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One of the ritziest, most exclusive celeb joints in L.A. is secretly inviting people to an in-person New Year's Eve party, asking them to keep it on the low ... but to also spread the word.

The restaurant in question La Scala, and it's their Bev Hills location that's doing this "speakeasy" thing. They've apparently been slipping invites in to-go orders for a NYE dine-in event ... and they're being cutesy with it by slugging it as a '20s-era Prohibition blowout.

An invite of theirs was recently posted online, which reads ... "We are considering taking reservations for New Year's Eve Dinner. Inside. If this is something you'd be interested in, please let us know as soon as possible."

The message goes on ... "If enough interest we'll contact you back to secure your reservation. Please keep this discreet, but tell all your friends." So ... not a secret at all.

La Scala's plans are on the radar of Beverly Hills city officials -- who are issuing a harsh rebuke, but not much else at this point in the way of threats to shut this thing down.

The official rep for the City of Beverly Hills says, "We understand this is an incredibly difficult time for all of our businesses, however the County Order does currently prohibit indoor and outdoor dining, including in the City of Beverly Hills." Cool ... but is that it???

Time will tell if La Scala is able to move forward with their shindig -- you'd imagine cops would step in and try to stop it -- but at this point ... it could fall into a grey area, like so many of these lockdown measures we've seen defied this year, including around L.A.

BTW, La Scala is one of these legacy restaurants in Hollywood ... it's been around since forever, and some of the most famous faces in history have stopped by for a meal or two. People like Frank Sinatra, Cher, David Geffen, Khloe Kardashian, Lamar Odom, Barbara Walters and so many more have visited ... until recently, that is.

Now, this is creative ... a handful of Clubhouse users put on a live production of 'The Lion King' -- complete with a full cast and choir -- and THOUSANDS of people dropped in to listen live.

Organized by executive producer and director Noelle Chesnut Whitmore -- along with the assistance of a full crew, including voice actors/singers and others -- the performance is a two-show event that kicked off Saturday ... which entailed a matinee at 12 PM PT, and a later show at 5 PM PT. It appears to be free ... but ya gotta have Clubhouse to catch it.

Word is, auditions were held organically on Clubhouse itself ... and a ton of super talented people prepped for a live reading of the Disney animated classic, including those famous numbers we all know and love. And as it turns out, it sounds pretty decent too!

One such actor, Lee-Lonn (one of the guys playing Simba), posted a video of him rehearsing for 'I Just Can't Wait to be King' -- and it's obvious these folks are taking it pretty damn serious ... it comes off almost movie-like. So yeah, they're pros here at work.

The afternoon show is over, but like we said ... there's an encore coming up in just under an hour. At one of its peaks, there were reports of upwards of 5,000 Clubhouse users listening in live (on mute, of course) ... including tons of kids and families.

The problem -- if you haven't signed up for Clubhouse yet (which appears to still be in the beta phases of development), ya might have to wait until next time ... because the admin team has to approve you and your username before you can hop on, and that takes a bit.

The good news ... some people are capturing parts of the performance and posting (which is technically against their rules) -- so we can all at least get a taste of the treat in play. Not only that, but there's talk of other famous productions that might get the Clubhouse treatment -- like 'A Raisin in the Sun' for example, so more shows are on the horizon, it seems.

It might be worth your while to sign up -- Clubhouse is all the rage these days, and a ton of celebs are constantly dropping in and chatting with folks about a variety of topics. Celebs like Kevin Hart, Damon Dash, Joe Budden, Tyrese, Bow Wow and countless others have accounts and have made appearances ... with complete strangers tagging along for the ride.

The Nashville explosion that rocked downtown sent shards of glass and rubble flying all about in neighboring businesses -- including this one ... which was just a few short yards away from the blast.

TMZ has obtained new video captured from inside a sports bar named Buffalo's -- which sits at 2nd Ave and Commerce Street ... literally right down the block from where the RV in question blew up in a ball of fire. It's clear from this clip -- the impact was absolutely immense.

The security footage from inside shows 4 different angles from within the building -- all of which documented the moment shock waves from the explosion came roaring through their building early Christmas morning ... sending window fragments and debris in every direction.

The apparent bombing seems to have been orchestrated to go down in the wee hours -- right before 6:30 AM, based on what we're seeing here -- which is fortunate for the Buffalo's team ... because it doesn't look like anyone was inside yet. If they were, they would've almost certainly been seriously injured, or possibly killed by the explosion or flying debris.

Of course, there are reports of 3 injuries -- but, thankfully, none of them critical. Law enforcement has identified one person of interest, and agents are at his home now investigating ... but so far, nobody is in custody. It's likely the suspected bomber is dead.

As for Buffalo's ... they're especially in need of some help right now. Not only were they struck hard by the pandemic and new COVID measures in Davidson County, but their staffers have also been affected by natural disasters from earlier this year -- and now, this mess.

They got a GoFundMe set up to help hold over hourly employees' living expenses as upper management figures out the next steps. Any and every little bit helps, we're sure.

