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Carole Baskin is making lots of dough with personalized messages ... but making sense of what she said -- well, that's a whole other thing.

She recorded this message for a guy who goes by Robin Hood 702 ... a guy who apparently has worked with authorities on various cases. 702, btw, is the area code for Vegas.

Listen to what she says ... Carole is making reference to the MGM lion. Well, there have been rumblings a tiger or 2 may make its way to Vegas for one of the shows, but here she's talking about a lion never being "tattered" so those dots don't connect.

She also mentions David Chesnoff, a prominent lawyer who has Vegas wired, but she never explains what she means when she says he's hold up in the Penninsula.

And, then she mentions Patty Glaser, a super-powerful L.A. lawyer. Again, connecting the dots is damn near impossible.

Colin Kaepernick's origin story is getting the Netflix treatment -- in the form of a 6-episode series based on the QB's high school years.

Netflix says the scripted drama is called "Colin In Black & White" -- which will address the issues Colin had growing up as a Black man in an adopted white family.

"Too often we see race and Black stories portrayed through a white lens," Kaepernick said. "We seek to give new perspective to the differing realities that Black people face."

Netflix says 32-year-old Kaepernick is working alongside Academy Award nominee Ava DuVernay on the project ... and adds the script for the show was finished last month.

"With his act of protest, Colin Kaepernick ignited a national conversation about race and justice with far-reaching consequences for football, culture and for him, personally,” DuVernay said.

"Colin’s story has much to say about identity, sports and the enduring spirit of protest and resilience. I couldn’t be happier than to tell this story with the team at Netflix."

Kaepernick famously moved to Northern California when he was 4 years old after he was adopted by a white family ... and ended up being a star athlete in his teenage years at Pitman H.S. in Turlock.

Joe Exotic's former zoo in Oklahoma is being investigated over concerns for the welfare of its animals -- specifically the lions -- but Jeff Lowe says everything's being done right to take care of them ... but it's a challenge.

TMZ's learned a whistleblower provided PETA with photos and video of lions at the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park -- which Lowe took over after Exotic -- suffering from severe flystrike ... a condition in which flies bite and lay eggs on other animals and destroy their skin.

The photos show lions at the zoo with bloody ears with the tips severely damaged, and also covered in flies. Flystrike can be very painful and even deadly to animals if not treated.

Lowe tells TMZ the animals are being treated, though, as flies have been a constant problem at the zoo for years ... because it's located near a big horse farm.

Lowe says the GW Zoo spends thousands a month on medications for the lions, tigers and other animals, along with fly repellent. Problem is, Lowe says most repellents can also be harmful to the animals ... so they have to be careful.

He says this is just one of the many reasons he's moving the animals to his new zoo, Tiger King Park, as soon as possible.

Still, PETA has asked the USDA to conduct a welfare check on the animals, which local law enforcement reported is already being done after receiving numerous calls about the issue.

The Oklahoma Department Of Wildlife Conservation tells us it conducted a welfare check of the native animals at the zoo -- including bobcats, mountain lions and bears -- and found the animals to be in good health and described the situation as in "good shape."

The USDA is responsible for the exotic animals, however. We reached out to the agency about its investigation ... so far no word back.

Harry Jowsey only dated Francesca Farago for publicity and clout, and never genuinely loved her ... according to one of their former "Too Hot To Handle" costars.

Haley Cureton, who got extremely close with Francesca before getting booted from the Netflix reality dating show, tells TMZ ... she's 100 percent convinced Harry only got with FF to extend his 15 minutes of fame beyond the show.

The way Haley sees it ... Harry first fell for Francesca's looks -- because who wouldn't -- and then realized he could ride the model's coattails.

Haley thinks Harry isn't capable of loving anyone besides himself ... and she thinks he never genuinely cared about Francesca or her feelings.

If you've seen the show, all the evidence of Harry's true colors is there ... according to Haley. She points to him lying about who initiated the first kiss with Francesca ... a move that cost the whole cast prize money.

As we reported ... Harry and Francesca stayed together after the show, but this week they finally broke up. Francesca said he broke up with her because he couldn't do a long-distance relationship anymore.

Francesca won't be lonely for too long, even with Harry outta the picture ... Haley says they're talking about moving in together to let the good times roll.

Dave Chappelle responded to Don Lemon's call for celebs to speak out on the death of George Floyd in a big way ... tearing into the CNN anchor on a surprise special he dropped early Friday morning.

