O.J. Simpson death updates — Former American football player acquitted for killing Nicole Brown & her friend dies at 76
FORMER NFL player O.J. Simpson has tragically died at 76.
Simpson gained notoriety in particular for the 1994–1995 murder trials in which he was charged with the deaths of ex-wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ronald Goldman.
He was found not guilty on all counts in one of the highest-profile criminal cases in history.
The former running back spent 11 seasons in the NFL playing for only the Bills and San Francisco 49ers.
He was 76 at the time of his death.
Follow our O.J. Simpson death updates blog for the latest…
Tawny Kitaen died in 2021
On May 7, 2021, Tawny unexpectedly died at the age of 59.
Her daughters Wynter and Raine acknowledged her passing in a statement. She passed away at her Newport Beach residence.
"We are heartbroken and saddened to announce the death of our mom," read the statement.
"We just want to say thank you for all of you, her fans and her friends, for always showing her such support and love.
"You gave her life everyday.
"We miss her and love her and we know her legacy will live forever."
Inside OJ Simpson's relationship with Tawny Kitaen
American actress Tawny Kitaen was born on August 5, 1961.
She began an affair with OJ Simpson during his marriage to Nicole Brown Simpson. Furthermore reported was the fact that Nicole's pregnancy had a significant role in the affair.
Nicole's weight gain throughout her pregnancy was said to be one of the causes of their brief affair.
It's said that Tawny and OJ kept in touch following their affair.
It is said that Tawny continued to communicate with OJ even after his acquittal for the 1995 killings of Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman.
It was revealed to the public at his following civil trial in 1997 that they had a sexual connection.
Dave Chapelle speaks about encounter with OJ and Nicole Brown Simpson
Award-winning comedian Dave Chapelle, 50, caused a stir among fans in his Netflix special in 2019.
Throughout the show, the American comedian spoke about how he met O.J. Simpson on separate occasions.
Dave said he was 18 when he first met O.J. Simpson and added that his wife at the time, Nicole, was with him.
"I should tell you that woman was very nice to me," he said.
"She actually embraced me."
Inside OJ’s football career
After playing at the University of Southern California, Simpson was selected in the 1969 NFL Draft and spent 11 seasons in the league, mostly with the Buffalo Bills.
The record-breaking running back became a dominant force in the NFL very quickly, winning league MVP in 1973.
He went on to play 135 games in the competition.
Simpson was inducted into Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985, his first year of eligibility.
“OJ Simpson was the first player to reach a rushing mark many thought could not be attained in a 14-game season when he topped 2,000 yards,” Jim Porter said at the time.
Kim Kardashian ‘respects OJ’s children too much’ to comment on star’s innocence
Speaking in 2020, Kin Kardashian refused to comment on whether she believed OJ Simpson was innocent.
“I’ve never expressed how I’ve felt about that because I just respect his children,” she told David Letterman at the time.
After the case, Kim’s father, who died from esophageal cancer in 2003, expressed doubts over Simpson’s innocence and eventually cut all ties with him.
OJ became a ‘free man’ in 2021
In an attempt to recover sports memorabilia he believed was taken from his home in 1995, Simpson two men in a Las Vegas hotel room in September 2007.
Exactly 13 years after being declared not guilty in his murder trial, on October 3, 2008, Simpson was found guilty and given a 33-year jail sentence, with a nine-year minimum.
On October 1, 2017, O.J. Simpson was released from prison and was granted parole until December 14, 2021.
After receiving the credits and being released from parole, Simpson was deemed a “free man” in that same year.
“Mr. Simpson is a completely free man now,” said Malcolm LaVergne, Simpson’s lawyer in Las Vegas.
OJ's shocking reason for avoiding LA
OJ Simpson made headlines in 2021 for saying that he wouldn’t go to Los Angeles in fear of seeing Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman’s “real” killer.
“People may think this is self-serving, but I might be sitting next to whoever did it. I really don’t know who did this,” he said in an interview with .
“I still think I’m a good guy. I didn’t let it change me. It did for a while,” he continued.
“I was angry for a while, but I treat everybody the way I want to be treated.”
What did Jimmy Kimmel say about OJ Simpson?
Jimmy Kimmel was quick to comment following the death of OJ Simpson.
Opening his late-night show on Thursday, Kimmel said: “It was a tough day. God, I miss O.J. so much—already! I really do.
“As most of you probably know, the big story was that O.J. Simpson went to Hell today,” Kimmel continued.
