Orenthal James Simpson was an American actor, NFL football player and broadcaster. Sadly, he passed away due to cancer on April 10, 2024, at age 76. He left a big legacy behind. This article will cover his life’s journey including topics like OJ Simpson Net Worth, Death, Trial, Daughter, Kids, Books, Wife, Stats & Biography.
| Basic Biography/Wiki | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Orenthal James Simpson |
| Born / Date of birth | July 9, 1947 |
| Date of Death | April 10, 2024 |
| Age (at the time of Death) | 76 |
| Cause of Death | Prostate cancer |
| Place of Death | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Profession or Career field | American football player, actor, and broadcaster |
| Famous for | His murder trial, acquittal, becoming one of the best running backs in NFL |
Early life: Parents, Siblings
OJ Simpson was born in San Francisco, California. He grew up in a low-income Potrero Hill neighbourhood. In 1952, his parents separated when he was just 4 years old. OJ’s mother took care of him and his siblings after that. His mother Eunice Simpson (née Durden) was a psychiatric ward administrator and his father Jimmy Lee Simpson was a Federal Reserve Bank employee and a cook. Jimmy Lee was also a bank’s and private club’s custodian.
In the Bay Area, Jimmy was also a popular drag queen. He was gay and came out with it publicly in his later life. Then in 1986, he died of AIDS.
OJ’s aunt liked a French actor named Orenthal, so she gave that name to OJ Simpson. That is the reason why OJ has Orenthal in his name.
| Birthplace | San Francisco, California, USA |
| Nickname or Popular Name | The Juice |
| Father Name | Jimmy Lee Simpson |
| Mother Name | Eunice Simpson (née Durden) |
| Brother Name | Melvin Leon “Truman” Simpson |
| Sister Name | Shirley Simpson-Baker, Carmelita Simpson-Durio (deceased) |
| Zodiac sign or Sun Sign | Cancer |
| Hometown | San Francisco, California, USA |
| Last Residence / Address | Las Vegas, Nevada, USA |
| Mother tongue / Language | English |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Food Habits and Choices | Non-vegetarian |
| Hobbies and interests | Watching Movies and Football |
Simpson also joined a street gang named Persian Warriors in his teenage years. Due to this, he had to spend some time at the San Francisco Youth Guidance Center. Marguerite (his future wife) described him as an awful man in his street gang’s days. OJ started dating Marguerite in his high school days.
By the time he met Willie Mays (baseball star), he was already arrested 3 times. Willie Mays motivated him to avoid troubles in future. According to OJ, Wille’s advice gave him enough motivation to reform.
Physical Appearance: Height, Weight & Measurements
| Physical stats & more | Values |
| Height (approx) | in centimetres – 185.42 cm in feet and inches – 6 ft 1 in in metres – 1.854 m |
| Weight (approx) | in kilograms – 96 kg in pounds – 212 lb |
| Hair colour | Black |
| Eye colour | Black |
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Education Background: Qualifications
| School | Galileo Academy of Science and Technology (former name: Galileo High School), San Francisco, California |
| College/University | – City College of San Francisco (1965–1966) – University of Southern California (USC) (1967–1968) |
| Educational Qualification/Degree | – |
OJ played football for Galileo High School in his high school days. His school’s football team was known as Galileo Lions. Simpson also earned money by organizing dances and charging admission. At the University of Southern California, OJ won the Heisman Trophy in his senior year while playing for the USC Trojans. Finally, he graduated in 1965.
Personal life: OJ Simpson Daughter, Wife, Family, Marriage
| Marital status | Divorced |
| Wife | Nicole Brown Simpson (divorced), Marguerite Whitley (divorced) |
| Past Relationship, affair (boyfriend or girlfriend) | – |
| Number of Children | 5 (Two sons, Three daughters) |
| Son | Justin Ryan Simpson, Jason Simpson |
| Daughter | Sydney Brooke Simpson, Aaren Simpson, Arnelle Simpson |
OJ Simpson was a divorced man at the end of his life. He married two women in his lifetime. His first wife was Marguerite Whitley, whom he married in 1967. They had 3 children together. However, one of them died at age 2 by drawing in their family’s swimming pool in 1979. This was the same year when OJ Simpson and Marguerite got a divorce.