Netflix released the Chappelle special on its YouTube comedy channel, and it's all about Dave addressing Floyd's killing by police and the ensuing protests to end racism and police brutality.

Chappelle also blasted Lemon for urging celebrities to use their platforms to talk about Floyd and the national unrest his death caused ... saying people don't need or want to hear from celebs right now. As only Dave could put it ... "Do we give a f**k what Ja Rule thinks?!"

He added ... the streets are speaking for themselves, and he isn't about to get in the way of trying to speak over that. Fittingly, the special is titled "8:46" ... the length of time accused murderer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee on George's neck.

The surprise stand-up special was filmed outside on June 6 in Beavercreek, Ohio, in front of a masked, socially-distanced audience, and it's a lot less comedy than usual for Dave ... and more powerful commentary.

If you're wondering... Don's seen it, and he isn't pissed.

Friday morning, Lemon said he's honored to be mentioned by his favorite comedian and even jokes his nieces and nephews will think he's cool now, but also concedes that Dave makes a good point ... a lot of people don't care about celebrities' opinions.

Don says he welcomes Chappelle's criticism and encourages it because it brings more attention to the topic, and still thinks it's important for people like Dave and himself to use their large audience to spread that message.

Dave Chappelle unloaded on Laura Ingraham -- calling her a "white bitch" for telling LeBron James to "shut up and dribble."

The comedian brought up Ingraham on his new Netflix special, "8:46"-- which took its name after the time George Floyd suffered in police custody before his death.

Roughly 15:30 into the set, Chappelle brings up his friend LeBron James and the way the Fox News host told him to "shut up and dribble" after he spoke out against Trump in 2018.

"LeBron James once said something about racism and Laura Ingraham, which I will say publicly anywhere anytime is a c*** told one of Ohio's greatest residents ever to 'Shut up and dribble.'"

Chappelle continued, "This bitch told my friend to shut up and dribble."

"My friend is the best at something. And this bitch is not the best at anything. Just a regular-ass white bitch with a platform. And I use the word 'bitch' all the time because [it's a black thing]."

Ingraham recently addressed criticism she's been getting for the different way she criticized Drew Brees when he spoke out against.  NFL kneelers.

"Every American has the God-given right to speak his mind on any issue," Ingraham said.

"I think in order to heal and shed light on gross injustices, our country needs more dialogue, not less. And we need more respect, less retribution."

Joe Exotic says the prison he's in is shutting him off from the outside world, but officials there say it was nothing personal -- the whole facility was on pause for a bit.

A rep for the Bureau of Prisons -- the federal agency overseeing Joe's new home in Fort Worth, TX -- tells TMZ ... all of their prison institutions went on a national lockdown last week in response to protests and riots breaking out.

While they were on lockdown, BOP says inmates temporarily had limited access to phones and email -- but as of Monday, lockdown's been lifted and everything's pretty much the same as it was before.

In regards to letters Joe claims he hasn't received -- implying prison guards are keeping them from him, including potential mail from his hubby, Dillon -- BOP flat-out denies that. We're told even during lockdown, snail mail was being delivered to inmates like usual.

As we reported ... Joe said Dillon had gone ice cold on him in terms of communication, but Dillon says he'd been sending letters, and is dismayed to hear Joe's not getting them.

Now, BOP refused to comment on Joe's specific living or medical conditions -- which he described as hellish -- for safety and privacy reasons.

Joe Exotic says he's at the end of his rope, and might not be around much longer if he doesn't get some immediate help from President Trump ... or Cardi B ... or Kim Kardashian.

TMZ's obtained a letter penned by the imprisoned 'Tiger King' star this week to his "Supporters, Fans, Loves Ones." He opens by saying the pandemic's over, so he's asking POTUS to grant him a miracle and free him ... but it's pretty bleak from there.

Joe says, "My soul is dead" and he's struggling to keep hope in what he describes as some pretty miserable conditions behind bars. He also claims he's being tormented by people sending him info about his husband, Dillon Passage, living it up on the outs and partying without him. Joe also says Dillon's gone radio silent on him.

On top of all this, Exotic claims he's not getting treatment and meds for his health conditions, and he makes a dark prediction -- "I'll be dead in 2-3 months."

Joe compares his prison sentence to death row, makes it clear he feels abandoned ... and takes some shots at people he believes took advantage of him and stabbed him in the back.

