Comments on: Simpson sentenced

Simpson sentenced

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:07:08 -0800

O.J. Simpson has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for armed robbery. Simpson will remain in custody if he appeals. He may be eligible for parole in six years. An L.A. Times timeline of Simpson's legal history.

By: lee

lee — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:08:51 -0800

Wow, 16 years, imagine what he would have received if he killed somebody.

By: dawson

dawson — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:09:09 -0800

Justice is not served when one is sentenced for previous crimes.

By: Deep Dish

Deep Dish — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:10:22 -0800

The course of history is long, but it favours justice.

By: cavalier

cavalier — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:11:31 -0800

Well, good thing he was sentenced for current crimes then?

By: monospace

monospace — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:12:09 -0800

OJ didn't do it.

By: Slack-a-gogo

Slack-a-gogo — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:14:18 -0800

Is this going to affect his new book: "If I Did It: How I Would Have Robbed Two Sports Memorabilia Dealers at Gunpoint"?

By: Auden

Auden — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:16:04 -0800

... or sentenced on the suspicion of previous crimes.

By: allkindsoftime

allkindsoftime — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:16:29 -0800

This is going to put a serious kink in his ongoing efforts to find the real killers.

By: robocop is bleeding

robocop is bleeding — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:17:15 -0800

NORDBERG, NNNOOOOOooooooo!!!

By: Dennis Murphy

Dennis Murphy — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:18:23 -0800

At least this opens up some tee times.

By: pyramid termite

pyramid termite — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:19:47 -0800

clearly, he's narrowed down the list of suspects to those who are in the nevada prison system

By: R. Mutt

R. Mutt — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:20:03 -0800

LATimes: ...his defense lawyers are asking Judge Glass that the former football player be given the minimum six-year sentence, whereas the Division of Parole and Probation has recommended a sentence of at least 18 years. The law even allows Glass to give Simpson a life sentence.

By: KevinSkomsvold

KevinSkomsvold — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:20:52 -0800

O.J. Killed/Stole The Precious Thing.

By: Halloween Jack

Halloween Jack — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:24:27 -0800

The weed of crime bears bitter fruit.

By: Floydd

Floydd — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:24:44 -0800

So the "If it's his own shit, you must aquit" line didn't work, huh?

By: tkchrist

tkchrist — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:25:41 -0800

Justice is not served when one is sentenced for previous crimes. Technically all crimes are previous crimes. Until we can predict the future like in Minority Report. But I get your meaning but I don't think that is what happened. He DID commit this particular crime, after all. It was his celebrity and involvement in a notorious previous case that kept the media spot light on him.

By: hellojed

hellojed — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:26:44 -0800

The Juice is no longer loose. Excuse me while I drive my white Ford Bronco, very slowly.

By: yonation

yonation — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:26:54 -0800

friday shit post?

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:29:58 -0800

Quick, somebody ask a black person how they feel about it!

By: tkchrist

tkchrist — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:31:19 -0800

friday shit post? C'mon. Where is your sense of nostalgia? I miss the 90's. The present is all scary and shit. How is the Long Island Lolita doing these days? Was Kurt Cobain murdered? What is Monica Lewinski up to anyway?

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:31:21 -0800

Wow, 16 years, imagine what he would have received if he killed somebody. if he did it.

By: R. Mutt

R. Mutt — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:33:47 -0800

So wait, wait ....when he found out that these guys planned to sell some OJ memorabilia, he planned and executed a robbery in order to steal back memorabilia that he had originally stashed with these guys in an attempt to avoid the memorabilia from being confiscated to pay the settlement due the families who sued him in the civil murder trial?

By: Marisa Stole the Precious Thing

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:34:39 -0800

How is the Long Island Lolita doing these days? You don't want to know.

By: R. Mutt

R. Mutt — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:34:48 -0800

Or in politics.... its not the crime but the coverup.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:36:45 -0800

Boy George just got convicted for chaining up prostitutes – coincidence?

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:37:28 -0800

I'm proud of O.J.. Thirteen years ago, he promised to bring the Real Killers to justice, and now, he has! credit to billyfleetwood

By: punkfloyd

punkfloyd — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:38:16 -0800

...and bababooey to y'all.

By: dunkadunc

dunkadunc — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:41:34 -0800

I remember when I was about ten or so and the whole OJ trial was going on. I was standing in line with my dad at the checkout at the IGA when I pointed at a tabloid and asked "Hey dad, who's OJ?" Everyone laughed, but I grew up without a TV, so I really didn't know.

