What where you doing when you heard about O.J.'s infamous slow speed chase? Share your story.
Update: Did you know there are transcipts of the cell phone conversations between O.J. Simpson and police during the slow speed chase available?
Clifford Pugh in the Houston Chronicle details how that fatefull day change the face of television.
Since O.J. was too much of a pussy to follow through with suicide, the biggest loser of the day was David Hasselhoff. Heir Hasselhoff was "rocking" Atlantic City on Pay Per View and no one was buying. According to Hasselhoff, right after coming off stage he ran into Donald Trump watching O.J. and said, "tell me that's not live!"
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Comments (32)
My wife and I were over at ... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Rusty Shackleford | June 17, 2004 1:11 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
My wife and I were over at a friends house eating dinner. Our wives asked us to turn the TV off. We said, "but that's the Juice-OJ. Heissman Trophy winner. USC."
--blank stare
"The guy from those Avis commercials"
--blank stare
"He was in the Naked Gun movies."
--blank stare
*sigh* Women.
1. Posted by Rusty Shackleford | June 17, 2004 1:11 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 13:11
2. Posted by Laurence Simon | June 17, 2004 1:21 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Screaming at the TV because it interrupted the Rockets in the Finals.
I called up the local NBC affiliate and then NBC in NYC, encountering jammed switchboards both times.
2. Posted by Laurence Simon | June 17, 2004 1:21 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 13:21
3. Posted by Marble | June 17, 2004 1:24 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Was working at the post office at the time. Most of the employees simply stopped working because this was too important.
3. Posted by Marble | June 17, 2004 1:24 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 13:24
4. Posted by Lachlan | June 17, 2004 1:49 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I believe I was at work, still living in the Midwest. When I saw footage of the chase later that night, I recall thinking: "This is going to turn into an even bigger circus than it is now."
4. Posted by Lachlan | June 17, 2004 1:49 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 13:49
5. Posted by Mud | June 17, 2004 1:55 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was at home watching my brother get all pissed off because it was the first day of his vaction -- only he worked at Hard Copy, so his vacation had to be cancelled.
5. Posted by Mud | June 17, 2004 1:55 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 13:55
6. Posted by SarahW | June 17, 2004 2:13 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Watching Hasselhoff.
Really bummed that I was about to turn 32.
6. Posted by SarahW | June 17, 2004 2:13 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 14:13
7. Posted by MaryB | June 17, 2004 2:35 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I had a full time job and school. I never watched tv, so I found out about it days after it happened when I talked to my dad on the phone. He said "You'd have to go back to Shakespeare, or the Bible to find something as bizarre and dramatic."
7. Posted by MaryB | June 17, 2004 2:35 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 14:35
8. Posted by Michael at the Calico Cat | June 17, 2004 2:38 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I had to miss most of the chase because I had to go to my bar review class.
I wrote about it previously at my blog.
My parents' generation gets to remember where they were when Kennedy was shot, and all I get to remember is this dumb slow speed car chase that I didn't even get to watch.
8. Posted by Michael at the Calico Cat | June 17, 2004 2:38 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 14:38
9. Posted by Kevin Murphy | June 17, 2004 3:23 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
What's all this about OJ? Did he do something?
9. Posted by Kevin Murphy | June 17, 2004 3:23 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 15:23
10. Posted by jen | June 17, 2004 3:25 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was living in the basement apartment at my parents' house. It was a Friday night and I was channel surfing when I hit CNN - I think it was Larry King - showing the Bronco "chase" live. I ran upstairs to tell my mother and we watched the whole thing together in her living room.
10. Posted by jen | June 17, 2004 3:25 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 15:25
11. Posted by Robb | June 17, 2004 3:27 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was at LAX, waiting for a flight after graduating from boot camp. We were sitting in a Mexican bar, still dressed in our Service "A's" having Coronas and trying to figure out what the news commentators were saying; it was in Spanish, and the only thing we could make out was "OJ." Oh, well, we agreed. We kept drinking.
SGT. Robb
11. Posted by Robb | June 17, 2004 3:27 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 15:27
12. Posted by BoDiddly | June 17, 2004 3:39 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I honestly can't remember where I was, but I remember the first thing that came to mind . . . Now, just how far would I get running from that many cops at 35 mph?
12. Posted by BoDiddly | June 17, 2004 3:39 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 15:39
13. Posted by Chrees | June 17, 2004 4:05 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Same as Laurence... screaming at the TV because they preempted Hakeem putting on a clinic on how to dominate.
Am I correct in remembering it was on a Friday?
13. Posted by Chrees | June 17, 2004 4:05 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 16:05
14. Posted by Robb | June 17, 2004 4:15 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Chrees,
Yep, it was on a Friday.
14. Posted by Robb | June 17, 2004 4:15 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 16:15
15. Posted by Bill from INDC | June 17, 2004 4:24 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
You know, I don't even remember ... I do remember that I was in my college gym when they declared the not gulty verdict on the radio. I had a high intensity workout after that ...
15. Posted by Bill from INDC | June 17, 2004 4:24 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 16:24
16. Posted by mac | June 17, 2004 4:29 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was at a nightclub in Manayunk getting shitfaced. Weirdly, I even remember what I was wearing.
Some things are just too strange not to remember every detail.
