© 2024 WOSU Public Media
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

O.J. Simpson, football legend acquitted of notorious killings, dies at 76

O.J. Simpson, pictured in September 2008 in Las Vegas, died Wednesday, according to a statement from his family.
Isaac Brekken
/
Getty Images
O.J. Simpson, pictured in September 2008 in Las Vegas, died Wednesday, according to a statement from his family.

The football great Orenthal James Simpson, known as O.J., has died. Simpson was 76 and had been battling cancer.

In a post on X, his family said Simpson died on Wednesday, surrounded by his children and grandchildren.

Simpson was a cultural icon who starred both on the football field and in movies and commercials.

In 1994, he made headlines for another reason when he was accused of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.

In 1995, jurors determined he was not guilty in the stabbing deaths. The trial was televised nationally and captivated the country. No one else was ever charged.

Copyright 2024 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

As NPR's Southern Bureau chief, Russell Lewis covers issues and people of the Southeast for NPR — from Florida to Virginia to Texas, including West Virginia, Kentucky, and Oklahoma. His work brings context and dimension to issues ranging from immigration, transportation, and oil and gas drilling for NPR listeners across the nation and around the world.
Becky Sullivan has reported and produced for NPR since 2011 with a focus on hard news and breaking stories. She has been on the ground to cover natural disasters, disease outbreaks, elections and protests, delivering stories to both broadcast and digital platforms.