There are some more questionable parts to the letter too -- including racial comments suggesting he'd get treated better if he were a different color ... and saying George Floyd's message got lost with the rioting. Oh, and there's a Michael Jackson song reference too.

In the end, Exotic maintains his innocence ... and tosses a final Hail Mary to Cardi and Kim in hopes they'll catch it and help him out. The Cardi ship may have already sailed, though.

Of course, Joe still has a legal team working hard to get a pardon from Trump, but if this letter's to be believed ... the clock's ticking.

Carole Baskin's day of reckoning is coming after a sheriff determined the will of her ex-husband, Don Lewis, was a forgery -- at least that's what Don's daughter is hoping.

Donna Pettis tells TMZ ... the recent bombshell from Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister -- who claims he's certain Baskin forged Don's will to make it so she'd inherit his fortune if he went missing -- only confirms what she and her sisters already suspected way back in 1997.

Donna says the will was determined to be a fake by a professional back then, but Carole had her own analyst claimed the opposite and got the judge to sign off ... and Donna says her family didn't have the money or resources to fight her on it at the time.

She says since then, 4 other experts have evaluated the will and reached the same conclusion -- forgery -- but, because of the statute of limitations, there's nothing they can do. Or, is there?

Donna tells us she's been meeting with several lawyers in hopes of landing one willing to take on the high-profile case and finally get some justice for her dad.

She says she and her sisters are considering hiring 2 attorneys -- a criminal and a civil -- in order to get the ball rolling, but they're still weighing options.

The bottom line is ... Donna and her family plan to go after Baskin in whatever legal manner still possible, and they also want more action taken in investigating Lewis' death. He was declared legally dead in 2002.

Donna's not accusing Carole of killing her father, but she DOES think Carole knows more than she's ever let on and plans to get it out of her ... in a courtroom.

The band that provided the magic for Joe Exotic's unique set of songs on 'Tiger King' has good news for everyone itching for more of their good musical vibes.

Vince Johnson of The Vince Johnson Band -- who made up one half of the music duo who wrote and performed Joe's tracks featured on the Netflix series -- just inked an exclusive licensing and distribution deal with BMG Rights Management and Create Music Group.

As part of the agreement, all those Joe tunes (which are actually Vince's) will be compiled onto an album for the first time and be released on streaming services everywhere in the coming months. There'll also be some new tunes, including a cut called 'Killer Carole.' Probably won't be a big hit in Carole Baskin's crib.

We got a little taste of this gem before it officially drops Friday -- we're thinking you can add this one to your back road country playlist. No sign of Joe, though, in the pseudo-music video -- he's a little tied up right now, unfortunately.

In any case, it's great news for Vince and co. ... whom, as we previously told you, were gunning for a record deal of some sort in the wake of the show's massive popularity. Unclear if they've gotten signed to a label yet, but a licensing deal is kinda like getting halfway there.

Of course, Vince lost his longtime music collaborator -- Daniel Clinton -- who helped him pen a lot of the songs on 'Tiger King,' after he passed away from a heart attack late last year. Here's hoping Vince does him proud with this streak of good luck going forward.

Carole Baskin's vanished husband's dying wishes appear to have been concocted by somebody other than him -- so says the local sheriff still investigating the case.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister told WTSP where things stood in his investigation of Don Lewis' mysterious disappearance ... which was documented on 'Tiger King.'

He said they actually had some new developments -- namely, that they've confirmed his will was, in fact, a forgery.

Sheriff Chronister doesn't even try to hedge -- he says they had two experts take a look at it, and both concluded the same thing ... it's a fake. He also says that's something his office already knew, going on to say his team was following up on some promising new leads.

Here's why the will is so important ... it has a bizarre clause that says in case of Don's disappearance Carole gets everything. Talk to any estate planning expert and they will tell you ... they've NEVER seen a clause like that -- EVER.

Now, for some bad news for folks who want justice for Don ... Sheriff Chronister says despite what he and his detectives found -- including possible malfeasance on the part of Carole -- it might end up being moot by the end of it ... 'cause there's not much they can do to charge her criminally. It's the same that often foils cases like these ... too much time.

Even on the civil end of things, the Sheriff says a judge has already deemed the will valid ... which is what allowed Carole to inherit pretty much all of Don's assets and wealth. So, not much can be done there either. Still, dude sounds determined to get to the truth.

