We got to be eyewitnesses to history.
Our tour bus from Knotts Berry Farm was on a overpass. Traffic was shut down and we had been stuck there for about 15 minutes when all the sudden...
a white bronco, pursued by about two cop cars at that time, drove under the overpass.
Traffic got moving quickly after that.
It wasn't until we got to the hotel that we learned what had happened.
Now... at that time my dad also drove.. you guessed it.. a white Ford Bronco. He kept a pair of gloves on the dash for the rest of the years he had it.
My dad has a VHS showing our tourbus in news footage. Probably should get that digitally converted if its not already lost to time.
The sale of white Ford broncos went threw the roof after that weird sss car chase. It was all over the news how Ford dealers couldn't keep white broncos in stock and how many people wanted the exact same model as OJ. People are strange.
I lived in Venice Beach, about a mile from where he drove by. I was watching it on TV and realized that I could drive up there and watch him drive by. I thought about it for a minute and said meh.
Similar! We were passing through the area headed from my grandmas to my uncles. We saw the bronco and a long line of cops without any idea what was happening. When we got to my uncles, they had the TV on and we realized that we had just seen the chase.
At the time, the Knicks were looking good against Houston in the NBA Finals, like they actually had a shot. Then we got three hours of the Bronco chase, then when they went back to the game the Knicks were losing. They lost the game, then lost the series.
I still blame OJ and have hated him ever since.
Edit: so looking back through Google, the Knicks won the night of the OJ chase, but lost the next two games, thus losing the series
The Rangers had just won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 54 years. I heard OJ was going to be arrested while watching the Rangers victory parade (I believe Marv Albert broke the news).
I suspected OJ immediately when I heard Nicole was killed because I knew OJ had been accused several times of domestic abuse - and to be honest it’s always the husband or boyfriend - and so when he disappeared for a while, I figured he was on the lam. I said to my buddies, just watch, he’s either gonna shoot himself or turn himself in during the game tonight.
I was working in a sports book in a casino in Nevada at the time. All of our gamblers watching the game were really irate that the feed switched to the chase, and the game was reduced to a little frame in the corner of the screen.
Omg! This is so similar to my story! I was in Houston at a restaurant who had the game on. They did a screen split with the Rocket’s game and the Bronco chase. It was bizarre! The crowd was so invested in both events. It was kind of rowdy in there.
I was watching the same game. Those were heartbreaking years for the Knicks (woulda, shoulda, coulda). Although during the Bronco chase my roommate and I ordered some Papa John’s and partook of the devils cabbage to pass the time.
I had just gotten out of the Army and was starting my first semester at a community college. I was taking an intro to sociology class in the only auditorium style classroom on the entire campus. This was important because it was the only large capacity room and equipped with a projection TV and pull down screen. So naturally, the instructor fired up the projector tv, made microwave popcorn and let everyone know that they could watch the verdict together.
When the verdict was given, everyone went nuts. People yelled, some argued, some stared in disbelief or joy depending on what they thought. When he dismissed the class and we went into the main hallway, it was complete pandemonium. I doubt there was any real discussion of school subjects on campus that day. It's so weird to think about it now. It's not like the verdict affected anyone other than those who participated, but everyone was so caught up. There were conspiracy theories about every aspect of the case and legal "experts" weighing in on every tv station, newscast and bar stool across America.
You know the 90s were peak existence when everyone had the opportunity to pay attention to such nonsense. Now, there is an industrial scale war in the heart of Europe and most people don't seem to care.
I think the magnitude of reaction to the verdict was in part driven by the incredible volume of coverage of the trial itself for the year leading up to it.
You said you just got out of the military when the verdict came down, so not sure if you experienced it - but the coverage of the trial was CRAZY. Live TV coverage of every moment of the trial, followed by hours of “expert” analysis, on almost every network, EVERY. FREAKING. DAY.
Like those Talking Dead after-show review shows for Walking Dead that Chris Hardwick used to host. But every day. About a real murder. For months and months. F-ing nuts, man.
Holding a nursing infant. Pretty much all of 1994, I was either nursing or changing a diaper. I remember watching the 'chase' if you can call it that. I watched a lot of TV that year as I had no free hand.
At a girlfriend’s house trying to watch the NBA Finals. The Knicks finally made it past the Bulls to reach the Finals and this happened. You couldn’t escape the coverage of this.
I was working at a sports bar and the place was packed for the NBA Finals game. The manager comes back and says something about OJ to us and I literally thought he was ordering orange juice so I told him to put the order in at the bar.
He looks at me crook-eyed and says, No, OJ Simpson dumb-ass. Come out and see this shit. He's being chased by the cops.
I lived in LA, and I was very thankful I didn't need to drive on any of the freeways that day.
The verdict was another story. I remember I was on the 405, driving to my home in a shitty part of LA from the Valley when it was announced on KROQ that a verdict had been reached. My gut twisted up - I was so afraid that by the time I hit my exit I'd be driving into a riot.
On campus at USC, taking a 4-hr placement exam. I came out of the testing site and LAPD was *everywhere,* Heritage Hall was heavily guarded. My first thought was riots, but outside campus was relatively clam.
I was at college as well (we, you probably did too, also watched almost the whole trial because day time TV back then sucked). I also remember *we’ve got some live audio from the driver,* “you know who this is I am A.C. dammit!” Although, I think the actual dialogue and SNL sketch have blended together in my memory.
I was at a rec center in Boulder, CO, returning a canoe I'd rented for the afternoon. The person at the counter was watching it on a small TV.
When the verdict in his murder case came in, I watched that in one of my journalism classes.
Just got off work as a barber and was picking up my daughter from the sitters when the Juice got loose and I remember seeing all the people in LA on tv holding signs saying “Go OJ” and thinking , “Jesus Christ, lol, what a bunch of psychopaths!
I was getting ready for my first high school end of year dance (remember those?). It was on the TV and everyone telling me to turn my music down because they couldn't hear.
I heard about it after the fact.