OJ Simpson and wife Nicole Brown Simpson
After divorcing his first wife Marguerite in 1979, Simpson married Nicole Brown in 1985. Simpson first met Nicole when he was married to his first wife, and she was a 17-year-old waitress. The couple had 2 children together. Among them, his daughter is Sydney Brooke Simpson and his son is Justin Ryan Simpson.
It was later reported that Nicole called the police on OJ Simpson in the incidents where he struck her. To the spousal abuse charges in 1989, Simpson pleaded no contest. Later on June 12, 1994, Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman were stabbed to death. OJ Simpson was the main suspect in that case. However, he was acquitted of those murder charges.
OJ Simpson Death due to Cancer
Simpson was suffering from prostate cancer. He made the news of his illness public in May 2023 and expressed his optimistic feelings about beating the illness. Then, Simpson was undergoing his cancer treatment in February 2024. Unfortunately, a few weeks after that, OJ Simpson died of prostate cancer on April 10, 2024. He was 76 years old at the time of his death.
OJ Simpson’s family also confirmed the reports of his death through social media. They posted on Simpson’s X (formerly Twitter) account and said that their father Orenthal James Simpson had succumbed to his battle with cancer. They also stated that Simpson’s children and grandchildren were around him in his last moments.
Professional Career
| Years Active | 1965 – 2024 |
| NFL draft | 1969 (Round: 1 / Pick: 1) |
| Buffalo Bills (football team) | 1969–1977 |
| San Francisco 49ers (football team) | 1978–1979 |
11 years of OJ Simpson’s life were spent in the National Football League (NFL). For most of this time, he played with the Buffalo Bills. He was also considered as a great running back.
- From 1972 to 1976, 1st-team All-Pro and 5 consecutive Pro Bowl selections were received by him.
- In rushing yards, he led the league 4 times. On the other hand in rushing touchdowns, he led the league 2 times. Moreover, he also became NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) after becoming the first player to rush for more than 2000 yards in a season.
- For a single season, his yards-per-game average record stands at 143.1.
- in 1979, he retired from the San Francisco 49ers and started pursuing a sports broadcasting and acting career.
- Many products and companies also made him their spokesman. One of those notable companies was Hertz (a car rental company).
- Many Football halls of fame have included OJ Simpson in their lists.
OJ Simpson NFL Career Stats
| Receiving touchdowns | 14 |
| Receiving yards | 2,142 |
| Rushing average | 4.7 |
| Rushing yards | 11,236 |
| Rushing touchdowns | 61 |
| Receptions | 203 |
OJ Simpson Movies & TV Shows
Over the years, Simpson has acted in many movies and TV series. All of them are mentioned below.