The person who intentionally set off a massive explosion in Nashville has apparently died -- because authorities say they aren't actively searching for anyone who might be directly responsible ... which would be standard operating procedure if they were alive.

Cops and federal official held a news conference Saturday with an update on where things stood after an RV blew up in downtown and caused devastating damage ... and the main takeaway here is that there's no manhunt underway for the culprit, which is telling.

Considering law enforcement came out early and said this appeared intentional means somebody's to blame -- and there's no way in hell cops and agents wouldn't be pounding the pavement if they thought the person who did this might still be walking free.

Tie that with the fact that officials have also said it looks like they've found possible human remains at the scene -- that leads one to believe that the culprit was blown to smithereens.

Here's another thing that makes us think the bomber is a goner ... he was referred to as the "ultimate Scrooge" by the U.S. Attorney there -- that's not the tone one takes when your man is on the run.

Now, cops have said they're pursuing over 500 tips for possible leads about others who might've been involved ... and there's a report there is one person of interest. A raid's going down at a Nashville-area home, where neighbors apparently saw a similar looking RV parked in recent weeks.

There've been no reported arrests ... just a lot of speculation. Cops say there are no more active threats they're aware of either -- which also points to the fact this was probably a successful suicide bombing, and an isolated incident.

The how and why are still unknown -- but law enforcement is scrambling for answers.

The equivalent of a snack bar -- or perhaps even a food truck -- has surfaced in the ancient city of Pompeii ... and by the looks of it, those Romans sure liked their chicken and duck.

Archaeologists publicly unveiled a discovery Saturday in the ruins of the one-time flourishing Italian city -- which was buried under volcanic ash in an historic eruption nearly 2,000 years ago -- and it amounted to a street food vendor set-up that's incredibly well-preserved.

The technical term for it is "termopolium" -- Latin for hot drinks counter -- but it would appear the Romans served more than just beverages out of this thing ... diggers uncovered traces of really old animal parts in the counter wells you see here ... fish, pork, snails, beef and other protein that were apparently dished out to paying customers once upon a time.

Not just that, but check out the fresco paintings on the front and sides of this bygone eatery -- the Romans depicted chickens, mallards, dogs (supposedly as a warning, they say) and even an angel-looking figure. So yeah, they knew how to advertise their goods/services.

Some other related items that archaeologists found ... a bronze drinking bowl, ceramic jars for soups and stews, wine flasks and amphora (a long jar/vase used for transporting a variety of crops and/or food). It just goes to show once more -- the Romans were pretty damn advanced before things came crumbling down, but most of us already knew that.

A Utah football star is dead after accidentally shooting himself.

Ty Jordan, a freshman running back at the University of Utah, died early Saturday ... reportedly the result of an accidental shooting.

Cops responded to a call from someone who reported a gunshot victim. He was rushed to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Authorities believe the shooting was accidental.

Head Coach Kyle Whittingham said Saturday, "Words cannot express the devastation and heartache that our team is feeling right now upon learning of the tragic death of our teammate and brother, Ty Jordan. Ty's personality and smile were infectious and he made a huge impact on our program in the short time he was with us." The Coach adds ... "All of us in the Utah Football Family want to say we love you Ty and may you rest in peace."

Jordan was the 2020 Pac-12 Offensive Freshman Player of the Year, after rushing for 597 yards and scoring 6 touchdowns.

The 2020 Pac-12 Offensive Freshman Player of the Year allegedly died overnight in an ‘accidental shooting’ while in Texas.

Jordan was 19.

RIP

Ace Hood -- one of DJ Khaled's former artists -- was given an awesome Christmas gift to celebrate his success since going fully independent ... and it comes courtesy of his wife, who's got the perfect way to explain it.

The Florida-based rapper was greeted with custom commemorative plaques from his wife, Shelah Marie, on Christmas Day ... which she documented from her camera. She had them made special for him, as they account for the millions of streams he's racked up since leaving the grasp of Universal Music Group and all its subsidiaries (including We the Best).

Shelah writes, "When @acehood was last on a major recording label they were excellent about celebrating wins. Ace has so many plaques in the house from that era. Since Ace went independent, he hasn’t received any plaques for his projects. Ace is too damn talented not to have his flowers while he can smell them."

She goes on to explain that the plaques honor his first two independent projects -- 'Trust the Process' and 'Trust the Process II: Undefeated' -- while adding, "because in this house we don’t wait on the validation we want — we give it ourselves. I love you @acehood."

You can tell how much it meant to Ace ... he was damn near tearing up as he unpacked the sweet gift. It's also symbolic of how tough independent artists have it if they're not part of the massive machine that is a major record label. Not only do you not get formally recognized anymore ... but most albums ya might put out afterward get dubbed "mixtapes."

This kid needs driver's ed, stat. And, while he's at it, a conscience would also be helpful.

The teenager was driving his mom's car and, apparently, sideswiped a car in what looks like a mall parking lot ... we think it's in Alabama.

The kid drives away after being asked for insurance info, then crashes into another car before exiting and jogging off.

The kid tells the lady whose car he struck, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. It's my mom's car." For the record, not meaning to hit another car is still negligence.

