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Stephen Ritz is already getting national attention, from the likes of Michelle Obama no less, for teaching students how to grow veggies ... and he's being called a hero for how that food was used during the pandemic.

The best-selling author, public school teacher and founder of Green Bronx Machine joined us Friday on "TMZ Live" and explained ... his students do learn how to grow their own food and cook.

But, Stephen says his program also teaches them other skills ... like reading, writing, math and how to engage with emerging opportunities.

The students are already making a difference in their community ... Stephen says they grew 5,000 pounds of food in his classroom alone during the pandemic, and a total of 100,000 pounds in schools across the country.

He says it all went to local communities struggling with food insecurity.

Stephen says his students are making their neighborhoods and themselves better. It starts in the garden -- but the plants help the kids grow, fueling them to make their schools and environments a better place for all.

A motorist in New Jersey lost control of their car and put a quick scare into the fast-food patrons at a Wendy's as the vehicle came smashing back to the ground ... just feet away from them.

According to South Brunswick PD ... the wild incident went down Monday when the car -- a Toyota Corolla -- launched over a berm, and surveillance cameras captured it flying through the air across the parking lot before clipping an Audi waiting in the drive-thru line.

A second camera shot shows the end result, as the vehicle then crashes into the Wendy's and hits an outdoor table right next to a table where a family was eating.

Thankfully, cops say there were no serious injuries. That's pretty hard to believe when you see the damage, which forced the Wendy's to close up shop for now.

According to reports ... the driver may have suffered a medical issue that caused the freak accident, and a child in the Audi was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is adding to his resume -- two-time MVP, NBA Champ ... and now, part-owner of the Milwaukee Brewers!!!

Just weeks after the Bucks superstar brought Milwaukee its 1st NBA championship since 1971 ... the Brewers announced Antetokounmpo is now taking his talents -- business wise -- to the city's baseball team.

Brewers officials said in a statement the 26-year-old purchased a stake in the org. on Friday ... announcing, "Giannis Antetokounmpo has joined the Crew!"

"The two-time MVP is officially part of the Milwaukee Brewers ownership team. Thank you, Giannis, for your commitment to our team and Milwaukee!"

No word on how many shares Giannis bought or how much they cost ... but we're sure the NBA player could afford it -- after all, he signed a 5-year, $228 MILLION deal last December!

Of course, Giannis ain't the only sports star buying into the MLB recently ... as we previously reported, Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes just bought a part of the K.C. Royals last summer.

Kylie Jenner has a bun in the oven, she's expecting her second child with Travis Scott ... TMZ has confirmed.

A source with direct knowledge tells us Kylie is still in the "very early stages" of the pregnancy and does not yet know the sex of the baby ... who will make 3-year-old Stormi, a big sister. We do not yet know when the baby is due.

Kylie's made it clear in recent years she didn't want Stormi to be an only child ... saying she felt pressure to have another child in 2020 but wasn't ready for it just yet.

Kylie famously spent her first pregnancy in hiding, mostly staying cooped up inside her estate, so it will be interesting to see how the billionaire decides to handle her second pregnancy.

Kylie's been sparking pregnancy rumors all summer ... first when she wore baggy clothes in Idaho and again when eagle eyed fans noticed her sushi order didn't include raw fish.

Page Six was first to report Kylie was expecting.

Caitlyn Jenner also seemed to let the cat out of the bag Thursday when she said she just learned one of her kids is expecting. Caitlyn's son, Burt, says he's expecting a third child with his wife, Valerie, but now we know Kylie will be bringing a new kiddo into the world too.

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West had a lunch date ... the first time we've seen the pair without their kids in a looong time, and another sign they continue to have a very amicable relationship.

The ex-couple grabbed food together Thursday in Malibu with security in tow, and though it appeared they were trying to keep their hang on the DL ... the fact they're hanging at all suggests things are good between them despite being in the middle of a divorce.

As we've told you ... Kim and their kids have been very supporting of Ye as he's been dragging out the release of his upcoming 10th studio album, "Donda," by attending both of his listening events in Atlanta.

On top of that, Kim recently credited her estranged husband with helping her become the woman she is today by teaching her to be more true to herself and not care what everyone thinks.

We broke the story ... Kim filed for divorce from Kanye in February following a tumultuous year in which he suffered from bipolar episodes and had a controversial presidential run.