| Year | Movie / TV Series Title | Role Played |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Who Is America? | Himself |
| 2011 | Jail | Himself |
| 2006 | Juiced with O. J. Simpson | Himself |
| 1994 | Frogmen | John ‘Bullfrog’ Burke |
| 1994 | Naked Gun 33 1⁄3: The Final Insult | Detective Nordberg |
| 1993 | No Place to Hide | Allie Wheeler |
| 1993 | For Goodness Sake | Man in restaurant |
| 1993 | CIA Code Name: Alexa | Nick Murphy |
| 1993 | Adventures in Wonderland | Himself |
| 1991 | The Naked Gun 2 1⁄2: The Smell of Fear | Det. Nordberg |
| 1989 | In the Heat of the Night | Councilman Lawson Stiles |
| 1988 | The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! | Detective Nordberg |
| 1987 | Back to the Beach | Man at Airport |
| 1987 | Student Exchange | Soccer Coach |
| 1985–91 | 1st & Ten | T.D. Parker |
| 1983 | Hambone and Hillie | Tucker |
| 1983 | Cocaine and Blue Eyes | Michael Brennen |
| 1981 | Goldie and the Boxer Go to Hollywood | Joe Gallagher |
| 1980 | Detour to Terror | Lee Hayes |
| 1979 | Goldie and the Boxer | Joe Gallagher |
| 1979 | Firepower | Catlett |
| 1978 | Capricorn One | Cmdr. John Walker |
| 1978 | Saturday Night Live | Host |
| 1977 | Roots | Kadi Touray |
| 1977 | A Killing Affair | Woodrow York |
| 1976 | Killer Force | Alexander |
| 1976 | The Cassandra Crossing | Haley |
| 1974 | The Towering Inferno | Jernigan |
| 1974 | The Klansman | Garth |
| 1974 | O. J. Simpson: Juice on the Loose | Himself |
| 1972 | Cade’s County | Jeff Hughes |
| 1974 | Why? | The Athlete |
| 1969 | The Dream of Hamish Mose | Unknown |
| 1969 | Medical Center | Bru Wiley |
| 1968 | Dragnet 1968 | Student |
| 1968 | Ironside | Onlooker |
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Controversies & Legal Battles History
Simpson was part of many controversies and legal cases throughout his life. Moreover, a TV show about his legal troubles titled The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story was released on February 2, 2016. This was the first season of the American Crime Story series.
As its title, The People v. O. J. Simpson suggests, it revolved around the murder case of O. J. Simpson and the Los Angeles Police Department’s history with African-American people. This series was based on a book titled The Run of His Life: The People v. O. J. Simpson (1997). The author of this book was Jeffrey Toobin.
All of OJ Simpson’s cases and controversies are mentioned below.
OJ Simpson Trial for Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman murders
Simpson’s wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman were both found stabbed to death on June 12, 1994. This incident occurred outside Nicole’s condo in the Brentwood neighbourhood of Los Angeles.
In 1989, Simpson had already pleaded no contest to a domestic violence charge against Nicole. So he was a person of interest in Nicole and her friend’s murder case. Police gathered evidence, charges were filed, and an arrest warrant was issued for OJ Simpson. Simpson talked with his attorneys and agreed to his scheduled arrest at 11:00 am on June 17. He was supposed to turn himself in at the Parker Center police headquarters.
OJ Simpson Car Chase in Ford Bronco SUV
Simpson failed to turn himself in at the scheduled time or place. Then, a look speed pursuit took place in which police were trying to catch OJ Simpson, who was a passenger in a 1993 white Ford Bronco SUV. Al Cowlings, his former teammate and old friend, was driving this vehicle. Al Cowlings was also his former teammate.
Cowlings stated that Simpson had a pistol with him while he was sitting in the back seat of his car. He further said that Simpson threatened to shoot himself if he was not taken back to his Brentwood estate while pointing that gun toward his head. As a result, California Highway Patrol followed their vehicle with extreme caution.
1994 NBA Finals were interrupted on the TV as this incident was broadcast live on many TV stations with a combined estimated audience of around 95 million people. With this kind of TV exposure, this event was known as the most popular ride since Paul Revere’s.
OJ Simpson was later arrested, and his trial became one of the most gossiped topics among the American people.
- Who was OJ Simpson’s lawyer? – The defence counsel of Simpson included lawyers like Robert Kardashian, Robert Shapiro and Johnnie Cochran. On the other side, the lead prosecutor for the state of California was F. Lee Bailey. Marcia Clark.
- The scale of this trial was compared with the Lindbergh kidnapping and Sacco and Vanzetti because of its international publicity.
- On October 3, 1995, this trial was concluded after a long period of 11 months.
- The trial resulted in a “not guilty” verdict for the two murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman.
- It was estimated that overall, 100 million tuned in to watch or listen to the announcement of this verdict.
- OJ Simpson was acquitted of murder charges and no further convictions or arrests were made.
