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(On January 26, the day after the Super Bowl, I had the unique opportunity to interview O. J. Simpson. I happen to be a big sports fan and know a lot about Simpson's football career, and we're about the same age, so I expected we would have some things in common. I met him at his home on the west side of Los Angeles. It's not a particularly gaudy residence, but it's a comfortable place with much of it devoted to his kids, who were at school when this interview was conducted. O.J. appeared relaxed, but there was a slight undertone of apprehension. He agreed to answer any question, the only condition being he wanted a copy of the audio recording of the interview. No problem, I said.) NEUMAN: Thanks for granting the interview. SIMPSON: Well, from what I was told, you weren't out for blood. NEUMAN: What? SIMPSON: I figured you were, you know, not out to get me. Say, where's this going to run? NEUMAN: Not sure yet. Maybe Inside Sports. Or Sports Illustrated. SIMPSON: Yeah? Hey, that would be cool. NEUMAN: We'll see. Tell me, before I ask you anything else: what did you think of the Super Bowl game? SIMPSON: It was a good game. I was happy for Elway. He finally got his ring. NEUMAN: The ring. That's what it's all about, isn't it? SIMPSON: Yeah. NEUMAN: And Terrell Davis -- wow. Do you realize he broke one of your records? SIMPSON: He did? NEUMAN: Total yardage in a season -- including playoff games. SIMPSON: Did I hold that? No, I think Eric Dickerson passed me... NEUMAN: Wait -- you're right, he did. Anyway, Terrell Davis has a great future ahead of him, doesn't he? SIMPSON: He's good. And durable. You have to be durable. NEUMAN: And he's a winner. Bet you wish you had a ring -- am I right? SIMPSON: Of course, but you know, you have to be lucky. Not everybody has one. Jim Brown, Gale Sayers... NEUMAN: Walter Payton... SIMPSON: Payton's got a ring. NEUMAN: Oh, you're right. Of course. Well, still, you had a great, great career. Tell me, what was it like running for two thousand yards in a season? I mean, come on, you must have slept for a month after the last game? SIMPSON: Oh, man, it takes its toll, let me tell you. NEUMAN: What was it, '73? SIMPSON: Yeah, '73. And this was in Buffalo. You know what it's like in Buffalo in late November, early December? NEUMAN: I can imagine. How do you rehabilitate your body after taking such a pounding over a long season? SIMPSON: Just rest. That's it. Rest. You know, I didn't offer you anything. Would you like some soda, or a beer? NEUMAN: A beer would be great. SIMPSON: I'll be right back. NEUMAN: And some chips. (Simpson goes to the kitchen, where I can still see him. He opens the refrigerator, pulls out a bottle of beer and a can of diet soda. Then he opens a cabinet and takes out a bag of chips, and returns to the living room.) SIMPSON: Here you go. NEUMAN: Is this a twist-off top? SIMPSON: I'll do it... NEUMAN: Thanks...I see you play a lot of golf. SIMPSON: Yeah. I love golf. I'll play anywhere, anytime. You like golf? NEUMAN: Only when there's a windmill on the course. But, seriously, I wondered: when you're out there on the golf course, trying to concentrate, what goes through your mind? I mean, in football, you hardly have any time to think, but in golf, you have lots of time. SIMPSON: I try to blank out all distractions. I just focus on my swing, the ball, where I have to hit it, and that's it. Of course, it rarely works. (He laughs.) NEUMAN: What's your handicap? SIMPSON: I'm a twelve -- on my good days. But I've been known to blow up a few times. Good thing they weren't counting those rounds. NEUMAN: Where's your strength? Woods? Irons? On the green? SIMPSON: My game is in the woods -- literally! (He laughs.) But I guess I'm best from about 150 yards out. I like the short irons -- that's my distance. NEUMAN: You ran for about 150 yards per game, too. (I laugh.) SIMPSON: Yeah, right... NEUMAN: If you don't mind, O.J., I'd like to take you back a few years... SIMPSON: Sure, go ahead. Like I said, ask me anything, I have nothing to hide. NEUMAN: Good...in 1991, you played Detective Nordberg in the movie, "Naked Gun 2 1/2"... SIMPSON: Right... NEUMAN: And in 1994 you did "Naked Gun 33 1/3." I thought you were terrific in both films, by the way... SIMPSON: Thanks. They were a lot of fun to do. The Zucker brothers. NEUMAN: I worked with them once. SIMPSON: Yeah? They're funny guys. NEUMAN: They are, but let me get back to something that also happened in 1994... SIMPSON: I know where you're going... NEUMAN: The mascot? SIMPSON: What? NEUMAN: This happened in Kansas City when you were a sideline reporter for NBC. SIMPSON: Oh, oh -- yeah. NEUMAN: You bumped into the Chiefs mascot and sent him flying. It was hilarious. SIMPSON: Right. That was a great one for the highlight shows. NEUMAN: One of the best. SIMPSON: Yeah, you still see it all the...well, you used to see it all the time. NEUMAN: Have you ever heard from him? SIMPSON: Who? The guy in the Indian outfit? No. No, I haven't. NEUMAN: O.J., I have to ask you this, because...well, you're the only person in the entire world who can answer this question... SIMPSON: Yes? NEUMAN: Are these chips baked? SIMPSON: Huh? Baked? I don't know. How would you know? NEUMAN: It would say so on the bag. SIMPSON: What does the bag say? NEUMAN: I don't know, it's over by you. SIMPSON: Oh...here. (He tosses the bag of chips over to me.) NEUMAN: Thanks. Say, how about another beer? SIMPSON: Sure -- you finished that one already? (Simpson gets up and goes into the kitchen. He opens the refrigerator and pulls out a bottle of beer.) NEUMAN: Any pretzels? SIMPSON: I'll see...