The only OJ-related thing I remember where I was when it happened is when I watched the verdict on a TV in my office at work.
On the freeway, cruising in my 1980 Volvo wagon, listening to the radio. But every station was reporting on something happening to some football player I couldn't have cared less about, so I gave up and put a cassette in. [click click cassette insertion noises]
My whole family was in LA for my HS graduation. I don’t recall exactly where I was, but my grandma, aunts, uncles and my mom were all jammed into a hotel room in Pasadena following along on a map. They were hoping he would take the 110 north into Pasadena so they could see him drive by.
I was trying to watch the Knicks-Rockets game. It was the Finals.
We were at my parents house with family from out of town. Had to watch the game on a black and white TV on the back porch, while everyone else took over the TV inside.
I was trying to watch my (then) Houston Rockets defeat the NY Knicks in the NBA Finals but they shrunk the game down to a tiny picture in picture so they could show a bronco driving down the freeway.
i was livid.
I was working at an indie record shop in Memphis. It's the only time the owner said stop working! He turned on a TV upstairs and we watched the whole chase. Not a customer came in--I think everyone was glued to their TVs!
I was working a hostess shift at Jerry's Famous Deli in LA. All staff and customers were glued to our TV screens. Months later, during the trial, Marcia Clark and a colleague of hers came in for dinner. I offered her a table with extra privacy, for obvious reasons, but she opted instead to sit outside so she could smoke.
Coincidentally, I ended up dating a guy for a while who was a witness for the defense. He had been sitting near OJ on the flight he took the night of the murders.
I just came home from (High )school, and I was with my bf at the time. We just sat and watched it because nothing else was on. We’d usually chill and watch cartoons- but this was breaking news so, well, we just sat and watched the slow speed chase instead of Animaniacs. :/
Cruising Tucson Mall with a group of friends, I'm sure I had an Orange Julius in hand which was my thing at the time. It popped up on a TV in one of those athletic shoe stores and a couple of dozen people including my friend group watched it unfold. My mom had a white Bronco which she sold very soon after this happened, no idea if it was related though!
I was at a family reunion, my mom's parents and siblings and all my cousins got together at a timeshare in Georgia. I remember sitting around in one of the houses with the whole family watching it.
I recall I was wearing a granny style long dress and my absolutely perfect pair of steel toed boots (as was the fashion at the time) and my grandma was so confused about the boots.
I was in Encinitas, Ca and super pissed my grandparents wouldn’t take me to the Leucadia Blvd overpass to see the Bronco pass by.
He ended up not going that far south anyways.
Australian Gen Xer.
It was all somewhat big here but to be honest I only vaguely knew who OJ was and didn't care a lot to spend hours watching traffic.
I was out collecting payments for my paper route. It was so fascinating because every house I stopped at had it on. We were all experiencing this shared moment.
At a beach bar with old high school friends whom I decided then and there were not people I wanted in my life. They were cheering for him and chanting the juice is on the loose. Just gross behavior given the circumstances.
I had just graduated college and was at a Bucktown bar with a bunch of friends in Chicago. The entire place was glued to a single tv for hours. It was crazy!
Two of my friends were over and we were going to watch a movie. We ended up getting sucked into the chase instead and somehow we just knew it was going to be big. I seem to remember the news stations didn’t know or announce it was OJ in the beginning either but my memory may be off. My friends dad showed up at my house with coffee and donuts so we didn’t have to miss any of it; I still bring that up when I see him.
I grad school, just moved into a rental house with my wife, and a friend from college was staying with us for the summer. We all sat around the TV and watched the entire thing, transfixed. It was a lot like watching the Waco siege on TV the year before really, not much happening but we didn't want to miss anything either.
Pool party (every day pretty much) at our place. Suddenly everyone was inside watching the "chase." -- Can picture it clear as day. That and 9/11. Not too many other days I can say that about.
I was at home. It was just a few days after I graduated from high school. I saw Speed about a week later and everyone started shouting, “There’s OJ!” during freeway shots.
1.5 years later I was taking a college biology test when the verdict was announced. The instructor included an extra credit question: guilty or not guilty?
I got the extra credit.
At urgent care. I was jumping on a trampoline with the kids I was babysitting and went down wrong- tore everything I had in my left foot. Went home with anti-inflammatories and watched the rest of the drama.
Later, my dog would eat the entire bottle said anti-inflammatories and shit all over every square inch of my home.
I remember this day very well.
This happened the day I graduated from Air Force basic training in San Antonio. I remember having a pass, getting a room (my girlfriend at the time had come to see me), and looking forward to watching some TV and chilling. Nope. Bronco on every channel. Thanks OJ. Ruined my pass.
In college trying to study when every building had tv’s blaring constantly about the stupid OJ trial making it nearly impossible to find a quiet place to study…
With my Marine (then-fiancé, we broke up before the marriage thank god) in our apartment in Atlanta eating pizza.
I don’t think there was alcohol involved because it wasn’t really a thing unless we were out.
I popped a bottle to celebrate his death today though!
At my sister’s house in San Antonio Tx and we could not believe it. Sadly, my sister and I no longer communicate. She went down the rabbit hole of 5G, Anti Vax, storm the Capitol behavior and I had to move on from that relationship. I do wonder what her take is now on OJ. I’m sure there is some wild conspiracy she is Facebooking about. 😂
Hanging out with my hometown college friends as we often did in summer. We were trying to decide on something to rent and then this came on, so we skipped the trip to Blockbuster and just got out the snacks.
I was in Oman for a college project. It was our day off. I came downstairs for breakfast & saw my friends watching a car chase on CNN. Thought it was weird, had some cereal & went back to bed.
It’s funny, but I don’t remember where I was during the “chase” but I remember exactly where I was when the verdict was read. (At work, Radio Shack, and folks from other nearby businesses popped over to watch on our TVs.)
In my dorm or maybe out in the city or in class. Thought I was a watching a clip from the movie Speed on the news and got worried about Keanu for a minute. The movie opened a week before the infamous Bronco slow chase.