- Reactions to this verdict were different for different racial groups, which further exposed the racial divide in American society. A Los Angeles County poll was conducted to record the reactions of residents. African Americans were satisfied with the “not guilty” verdict and called it justice. However, the majority of Latinos and Whites did not consider it justice. Furthermore, in a 2016 poll, 57% of black Americans and 83% of white Americans believed that Simpson was responsible for the murders.
Wrongful Death Civil Trial
Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson’s families filed a civil lawsuit against OJ Simpson right after his acquittal of criminal charges. In this case, Fred (Ronald Goldman’s father) was represented by Daniel Petrocelli. On the other side, Simpson was represented by Robert Baker. The Supreme Court judge in this case was Hiroshi Fujisaki who stopped the TV, radio, courtroom sketch artists and still cameras in the courtroom. Opening statements took place on October 23, 1996. On January 16, 1997, both sides rested the case.
By a Civil jury in Santa Monica, California, OJ Simpson was found liable for the wrongful death and battery against Goldman, and battery against Brown on February 5, 1997. The verdict of this jury was unanimous. As a result, Simpson was instructed to pay $33,500,000 in damages. Among them, $8.5 million were the compensatory damages to the Goldman family and $12.5 million were the punitive damages to both families.
- Simpson was getting a yearly pension from the NFL which was $28,000. Goldman’s family tried to collect this pension but failed to get any money. However, The Heisman Trophy of OJ Simpson was later auctioned in February 1999. It was valued at $500,000. This money went to the Goldman family.
- Simpson defaulted on his mortgages in 1997 at a house he called home for 20 years. This house was situated at 360 North Rockingham Avenue. The lender foreclosed this house’s property.
- Goldman’s father again took Simpson to court to get control over his “right to publicity”. It was done to satisfy the civil court case’s judgement. A federal judge issued a restraining order which stopped Simpson from spending any advance he may have received as a result of a cancelled book deal as well as TV interviews about the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman in 1994. Because of the lack of jurisdiction, that matter was dismissed before trial.
- California State judge further issued a restraining order on January 19, 2007. It restricted Simpson’s “ordinary and necessary living expenses”.
- Again on March 13, 2007, a judge ordered Simpson’s bundled book rights to be auctioned and prevented him from getting any more compensation from the TV interviews and defunct book deal.
- Florida bankruptcy court in August 2007 gave the rights of his book to the Goldman family. It was done to satisfy the unpaid civil judgment. The book was previously titled “If I Did It”. Later the book was renamed to If I Did It: Confessions of the Killer. In this new title “If” was reduced in size on the cover, which made it appear as if the title was saying I Did It: Confessions of the Killer. Author Pablo Fenjves and investigative journalist Dominick Dunne also added material in this book on behalf of the Goldman family.
Other legal cases
- On September 1, 1999, a tax lien was filed in Simpson’s case. California state in the year 2007 claimed that Simpson owed $1.44 million in back taxes.
- Simpson tried to register words like The Juice, O. J. Simpson and O. J. as trademarks for his many goods like trading cards, sportswear, figurines, coins, prepaid telephone cards and medallions. William B. Ritchie (a concerned citizen) sued to oppose this registration of trademarks and said that doing so would be scandalous and immoral. Simpson gave up on that trademark registration idea in 2000 and decided to leave California for Florida to settle in Miami.
- In Miami-Dade County, Florida, Simpson was arrested for burglary and simple battery of an occupied conveyance. It was done for yanking the glasses of another motorist in February 2001 during a dispute in traffic three months before the arrest. In October 2001, he was acquitted of those charges.
- On December 4, 2001, it was suspected that ecstasy ecstasy possession and money laundering were taking place in his house. 10 other suspects were arrested as the FBI received a tip that Simpson along with others was involved in a major drug trafficking ring. FBI searched his home based on these allegations. However, no illegal drugs were found in his house after a search by the FBI, which lasted for 2 hours.
- Simpson was arrested again on July 4, 2002, in Miami-Dade County. Allegedly, he was water-speeding into a manatee protection zone and did not comply with boating regulations. Simpson was fined for speeding in this case however his misdemeanor boating regulation charge was dropped.