Carole Baskin is getting more than she bargained for now that she's won control of Joe Exotic's old zoo -- Jeff Lowe says it's got at least one skeleton in the closet!!! Like, for real.

Jeff and his wife, Lauren, told us Carole's court victory is a little hollow for her, because she won't inherit any of the exotic animals you saw in the 'Tiger King' series -- they're all going to Jeff's new zoo. She's essentially getting a giant dirt lot, with some bamboo shoots, in Wynnewood, OK.

Jeff says the only bonus for Baskin is the remains of a young Native American boy buried on the property, as if Carole hasn't heard enough buzz about buried bodies.

As we reported, Carole won a $1 million judgment against Joe and his mother way back when, but Baskin never got the bread. Now, the judge says Joe's transfer of the zoo land to his mom and Jeff was fraudulent, so the judge granted Carole control of the land to help satisfy the outstanding $1 mil.

Jeff and Lauren aren't ticked about the decision at all. They told us why Carole actually deserves the land, in their opinion.

Now, back to the human remains -- Jeff hinted there's more than one skeleton on the land that used to belong to a Native American tribe. You gotta see what happened when we pressed him for more -- turns out the Lowes have a reality show in the works.

Fred Willard died from a heart attack ... according to his death certificate.

According to the doc, obtained by TMZ, the veteran comedic actor's immediate cause of death is a cardiac arrest. The underlying causes are listed as myelodysplastic syndrome and coronary artery disease.

We broke the story ... Fred died May 15, and his daughter Hope told us her father passed away peacefully and made his family "happy until the very end." The doc says he died at his home at 6:45 PM.

The death certificate also notes Fred was a veteran of the United States Armed Forces and had 60 years in the entertainment biz, and it says he was laid to rest at the famous Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles.

As we reported, at the time of his death, Fred's family said ... "He kept moving, working and making us happy until the very end. We loved him so very much. We will miss him forever."

Fred was famous for his role as Ron Burgundy's news director in the 'Anchorman' movies and he starred in countless cult comedies throughout his career, including ... "American Wedding," "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle," "How High," "The Wedding Planner," "WALL-E," "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" and on and on.

He was 86.

Joe Exotic isn't gonna sleep well tonight -- his nemesis, Carole Baskin, now has control of the Oklahoma zoo that used to be his, thanks to a judge's ruling.

The short story is Carole won a $1 million judgment against Joe and his mom many years ago, but she never got the dough. According to docs, obtained by TMZ, the judge said Joe's transfer of the zoo land to his mother and Jeff Lowe was fraudulent. So, now the judge is granting Carole control of the land to help satisfy that $1 mil judgment from the old trademark lawsuit.

The federal judge's ruling says Jeff has 120 days to get himself and all of the animals off the property. You'll recall, he had just re-opened last month and renamed the zoo, Tiger King Park.

Doesn't sound like Jeff is too busted up about the loss of land. He and his wife, Lauren, tell TMZ, "We have long anticipated that the judge would eventually undo the 2016 land transfer. We are thankful that he dragged out his decision this long and allowed us time to complete the new Tiger King Park in Thackerville Oklahoma, behind the World’s largest casino."

If you hadn't heard, Jeff was already planning to ditch Joe's old Tiger King Park property in Wynnewood, OK.

Jeff and Lauren continued, "Considering [Carole] spent approximately 2.5M chasing her 1M judgment, we congratulate her on her new acquisition of 16 acres in rural Oklahoma."

They took one parting shot, saying, "The possibility of human remains being buried on this land should make her feel right at home."

Yeah, we think Joe would second that emotion.

Joe Exotic's meteoric rise from farm boy to 'Tiger King' fame is all laid out in an upcoming comic book ... and TMZ has the first look at Joe's origin story and its special edition cover.

TMZ obtained a couple pages from Michael Frizell and TidalWave Production's new project, "Infamous Tiger King," which hits the shelves at the end of June, and it's pretty wild.

The graphic novel (AKA serious comic book) picks up where 'Tiger King' left off, with Joe behind bars and Jeff Lowe running the zoo ... and it depicts Joe as a larger-than-life character as it dives into his crazy journey from rural Kansas to pop culture icon.

Joe's nemesis, big cat animal rescuer Carole Baskin, even graces one of the covers alongside him ... and another features a tiger wearing a crown and Joe's signature earrings.