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Mogul Richard Branson had his home on a private island in the Caribbean burn to the ground this morning, and his 90-year-old mother might have died in the blaze ... if not for the help of Kate Winslet.

Branson recanted the harrowing tale on his blog this morning, saying that 20 people were inside the home at the time of the fire ... but they all managed to get out fine. He said the main house -- on Necker Island -- was completely destroyed.

Branson cited a tropical storm as the cause, saying a lightning storm hit the house around 4:00 AM.

As for the dramatic rescue of his elderly mother, Branson wrote, "... many thanks to Kate Winslet for helping to carry my 90 year mum out of the main house to safety wondering when a Director was going to shout CUT!"

The now-infamous Texas Hold 'Em celebrity poker games that have triggered a flurry of lawsuits has a new twist -- according to a famous player/director, the lawsuits are bogus because the game is legal.

Nick Cassavetes, who directed "The Notebook" and "Alpha Dog," has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit filed against him to take back his winnings, on grounds California law does not consider Texas Hold 'Em to be illegal gambling.

According to the docs, the game is not played as a banking or percentage game. For example, blackjack is a banking game because you play against the house. In Texas Hold 'Em, you play against the other players.

According to California law, the penal code only prohibits banking or percentage games. The law singles out illegal games, including roulette, blackjack, 21, hokey-pokey, rondo, tan, fan-tan, 7 1/2, lansquenet and rouge et noir ... but Texas Hold 'Em is not mentioned.

Cassavetes is being sued by the bankruptcy trustees of Brad Ruderman -- a convicted ponzi scheme criminal who lost a lot of money in the games, to people like Cassavetes and Tobey Maguire. Leo DiCaprio, Ben Affleck and others also played.

Hilary Duff just learned a cold, hard lesson -- Hollywood's not hiring a lot of pregnant women to play legendary bank robbers ... which is why she just got dropped from "The Story of Bonnie and Clyde."

Duff was supposed to play Bonnie Parker in the upcoming film ... but sources involved in the production tell us they're moving forward sans Hilary -- a decision that was made right after Hil broke her baby news last week.

We're told the director is already shopping for a new Bonnie, and the split was amicable. As one source put it, "Hilary won’t be available until next June. If we could wait we would.” Shooting is scheduled for this Fall.

If prego Duff isn't cool with the switch this could be another HunterTylo situation -- the actress who won a $4.8 million judgment when pregnancy cost her a "Melrose Place" role.

Hilary's rep has not returned calls.

"Dancing with the Stars" is getting a MASSIVE upgrade this season -- and TMZ has learned ... the entire layout of the set will be changed ... to the tune of $3 MILLION!

Sources tell us ... the COOLEST change will affect the audience ... because producers are swapping out the boring bleacher seats for a TRIPLE-TIERED balcony-styled arrangement ... kinda like where the old grumpy guys sit on "The Muppets."

Another cool change -- the massive staircase in the middle of the stage will have the ability to SPLIT into TWO halves ... which will reveal the orchestra pit.

As for the dance floor ... which was basically hardwood planks placed on the ground ... it will NOW be an elevated PLATFORM ... so if the stars fall over the edge, it could REALLY hurt.

Here's a shocker -- the chick who ditched Hugh Hefner days before their wedding is now trying to shop her own reality show around town ... and even more shocking, there's actual interest.

TMZ has learned ... Crystal Harris already has meetings set up with a few different networks ... hoping to land a deal.

We're told the premise behind the show (beyond just the fact that she's hot) will focus on her struggle to find a career after burning the richest bridge she will ever have.

Did we mention that she's hot?

If you thought James Franco was kidding this month when he said on "Conan" he was directing a porn documentary ... think again -- because TMZ spies caught a glimpse of Franco earlier this summer ... staking out one of the biggest porn studios in the country.

Franco was seen chatting up some of the, umm... employees at Kink.com. James is helming a project about the company which plunked down $14.5 million to move into the old San Francisco Armory in 2006.

Brutal divorce? Bitter custody battle? Multiple trips to rehab? It was all water under the bridge this weekend as Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller yucked it up in Mexico.

As TMZ first reported, Charlie decided to whisk Brooke south of the border as a reward for how well he thinks she's been doing with rehab ... and to celebrate her birthday.

Is this a precursor to another walk down the aisle?

Reb Brown -- the guy who played Captain America in two TV movies in the 1970s -- feels the producers of this summer's remake violated an unspoken rule ... by not asking him to make a cameo in the new film.

Brown tells TMZ that at one pint ... the producers told his rep they were into the idea of having him make an appearance in the movie. But before he knew it ... he was reading about production getting underway in London without a single call coming his way.