- DirecTV, a satellite television network in March 2004 accused Simpson of using illegal electronic devices to private its broadcast signals. This case went to Miami Federal court and the company won a $25,000 judgment. Further, Simpson was also instructed to pay $33,678 in attorney’s fees and costs.
- OJ was arrested in 2007 in Las Vegas. This time, charges that were put against him were armed robbery and kidnapping. He was convicted of those charges and was sentenced to 33 years of prison with a minimum of 9 years without parole. His imprisonment was served at the Lovelock Correctional Center, Nevada. Later, he was released on October 1, 2017, on parole.
Lifestyle: OJ Simpson Net Worth, Status, Money
According to a court filing, OJ Simpson declared that he had an estimated net worth of $10.8 million. Furthermore, according to Celebrity Net Worth, he had sources to get him a monthly income of $55,000.
| Net Worth (approx) | $10.8 million |
House, Bike, and Car Collection
| House or other properties | A house in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA |
Awards, Nominations, and Honour
| Date / Year | Award |
|---|---|
| 1973 | NFL Most Valuable Player |
| – | Heisman Trophy |
| 1973 | NFL Offensive Player of the Year |
| 1966 | NJCAA All-American |
| 1967, 1968 | 2× First-team All-Pac-8 |
| 1967, 1968 | 2× Unanimous All-American |
| 1968 | SN Player of the Year |
| 1967, 1968 | 2× UPI Player of the Year |
| 1967, 1968 | 2× Walter Camp Award |
| 1972–1976 | 5× First-team All-Pro |
| 1972–1976 | 5× Pro Bowl |
| 1969 | AFL All-Star |
| 1973 | Bert Bell Award |
| 1973 | AP Athlete of the Year |
| 1972, 1973, 1975 | 3× UPI AFC Offensive Player of the Year |
| 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976 | 4× NFL rushing yards leader |
| 1973, 1975 | 2× NFL rushing touchdowns leader |
| 1975 | NFL scoring leader |
| 1970s | NFL 1970s All-Decade Team |
| – | NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team |
| – | NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team |
| – | Buffalo Bills Wall of Fame |
| 1967 | National champion |
| 1968 | Heisman Trophy |
| 1968 | Maxwell Award |
Less-known facts about OJ Simpson
- OJ had no idea that his name was Orenthal until a teacher read that name to him in his 3rd grade.
- Due to rickets (a medical condition), he wore braces on his legs till he was five.
- In his early days, he had also earned money by scalping tickets and collecting seat cushions at Kezar Stadium.
Social media accounts
| Facebook page | n/a |
| X (formerly Twitter) profile | O.J. Simpson (@TheRealOJ32) |
| Instagram page | O.J. Simpson (@therealoj32) |
| OJ Simpson |
FAQs
How old was OJ Simpson?
O.J. Simpson was 76 years old at the time of his death.
Who plays OJ Simpson on American Crime Story?
Cuba Gooding Jr. plays O. J. Simpson’s role in the American Crime Story series. He described playing this role as a disturbing experience.
What did OJ Simpson do?
He was accused of killing his wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman. He was later acquitted of all charges in a murder trial.
When was the OJ Simpson trial?
OJ’s murder trial started on January 24, 1995, and ended on October 3, 1995.
Where did OJ Simpson live?
Before his death, he lived in a 5037 sqft home in Summerlin, Las Vegas.
What team did OJ Simpson play for?
OJ played for the Buffalo Bills from 1969 to 1977. Then he played for the San Francisco 49ers from 1978 to 1979.
How long was OJ Simpson in jail?
OJ was arrested in 2007 in an armed robbery case in the Las Vegas Hotel. He was released on parole on October 1, 2017.
What was OJ Simpson charged with?
OJ Simpson was charged with 12 counts of armed robbery and kidnapping. He also faced spousal abuse charges in 1989 and murder charges in 1994.
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