Britney Spears' dogs were taken from her earlier this month -- this after her dog sitter and housekeeper believe the pets were being neglected -- and that's what triggered the confrontation between Britney and her housekeeper that led to a criminal investigation.

Sources directly connected to Britney tell TMZ ... around 2 weeks ago one of her dogs became sick and the housekeeper took that dog and Britney's other dog to the vet. The dogs never came home, and our sources say Britney's dog sitter -- who is also a nurse -- kept and took care of the dogs because she believed they weren't safe at Britney's home.

We're told on August 10 Britney called the Ventura County Sheriff's Dept. to report a theft, but when cops arrived at her home she backed off and sent them away -- this was first reported by Page Six. Our sources say she was prepared to file a theft report over the dogs but apparently had a change of heart.

Fast-forward to this past Monday morning. Britney still did not have her dogs and didn't know where they were, but suspected her dad had something to do with their disappearance.

Britney confronted her housekeeper and demanded to know where her dogs were and why they were taken away. Our Britney sources say the housekeeper expressed concern that the dogs had been neglected and showed Britney photos she had taken on her cellphone of one of the dogs that had just thrown up.

Britney believes the housekeeper -- who gets paid by Jamie -- sent Jamie the photos and he then called the dog sitter and told her to take the dogs away. Sources with direct knowledge say Jamie is "totally in the dark on what goes on in her home," adding, "He's been shut out."

In any event, we're told Britney became extremely upset and told the housekeeper she was not allowed to take photos in her house. Then we're told a struggle ensued and Britney knocked the phone out of the housekeeper's hands. Our Britney sources say she merely hit the phone, but law enforcement sources say the housekeeper alleged Britney struck her arm, which then caused her to lose her grip over the phone.

As of Thursday afternoon, Britney still did not get her dogs back, but she was hopeful that was about to happen.

TMZ broke the story ... the housekeeper filed a battery report with the Ventura County Sheriff's Dept. and the agency is investigating. A Sheriff's Dept. official tells TMZ when the investigation is complete the file will be sent to the D.A. to review for a possible misdemeanor battery charge.

Kendall Jenner and Devin Booker have taken their romanza overseas -- with the star couple boarding a yacht in Italy -- and TMZ Sports has the pics!!

KJ and Book have been making up for lost time after the Team USA guard returned from the Tokyo Games with a gold medal ... including a lake trip and boozy lunches with friends in New York.

Now, the inseparable duo have touched down in one of the most romantic countries in the world for a getaway with friends ... hopping on a big boat and cruising near Sardinia.

No sign of Booker's gold medal this time around, but Kendall is still sporting a tiny bikini and catching some rays.

It's been one helluva summer for Booker -- he made a deep run in the NBA playoffs (beating LeBron James and the Lakers in the process), won a gold medal at the Olympics, and then came home to his supermodel girlfriend ... so yeah, life is good.

Jenn Harley's officially facing 2 charges following her June domestic violence arrest for allegedly threatening to pull the trigger on a gun she'd pointed at her boyfriend.

According to new legal docs, obtained by TMZ ... the prosecutors in Nevada charged Ronnie Ortiz-Magro's ex with one felony count of assault with a deadly weapon constituting domestic violence, and one misdemeanor count of battery constituting domestic violence.

As we told you ... Harley was arrested in Las Vegas on June 19 after a fight with her now ex-boyfriend, Joseph Ambrosole. He told cops she dropped the n-word while pointing a gun at him and threatening to kill him.

About a month after the incident, Jenn checked herself into a Las Vegas rehab facility to seek treatment for alcohol dependency.

Her rep told us she made the decision because she wants to be the best parent she can for Ariana, her 3-year-old daughter with Ronnie.

We're told Jenn recently completed her 28-day stint and is looking forward to a fresh start, but her legal issues aren't going away easily.

It's breathtaking ... Mike Richards, who was tapped 9 days ago as the man who would replace Alex Trebek as host of "Jeopardy!" has thrown in the towel.

Richards was criticized on Twitter for comments he made 8 years ago on a podcast. The Anti-Defamation League targeted him after comments surfaced in which Richards made disparaging remarks about Jews. Someone on a podcast made a comment about big noses, and Richards responded, "Ixnay on the ose-nay. She's not an ew-Jay."

Richards also called his female co-host a "booth slut." He also made comments about her friends' weight.