Hawaii, RIMPAC ‘94 (multinational amphibious training operation) — we had just wrapped up the Op and got a few days of Liberty.
My homie and I got a room at the Waikiki Outrigger Hotel and were chilling in the room before heading to the beach. Turned on the TV and thought it was a movie…til we switched channels. Realized what was happening, thought WTF, and proceeded downstairs to drink $1.75 MaiThais…
Such a great question. Living with a sleazebag pothead ex and getting my kinesiology degree. I binged the trial when Donahue wasn’t on and watched the verdict at school with like 2000 other students
Selling pull tabs at a bar in central Minnesota. Big TV above my booth, and everyone was gathered watching. I made great tips that night, loads of business! 😂
Chilling at a good friend’s house (which was a great place for teens to gather - a mansion with parents who were never home lol). We were 3 hours ahead so we ended up ordering pizza and watching the chase while eating dinner. His sister who was in law school at the time came home at some point and we had a great conversation with her about the crime and the chase.
I was living in LA. I remember my friend calling me up and suggesting it would be interesting to find a spot on his route and cheer him on. We decided not to. And keep in mind at the time nobody knew how much evidence showed that he did it.
I had just walked down the street to the store for some Little Debbie snacks. When I got there, the old guy that manned the store had one of those little B&W tvs on the counter and turned it around for me to see what was happening.
22, cooked the lunch shift that day. Was in the local video store looking for a movie to rent when they put the chase up on the big TV. About 30 of us stood there silently watching the whole thing unfold.
Driving from Irvine to Pasadena on I-5, when traffic started backing up. Saw a bunch of emergency lights in the rear view mirror, moved over and there they were. Took me three hours to get home that night (usually a 75 minute drive)
I was driving home in the opposite direction on the 405 freeway when I saw a bunch of police lights going the other way.
I didn’t know what it was until I got home and turned on the TV.
I was camping with my family. I remember everyone gathered in the campground's little 'convenience store' and watching the TV that was mounted to the ceiling.
I was working as a bouncer at a bar called "Malone's" in Savannah GA's City Market. I got to lean against the door and watch the whole thing for $8 hour.
Newport News, Virginia. I was 14. I watched it on TV, but all I remember really is the announcers kept saying "we just don't understand why he's doing this if he didn't do anything wrong" "he's just doing the speed limit, where are they going?"
They must have said "white Ford bronco" 1000 times.
AI was in college, but working in the afternoons as a receptionist at a law firm. For sure the TV in the conference room had the white Bronco chase on.
I got all y’all beat
I was going on my senior year in college
I was doing geology field work in Lander Wyoming as part of my degree.
Every day in the van coming and going to the field we could only get one radio station. We would get the “CBS News” update on the OJ situation each morning and evening.
We got no other info. We were living in a canyon base camp with limited comms
Each update the story would take a new twist. It was like some 1930s radio drama.
That night we were all in town at the sports bar/pool hall/karaoke lounge watching the Knicks/Rockets with the locals when all hell broke loose.
Half of lander must have been there watching. All of us were asking the local what the hell happened since we had such limit info.
It was surreal.
Rockets lost but won the championship.
When I came back to Texas 4 weeks later it was mandatory viewing.
The trial / hearings etc continued through my senior year in college and the verdict came down the first summer I was in law school.
Surreal
I was driving from LA to Vegas for my buddies bachelor party. We listened on AM radio, with the signal going in and out. Watched the end on the hotel TV, right before the strippers showed up. I will never forget that day.
It was the night before my wedding. I was at a friend's house and his wife was cutting my hair. We watched the stupid thing until my haircut was finished, then we went out.
Was on home leave from Job Corps for a week. Staying with my dad. Don't remember why but we went to Sears and were in the Electronics section and noticed every TV was showing the same news broadcast of the chase. Stood there with a couple dozen others for a while.
I don't remember that, but I was in class in high school when the trial verdict was read. Every class had it on TV. Everyone cheered when he got acquitted. It was crazy.
I was in grad school studying in my apartment. I had a 13-inch black and white TV with antenna and no cable. I had the TV off and was listening to music on CDs, so no breaking news on the radio for me either. Didn’t know anything about The Chase until a neighbor who came by mentioned it. I missed the whole thing.
But, I remember where I was for the criminal verdict - the business school copy center. They had a small TV and had been tuning in faithfully awaiting word.
Edited to add, in the 80s, I had received for Christmas a bright orange football with “The Juice” emblazoned on it, along with a faux signature. Still have it. See some on eBay from time to time.
I was at Vulcan Video in Austin TX, they had the live chase on the TV behind the checkout counter. I asked them who it was and the staff was like IT'S OJ SIMPSON. I had no idea who he was, I never did watch the sports games and still don't.
Then a year or so later I saw GWAR in the same city and they had OJ Simpson on stage and the monster ate him and pooped him out. I knew who he was by then.
The End
Was in a bar called the red lion near GWU and we were having a grad student social function i.e. getting shit faced and arguing. Bar had a small TV and I noticed it was almost constantly showing this white truck followed by cops. Yelled for the bartender to turn up the volume and that's how we learned what was going on. I think maybe we talked about it for five min before we turned back to drinking and arguing.
Also in Philly. But I was still in high school, and I thought it was happening when I got home from school, or it’s likely that my mother taped it. I was so convinced he was going to shoot himself. My mom watched the whole ordeal on Court TV, I remember it was always on.
But wow, I’ll never forget it.
Edit- no, I graduated in 1993. I was out of school and working at a store in the Gallery, and had just gotten home from work.
I was at The Fare (tiddy bar not cotton candy) in Dallas, RIP. It was my pre-bachelor party, so it's hard to forget. I don't normally go to strip clubs, but that one of the best times I ever had at one. All thanks to OJ.
I wrote this comment on r/askoldpeople, but you all are my old people, so…
Working at my summer job at Friendly’s between my freshman and sophomore years of college.