By: Astro Zombie

Astro Zombie — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:41:46 -0800

I worked at a movie theater in Westwood that OJ frequented. He would call first to say he was coming, anf the manager would go around to all the employees and say "OJ is seeing a movie here today. Don't treat him differently than any other patron, and don't bring up the murders." The idea of bringing up the murders when OJ is waiting to see Kazam is irresistable, but I never did. Because I didn't want him to cut my head off with a knife.

By: hellojed

hellojed — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:45:34 -0800

I miss the 90's. The present is all scary and shit. Yeah, I'm going home and firing up Marathon:Infinity while sipping the last of my Zima, Ska will be blaring in the background. I don't know if I can get more 90's than that.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:47:49 -0800

Boy George just got convicted for chaining up prostitutes – coincidence? There's the name of a Culture Club song I was about to repeat here, but that would be a cheap way to get laughs. I'll let you guys think it over.

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:50:07 -0800

""OJ is seeing a movie here today. Don't treat him differently than any other patron, and don't bring up the murders."" Your manager obviously didn't want anyone to blow his cover while he was looking for the real killers at a matinee of Toy Story 2.

By: MasonDixon

MasonDixon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:50:42 -0800

I assume he's going to be kept in solitary and not thrown into the wonderful circus of the general prison population? (Although in my mind I keep seeing him being "humbled" in some way by Oz's Vern Schillinger and that thought pleases me.)

By: Astro Zombie

Astro Zombie — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:51:14 -0800

You Know I'm Not Crazy? Take Control? Love Twist? I'm Afraid of Me? White Boys Can't Control It? Do You Really Want to Hurt Me? They all work!

By: tkchrist

tkchrist — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:53:15 -0800

Karma Chameleon?

By: grubi

grubi — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:53:25 -0800

I don't know if I can get more 90's than that. Well, if you're wearing a flannel shirt and Doc Martens, you've 'bout done it.

By: Navelgazer

Navelgazer — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:53:49 -0800

How is the Long Island Lolita doing these days? Was Kurt Cobain murdered? What is Monica Lewinski up to anyway? Embroiled in a sex-tape scandal. Still yes. Recently got her masters from the London School of Economics.

By: kirkaracha

kirkaracha — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:58:42 -0800

"Boy Boy (I'm the Boy)"? "Mistake No. 3"? Ska will be blaring in the background. I don't know if I can get more 90's than that. Ska-core, surely?

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:58:45 -0800

sipping the last of my Zima I was at an antiques store last weekend and saw a Zima neon sign. I always wondered what would happen to the 90s, and apparently it's been consigned to a dusty corner of a junk pile in an antiques store.

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:02:03 -0800

The LA Times timeline doesn't start far enough back. O.J. started getting off easy when he was still a teenager because of his athletic ability. ... Raised in the tough Potrero Hill district of San Francisco, he had long since buffed his rough edges, a process that began when no less a hero than Willie Mays had stepped in to interrupt Simpson's troubled young life. Arrested for robbing a liquor store, the 14-year-old Simpson spent a weekend in juvenile hall and was greeted upon his release by the San Francisco Giant superstar, who persuaded the youth not to waste his already apparent talent. Remade by athletic success at Galileo High, City College of San Francisco, Southern Cal and then the NFL, Simpson was so self-effacing and eager to please that he was deemed unthreatening to whites and thus became the first black athlete to be embraced as an endorser of products not marketed solely to blacks. Exposed to the good life, he belonged to the best country clubs and moved in the best social circles. He lived a seemingly lucky life. ...

By: Dr-Baa

Dr-Baa — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:05:51 -0800

Ska will be blaring in the background. I don't know if I can get more 90's than that. Not ska. Swing music.

By: Dennis Murphy

Dennis Murphy — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:06:07 -0800

Justice is not served when one is sentenced for previous crimes. Every crime you've committed was previous. /mitch hedberg

By: Scattercat

Scattercat — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:06:39 -0800

I'm just glad that this time around I didn't have to hear nonstop blather about the idiotic minutiae of his time in court. I was driven nuts and we had neither television nor newspapers at my house (more because of borderline poverty than any sort of high-flown aesthetics). I can't imagine what it must have been like for someone who actually watched TV back then.

By: Sailormom

Sailormom — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:11:18 -0800

I'll Tumble 4 ya? Crime Time? The Crying Game?