What irks Brown the most is that Lou Ferrigno got to make a cameo in the 2003 terrible remake of "Hulk."

Brown says he'd love to be in the sequel (if there is one) and would take any role he could.

Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller have officially left the country ... together ... and TMZ has learned the private jet carrying the twosome has touched down in Mexico.

The former couple hopped on the jet late Friday afternoon ... judging by the photo they posed for on the plane (above), they look like they're heading on their honeymoon all over again.

Charlie tells TMZ ... he decided to take Brooke on the trip as a reward because she's been, "busting her ass with the boys, and [she's] more sober and healthy than I've ever seen her."

As we previously reported ... Charlie has made it his personal mission to help get Brooke the treatment she needs to finally conquer her addictions.

Still, we gotta ask...

The death of Russell Armstrong has put the spotlight on "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" and reality TV. Is it just plain ol' entertainment or has it crossed the line into the danger zone? We want to know ...

It's the creepiest jackpot ever -- a recent bidder on "Storage Wars" paid $400 for a bunch of crap, including an old trunk ... which contained a shocking $24,000 in cash ... but for some reason, none of the bills had faces on them.

In case you're unfamiliar -- the A&E show features auctions in which people bid on the abandoned contents of large storage lockers ... but they only get a few seconds to see what's inside.

Laura Dotson -- who runs the auction company for the show with her husband Dan -- tells TMZ, the buyer paid the $400 for the locker ... and soon after, discovered the MOUNTAIN of cash inside the trunk.

The eerie part -- whoever owned the trunk beforehand drilled the faces out of every single bill. It's unclear why, but we're told the money was still considered legal tender ... despite losing face.

"CSI" star Gary Dourdan no longer faces a drug possession charge after his arrest back in June ... when cops claim they found OxyContin pills -- aka "Hillbilly Heroin" -- on the actor.

Law enforcement sources tell TMZ, prosecutors dropped the charge for oxy possession earlier this week in light of new evidence -- but Gary's drug paraphernalia charge still stands.

As we previously reported, Gary got into a MASSIVE accident before he was arrested -- plowing his SUV into a parked truck.

Gary's due back in court next month for the paraphernalia charge.

Bravo is in the process of re-editing the second season of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" due to Russell Armstrong's suicide ... according to the network.

The turmoil between Russell and Taylor Armstrong was a key storyline on the show's first season -- and sources have told us Russell was concerned about being portrayed as a villain.

Taylor Armstrong secretly revealed to cast members she was beaten so badly by Russell Armstrong she had to undergo surgery -- and when he found out she spilled the beans, he sent Camille Grammer a chilling, threatening email ... this according to multiple sources connected with the show.

We're told ... in late June, as "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" was shooting season 2 ... Taylor was severely beaten. Sources say Russell hit her in the face so hard he cracked bones in her cheeks. Sources say there are pictures of the injuries and they are "horrific."

Taylor -- who was hospitalized as a result of the beating -- tried to keep it a secret, but she had a big problem ... she couldn't show her face for weeks, and she feared she'd be fired for appearing to be uncooperative and flaky.

Sources say Taylor confided in Camille Grammer and Kyle Richards ... both of whom urged Taylor to tell Bravo what really happened.

We're told Taylor went home and told Russell about her conversation with the two women and the outrage they had shown when they heard what happened. Russell reacted by sending Camille a "very threatening" email. One source who read it said, "It was the rantings of a lunatic."

As for Taylor, her injuries were so bad ... shooting was delayed for several weeks.

Gerard Depardieu is finally explaining why he peed on the floor of an Air France plane this week ... blaming the whole thing on prostate issues ... but insisting he "offered to clean up the mess."

Gerard's traveling companion on the flight, Edouard Baer, has released a statement on Depardieu's behalf, saying, "[Gerard] has prostate problems and it was very worrying and humiliating for him."

Baer claims he gave Gerard a bottle to pee in while the two were on the plane ... but the bottle quickly overflowed ...and when the flight attendant refused to let the actor use the lavatory because the crew was preparing for take-off, Gerard decided to finish on the floor.

The rep insists Gerard is "upset" about the situation -- adding, "He was also stone-cold sober at the time. This is not the way he usually behaves."

Bravo will not have "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" cameras rolling when Russell Armstrong's funeral takes place ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to production tell us there's some turmoil at the network -- while everyone realizes Russell's death will make the show more dramatic and watchable ... they're also nervous about pushing the envelope too far.

We're told Bravo doesn't know how much Russell footage, if any, will air in the show's second season -- but the one thing everyone agrees on is not taping the funeral services.