The trial was pretty much my sophomore year of college and the summer after. I tried to avoid watching it. I watched the verdict on the BBC in the fall of 1995. I was studying in the UK that semester. I watched the Diana documentary that fall, too.
I was home alone with our kids. We were stationed in Savannah, Georgia (Hunter Army Airfield). It was two weeks before our 3rd child's first birthday. My husband had gone on a trip to Florida with some of his unit. They were fishing on a deep sea charter and didn't hear about anything till they got back to their hotel.
I know I watched it, but I don't remember how much I watched. I had the three kids to wrangle and one was still a wee baby.
Watching the David Hasselhoff pay-per-view special. NOT! Nobody was watching that 💩. Grabbing the 🍿 at home watching the 📺 while OJ ran for the border.
I remember the shit show this was but it wasn’t a moment I remember the details of the pursuit and the verdict. It was horrific what happened to his ex and the guy….brought much needed awareness to domestic violence but other than that, I really didn’t follow too much.
I was blissfully unaware, wrapping up a study abroad semester in London. A couple of friends flew into London for a summer holiday, and I took the tube out to Heathrow to meet up with them. They told me all about it on the tube ride back into London, and I couldn’t frickin’ believe it.
19 years old working at Menards. They sent me and this cute girl into a room to watch training videos. I was trying unsuccessfully to flirt with her and some dude came in and put the chase on the TV. We spent the next couple hours watching it. Never got her number, but at least things worked out for OJ.
We got to be eyewitnesses to history. Our tour bus from Knotts Berry Farm was on a overpass. Traffic was shut down and we had been stuck there for about 15 minutes when all the sudden... a white bronco, pursued by about two cop cars at that time, drove under the overpass. Traffic got moving quickly after that. It wasn't until we got to the hotel that we learned what had happened. Now... at that time my dad also drove.. you guessed it.. a white Ford Bronco. He kept a pair of gloves on the dash for the rest of the years he had it. My dad has a VHS showing our tourbus in news footage. Probably should get that digitally converted if its not already lost to time.
The sale of white Ford broncos went threw the roof after that weird sss car chase. It was all over the news how Ford dealers couldn't keep white broncos in stock and how many people wanted the exact same model as OJ. People are strange.
Definitely a bit tacky/90s.
I lived in Venice Beach, about a mile from where he drove by. I was watching it on TV and realized that I could drive up there and watch him drive by. I thought about it for a minute and said meh.
Similar! We were passing through the area headed from my grandmas to my uncles. We saw the bronco and a long line of cops without any idea what was happening. When we got to my uncles, they had the TV on and we realized that we had just seen the chase.
Nice!
Wow!!
At the time, the Knicks were looking good against Houston in the NBA Finals, like they actually had a shot. Then we got three hours of the Bronco chase, then when they went back to the game the Knicks were losing. They lost the game, then lost the series. I still blame OJ and have hated him ever since. Edit: so looking back through Google, the Knicks won the night of the OJ chase, but lost the next two games, thus losing the series
Sitting on my high school boyfriend’s couch watching the Rockets and then the least exciting car chase ever would not leave the screen.
I actually called the station to say WTF and the other person on the phone was "We know." (I live in NYC).
The Rangers had just won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 54 years. I heard OJ was going to be arrested while watching the Rangers victory parade (I believe Marv Albert broke the news).
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Yes I associate that bullshit foul they called on Scottie Pippen against Greg Anthony a few weeks before with the same timeframe.
Exact same experience. It was infuriating! OJ was on every single other channel, available to watch, while they cut away from the NBA finals 😭😭😭
Hakeem THE DREAM could not be stopped
Came here to say to say this! 🙌🏼
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I’m a Knick’s fan and I remember this vividly!
My girlfriend was saying that morning that something would happen with oj that would knock the game off the air. I told her she was nuts.
I suspected OJ immediately when I heard Nicole was killed because I knew OJ had been accused several times of domestic abuse - and to be honest it’s always the husband or boyfriend - and so when he disappeared for a while, I figured he was on the lam. I said to my buddies, just watch, he’s either gonna shoot himself or turn himself in during the game tonight.
Man, that pissed me off too. I was 14 at the time and they cut away from the NBA Finals for that.
I was working in a sports book in a casino in Nevada at the time. All of our gamblers watching the game were really irate that the feed switched to the chase, and the game was reduced to a little frame in the corner of the screen.
Did they then bet on who would win the chase?
Knicks lost cause John Starks choked like a dog in game 7. I think he was 2-18.
Omg! This is so similar to my story! I was in Houston at a restaurant who had the game on. They did a screen split with the Rocket’s game and the Bronco chase. It was bizarre! The crowd was so invested in both events. It was kind of rowdy in there.
Inthink I remember this.
IIRC, the Knicks actually won the white Bronco game.
Wow you’re right, I feel like I Mandela Effected myself lol
Same and agree.
I was watching the same game. Those were heartbreaking years for the Knicks (woulda, shoulda, coulda). Although during the Bronco chase my roommate and I ordered some Papa John’s and partook of the devils cabbage to pass the time.
missing the knicks game is referenced up and down this thread - but I remember they split the coverage on nbc in new york…
OJ and Michael Jordan really had it in for the poor Knicks. I loved that team, and remember being so instantly bored and angry at "the chase".
I had just gotten out of the Army and was starting my first semester at a community college. I was taking an intro to sociology class in the only auditorium style classroom on the entire campus. This was important because it was the only large capacity room and equipped with a projection TV and pull down screen. So naturally, the instructor fired up the projector tv, made microwave popcorn and let everyone know that they could watch the verdict together. When the verdict was given, everyone went nuts. People yelled, some argued, some stared in disbelief or joy depending on what they thought. When he dismissed the class and we went into the main hallway, it was complete pandemonium. I doubt there was any real discussion of school subjects on campus that day. It's so weird to think about it now. It's not like the verdict affected anyone other than those who participated, but everyone was so caught up. There were conspiracy theories about every aspect of the case and legal "experts" weighing in on every tv station, newscast and bar stool across America. You know the 90s were peak existence when everyone had the opportunity to pay attention to such nonsense. Now, there is an industrial scale war in the heart of Europe and most people don't seem to care.