By: rocket88

rocket88 — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:15:28 -0800

Too bad they already remade The Longest Yard.

By: TheOnlyCoolTim

TheOnlyCoolTim — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:16:03 -0800

A Chesterton man suspected in a string of business burglaries committed last year in Northwest Indiana—including a rash of them in Downtown Chesterton in the summer and fall of 2007—has been sentenced to eight years in the Department of Corrections (DOC), after pleading guilty to two counts of burglary.

By: jcruelty

jcruelty — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:16:16 -0800

The tough Potrero Hill district of SF? I guess they mean towards the projects, cos the area near Chez Papa... not so tough these days

By: Bookhouse

Bookhouse — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:17:22 -0800

Well, if you're wearing a flannel shirt and Doc Martens, you've 'bout done it. I realized the other day that while I do a pretty good job of hiding it*, my idea of what "cool" is was burned into my head in 1992, when I was fifteen. Specifically, "cool" is the style the Beastie Boys employed during the Check Your Head era. Those three guys at that moment in time will always be impossibly cool to me. And the farther away in time that moment becomes, to more and more I'm like a mulleted fortysomething dude in a Camero blaring "Godzilla." And I'm learning to be okay with that. *not that I lie about it or anything. I'm just not walking around in gigantic jeans and a XXXL bowling shirt anymore.

By: strangeleftydoublethink

strangeleftydoublethink — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:17:33 -0800

his defense lawyers are asking Judge Glass that the former football player be given the minimum six-year sentence Lawyer: Judge, we ask that you give our client, the former football player, the minimum six-year sentence.

By: Astro Zombie

Astro Zombie — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:20:49 -0800

I bet OJ still plays football. He just now ploays it with stolen equipment and severed heads.

By: JHarris

JHarris — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:23:32 -0800

D'oh!

By: Potomac Avenue

Potomac Avenue — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:25:43 -0800

was it "I'm Going To Chain You Up Like A Norwegian Manwhore?" ???

By: quin

quin — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:25:45 -0800

I was completely infuriated by this earlier today. Not the sentencing itself, but the reaction to it: by nature of the work I do, there are a lot of TVs hung around the office, their omnipresence ensures that people rarely actually look at them unless something exciting is happening. I'm sitting at my desk and I notice about five people gathered under one of them, a glance in the other direction reveals almost fifteen staring with rapt fascination at another. I started getting worried, I mean, with the recent attacks I figured it must be something really terrible to draw such an audience. I walk over, dreading what horrible news I would see, and that's when I realize that it's about fucking OJ Simpson. Are you kidding me? No one even glanced at the TVs when the bombs were going off last week, but OJ Who Gives A Fuck Simpson still manages to draw a huge crowd? Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? I mean, I get the weirdness that after his big trial that he'd be dumb enough to be put in a situation where he was accused of another crime, but beyond that, why does he still command such interest? I don't know. I just know for some reason, that it irritated me to no end.

By: Potomac Avenue

Potomac Avenue — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:29:25 -0800

was it "I'm Going To Chain You Up Like A Norwegian Manwhore?" ??? Wait nevermind that was Dead or Alive. I'm stumped!

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:30:41 -0800

In response to the OJ verdict, President-Elect Obama will be addressing the nation tonight at 8 PM EST on all the major news outlets, including Larry King.

By: milarepa

milarepa — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:30:55 -0800

Those three guys [beastie boys!] at that moment in time will always be impossibly cool to me. That made me sad. I so am sorry that happened to you.

By: found missing

found missing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:31:08 -0800

It really bothers me that quin paid attention to those people paying attention to OJ. There are so many better things in the world to be peeved about--and this is what commands his interest? Disgusting.

By: falconred

falconred — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:32:18 -0800

The 15 or 16 year figure is misleading. OJ is parole eligable after 9 years or so. To do that, he has to make his first parole board for each of the consecutive counts. There are 4 consecutive counts. Each time he is eligable for parole on 1 of those counts he has to appear before the parole board and get them to agree to parole him on that count before he starts serving the next consecutive sentence. Putting a number on the maximum possible time he could spend in custody is difficult because of the way "good time" credits are awarded in the prisons here. Personally, I would be shocked if he spent more than 15 years in, and I think he'll make parole after about 10 years. It gets even more complicated if any of the counts are overturned on appeal (which the kidnapping may well be).

