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O.J. Simpson: 'I Am Angry' With Nicole
Friday, June 04, 2004
LOS ANGELES — In an interview marking the 10th anniversary of Nicole Brown Simpson's (search) murder, O.J. Simpson (search) virtually blames his ex-wife for her own slaying, declares Kobe Bryant and Jacko innocent, appears to mock the idea of date rape — and plugs his own tacky reality-TV show.
The disgraced grid legend makes the offhanded comments in a TV interview with Fox News Channel's Greta Van Susteren (search).
Speaking about how he's handled the anniversary of his wife's slaying, Simpson says he's "angry" with Nicole for keeping an unsavory social set in 1994 — the year a knife-wielding assailant slaughtered Brown and Ronald Goldman outside her Brentwood condo.
"I am angry with her [Nicole]. I am angry that she found herself hangin' out with this group of — who are these people?" Simpson said.
"I could count on my fingers the time I have seen Faye Resnick and this is a group of nomads, I guess, that Nicole started hanging out with, after we were divorced. And her mother didn't like 'em."
Van Susteren and Simpson taped their 44-minute chat recently at a hotel in Miami.
During the interview, which airs Monday at 10 p.m. EDT, Simpson plugs a prank reality-TV show he claims to be developing. Simpson compared it to MTV's show featuring actor Ashton Kutcher pulling stunts.
"It's a takeoff on something called 'Punk'd.' It's me doing gags as, as Juice. Juice. What they call 'juicing' people," he said. "[On a scale of 1-10], it's 7 or 8, that it's gonna happen."
O.J. had harsh words for almost everyone involved in his trial, saving his most blunt attack for Denise Brown, who runs a foundation in her sister's memory. He claims she's profited from Nicole's murder.
"I am sure the income is down on the foundation that she works for — which, I would imagine makes her income go down," Simpson said. "I don't think anyone's bills have been paid more than Denise's from what came from the trial."
Simpson also comments on the prosecutions of NBA star Kobe Bryant (search) and King of Pop Michael Jackson. He believes both are innocent. Bryant is accused of raping a hotel employee in Eagle County, Colo., while Jackson's been indicted for allegedly molesting a young cancer victim last year in Santa Barbara County.
"As far as I am concerned, they [Bryant and Michael Jackson] are innocent until proven guilty," O.J. said.
In commenting on Bryant's case, Simpson appeared to mock the concept of date rape, saying "no" doesn't always mean "no."
"I have certainly in my life, had girls come to the room, and say 'no' or say whatever. And when I was a kid growing up, just about every girl said 'no' once," a laughing Simpson said. "You know, they had to, because you'd think they were a slut or something. In my opinion, 'date rape,' and 'stranger rape,' are two different things entirely."
With the grisly June 12 anniversary next week, Simpson said he and the two children he had with Nicole — Sydney, 18, and Justin, 16 — have already toasted their mom's memory.
"I don't look at the anniversary. I regret the fact that we even had to know that this is the anniversary. I did [mark the occasion] a few days ago. I did have my kids at dinner, at a Benihana-type place," Simpson said. "And, I said, 'OK, we gotta toast. This would have been your mother's 45th birthday.' "
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