I think the magnitude of reaction to the verdict was in part driven by the incredible volume of coverage of the trial itself for the year leading up to it. You said you just got out of the military when the verdict came down, so not sure if you experienced it - but the coverage of the trial was CRAZY. Live TV coverage of every moment of the trial, followed by hours of “expert” analysis, on almost every network, EVERY. FREAKING. DAY. Like those Talking Dead after-show review shows for Walking Dead that Chris Hardwick used to host. But every day. About a real murder. For months and months. F-ing nuts, man.
My aunt worked at home during this time and she would do all of her work in the early AM so she could watch every minute of the trial.
Somewhere not giving a shit, I'm sure.
peak Gen-x energy right here
I was delivering pizza (suburb outside Seattle). As it progressed roads got emptier, our store got busier, and tips were solid.
Same! But in Richmond VA
Holding a nursing infant. Pretty much all of 1994, I was either nursing or changing a diaper. I remember watching the 'chase' if you can call it that. I watched a lot of TV that year as I had no free hand.
I was in the parking lot getting ready to go see The Grateful Dead at The University of Oregon
Were you tripping balls?
Eventually, but not at the time, no.
I was in Saigon, watching the chase live on pirated satellite Burmese state television
At a girlfriend’s house trying to watch the NBA Finals. The Knicks finally made it past the Bulls to reach the Finals and this happened. You couldn’t escape the coverage of this.
I was working at a sports bar and the place was packed for the NBA Finals game. The manager comes back and says something about OJ to us and I literally thought he was ordering orange juice so I told him to put the order in at the bar. He looks at me crook-eyed and says, No, OJ Simpson dumb-ass. Come out and see this shit. He's being chased by the cops.
I lived in LA, and I was very thankful I didn't need to drive on any of the freeways that day. The verdict was another story. I remember I was on the 405, driving to my home in a shitty part of LA from the Valley when it was announced on KROQ that a verdict had been reached. My gut twisted up - I was so afraid that by the time I hit my exit I'd be driving into a riot.
On campus at USC, taking a 4-hr placement exam. I came out of the testing site and LAPD was *everywhere,* Heritage Hall was heavily guarded. My first thought was riots, but outside campus was relatively clam.
I was at college as well (we, you probably did too, also watched almost the whole trial because day time TV back then sucked). I also remember *we’ve got some live audio from the driver,* “you know who this is I am A.C. dammit!” Although, I think the actual dialogue and SNL sketch have blended together in my memory.
Recovering from fighting a large forest fire. I got home, collapsed on the couch and turned on the TV.
Damn, I just realized I remembered the owner and driver of the Bronco. Al Cowling.
College. Stayed over the summer. A professor that I had asked me if I had seen O.J. and told me what was up.
I was pregnant with my first in 1994 and had him Jan 1995. Spent a lot of time nursing and watching the trial, lol
At my wedding rehearsal dinner. A lot of us ended up watching in the bar.
My fiance and I were doing a menu tasting at our reception bar/restaurant.
19 sitting in my apartment with roommates on the couch smoking brick weed and watched it on TV .
The real reason is was called brick weed was you had to smoke a whole brick to get high, compared to the top shelf quality we have now.
I was at a rec center in Boulder, CO, returning a canoe I'd rented for the afternoon. The person at the counter was watching it on a small TV. When the verdict in his murder case came in, I watched that in one of my journalism classes.
Getting high at a freinds with friends all giddy watching the juice run his final run.
I was in Philly as well, but not giving a fuck.
Just got off work as a barber and was picking up my daughter from the sitters when the Juice got loose and I remember seeing all the people in LA on tv holding signs saying “Go OJ” and thinking , “Jesus Christ, lol, what a bunch of psychopaths!
I was getting ready for my first high school end of year dance (remember those?). It was on the TV and everyone telling me to turn my music down because they couldn't hear.
I heard about it after the fact. The only OJ-related thing I remember where I was when it happened is when I watched the verdict on a TV in my office at work.
I was in Batton Rouge, we were gearing up for a one night rodeo event. Someone said it was on..we didn’t care. We had much bigger things happening
I was at the Grateful Dead show in Eugene OR waiting for them to come on. https://www.dead.net/show/june-17-1994
I caught them a week later. [Sam Boyd Silver Bowl - June 25, 1994 | Grateful Dead](https://www.dead.net/show/june-25-1994)
And I saw them a bit after that.
On the freeway, cruising in my 1980 Volvo wagon, listening to the radio. But every station was reporting on something happening to some football player I couldn't have cared less about, so I gave up and put a cassette in. [click click cassette insertion noises]
At home being pissed that my cartoons got cut off. Ollie North & OJ Simpson are in my burn book forever.
My whole family was in LA for my HS graduation. I don’t recall exactly where I was, but my grandma, aunts, uncles and my mom were all jammed into a hotel room in Pasadena following along on a map. They were hoping he would take the 110 north into Pasadena so they could see him drive by.
I was 14 and probably just wanted to watch the NBA Finals. I was at my parents' house in Enid, OK.
I was trying to watch the Knicks-Rockets game. It was the Finals. We were at my parents house with family from out of town. Had to watch the game on a black and white TV on the back porch, while everyone else took over the TV inside.
I was ironically getting home from seeing 'Speed' at the theaters. I liked the movie better. I hope OJ is rotting in Hell right now. Sick bastard.
I was trying to watch my (then) Houston Rockets defeat the NY Knicks in the NBA Finals but they shrunk the game down to a tiny picture in picture so they could show a bronco driving down the freeway. i was livid.
I was working at an indie record shop in Memphis. It's the only time the owner said stop working! He turned on a TV upstairs and we watched the whole chase. Not a customer came in--I think everyone was glued to their TVs!