By: burnmp3s

burnmp3s — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:34:58 -0800

I'm sick and tired of people who pay attention to when other people pay attention to what other people are paying attention to. Shame on you, found missing.

By: Durn Bronzefist

Durn Bronzefist — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:37:26 -0800

They all work! ... I'm Afraid of Me Victims It's a Miracle Yeah, I think we definitely know who's snagging the soundtrack for the movie.

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:39:08 -0800

Bookhouse - you are right, the rest of the world is wrong.

By: strangeleftydoublethink

strangeleftydoublethink — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:39:09 -0800

by nature of the work I do, there are a lot of TVs hung around the office It really bothers me that quin paid attention to those people paying attention to OJ. It bothers me that quin refers to his local sports bar as the office.

By: Marisa Stole the Precious Thing

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:39:35 -0800

The 15 or 16 year figure is misleading. OJ is parole eligable after 9 years or so. Six years, according to Bloomberg, which is why I put it in the FPP itself. And I don't understand how it's "misleading" - every sentence carries with it the possibility (or not) for parole, not to mention early release for good behavior or overcrowding. 16 years was his sentence; that's not an assertion that he will be in prison for 16 years.

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:43:33 -0800

It bothers me that quin refers to his local sports bar as the office. Detective Columbo is on the case. Oh wait, that's from the 80s.

By: hellojed

hellojed — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:49:58 -0800

Well, if you're wearing a flannel shirt and Doc Martens, you've 'bout done it. I almost bought this a while back. I think if I wore a flannel shirt over that, I'd be gold. If I throw in the old Powerbook 540c I have lying around, I've got myself a Halloween costume.

By: klangklangston

klangklangston — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:08:48 -0800

"Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? I mean, I get the weirdness that after his big trial that he'd be dumb enough to be put in a situation where he was accused of another crime, but beyond that, why does he still command such interest?" If they're my age, it's because they probably watched the verdict the first time around in high school. We even had a TV in the lunch room for it.

By: MCMikeNamara

MCMikeNamara — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:10:47 -0800

Charged with the murder of his ex-wife and her friend, a former professional football player and actor, once acquitted, vows not to rest until he finds the real killers. When all his clues lead to men already behind bars, he realizes his only choice is to get himself arrested for armed robbery and thrown in prison in order to clear his name and find the truth. Prison Break:Season Five Starring O.J. Simpson You're welcome, Fox. (Except from what I hear, this plot is too realistic for the comedy that is now Prison Break.)

By: ShawnString

ShawnString — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:22:38 -0800

hellojed (great nick btw....*I* get it, my copy I had Doug sign) We have that Power Computing poster (the one that says Lets Kick Intels Ass) in the closet at the shop where I work. and Bookman you totally described what in my closet right now. I was so excited when I found a pair of US made Chuck Taylors at the Thrift Store.

By: not_on_display

not_on_display — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:47:47 -0800

That Hertz.

By: Carol Anne

Carol Anne — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:51:38 -0800

The tough Potrero Hill district of SF? I guess they mean towards the projects, cos the area near Chez Papa... not so tough these days posted by jcruelty O.J. is 61 years old. Potrero Hill was a blue-collar neighborhood back then.

By: autodidact

autodidact — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:03:06 -0800

16 fucking years for robbery? Sickening.

By: Amanojaku

Amanojaku — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:03:18 -0800

Are you kidding me? No one even glanced at the TVs when the bombs were going off last week, but OJ Who Gives A Fuck Simpson still manages to draw a huge crowd? Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? I mean, I get the weirdness that after his big trial that he'd be dumb enough to be put in a situation where he was accused of another crime, but beyond that, why does he still command such interest? I don't know. I just know for some reason, that it irritated me to no end. It's not like the guy's Paris Hilton -- he's one of the biggest athlete/celebrities of his era and an unconvicted double-murderer of the most gruesome sort, who is now reaping the delayed rewards of a lifetime of criminal misdeeds. How is that not a reasonable thing for people to be interested in? And before you return to your point about Mumbai, I have to assume you probably weren't chastising the people who were paying attention to the terrorist attacks for not instead paying attention to the election riots in Nigeria, which left twice as many dead, right? I don't mean to jump on you -- it just doesn't hurt to remember that "importance" is not an absolute, inherent value.

By: swift

swift — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:10:57 -0800

How will Hollwood recover, that's what I'd like to know.

By: found missing

found missing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:17:08 -0800

Is there anything funnier than prison rape?

