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E. Jean Carroll can perhaps breathe a sigh of relief ... after a U.S. Attorney denied reports his office is investigating her in connection with her lawsuit alleging President Donald Trump sexually abused her ... but we're told she is connected to a related investigation.

Andrew Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, posted a message on X Thursday, saying he had not opened a criminal investigation into Carroll despite numerous media reports saying otherwise. Boutros noted, "Any claim to the contrary is categorically false.”

However, law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... Boutros' office is looking into a Chicago-based entity tied to billionaire Reid Hoffman, who allegedly provided some funding to Carroll for legal expenses she incurred during the Trump lawsuit.

Eight students experienced a rollercoaster of emotions Thursday evening when their field trip nearly ended in disaster ... resulting in a daring rescue mission by first responders.

Check out the scene from Pleasure Pier in Galveston, Texas ... where firefighters went up in a fire engine's basket to wrench the eight individuals from the ride.

The two first responders busy themselves as the students sit and wait ... the only thing the trapped patrons could do for numerous hours.

Puka Nacua met with reporters for the first time since his drama-filled offseason ... and while he didn't dive into the details of the night that led to a bombshell lawsuit, he said he's taking the matter as a learning experience.

The superstar Rams receiver took the podium after Thursday's practice ... and emphasized how he's doing better mentally after seeking treatment at a facility in Malibu.

25-year-old Nacua said the support he got from the team has been great ... and he now understands it's okay to ask for help.

President Donald Trump is honoring 4x Stanley Cup champion Claude Lemieux as "one of the fiercest competitors Hockey has ever seen" following his shocking suicide.

47 posted a tribute on Truth Social Thursday evening, celebrating him as a friend to his family and a "tremendous" Trump supporter before raving about his accomplishments in the NHL.

He also directly named Lemieux's son, pro hockey player Brendan Lemieux, and applauded them both as "warriors on the ice."

Jeff Bezos experienced a major setback with his Blue Origin rocket, which exploded in a fireball during a ground test in Florida.

The dramatic scene was captured on video Thursday night as the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket was trying to lift off from a launchpad at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Blue Origin said it was all part of an engine test being conducted for a satellite launch next week.

As you can see ... the rocket turns into a massive ball of fire with smoke billowing up to the sky. Thankfully, no one was injured.

Felix Rosenqvist won the closest ever Indianapolis 500, edging David Malukas by two-hundredths of a second ... begging the question, are there hard feelings between the champ and his rival driver?!

That's what TMZ Sports asked the 34-year-old this week in NYC, just days removed from the "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."

"No [bad blood], we had a great chat at the red carpet, at the banquet, and we hugged it out. I could tell he was happy for me," Rosenqvist revealed.

Before this boy grinning ear to ear was runnin' down the court, he was just celebrating his February birthday ... and was absolutely fascinated by basketball at just 7 months old!!!

He currently plays for the Los Angeles Lakers -- he is commonly referred to as one of the greatest European players of all time.

Billy Joel's ex-manager says he tried early on to get the music legend to read the biopic script ... insisting he never tried to sneak the project past Billy.

Irwin Mazur -- the central figure behind the "Billy and Me" project -- tells TMZ he spent the last year trying to arrange a meeting with the "Piano Man" before the backlash surrounding the film reached a fever pitch.

Mazur insists there's "nothing defamatory" in the script and nothing he wouldn’t stand behind ... arguing it simply tells the story of their early days together, which he is very proud of.

Claude Lemieux, 4x Stanley Cup-winning NHL player, died by suicide, TMZ Sports has learned.

Lemieux -- who was 60 years old -- was found at the family furniture business by his adult son around 3 AM after they became concerned that he hadn't returned home. The 21-year NHL vet was located in a rear warehouse.

Jamie Foxx's pregnant girlfriend Alyce Huckstepp is showing off her growing baby bump ... and she's glowing!

Check out this photo of Alyce running errands ... she's wearing comfortable athleticwear with enough bare belly to show the shape of her bun in the oven.

Alyce is still out and about, getting gas in Jamie's white Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV before going to lunch with some friends. That might become a lot more difficult as the baby bump grows.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's son Maddox Jolie-Pitt really looks like he wants nothing to do with his famous pops ... because he's legally dropping his surname.

Maddox filed paperwork requesting a legal name change ... specifically, dropping the "Pitt" from his last name and making his name simply "Maddox Chivan Jolie."

The legal change comes on the heels of Maddox dropping the Pitt from his professional name ... he's listed as "Maddox Jolie" in the credits of Angelina's recent flick, "Couture," where Maddox worked as an assistant director.

Na'im Lynn is sticking up for Kevin Hart amid the fallout from Tony Hinchcliffe's controversial roast jokes ... saying people are coming after the wrong guy.

We caught up with Na'im at LAX Thursday, and he told us critics upset that Kevin didn't publicly reprimand Tony during the roast should be directing that energy at Tony himself ... adding if you're gonna make a racial joke, it better be funny -- and Tony's joke absolutely wasn't.

As we reported, Hinchcliffe faced major backlash from fellow comics and George Floyd's family after making a joke about Floyd, along with cracks about lynching and the late husband of comedian Sheryl Underwood.

Scooter Braun says there was never any bad blood on his end for Taylor Swift ... he says he hardly knew her and never had a substantial conversation with her before he became the villain in her quest to own her master recordings.

The former record executive opened up about Taylor's beef with him during an interview with The Free Press ... talking about his relationship with Taylor, or lack thereof.

Scooter says he's met Taylor three times in his entire life ... including once when she invited him to a private party where she told him she had the utmost respect for him, and he parroted the comment.

Mackenzie Shirilla's apparently got no shortage of male attention behind bars ... 'cause she's heard gushing in a newly surfaced prison phone call about all the guys she loves messaging from prison.

Take a listen ... TMZ obtained audio of Mackenzie chatting with her mom, Natalie, about the growing list of pen pals keeping her company while she serves time ... and at one point in the convo, she can barely contain herself while talking a particular guy.

"I love him. I don’t know who that is, but I love him," she says about a man named Kevin. "I don’t know how old he is. I don’t even really care that much. I just love him. Like, he's so fun to talk to."

Tiger Woods' luxury ride is headed for the scrap heap ... with airbags still blown out inside.

TMZ Sports has obtained exclusive photos of the golf legend's wrecked Range Rover sitting in a Florida junkyard two months after the crash that led to his arrest ... and, as you can see, the luxury SUV remains destroyed.

Take a look at the photos ... for the first time since the March 27 crash, we're seeing inside the SUV ... where deployed side curtain airbags are still hanging throughout the cabin covering shattered glass -- cops smashed the rear window at the scene to retrieve his golf clubs.

Helen Mirren looks like she's got deep mob ties to Tom Hardy ... because she's showing support for her "MobLand" co-star amid reports of tensions on set.

Helen posted a photo of Tom on social media Thursday and wrote, "Love you now and always."

The public show of support comes on the heels of a report that Tom was difficult to work with on Season 2 of the Paramount+ hit ... he was allegedly holed up in his trailer and kept Helen, Pierce Brosnan, and the rest of the cast and crew waiting.