Richards said in his resignation, "I was deeply honored to be asked to host the syndicated show and was thrilled by the opportunity to expand my role.  However, over the last several days it has become clear that moving forward as host would be too much of a distraction for our fans and not the right move for the show."

The timing is interesting ... Thursday was the first day of shooting for the new season, and Richards shot 5 episodes before calling it quits.

He will remain as Executive Producer of the show.

Now the question ... if not Richards, who?

Mayim Bialik was tapped as the host of the primetime 'Jeopardy!' shows. As we reported, she was actually Sony's first choice to host the syndicated version, but her work schedule made that impossible. It will be interesting, however, to see if Sony makes accommodations for her.

In the meantime, Richards says they're bringing back guest hosts. Fact is, the show is under the gun in order to fulfill its production schedule.

Caitlyn Jenner may have inadvertently sparked more speculation that Kylie Jenner is pregnant ... because she says she just learned one of her kids is expecting.

The California gubernatorial candidate was visiting the The Toy Story in Quincy Thursday when she spilled the beans. Caitlyn was telling the folks there about her 18 grandchildren when she joked she wants 30 ... because it's a nice, round number.

That's when she revealed she just recently found out her 19th grandkid is "in the oven." Caitlyn also revealed she's not very good at math ... because she says that means there's only 10 more to go 'til 30.

Now, to be perfectly clear, this does not mean Kylie's pregnant ... it could be one of Caitlyn's sons who's expecting -- Burt, Brandon or Brody -- or her eldest daughter, Cassandra Marino.

To be fair, it could also be one of the Kardashians -- Kim, Kourtney, Khloe or Rob -- or Kendall Jenner.

As we've reported ... Kourtney says she's not pregnant, but the rumor mill's spinning about Kylie because she's back with Travis Scott and she never showed herself at her birthday party. Plus, she was super secretive about her pregnancy with Stormi ... so fans can't help but speculate.

Here's the official tally of Caitlyn's grandchildren -- 4 from Kim, 3 from Kourtney, 1 each from Rob, Khloe and Kylie, 3 each from Cassandra and Brandon, and 2 from Burt.

The 19th's a mystery for now, though ... stay tuned.

An iconic estate that once belonged to the late Katharine Graham has hit the market for the first time in 50 years ... and it's gonna cost someone a pretty penny.

The Martha's Vineyard property known as "Mohu" sits on 50 acres near the coveted Lambert's Cove. The estate includes a 5-bedroom beach house, 1-bedroom caretaker's cottage, tennis court and also an 860-foot private white sandy beach.

The whole shebang's going for $39,500,000 ... but this is some top-shelf real estate in prime location. The property's surrounded by 3,000 feet of water frontage on James Pond and a network of walking trails that snake through the woods and along the pond.

According to the Vineyard Gazette, which first reported the news, the "Mohu" property was the last piece of land belonging to the Graham family. The estate once spanned across more than 200 acres but, little by little, the family sold off pieces of the land.

Katherine bought the 200-plus acre property in 1972 for -- get this -- a sweet $1.46 mil.

No doubt there's plenty of room to build on the land ... if the new owner needs more living space. There's also tons of privacy. The estate is surrounded by the 186-acre estate that also belonged to the Graham family. That property sold for $32.5 million in 2019.

Katharine, of course, was the Washington Post's primary publisher for more than 2 decades and she played a key role in the Post helping bring down President Nixon in wake of the Watergate scandal. She died in 2001.

Sad and infuriating news out of SeaWorld where a 6-year-old female orca is dead, and the embattled San Diego marine park says it has no clue why.

SeaWorld says the orca, named Amaya, died unexpectedly Thursday with her animal care specialists by her side. The park says she'd shown signs of illness on Wednesday, but at this point they don't have a cause of death ... and won't until a post-mortem exam is complete, and that could take several weeks.

A spokesperson for the park said animal care specialists and veterinarians began treating Amaya immediately on Wednesday, but "despite her care team’s efforts, Amaya’s condition continued to deteriorate. Her death was sudden and unexpected."

The spokesperson described Amaya as "one of the most playful whales in our pod" and that she loved "interacting with her animal care specialists."

SeaWorld's no stranger to controversy over the treatment of its whales and other animals. According to the non-profit Whale and Dolphin Conservation USA ... at least 49 orcas have died at SeaWorld's 3 parks.

The park also came under heavy fire when the 2013 documentary "Blackfish" was released -- and the public pressure led to SeaWorld nixing its breeding program.