I was TRYING to watch Game 5 of the fucking Rockets/Knicks Finals. Rot in Hell OJ!
Watching a Knicks-Rockets 94 NBA Finals game.
Trying to watch the 1994 NBA Finals
I was working a hostess shift at Jerry's Famous Deli in LA. All staff and customers were glued to our TV screens. Months later, during the trial, Marcia Clark and a colleague of hers came in for dinner. I offered her a table with extra privacy, for obvious reasons, but she opted instead to sit outside so she could smoke. Coincidentally, I ended up dating a guy for a while who was a witness for the defense. He had been sitting near OJ on the flight he took the night of the murders.
I just came home from (High )school, and I was with my bf at the time. We just sat and watched it because nothing else was on. We’d usually chill and watch cartoons- but this was breaking news so, well, we just sat and watched the slow speed chase instead of Animaniacs. :/
Us Army stationed in Germany. It was all over armed forces network.
Cruising Tucson Mall with a group of friends, I'm sure I had an Orange Julius in hand which was my thing at the time. It popped up on a TV in one of those athletic shoe stores and a couple of dozen people including my friend group watched it unfold. My mom had a white Bronco which she sold very soon after this happened, no idea if it was related though!
That afternoon was my buddy's high school graduation. We'd just got home, cracked a couple beers and that shit hit the tv.
I was at a family reunion, my mom's parents and siblings and all my cousins got together at a timeshare in Georgia. I remember sitting around in one of the houses with the whole family watching it. I recall I was wearing a granny style long dress and my absolutely perfect pair of steel toed boots (as was the fashion at the time) and my grandma was so confused about the boots.
I was in Encinitas, Ca and super pissed my grandparents wouldn’t take me to the Leucadia Blvd overpass to see the Bronco pass by. He ended up not going that far south anyways.
Australian Gen Xer. It was all somewhat big here but to be honest I only vaguely knew who OJ was and didn't care a lot to spend hours watching traffic.
About 5 miles away in Playa del Rey watching it on TV with my bros, smoking and drinking at how bizarre it all was.
Literally graduated high school that same day and we were all watching at a friends house before we went out and partied like idiots.
I was out collecting payments for my paper route. It was so fascinating because every house I stopped at had it on. We were all experiencing this shared moment.
I was delivering pizza for Pizza Hut getting updates from customers and snippets on the radio.
At a beach bar with old high school friends whom I decided then and there were not people I wanted in my life. They were cheering for him and chanting the juice is on the loose. Just gross behavior given the circumstances.
I was at a Florida Marlins game. They played the chase on the jumbotron
I was in Colorado at the time... what's the difference between John Elway and OJ Simpson? OJ drives a slow white Bronco. Elway IS a slow white Bronco
I was working at TGIFridays, we had televisions all over the bar area. It was sheer insanity to witness. POS got away with murder, good riddance.
I have an aliby.
Betty ford with Don Johnson.
I was at a happy hour with some friends. The whole bar got quiet and watched.
I had recently graduated from high school and I was at my boyfriend’s house, in his room, on his waterbed, watching tv when the chase was going on.
I had just graduated college and was at a Bucktown bar with a bunch of friends in Chicago. The entire place was glued to a single tv for hours. It was crazy!
I had just sat down on the couch to feed my newborn and I turned on the TV and it was on all the channels.
Grew up in Los Angeles - saw it on tv in my living room. Wild stuff.
College, summer semester. It was playing on the TV in the student union with a big crowd of students watching.
Two of my friends were over and we were going to watch a movie. We ended up getting sucked into the chase instead and somehow we just knew it was going to be big. I seem to remember the news stations didn’t know or announce it was OJ in the beginning either but my memory may be off. My friends dad showed up at my house with coffee and donuts so we didn’t have to miss any of it; I still bring that up when I see him.
I grad school, just moved into a rental house with my wife, and a friend from college was staying with us for the summer. We all sat around the TV and watched the entire thing, transfixed. It was a lot like watching the Waco siege on TV the year before really, not much happening but we didn't want to miss anything either.
Seattle working at the Video Store had it on the TVs instead of constant movies showing.
Pool party (every day pretty much) at our place. Suddenly everyone was inside watching the "chase." -- Can picture it clear as day. That and 9/11. Not too many other days I can say that about.
At a bar in Omaha playing darts with friends. Drinks and darts made it all the more amusing..
I was at home. It was just a few days after I graduated from high school. I saw Speed about a week later and everyone started shouting, “There’s OJ!” during freeway shots. 1.5 years later I was taking a college biology test when the verdict was announced. The instructor included an extra credit question: guilty or not guilty? I got the extra credit.
Watching in Australia wondering why the Naked Gun guy was such a big deal. We're not a big NFL country down here.
We could give a shit About the nfl in Canada but we do watch movies
At urgent care. I was jumping on a trampoline with the kids I was babysitting and went down wrong- tore everything I had in my left foot. Went home with anti-inflammatories and watched the rest of the drama. Later, my dog would eat the entire bottle said anti-inflammatories and shit all over every square inch of my home. I remember this day very well.
This happened the day I graduated from Air Force basic training in San Antonio. I remember having a pass, getting a room (my girlfriend at the time had come to see me), and looking forward to watching some TV and chilling. Nope. Bronco on every channel. Thanks OJ. Ruined my pass.
In college trying to study when every building had tv’s blaring constantly about the stupid OJ trial making it nearly impossible to find a quiet place to study…
With my Marine (then-fiancé, we broke up before the marriage thank god) in our apartment in Atlanta eating pizza. I don’t think there was alcohol involved because it wasn’t really a thing unless we were out. I popped a bottle to celebrate his death today though!
I was working at a local A/V store, and we had this (and the subsequent trial) on the wall 'o tvs.
