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As it happenedended

OJ Simpson made all visitors, including family, sign NDAs in final days before his death

OJ Simpson was infamously acquitted of the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and waiter Ron Goldman in the so-called ‘trial of the century’ — and spent the rest of his life leaning into his notoriety

Graig Graziosi,Tom Watling
Monday 15 April 2024 19:06 BST
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OJ Simpson dies at age 76, family says

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OJ Simpson is said to have made all visitors, including his family, sign non-disclosure agreements to visit him in the days before his death.

In the 1990s, he became arguably the most infamous man in America after he was charged with the murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, a waiter, who were stabbed to death. The trial in 1995 dominated the news for months, sparking contentious debate about fame, domestic abuse and racist treatment of Black Americans by the police. He was ultimately acquitted.

In 1997 Simpson was found liable for the pair’s deaths in a civil proceeding. Simpson was ordered to pay $33.5 million in a judgment, but managed to avoid paying significant damages.

Sources with direct knowledge have told TMZ that somewhere between 30 to 50 people – made up of friends and other family – saw OJ in person at his home in Las Vegas before he died on Wednesday. They are all said to signed the NDAs, and no phones were allowed in the room with Simpson.

Simpson was battling prostate cancer, according to his family.

Now, Malcolm LaVergn, the executor of Simpson’s estate, has vowed to prevent the payout of a $33.5m judgement to the families of Goldman and Brown Simpson, saying that he hopes to ensure that Goldman’s family, in particular, “get nothing”.

Speaking to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Mr LaVergn, who represented Simpson for the last 15 years of his life, said: “It’s my hope that the Goldmans get zero, nothing.

“Them specifically. And I will do everything in my capacity as the executor or personal representative to try and ensure that they get nothing.”

Watch: Oprah audience reacts to OJ Simpson trial verdict in resurfaced clip

Watch as the audience of The Oprah Winfrey Show react to the verdict of OJ Simpson’s trial in a resurfaced clip.

The former athlete was accused of killing his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994 and his acquittal the following year after the “trial of the century” was watched around the world.

The verdict was streamed live to Oprah’s audience on 3 October 1995, with cheers breaking out as Simpson was acquitted on both counts of murder.

Simpson died aged 76 on Wednesday 10 April, his family confirmed.

Watch: Oprah audience reacts to OJ Simpson trial verdict in resurfaced clip

Watch as the audience of The Oprah Winfrey Show react to the verdict of OJ Simpson’s trial in a resurfaced clip. The former athlete was accused of killing his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994 and his acquittal the following year after the “trial of the century” was watched around the world. The verdict was streamed live to Oprah’s audience on 3 October 1995, with cheers breaking out as Simpson was acquitted on both counts of murder. Simpson died aged 76 on Wednesday 10 April, his family confirmed.

Tom Watling12 April 2024 12:50

Caitlyn Jenner responds to OJ Simpson’s death: ‘Good riddance’

Caitlyn Jenner has shared an unfiltered response to news that OJ Simpson has died at 76 years old.

The 74-year-old former Olympian took to X, formerly Twitter, shortly after news of Simpson’s death broke. “Good Riddance #OJSimpson,” wrote Jenner on Thursday 11 April.

Simpson - who was battling prostate cancer - died on Wednesday at his home in Las Vegas surrounded by his children and grandchildren, his family announced in a statement on Thursday. “During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace,” the statement read.

READ MORE:

Caitlyn Jenner responds to OJ Simpson’s death: ‘Good riddance’

OJ Simpson died on Wednesday following battle with prostate cancer

Graig Graziosi12 April 2024 13:00

Nothing is important but the victims: Father of Ron Goldman, stabbed next to Nicole Brown, speaks on OJ death

The father of Ron Goldman, who was murdered alongside his friend Nicole Brown 30 years ago, said the news of OJ Simpson’s death was a further reminder of how long his son has been gone, and how much he is missed.

Goldman, 25, and Brown, 35, were stabbed to death on 12 June 1994 outside Brown’s home in Brentwood, California.

Simpson, Brown’s ex-husband, was charged with their murders but acquitted in what was dubbed the “trial of the century”. A civil court later found Simpson, a former NFL player and actor, liable for their deaths.

Father of murdered Ron Goldman speaks on OJ Simpson’s death

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Ron Goldman, 25, and Nicole Brown, 35, were stabbed to death in June 1994 outside Brown’s home in Brentwood, California

Tom Watling12 April 2024 13:10

Who was OJ Simpson before his wife’s infamous murder? The football star aspiring to film fame

Before OJ Simpson was accused of murdering his ex-wife and her friend – and sensationally acquitted at the “trial of the century” in 1995 – he was already a household name in the United States.

The former athlete – who died on Wednesday aged 76 after a battle with cancer – had effectively parlayed his NFL superstar status into acting and advertising stardom.