Well, the law requires the kid to exchange info with the other driver. But, when she asks for his insurance card and says she's calling the cops, he gets in his Honda SUV and flees, but not for long. The kid then annihilates a pickup truck.

Donald Trump has too many grievances to count ... the latest being his anger that Melania has not graced a single magazine cover in the 4 years he's been President, and he thinks he knows why.

Trump tweeted his outrage that, as he called her, "the most elegant First Lady" has been blackballed from mag covers by "elite snobs," and without directly saying it, it seems he might be zeroing in on Anna Wintour.

Melania was on the cover of Vogue in 2005, shortly after her marriage to Trump, but that was it.

Michelle Obama, by contrast, was on the cover of Vogue 3 times during her tenure in the White House. The last cover was in November 2016 ... after Trump's victory. As you know, the Obamas popularity drives Trump insane, so no surprise here.

Melania was actually on one cover that we know of ... the February 2017 issue of Vanity Fair Mexico.

Wintour is not a Trump fan, for sure. She's been public about her political preferences, which include Kamala Harris, whom she profiled in April 2018.

It's good to know ... Canadians are now as crazy as us folks in the U.S. of A.

A group protesting the COVID vaccines dressed like zombies, kinda ... they had white masks, white hazmat suits ... the works, as they proselytized at the Fairview Mall in Toronto.

With an assist from a loudspeaker, they screamed, “Everyone loves the pharmaceutical companies” ... "Obedience is love ... questioning vaccines is murder ...  you are not essential. Big business is essential. The government is essential. The government is life. ...  questioning masks is murder ... thinking for yourself endangers the common good.”

It was peaceful, as zombies tend to be sometimes. At the end of the protest, for unsafe measure, they hugged and screamed, "Good job, everybody!"

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky are joined at the hand ... having a super romantic holiday in Barbados.

RiRi and A$AP took a Catamaran cruise in Rihanna's homeland, partying with friends on Xmas Eve.

It's unclear how long they've been together, but they already started wearing matching outfits -- a cautionary tale for sure -- but they look like they're very much into each other.

As we reported, they've been seen a lot together, especially this month and last, in both Barbados and New York City.

The 2 have history -- A$AP opened for Rihanna during her Diamonds World Tour back in 2013. Rumors of them hooking up started almost immediately after Rihanna broke up with her BF of 3 years, Hassan Jameel.

It took 10 days -- TEN DAYS -- but finally, the United Airlines passenger who hovered over a dying, COVID-infected man for 45 minutes administering CPR has been contacted that he was exposed to the virus.

Tony Aldapa tells TMZ, he got a call late Thursday from the L.A. County Dept. of Public Health ... informing him what we've been telling and showing for a week -- that the passenger he was trying to save had the virus and died shortly after the plane made an emergency landing.

It's a scary case of buck-passing. Despite the fact the COVID-positive man had lost his sense of taste and smell and had trouble breathing -- something his wife blurted out during the in-flight emergency -- United did not notify any of the passengers they might have been exposed.

A United spokesperson told us it wasn't their job to notify passengers. Instead, the airline gave its flight manifest to the CDC, telling us that agency would contact passengers.

Then the CDC told us they were passing the information along to local health officials. Finally, 10 days after exposure ... Tony was notified.

Tony, an EMT, had some COVID-like symptoms but tested negative and is feeling better.

Tekashi 6ix9ine spent another Christmas without his daughter ... and this time he can't blame it on being locked up, his baby mama says it was all his fault.

Sara Molina, Tekashi's baby mama, tells TMZ ... she chose not to allow Tekashi to see their child this Christmas because he's been completely out of the picture, despite promising to get back in 5-year-old Saraiyah's life.

6ix9ine's baby mama says he told her back in August he wanted to create a genuine relationship with Saraiyah and was going to be more involved and present ... but Sara says it never happened.

Sara claims Tekashi told her he would support her financially and help with their daughter's expenses ... but she says it turned out to be an empty promise.

69's baby mama even says she gave him an "open door" policy where he could come see Saraiyah whenever and wherever he wanted ... but even that didn't pan out. Sara says early September was the last time Tekashi sent any money or saw his daughter.

What's more, Sara claims Tekashi missed his daughter's 5th birthday back in October, and she says he didn't send a present or even place a phone call. Sara says it was really offensive ... she felt it was the one day he could have really redeemed himself.

It's kinda sad ... Sara says her daughter wasn't even fazed by 6ix9ine's absence on her birthday, and she says the kid recently began referring to Tekashi as a "friend" ... even though the girl knows he's the father.

Don't let these two almost identical images of Lil Nas X have you starting to see double ... there are some key differences here between these photos and it is up to you to find out where they are!

The Grammy award-winning artist was recently seen picking up some festive goods from the store ... And we have made a few changes to the pic! Take a really good look around both of these photos, and see if you can point out what is so different between the two super similar snaps!

United Airlines has not contacted passengers on the flight where a COVID patient died, nor has the CDC and it's been nearly 2 weeks. And, how 'bout the cop who had sex on the Universal lot in front of the Bates Motel?! So, we gotta ask ...