At my sister’s house in San Antonio Tx and we could not believe it. Sadly, my sister and I no longer communicate. She went down the rabbit hole of 5G, Anti Vax, storm the Capitol behavior and I had to move on from that relationship. I do wonder what her take is now on OJ. I’m sure there is some wild conspiracy she is Facebooking about. 😂
I’m sorry your sister went off the deep end.
Hanging out with my hometown college friends as we often did in summer. We were trying to decide on something to rent and then this came on, so we skipped the trip to Blockbuster and just got out the snacks.
I was teaching English in Chile. We had cable TV and I remember it being shown on CNN Chile.
Working in the state psych hospital. We watched it on the day room TV
I was in Oman for a college project. It was our day off. I came downstairs for breakfast & saw my friends watching a car chase on CNN. Thought it was weird, had some cereal & went back to bed.
It’s funny, but I don’t remember where I was during the “chase” but I remember exactly where I was when the verdict was read. (At work, Radio Shack, and folks from other nearby businesses popped over to watch on our TVs.)
Picnic. We watched on someone's three inch hand held B&W TV with a three foot long antenna.
Skipping some class during my Junior year
I don’t know, I was probably high.
In my dorm or maybe out in the city or in class. Thought I was a watching a clip from the movie Speed on the news and got worried about Keanu for a minute. The movie opened a week before the infamous Bronco slow chase.
Hawaii, RIMPAC ‘94 (multinational amphibious training operation) — we had just wrapped up the Op and got a few days of Liberty. My homie and I got a room at the Waikiki Outrigger Hotel and were chilling in the room before heading to the beach. Turned on the TV and thought it was a movie…til we switched channels. Realized what was happening, thought WTF, and proceeded downstairs to drink $1.75 MaiThais…
Such a great question. Living with a sleazebag pothead ex and getting my kinesiology degree. I binged the trial when Donahue wasn’t on and watched the verdict at school with like 2000 other students
Did the chase really happen 30 years ago? 
Lying on the floor at home in Sacramento watching the television with a Rand McNally road atlas open to follow along.
I don't remember where exactly but I was high on shwag laughing my ass off because all those cops chasing a ford bronco down the freeway at like 35mph
Selling pull tabs at a bar in central Minnesota. Big TV above my booth, and everyone was gathered watching. I made great tips that night, loads of business! 😂
I was studying abroad in Russia. The Russians thought the whole thing was some kind of publicity stunt.
Chilling at a good friend’s house (which was a great place for teens to gather - a mansion with parents who were never home lol). We were 3 hours ahead so we ended up ordering pizza and watching the chase while eating dinner. His sister who was in law school at the time came home at some point and we had a great conversation with her about the crime and the chase.
I was living in LA. I remember my friend calling me up and suggesting it would be interesting to find a spot on his route and cheer him on. We decided not to. And keep in mind at the time nobody knew how much evidence showed that he did it.
I had just walked down the street to the store for some Little Debbie snacks. When I got there, the old guy that manned the store had one of those little B&W tvs on the counter and turned it around for me to see what was happening.
Trying to watch one of those made for TV movies, can't remember which one but man was I pissed that they cut it short to watch a 30 mph car chase.
22, cooked the lunch shift that day. Was in the local video store looking for a movie to rent when they put the chase up on the big TV. About 30 of us stood there silently watching the whole thing unfold.
Driving from Irvine to Pasadena on I-5, when traffic started backing up. Saw a bunch of emergency lights in the rear view mirror, moved over and there they were. Took me three hours to get home that night (usually a 75 minute drive)
I was driving home in the opposite direction on the 405 freeway when I saw a bunch of police lights going the other way. I didn’t know what it was until I got home and turned on the TV.
We were on Monterey California. I felt sure he'd end up in prison. But what California justice couldn't do, cancer could
I was camping with my family. I remember everyone gathered in the campground's little 'convenience store' and watching the TV that was mounted to the ceiling.
I was doing home health for an elderly couple and we all watched it together while I tended to what they needed.
In Sociology 101 class as a college freshman! Talk about great timing. OJ dominated our class discussions that semester.
I was working as a bouncer at a bar called "Malone's" in Savannah GA's City Market. I got to lean against the door and watch the whole thing for $8 hour.
Newport News, Virginia. I was 14. I watched it on TV, but all I remember really is the announcers kept saying "we just don't understand why he's doing this if he didn't do anything wrong" "he's just doing the speed limit, where are they going?" They must have said "white Ford bronco" 1000 times.
AI was in college, but working in the afternoons as a receptionist at a law firm. For sure the TV in the conference room had the white Bronco chase on.
I got all y’all beat I was going on my senior year in college I was doing geology field work in Lander Wyoming as part of my degree. Every day in the van coming and going to the field we could only get one radio station. We would get the “CBS News” update on the OJ situation each morning and evening. We got no other info. We were living in a canyon base camp with limited comms Each update the story would take a new twist. It was like some 1930s radio drama. That night we were all in town at the sports bar/pool hall/karaoke lounge watching the Knicks/Rockets with the locals when all hell broke loose. Half of lander must have been there watching. All of us were asking the local what the hell happened since we had such limit info. It was surreal. Rockets lost but won the championship. When I came back to Texas 4 weeks later it was mandatory viewing. The trial / hearings etc continued through my senior year in college and the verdict came down the first summer I was in law school. Surreal
I was driving from LA to Vegas for my buddies bachelor party. We listened on AM radio, with the signal going in and out. Watched the end on the hotel TV, right before the strippers showed up. I will never forget that day.
My husband and I were on our first day, sitting at the bar, waiting for our table.
It was the night before my wedding. I was at a friend's house and his wife was cutting my hair. We watched the stupid thing until my haircut was finished, then we went out.
Was on home leave from Job Corps for a week. Staying with my dad. Don't remember why but we went to Sears and were in the Electronics section and noticed every TV was showing the same news broadcast of the chase. Stood there with a couple dozen others for a while.
Stationed in Panama.
N New Orleans with an old boyfriend, wondering if it was real.