Who was OJ Simpson before the murder of his wife?

Before being accused of the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ron Goldman, Simpson was one of the best loved celebrities in North America, dubbed ‘the first black athlete to become a bona fide lovable media superstar’

Tom Watling12 April 2024 13:20

Relatives of Simpson ‘made to sign NDAs’ during visits

The family, friends and medical staff are said to have been made to non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) when visiting OJ Simpson at his home in the final days before his death.

Sources with direct knowledge have told TMZ that somewhere between 30 to 50 people – made up of friends and other family – saw OJ in person before he died on Wednesday. They are all said to signed the NDAs, and no phones were allowed in the room with him.

Chris Stevenson12 April 2024 13:26

Before Schwarzenegger, there was OJ: How OJ Simpson nearly became The Terminator

OJ Simpson nearly became the deadly cyborg assassin of James Cameron’s legendary Terminator franchise, before Arnold Schwarzenegger was cast to lead the series.

The former American football star and infamous murder suspect, who died aged 76 on Wednesday (10 April) from cancer, was revealed to have originally been cast as The Terminator.

“It was actually OJ Simpson that was the first cast Terminator,” Schwarzenegger told The Independent in 2019. “Then somehow [James Cameron] felt that he was not as believable for a killing machine. So then they hired me. That’s really what happened.”

How OJ Simpson was cast as The Terminator before Arnold Schwarzenegger

Arnold Schwarzenegger revealed to The Independent that the ex-NFL player and infamous murder suspect was originally cast to lead James Cameron’s iconic film franchise

Tom Watling12 April 2024 13:30

OJ Simpson was ‘delusional’ during infamous interview, Ruby Wax says

Ruby Wax has said OJ Simpson was “delusional” and that he “didn’t know what he had done” whilst reflecting on their 1998 interview.

The TV personality interviewed the former NFL player in 1998 after he was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ron Goldman in 1994.

Speaking on Good Morning Britain on Friday, 12 April, the comedian described her time with Simpson in Los Angeles.

She claims he repeatedly joked about the death of his Brown, once phoning Ms Wax to joke “I killed her”.

Simpson died of cancer on Wednesday 10 April aged 76.

Tom Watling12 April 2024 13:50

Nothing is important but the victims: Father of Ron Goldman, stabbed next to Nicole Brown, speaks on OJ death

INDEPENDENT EXCLUSIVE:

The father of Ron Goldman, who was murdered alongside his friend Nicole Brown, said the news of OJ Simpson’s death was a further reminder of how long his son has been gone, and how much he has been missed.

Ron Goldman, 25, and Nicole Brown, 35, were stabbed to death in June 1994 outside of her home in Brentwood, California after returning home from dinner.

Simpson, Brown’s ex-husband, was charged for their murders but aquitted in what was dubbed the “trial of the century”. A civil court later found Simpson, a former NFL player and actor, guilty of their murders.

READ MORE:

Father of murdered Ron Goldman speaks on OJ Simpson’s death

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Ron Goldman, 25, and Nicole Brown, 35, were stabbed to death in June 1994 outside of her home in Brentwood, California

Graig Graziosi12 April 2024 14:00

Gloria Allred, attorney who represented Nicole Brown’s family, on Simpson’s death

Famed attorney Gloria Allred, who represented Nicole Brown’s family during OJ Simpson’s murder trial, released a statement on Thursday following the news of his death.

She said his death was a reminder of how the legal system continues to fail women.

“Simpson’s death reminds us that the legal system even 30 years later is still failing battered women, and that the power of celebrity men to avoid true justice for the harm that they inflict on their wives or significant others is still a major obstacle to the right of women to be free of the gender violence to which they are still subjected,” she said.

Graig Graziosi12 April 2024 14:30

OJ Simpson’s fall from grace: The NFL superstar turned murder suspect and convicted kidnapper

Twenty-nine years ago, in 1995, the world was gripped by what the US media called “the trial of the century”, in which American football star and actor OJ Simpson was accused of murdering his former wife, Nicole Brown Simpson and friend Ron Goldman. They had been viciously stabbed to death.

Simpson was a superstar of sport and screen in the US, but in the UK what really made him famous was the live television coverage of police chasing his car through the streets of Los Angeles – as viewers were stunned by a celebrity becoming a wanted man.

Other drivers got out of their cars to cheer him on, in what became a real-life highlight of television history.

The story of how the American hero was suspected of turning into a villain played out dramatically in court, in one of the most notorious trials in 20th-century America.

READ MORE:

OJ Simpson’s story gripped the world: A timeline of his fall from grace

He overcame childhood illness to become a football legend, but when he was charged with murdering his ex-wife and her friend, his very name divided America

Graig Graziosi12 April 2024 15:00

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