The documentary largely focused on the struggles of Tilikum, a male orca that died at 36 in 2017.

Amaya was crucial in helping the park research how a calf develops ... albeit in captivity.

The Weeknd is the proud, new owner of a massive Bel-Air estate, forking over an incredible $70 MILLION to convince the home's prior owners to give it up ... TMZ has confirmed.

Abel was in the market for a new home in the area, and agents Rayni and Branden Williams of the Beverly Hills Estates scoped out the 33,000-square-foot home before reaching out on the singer's behalf ... according to The Wall Street Journal.

We've confirmed the home's prior owners -- Reinout Oerlemans, a Dutch media mogul, and his wife, Danielle Oerlemans -- hadn't planned on selling, but the $70M was too nice to pass up ... and the deal was done off-market.

As for what $70M will get you in Bel-Air? The mega-mansion comes with 9 bedrooms, a spa, indoor and outdoor pools, sports court and a music studio where Abel can keep cranking out hits.

The singer was represented by Angele Salvador in the sale.

In fact the news of the new crib comes just after the singer broke the record for the most consecutive weeks (88) on The Billboard Hot 100 list with his single, "Blinding Lights." "Radio Active" by Imagine Dragons held the previous record.

Azriel Clary -- one of R. Kelly's former girlfriends -- remains steadfast in testifying against him in his federal sex crimes case ... despite what her family describes as attempts to scare her away from going through with it.

Azriel's father, Angelo, tells TMZ ... nobody's forcing his daughter to testify -- it's her decision based on her belief that what Kelly did to her and others is wrong, and she wants to do it for the sake of justice and to show what a monster he truly is.

Problem is, this apparently doesn't sit well with many of the singer's fans. We're told Azriel and her family are the frequent targets of online threats and attacks ... including people posting their contact info and even harassing them at work.

Even scarier ... Azriel's car was set on fire last year, and just months ago a man pled guilty in the case.

For all these reasons and more ... Angelo says his daughter's stress level is high as she prepares for her testimony, but he's adamant Azriel will not back down.

We broke the story ... in early 2020 -- after a falling out with Kelly's other girlfriend at the time, Joycelyn Savage -- Azriel fully removed herself from Kelly's corner and began working with the feds against him.

Now, the time is almost here for her to take the stand, and we're told Azriel's looking forward to showing her strength and telling her truth ... with Kelly watching.

Conor McGregor says he's absolutely crushing his leg rehab ... telling TMZ Sports he's three weeks ahead of schedule!!!

The UFC superstar shared the great news following a visit to the doc's office in L.A. on Thursday ... giddily explaining that he's been cleared to ride a bike nearly a month earlier than medical experts initially expected.

"Five weeks, five days since the surgery and they told me I wouldn't be able to cycle until eight weeks," Conor said. "And, he just told me just here today that I can cycle again!"

It's a very positive update from the 33-year-old ... 'cause back on July 10, he snapped his leg in gruesome fashion in his fight against Dustin Poirier that many believed could alter his life permanently.

You'll recall ... the leg bent in a way no leg every should -- and he needed hours of surgery just days later to repair the damage.

But, Conor's been in great spirits ever since going under the knife ... and he showed us again Thursday that he's genuinely pleased with how the injury is progressing.

"I can cycle again, my man!" Conor said before driving off from his doctor appointment. "Three weeks ahead of schedule!"

As for who he wants to fight when ultimately makes his return ... Conor clearly ain't ahead of schedule in that department -- telling us, "we'll see what happens."

Destiny's Child fans shouldn't lose their breath just yet over rumors the group's getting back together ... because their manager says there's nothing in the works.

Mathew Knowles -- Beyonce's father who's still DC's official manager -- tells TMZ ... as of right now, there are zero plans for the iconic group to reunite, make an album, tour or do anything of the sort.

Knowles says the recent social media updates to Destiny's Child's official accounts that sparked the speculation were just a routine revamping by the record label. If you missed it ... the group's header images were changed, which was enough to get fans going.

We're told Mathew never requested the change -- it was just a random, normal social media-type update.

Adding further fuel to the fire, however, is the fact Beyonce recently said in an interview that new music's coming ... but didn't specify if it would be solo, or with her old groupmates, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.

Based on what her Dad tells us it's likely solo, but he adds that the fan response to the Destiny's Child buzz shows there's a huge demand for them to make a comeback ... which he says is "great" and something they will take into account for the future.