“It’s rare that a celebrity as famous as O.J. was doesn’t get an outpouring of love after news of his death, but it makes sense.”
OJ’s first family pictured
Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
The last sighting of OJ Simpson
OJ Simpson looked frail and unrecognizable when he was pictured before his death.
Simpson died from prostate cancer on April 10, according to his family.
His diagnosis came to light in February, but he said at the time that he was still in good health.
However, on January 22, 2024, Simpson looked worse for wear while walking in Las Vegas.
The controversial NFL star was seen walking with a cane while wearing a ball cap and tracksuit.
Though Simpson was said to have been in hospice care, he claimed that he was in good health in February.
'Something inside him changed'
One of OJ Simpson's former teammates has described how the late star's personality shifted upon entering the world of Hollywood.
Bob Jensen spent two years playing alongside OJ as a linebacker for the USC Trojans.
"After this Hollywood thing, his personality just changed," Jensen told the US Sun.
"Some way, somehow, something changed in him and he snapped.
"I don't know, maybe got into himself, being this Heisman Trophy winner-actor and then suddenly thought he was above the law?
"I don't understand how someone can go from that to this. I'm just shocked.
"I'm still shocked to this day; I can still remember being in a hotel room and seeing his Ford Bronco being chased by police on the news."
OJ Simpson died owing $100M to murder victims, lawyer claims
OJ Simpson owed $100m to the families of murder victims Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown at the time of his death, an attorney has claimed.
Although he was spared jail, a civil trial jury found Simpson liable for the deaths of Brown and Goldman in 1997 and ordered him to pay $33.5million to their families.
The Goldman family has been pursuing these funds ever since and has reportedly only received $123,000 to date.
Now, a debt collection attorney for Goldman’s dad said Simpson died owing the family $100m due to interest.
Attorney David Cook said: “He died without penance. We don’t know what he has, where it is or who is in control.
“We will pick up where we are and keep going with it.”
What did Norm MacDonald say about OJ Simpson and why was he fired from SNL?
was a comedian and Weekend Update anchor for three seasons between 1993 and 1998.
President of NBC’s West Coast division, Don Ohlmeyer, had the comedian removed from the programme, saying at the time that this was due to a “decline in ratings and a drop-off in quality.”
However, Norm believed he was fired due to comments he made about OJ, a friend of Ohlmeyer.
The funnyman often referred to OJ as a “murderer” in his remarks, which he believed did not go down well with Ohlmeyer.
“Well, it is finally official. Murder is legal in the state of California,” Norm said after OJ’s acquittal, a move that led to the end of his time on SNL.
OJ Simpson died with ‘millions in secret bank accounts,’ part four
OJ Simpson barely paid his debt to the Brown and Goldman families.
"I've heard a lot of stories that OJ has money hidden away - I've been hearing that since back in 2008 and 2009 and lawyers have been looking for his money even before that," said David Cook, the Goldmans' attorney.
"So yes people are talking about that - we've heard repeatedly that there's money out there. Whether or not there is money out there is a different matter, I haven't seen it."
"Over the years I've had people calling me telling me they have stuff belonging to him in a storage facility or hidden here or there - we hear it all the time. Just because I haven't been able to find it, doesn't mean somebody doesn't have it."
"There is still a judgement out of Los Angeles against him, this judgment is now worth $114 million."
OJ Simpson died with ‘millions in secret bank accounts,' part three
Fromong can also be heard threatening OJ on the tape as retaliation for the showdown at the Palace Station Casino in Las Vegas on September 13, 2007.
"Nobody puts a gun in my f***ing face. I stood up for the motherf***er while he was in jail, I stood up for him in the press, I stood up for him on the stand," he said.
"I helped him set up his f***ing offshore accounts. Don’t f*** with me. It’s not over. It’s not f***ing over," Fromong yelled.
Fromong was a key witness in finding OJ guilty of the robbery in 2008, but later testified at his parole hearing that OJ was a "good man."
OJ Simpson died with ‘millions in secret bank accounts,' part two
"OJ Simpson has said, 'I will not give a goddamn nickel to Fred Goldman never, ever, ever', so if he's going to die of cancer - most people who die of cancer don't die tomorrow it takes a fair amount of time - so it would be my guess that he hid it very well so that when he dies, the Goldmans get nothing," David Cook told The U.S. Sun.
"I'm not saying I know that, but dealing with OJ Simpson and hearing him saying 'I will not pay this guy a godd**n dime' when he was alive, I think he'd do the same thing when he's dead.