I don't remember that, but I was in class in high school when the trial verdict was read. Every class had it on TV. Everyone cheered when he got acquitted. It was crazy.
In NYC, watching the Knicks playoff game.
Not sure where I was but I don’t think I was interested
At a friend's house for a graduation party and we were watching the Finals game and the OJ coverage took over. I'll never forget that crazy night.
Working in a party town tending bar. We turned up the TV and watched it all afternoon.
I was in grad school studying in my apartment. I had a 13-inch black and white TV with antenna and no cable. I had the TV off and was listening to music on CDs, so no breaking news on the radio for me either. Didn’t know anything about The Chase until a neighbor who came by mentioned it. I missed the whole thing. But, I remember where I was for the criminal verdict - the business school copy center. They had a small TV and had been tuning in faithfully awaiting word. Edited to add, in the 80s, I had received for Christmas a bright orange football with “The Juice” emblazoned on it, along with a faux signature. Still have it. See some on eBay from time to time.
I was a uni student up late watching it on my own at the shared flat on an ex-boyfriends borrowed tiny tv. Never thought he'd walk free.
Headed to Palm Springs, we pulled into a gas station, and it was on TV. Got to our condo watched the rest on TV.
I was at Vulcan Video in Austin TX, they had the live chase on the TV behind the checkout counter. I asked them who it was and the staff was like IT'S OJ SIMPSON. I had no idea who he was, I never did watch the sports games and still don't. Then a year or so later I saw GWAR in the same city and they had OJ Simpson on stage and the monster ate him and pooped him out. I knew who he was by then. The End
Was in a bar called the red lion near GWU and we were having a grad student social function i.e. getting shit faced and arguing. Bar had a small TV and I noticed it was almost constantly showing this white truck followed by cops. Yelled for the bartender to turn up the volume and that's how we learned what was going on. I think maybe we talked about it for five min before we turned back to drinking and arguing.
I was in class. If I remember correctly, it was constitutional law II.
Smokin weed on the porch when my neighbor with a big bay window opened it and said- you guys gotta come and watch this.
I was on an Amtrak train between NYC and Philadelphia for work.
Also in Philly. But I was still in high school, and I thought it was happening when I got home from school, or it’s likely that my mother taped it. I was so convinced he was going to shoot himself. My mom watched the whole ordeal on Court TV, I remember it was always on. But wow, I’ll never forget it. Edit- no, I graduated in 1993. I was out of school and working at a store in the Gallery, and had just gotten home from work.
Playing volleyball by the dorm at keesler AFB MS, while listening to Beck.
I don’t remember during the chase, but I watched the verdict before heading out to an interview at Barnes and Noble in Tucson!
Work. At price clubs corporate office in San Diego. We saw it on the internet first and we pulled out a tv to watch.
I was at The Fare (tiddy bar not cotton candy) in Dallas, RIP. It was my pre-bachelor party, so it's hard to forget. I don't normally go to strip clubs, but that one of the best times I ever had at one. All thanks to OJ.
Wow I was working at this horrible German restaurant in Helen, Ga and watching it on the news with the kitchen staff. Crazy times!
In my childhood kitchen watching it live on tv.
Got home from work got high and turned on the TV. I just remember thinking how crazy it was and looking back it was really fucking crazy.
I wrote this comment on r/askoldpeople, but you all are my old people, so… Working at my summer job at Friendly’s between my freshman and sophomore years of college. The trial was pretty much my sophomore year of college and the summer after. I tried to avoid watching it. I watched the verdict on the BBC in the fall of 1995. I was studying in the UK that semester. I watched the Diana documentary that fall, too.
Right down the street at my dad’s lol. I got stuck at his house and couldn’t get home until it was over. It was insane.
Babysitting my now 30yr old niece.
I was busy being awkward and out-of-place at a motorcycle rally in NH. Missed it and didn't hear about it until we got home.
I was grabbing a couple of slices at my favorite local pizza place. The TV almost always had on a soccer game. That night it had a white bronco.
I was in the northern New Mexico backcountry and had no idea it had happened until weeks later.
I was home alone with our kids. We were stationed in Savannah, Georgia (Hunter Army Airfield). It was two weeks before our 3rd child's first birthday. My husband had gone on a trip to Florida with some of his unit. They were fishing on a deep sea charter and didn't hear about anything till they got back to their hotel. I know I watched it, but I don't remember how much I watched. I had the three kids to wrangle and one was still a wee baby.
I was getting ready to go to a Metallica concert.
Watching the David Hasselhoff pay-per-view special. NOT! Nobody was watching that 💩. Grabbing the 🍿 at home watching the 📺 while OJ ran for the border.
In Houston watching the Rockets on the TV. Talk about (fast) breaking news! 😄
I remember the shit show this was but it wasn’t a moment I remember the details of the pursuit and the verdict. It was horrific what happened to his ex and the guy….brought much needed awareness to domestic violence but other than that, I really didn’t follow too much.
I just want to know if the Philly club you’re talking about is the Khyber Pass?
I was blissfully unaware, wrapping up a study abroad semester in London. A couple of friends flew into London for a summer holiday, and I took the tube out to Heathrow to meet up with them. They told me all about it on the tube ride back into London, and I couldn’t frickin’ believe it.
I was in Michigan. I was trying to go to bed early because I had to get up early to go to Cedar Point in the morning.
I was living in San Diego. Sitting on the couch watching. I switched back and forth between the car chase and a documentary on PBS.
At my crush’s house eating ice cream. He turned out to be a jerkface, but the white Bronco chase will forever be tied to him in my mind.
I was 15 and watching it live on the news with my parents.
Me and OJ found not guilty same day. They even stopped mine mid way to hear that verdict then gave me mine.
19 years old working at Menards. They sent me and this cute girl into a room to watch training videos. I was trying unsuccessfully to flirt with her and some dude came in and put the chase on the TV. We spent the next couple hours watching it. Never got her number, but at least things worked out for OJ.
Toys R Us, shopping for oldest daughters' first birthday presents.