Former Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers running back O.J. Simpson lost his battle with cancer on April 10th.
Earlier this year, His children and grandchildren surrounded him. It was released that O.J. Simpson was battling prostate cancer. Simpson reportedly was undergoing chemotherapy treatments in Las Vegas.
He denied on social media a rumor that he is in hospice care. Not much news was released on Simpson’s health status following the post.
Simpson’s family released on social media that O.J. lost his battle with prostate cancer.
On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer.
He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren.
During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace.
-The Simpson Family
— O.J. Simpson (@TheRealOJ32) April 11, 2024
O.J. Simpson, the former football great who was accused of and ultimately acquitted of the brutal 1994 slayings of his ex-wife and her friend, has died, according to his family. He was 76.
"On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He… pic.twitter.com/hi7DMJ27Ut— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 11, 2024
O.J. Simpson Career
The first selection of the 1969 AFL–the AFL’s Buffalo Bills held NFL Common Draft after finishing 1–12–1 in 1968. They took Simpson, but he demanded what was then the largest contract in professional sports history: $650,000 over five years. Simpson threatened to become an actor and skip professional football. Eventually, owner Ralph Wilson agreed to pay Simpson.
Simpson played the majority of his career in Buffalo, playing in 135 games and having 11,236 yards career rush yards.
In 1973, he became the first NFL player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season, earning him NFL MVP, and is the only NFL player to do so in a 14-game regular season.
In 1976, he again led the NFL in rush yards with over 1,500 yards and eight touchdowns. He played 11 years in the NFL, making his last stop in San Francisco for two seasons.
Simpson Spotlight
O.J. started his acting career at USC during his college career. He appeared on Dragnet in an uncredited role as a potential recruit to the LAPD.
While in the NFL, Simpson appeared in productions such as the television miniseries Roots (1977) and the dramatic motion pictures The Klansman (1974), The Towering Inferno (1974), The Cassandra Crossing (1976), and Capricorn One (1978).
In 1979, he started his film production company, Orenthal Productions, which specialized in made-for-TV fare, such as the family-oriented Goldie and the Boxer films with Melissa Michaelsen (1979 and 1981).
Simpson Legal Problems
Simpson famously dealt with an array of legal issues after his NFL career, and none more famous than his trial and controversial acquittal for the murders of his former wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend Ron Goldman.
After becoming the lead suspect, charges were filed, and a warrant was signed for Simpson’s arrest. In agreement with his attorneys, Simpson was scheduled to turn himself in at approximately 11:00 a.m. to the Parker Center police headquarters on the morning of June 17.
Simpson failed to turn himself in, and he later became the subject of the famous low-speed pursuit by police while riding as a passenger in a white 1993 Ford Bronco SUV.
He also was convicted of tax evasion, weapons possession, and robbery in his later years
On July 31, 2013, the Nevada Parole Board granted Simpson parole on some convictions, but his imprisonment continued based on the weapons and assault convictions. The board considered Simpson’s prior record of criminal convictions and good behavior in prison in coming to the decision.
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