Tom Riccio recorded audio after OJ and others held memorabilia collector Fromong at gunpoint, attempting to find mementos he believed were stolen.
Fromong can be heard on the tape telling fellow collector Al Beardsley that he helped OJ " set up his f***ing offshore accounts."
OJ Simpson died with 'millions in secret bank accounts'
A leaked audio tape obtained by The U.S. Sun revealed one of OJ's friends Bruce Froming saying that he helped him "set up offshore accounts."
He was ordered to pay the Goldman and Brown families $33.5 million in damages after losing a wrongful death civil suit in 1997.
OJ never paid the money but the families did receive proceeds from his book, If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer.
The Goldman's collection lawyer David Cook told The U.S. Sun that he heard stories of OJ hiding his money away.
Watch below to see the moment OJ Simpson tried on the gloves found at the murder scene during trial
Surprising whereabouts of OJ’s infamous ‘murder gloves’ revealed after NFL-star notoriously said ‘they don’t fit’OJ Simpson’s former teammate said he was ‘corrupted,’ part five
"I never knew that side of him at USC but I knew he had changed, and something had changed in him during his time in Hollywood," Jensen told The U.S. Sun.
"He went over the edge and killed those people. He went off the chart and was just a completely different guy.
"It's such a shame."
OJ Simpson’s former teammate said he was ‘corrupted,’ part four
"I was playing in a tennis tournament, and when I was done, my wife called me from the hotel and said, 'Quick, quick. Get up here! You're not going to believe this!" Jensen recalled the infamous car chase.
"And here's Al Cowlings driving the Bronco with police cars and helicopters following them. It was unbelievable.
"Not only did I know these guys, they were my patients, and I showered with these guys back in the day. It was so difficult to believe – and then the trial came."
When asked about OJ's trial, Jensen replied, "He was guilty without question."
"And you could see he had changed. He was aggressive [...] to the judge, and he wasn't humble, and he wasn't taking responsibility."
OJ Simpson’s former teammate said he was ‘corrupted,’ part three
"I don't understand how someone can go from that to this. I'm just shocked," Jensen said in his interview with The U.S. Sun.
"I'm still shocked to this day; I can still remember being in a hotel room and seeing his Ford Bronco being chased by police on the news."
Jensen added that he was shocked when OJ was arrested and charged with murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend, Ron Goldman.
When asked about the infamous car chase between OJ and the police, Jensen admitted that he watched it live and was shell-shocked.
OJ Simpson’s former teammate said he was ‘corrupted,' part two
OJ and Jensen became close friends but chose different paths after playing alongside one another in college.
After finishing dental school, Jensen became OJ's dentist in South Orange County.
Jensen said OJ remained personable and it wasn't until his career in Hollywood that he began to change for the worse.
"Some way, somehow, something changed in him and he snapped," Jensen explained.
"I don't know, maybe got into himself, being this Heisman Trophy winner-actor and then suddenly thought he was above the law?"
OJ Simpson's former teammate said he was 'corrupted'
OJ Simpson's former teammate and dentist Bob Jensen spoke exclusively to The U.S Sun on the NFL star's downfall.
Jensen played alongside OJ from 1967-69 for the USC Trojans under coach John McKay.
Jensen said that OJ had star power in college and was humble, intelligent, and charismatic.
"You can see why he made it into the movies and all things like that because he had a handle on everything. He was such a nice guy and you could tell he was destined for something big," Jensen shared.
OJ Simpson's COVID scare
OJ Simpson revealed in 2021 that he was diagnosed with a severe case of COVID-19.
He said at the time, “When I had COVID, I almost couldn’t get out of bed.
“I made it to my balcony, trying to breathe. I couldn’t catch my breath. I felt vulnerable and for the first time thought I might be near the end."
"Since that day, I have wondered, Do I want to be buried? Do I want to be cremated? Years ago, I would have left it up to Nicole because I know she would have done the right thing."
Fred Goldman said it was 'a shame' OJ didn't die from COVID
Fred Goldman, the father of Ron Goldman who was found murdered alongside Nicole Brown Simpson, made comments about OJ Simpson in 2021.
“Out of all the people who’ve passed away from COVID, what a shame he wasn’t one of them," Goldman told the .
“I certainly don’t think he deserves any sympathy. He’s alive, he’s free. He can do anything he wants. Everything my son can’t do."
The comments came after OJ battled COVID-19.
