for 2 statuettes and the show got 7 nominations.

Bourdain got the nod for Outstanding Informational Series or Special as an executive producer. His show has swept that category for the last 4 years. He's also up for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program ... for his episode on Southern Italy.

Bourdain had been filming an episode of 'Parts Unknown' in France when he died of a suicide on June 8.

The show's other nominations are for Outstanding Short Form Nonfiction or Reality Series (for the show's website), Outstanding Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Sound Editing for a Nonfiction Program, and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program.

Justin Bieber is catching all the feels after his engagement to Hailey Baldwin, and the question now is -- which ones were on display during this phone call?

The Biebs was spotted outside his fiancee's Brooklyn apartment Tuesday -- shortly before they hopped in a chopper to visit her mom and dad, Stephen Baldwin. He's definitely having an emotional reaction to the phone convo, but hard to tell if he's laughing or crying.

Whatever the topic ... he does seem kinda stressed by it. We know papa Baldwin's already given his blessing, so we doubt Justin was anxious about going to hang with his in-laws-to-be.

Stormy Daniels is now in the crosshairs of Columbus, Ohio prosecutors ... and our sources say the cops were gunning for her.

A source connected with the club where Stormy performed tells TMZ, the undercover vice officers waited in the back of the club for Stormy to take the stage, and it looked clear to her they were gunning for Trump's nemesis.

That said, we have reviewed court records and found that cops have amped up enforcement of the law this year. The law -- which prohibits nude or semi-nude strippers from allowing patrons to touch them -- was passed in 2007. Up until 2017, there were a total of 21 arrests. In 2018, Stormy is the 23rd stripper to be arrested under the law, so it's clear cops are cracking down.

Two other strippers at the club were arrested along with Stormy.

Stormy Daniels was arrested Wednesday night over an incident at a strip club, and it sounds like she got nailed in an undercover operation.

Stormy was performing at Sirens ... a Columbus, Ohio strip club. She was arrested for allowing a patron to touch her in violation of Ohio law. According to the law, only family members can touch a nude or semi-nude dancer.

That patron was actually Columbus PD's Officer Mary Prather. According to police docs, Stormy put both hands on Officer Prather's butt and breasts ... and then put her breasts in the cop's face.

In other words ... Stormy was done in by motorboating.

She was booked and released early Thursday morning on a $6,000 bond.

Her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, concedes the patrons did indeed touch his client but he describes it as a "non-sexual way."

Avenatti went on ... "This was a complete setup ... it's absurd that law enforcement resources are being spent to conduct a sting operation." He went on to allege it was a politically motivated arrest.

George Clooney struggled to board his private jet, showing clear signs of injuries after his scary scooter crash.

George, Amal and their twins got outta Dodge 2 days after the crash. It's clear George is hurting, which is no surprise ... as we reported, he slammed into a car in Sardinia going 60 mph, crashing into the windshield and causing it to shatter ... then got hurled into the air before plummeting to the ground.

Frankly, it's kinda miraculous he's not still laid up in the hospital. He was there only a few hours before being released.

Imagine you're the server assigned to this table ... LeBron James, Al Pacino and Leonardo DiCaprio -- who gets to order first?!

That was the situation at Avra Beverly Hills on Wednesday night -- where the newest L.A. Lakers star broke bread with two of the most powerful men in Hollywood.

And, get this ... it seems Leonardo DiCaprio tried to run interference for Al and Bron -- because after the meal, Leo went out the front while the other two guys went out the back!

Of course, Leo is a massive Lakers fan who's been a regular at Staples Center over the years -- maybe Pacino is a fan of "Trainwreck"?

BTW -- LeBron's business partner, Maverick Carter, was also there (in the jean jacket) ... so yeah, this dinner was more business than pleasure.

No word on who paid (or expensed) the bill.

It's Bron's second big celebrity dinner since he's come to town -- he had sushi with Khloe Kardashian and Tristan Thompson earlier this week.

Cardi B clearly wanted to make a good first impression before meeting her first child ... hence her visit to a hair salon.

The "I Like It" rapper hit up Sula's Dominican Hair Salon in Atlanta on Monday ... just one day before giving birth to Kulture Kiari Cephus. Cardi made it clear on social media pregnancy was taking its toll, but she wasn't about to let it stop her from getting her hair did.

Gotta hand it to Cardi ... that's some dedication to her hair game, getting an 11th hour blowout before going into labor. We're guessing she'll have plenty of help caring for Kulture, so she can still hit the salon.

As we reported ... Cardi and Offset named their baby girl after two Migos albums and his real name -- Kiari Cephus.

Travis Scott busted a Kanye West ... taking the fam on a retreat before getting the creative juices flowing and starting work on his new album.

Sources close to the situation tell TMZ ... Travis, Kylie Jenner and their daughter, Stormi, recently took off to Honolulu where Travis' first order of business was getting some QT with his girls in a massive Airbnb rental. We're told the crib was loaded with Stormi's fave toys, as well as one big toy for Dad -- a recording studio.

The family spent a few days on a private beach before Travis moved on to the second order of biz. We're told barely an hour after Kylie and Stormi jetted back to L.A. ... Travis flew in Nav, Gunna and Cash.

Our sources say the whole crew is in grind mode in the home studio. Travis is keeping the private beach to himself though -- he put up the producers at a nearby hotel.