By: falconred

falconred — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:19:49 -0800

And I don't understand how it's "misleading" - every sentence carries with it the possibility (or not) for parole Sorry, I was specifically taking issue with some major media outlets (MSNBC, CNN) who were originally reported he was sentenced to "at least" 15 years, etc. And while it is called the "possibility" of parole, it is a very rare case when someone does not get paroled before the end of their sentence. Plus with good time credits it is also very rare for someone to actually serve the full upper end of their sentence.

By: dunkadunc

dunkadunc — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:24:15 -0800

I can't imagine his previous trial didn't color the outcome of this one. Did he really think that planning this armed robbery was such a good idea?

By: Marisa Stole the Precious Thing

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:28:57 -0800

Sorry, I was specifically taking issue with some major media outlets (MSNBC, CNN) who were originally reported he was sentenced to "at least" 15 years, etc. Ah, gotcha. Yeah, I just saw a headline at MSNBC saying "OJ Could Get Up to 22 Years". I'm hoping CNN or Fox will raise the ante to "OJ Could Be Keelhauled" or "OJ Must Battle the Kraken".

By: Joe Beese

Joe Beese — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:30:30 -0800

In Hunter S. Thompson's "The Temptations of Jean-Claude Killy, O.J. shows up hawking Chevrolets at a car show. When I read it now, I think about the futures waiting for both men. I'm morbid that way.

By: xmutex

xmutex — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:31:12 -0800

16 fucking years for robbery? Sickening. Armed robbery and kidnapping, bro.

By: Kadin2048

Kadin2048 — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:31:18 -0800

Is there anything funnier than prison rape? Hans Reiser jokes?

By: jason's_planet

jason's_planet — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:45:05 -0800

to more and more I'm like a mulleted fortysomething dude in a Camero blaring "Godzilla." Wait a minute . . . this isn't cool? aw, shit. *crestfallen look on j_p's face*

By: Artw

Artw — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 14:57:46 -0800

jason's_planet - As far as I can tell, if you get an hour or two outside of any US city it's still the 1980s there, so you might be in luck.

By: psmealey

psmealey — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:07:17 -0800

Time to dust off my "Orange Jumpsuit" pun.

By: maxwelton

maxwelton — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:18:07 -0800

To do that, he has to make his first parole board for each of the consecutive counts. Rehabilitated? To me that's just a made up word.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:18:17 -0800

Oh, no, there goes Tokyo...

By: mediareport

mediareport — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:28:48 -0800

NPR reported tonight that it will be at least 9 years before OJ is eligible for parole.

By: Tube

Tube — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:04:53 -0800

Perhaps the weapon that killed Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman was a Buck knife, and was never recovered due to its effective concealment in OJ's rectum.

By: Mikey-San

Mikey-San — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:18:19 -0800

I really could not have predicted that I would come into an O.J. Simpson thread and find a Marathon: Infinity reference.

By: krinklyfig

krinklyfig — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:47:35 -0800

Embroiled in a sex-tape scandal. Still yes. Recently got her masters from the London School of Economics. Ah, sort of a Renaissance woman, then.

By: king walnut

king walnut — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:47:45 -0800

Al Capone           11 years
OJ Simpson          16 years
Bernhard Goetz       1 year
George Bush          0 years

By: krinklyfig

krinklyfig — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:49:43 -0800

So far, king walnut, so far.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:59:06 -0800

Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? The other day, I found my copy of The Book Of Lists which was published in the mid-70's. It had a list of "The Heroes Of Young America" according to a poll conducted by some magazine. Guess who was #1? OJ Simpson. There's also an old episode of Godd Times I watched a rerun of a few months back where JJ and Thelma are arguing the merits of male versus female celebrities. Thelma yells the name sof some stars of the day, and in response, JJ just keeps bellowing "OJ Simpson!" That's how famous this guy was. And twenty-odd years later, he gets accused of murdering two people. That's a pretty impressive fall from grace. And people do like celebrity falls from grace. There had been minor celbrities accused and convicted of murder before (Spade Cooley, for instance, or Fatty Arbuckle) and God knows there'd been plenty of celebrity scandal, but nobody had ever faller so far from such a height before. The only thing remotely close would be Michael Jackson troubles. To top the OJ saga, we'd have to find out that Brad and Angelina are out serial killing homeless people with hatchets or something.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 17:17:49 -0800

Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? Pretty sure he's one of the first- if not the first - black celebrity to be featured in a national ad campaign - Avis Rent-A-Car, running through an airport, leaping suitcases. About a million years before Michael Jordan.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 17:21:36 -0800

Pretty sure he's one of the first- if not the first - black celebrity to be featured in a national ad campaign - Avis Rent-A-Car, running through an airport, leaping suitcases. IIRC, in one of those spots he was actually 'flying' through the airport. When I first heard about the chase, that was the first mental picture that popped into my head.