16. Posted by mac | June 17, 2004 4:29 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 16:29
17. Posted by Aaron | June 17, 2004 4:48 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was in my last year of undergrad and working at a local furniture store. We all just sat there in amazement watching the footage of the chase across 30 big TVs all broadcasting it simultaneously... it was pretty cool.
17. Posted by Aaron | June 17, 2004 4:48 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 16:48
18. Posted by ccwbass | June 17, 2004 6:11 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was driving to work listening to talk show hosts freak out because some people were hanging "Run, O.J.! Run!" signs off of freeway overpasses.
Gotta admit, the talk show guys had a point.
I am not proud to say that won the office pool on the verdict (called both charges correctly).
18. Posted by ccwbass | June 17, 2004 6:11 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 18:11
19. Posted by Brendan | June 17, 2004 6:43 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was lucky enough to be at home, so I was able to watch pretty much the entire thing live. (I was 12 years old at the time.) The most memorable moment for me was when Simpson's driver stepped out of the car and approached police, and Dan Rather solemnly intoned, "O.J. Simpson -- Arrested." Hehe.
19. Posted by Brendan | June 17, 2004 6:43 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 18:43
20. Posted by Malice | June 17, 2004 6:50 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was sitting on my grandmothers bed in my pjs. My grandmother was shouting obscenities at the tv. I remember a few years later when they stopped my english class at school to turn on all the tvs to listen to the verdict too.
20. Posted by Malice | June 17, 2004 6:50 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 18:50
21. Posted by Gary and the Samoyeds | June 17, 2004 8:11 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I had done some shopping in Laguna and was trying to get home to Anaheim. The @#$%^ freeway was closed off. When I found out why, I was willing to shoot the bastard Myself.
21. Posted by Gary and the Samoyeds | June 17, 2004 8:11 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 20:11
22. Posted by Jay | June 17, 2004 8:38 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was doing the same thing as Laurence. Going nuts because they kept interrupting the freaking NBA finals.
22. Posted by Jay | June 17, 2004 8:38 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 20:38
23. Posted by gill bates | June 17, 2004 9:25 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
My wife and I had just finished our aniversiry dinner (5th.) at La Collene's in Washington DC and had stopped in at the Dubliner, next door, to listen to some irish music and have a pint. We were sitting at the bar talking when I suddenly realized they had a big TV turned on next to the small stage and people were watching it. After a few minutes we found out what was going on and we watched the fun for awhile. We left to return to our Arlington redidence and got home just in time to see him pulling up to his house.
23. Posted by gill bates | June 17, 2004 9:25 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 21:25
24. Posted by Athena | June 17, 2004 9:27 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Hmm, at the young age of 10...I was probably watching Power Rangers. Perhaps Ninja Turtles.
24. Posted by Athena | June 17, 2004 9:27 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 21:27
25. Posted by triticale | June 17, 2004 9:46 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I remember being in some store which had it running on TV, and everyone standing around, but I can't remember what kind of store or anything.
The fact that this was all ten years ago makes the fact that I saw a neighbor wearing an OJ football jersey over the weekend a whole bunch more creepy.
25. Posted by triticale | June 17, 2004 9:46 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 21:46
26. Posted by David Scott Anderson | June 17, 2004 11:26 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
On one of the overpasses with a sign that said, run juice, run!
LMAO!
26. Posted by David Scott Anderson | June 17, 2004 11:26 PM |
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Posted on June 17, 2004 23:26
27. Posted by chris | June 18, 2004 3:06 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was at a friends house, there were fifteen people there drinking beer, and everyone was waiting for OJ to do it already (with the gun). Then this hippie guy got all pissed off that we were staring at this story, because, in his words, "It's not like it's Rwanda or something!" Sheesh. Hippies.
27. Posted by chris | June 18, 2004 3:06 AM |
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Posted on June 18, 2004 03:06
28. Posted by McGehee | June 18, 2004 8:00 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I kept waiting for someone to find out he wasn't really in the Bronco, but in another car waiting to get through Customs into Mexico while everyone was watching the Bronco "chase."
He wasn't as smart as I was giving him credit for at the time.
28. Posted by McGehee | June 18, 2004 8:00 AM |
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Posted on June 18, 2004 08:00
29. Posted by Joe Grossberg | June 18, 2004 11:47 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
"Heir Hasselhoff"
I think you mean Herr (Mister/Sir) and not Heir (one who inherits).
29. Posted by Joe Grossberg | June 18, 2004 11:47 AM |
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Posted on June 18, 2004 11:47
30. Posted by Jim Sewell | June 18, 2004 2:36 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was in charge of the pursuit of the guilty SOB. Look for the car with "supervisor" just in front of the doors.
30. Posted by Jim Sewell | June 18, 2004 2:36 PM |
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Posted on June 18, 2004 14:36
31. Posted by Tom | June 18, 2004 10:48 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was at the gym, and the TV was on but the sound was off (people with radios and headphones were hearing it, though). I glanced over every so often and kept seeing the white Bronco, but I didn't understand what was happening, so I thought, "I don't know what this is, but it must be the most boring show ever!" Finally someone who could hear the sound explained what it was.
31. Posted by Tom | June 18, 2004 10:48 PM |
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Posted on June 18, 2004 22:48
32. Posted by Don Myers | June 21, 2004 3:23 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I was on my way to see The Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Project perform "Othello" (jealous black celebrity murders his white wife). No lie.
32. Posted by Don Myers | June 21, 2004 3:23 PM |
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Posted on June 21, 2004 15:23