RIHANNA was doing press for her new animated movie "Home", when she was asked what animated flick was her favorite growing up. She said it was "Beauty and the Beast" . . . and noted the parallels to her own life. She said, quote, "I fell in love with the Beast. Pretty much my dating record so far." (Here's video. Skip ahead to 1:13. She was being interviewed with her co-stars Jim Parsons and Steve Martin.)

Speaking of THE BEAST, CHRIS BROWN can finally, officially put that incident behind him. He was in court Friday . . . with PURPLE HAIR . . . to learn that he's off probation for attacking Rihanna in 2009. It's hard to believe that was six years ago . . . and it's even harder to believe that he's JUST coming out the other side. That's because there have been a few legal bumps in the road over the years.

Most recently, his probation was revoked in January, after he was present at two different nightclub shootings. He was also arrested a few times, like when he assaulted a man in Washington, D.C. in October of 2013.