By: Bookhouse

Bookhouse — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:12:56 -0800

Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? I quote James Ellroy: This is one gigantic L.A.-set Russian novel that exceeds the most extreme visions of Los Angeles as a bottomless black hole of depravity. This is a bottomless meditation on celebrity that will not eclipse until someone more famous than O.J. Simpson is accused of murdering two people sexier than Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman in a considerably more outre manner. This is a story told in a thousand voices -- one of those microcosmic, kaleidoscopic, multi-viewpoint jobs that sum up a time and place with interlocking subplots that go on forever.

By: DU

DU — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:14:41 -0800

Don't treat him differently than any other patron, and don't bring up the murders. For me, these are mutually exclusive instructions.

By: l33tpolicywonk

l33tpolicywonk — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:23:04 -0800

Yeah, but in OJ's defense, only one of those crimes was tried during the lifespan of Court TV. That's just good PR, if you ask me. (NOT OJ-IST)

By: msconduct

msconduct — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:29:06 -0800

back in june, 1994, i'd been out all day showing some relatives the sights around town. i came home, and the future ex was watching 'the chase' on television. 'what's this?' i asked. 'oj simpson,' he said, and dutifully started to explain why he was watching a white ford bronco creep along followed by a gazillion police cars. 'no, really. what is this?' i asked again. he repeated. 'oj?' i asked. 'OJ????' it was as unthinkable to me that oj simpson could have hurt a fly as to find out that the pope had just raped the queen. for the younger set: to find out that mr. rodgers gave mr. mcfeely his nickname based on antics back in the sweater room. oj WAS a hero. he was an outstanding athlete, the guy who leaped through airports, and just a heck of a nice guy. or so most of america thought. it wasn't 24 hours after the initial shock set in that i realized that people aren't always what you think they are. it's a pity. really. the man had everything--EVERYTHING--going for him. whatever other sins he might have committed, perhaps the biggest one is shattering the trust several hundred million people.

By: fixedgear

fixedgear — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 19:46:27 -0800

whatever other sins he might have committed, perhaps the biggest one is shattering the trust several hundred million people. Not really, no. I had zero expectations for him; he wasn't even on my radar screen. Another has-been athlete doing crappy color commentary at that point in time.

By: fourcheesemac

fourcheesemac — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 20:00:49 -0800

Payback, motherfucker, she is a righteous bitch. What that dude did, without question did, was just pure evil.

By: ryanrs

ryanrs — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:08:49 -0800

>>Is there anything funnier than prison rape? >Hans Reiser jokes? Tail Packing.

By: Mikey-San

Mikey-San — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:42:07 -0800

whatever other sins he might have committed, perhaps the biggest one is shattering the trust several hundred million people. Pissing on the emotions and trust of a very large group is still not on the same level as murdering two people. "It ain't the same fuckin' ballpark. It ain't the same league. It ain't even the same fuckin' sport."

By: scheptech

scheptech — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 21:54:51 -0800

Why is this guy still newsworthy? Why are so many riveted by his every move? He's a famous murderer who (uniquely?) was the former before becoming the latter.

By: swell

swell — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 22:59:14 -0800

The idea of bringing up the murders when OJ is waiting to see Kazam is irresistable, but I never did. Because I didn't want him to cut my head off with a knife. No jury would convict OJ if he'd killed someone who charged him $6 to see Kazzaam.

By: bardic

bardic — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 01:23:20 -0800

I remember watching the OJ verdict when I was in college. I read all of Plato's Republic twice, Milton's Paradise Lost three times, every play by Shakespeare (I'll admit, I'm pretentious that way). This is probably my third or fourth most vivid memory from university.

By: deusdiabolus

deusdiabolus — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 02:23:20 -0800

Quick, somebody ask a black person how they feel about it! He knew what he was doing. I understand how he felt about the items he lost and why he would react that way, but...what can I say? Law is law. Maybe now he can work on his temper. But personally? I don't care. I feel sorry for his kids, but I just don't care about anything else related to OJ. I don't care about much of anything these days.