(He opens a cabinet.) No...no pretzels. NEUMAN: How about some saltines? SIMPSON: Saltines? NEUMAN: You know...cheese crackers. SIMPSON: Cheese crackers... (Simpson grabs a bag from the cabinet and returns to the living room and gives it to me.) NEUMAN: Hey, these are Chee-tos. SIMPSON: Yeah. You said "cheese crackers." NEUMAN: I meant crackers that you eat with cheese. You can't eat cheese with Chee-tos. SIMPSON: Why not? NEUMAN: That's like eating peanuts with peanut butter. SIMPSON: You never heard of "chunky style" peanut butter? NEUMAN: That's different. SIMPSON: How is it different? Besides, I don't have any cheese, so why should it matter? NEUMAN: Okay, okay, never mind...tell me: how tough was it to close out your career in San Francisco, your hometown, with the Forty-niners, and have it end up such a disappointment? SIMPSON: What do you mean? It wasn't a disappointment as far as I was concerned. I loved playing in my hometown. NEUMAN: Well, you were hardly the main man in the offense anymore...what was the name of the guy who was the number one running back that year for the Niners? SIMPSON: You mean Paul Hofer? NEUMAN: Yeah. They seemed to go to him more often. You only averaged -- what? Three yards a carry? SIMPSON: I think it was closer to four. NEUMAN: And in those two years the Niners lost twenty-eight games. They were two and fourteen each season you played for them. Do you think about that? Does that still bother you? SIMPSON: Bother me? No. I had a great career. But I was coming off a knee injury in '78 when the Niners traded for me, and I was getting older... NEUMAN: You were only thirty. The Forty-niners were hoping you'd revitalize a team that had gotten old. They traded a ton of draft choices for you. SIMPSON: Hey, I was hurt. Listen, you know, you're getting into an area here... NEUMAN: You said I could ask you anything. SIMPSON: I know, I know... NEUMAN: Is it true your teammates resented you, that they blamed you for weakening a team that didn't recover until after you left and Bill Walsh arrived and brought in Joe Montana and a whole new offense built around the passing game? SIMPSON: Are you done? Because, first of all, Bill Walsh was already there for my final year. No one's blaming him for going two and fourteen. And, like I said, I had a knee injury. It's very difficult coming back from an ACL (arterial cruciate ligament). You never really get back the strength in the knee. NEUMAN: I know. I had arthroscopic four years ago. Guess what? I'm playing the best basketball of my life. SIMPSON: Well, that's you. I'm talking about returning to the National Football League. There's a bit of a difference here, okay? NEUMAN: You got another beer in there? SIMPSON: What? NEUMAN: Do you have another beer? SIMPSON: I'll look. (Simpson gets up and starts for the kitchen.) NEUMAN: And some more Chee-tos. SIMPSON: There are no more Chee-tos. NEUMAN: How do you know? You haven't looked yet. (Simpson opens the refrigerator, takes out a bottle of beer, then opens the cabinet.) SIMPSON: No more Chee-tos, no more chips, no pretzels, no saltines. (Simpson returns from the kitchen and hands me the beer and sits down.) NEUMAN: Now, O.J., if I could, I'd like to touch on some subject matter that might be a bit sensitive... SIMPSON: Look...I've said it before and, if you want, go ahead, but... NEUMAN: Here it is: did it ever bother you when they accused you of being practically unintelligible when you were doing so-called "expert" analysis on football games? SIMPSON: What? NEUMAN: Some people said they couldn't understand a word you were saying, that your pronunciation was awful, that you needed diction lessons... SIMPSON: Hey, I've heard that, okay, I've heard all of that, and no, I never got offended if people wanted to criticize me for it. But I worked on it, I got better, a lot better, I thought... NEUMAN: Honestly, O.J., I understood you, I'm just repeating a common criticism of your speaking talents. There were some who said the criticism was racially motivated. What do you think? SIMPSON: I don't think so, but -- you know what? I've got to get going pretty soon. Can we wrap this thing up? NEUMAN: Sure, sure...one more question? SIMPSON: Okay. NEUMAN: It's a big question, actually it's the big question. I was going to open the interview with this one... SIMPSON: Yeah... NEUMAN: Well, I want to know, and I bet all of America wants to know... SIMPSON: What? Did I kill my wife? No. I did not kill my wife. NEUMAN: What? What do you mean, you didn't kill your wife? SIMPSON: That's what I said. I did not kill my wife. I did not kill Nicole. NEUMAN: Nicole? Who's Nicole? What the hell are you talking about? SIMPSON: Huh? What do you mean? NEUMAN: Who is Nicole? Is that your wife? SIMPSON: Are you trying to be funny? NEUMAN: No. Are you? What's all this stuff about killing your wife? And who's Nicole? I never asked you anything about that? Are you all right? SIMPSON: If you're trying to be funny, you're not. Look, man, I've got to go... (Simpson stands up, and so do I.) NEUMAN: Okay, then I guess I'll be going, too...I'll let you know where and when this thing'll run... (He walks me to the door.) SIMPSON: I want a tape of this. And I want final approval on any article. NEUMAN: That wasn't what we agreed on. Just the tape. SIMPSON: I don't care. I didn't like some of the things you said. NEUMAN: What did I say? Did I say anything bad? SIMPSON: I'll be the judge of that. (Simpson extends his hand.) SIMPSON: Good bye. NEUMAN: Nice meeting you, O.J. (We shake hands and I head for the door.) SIMPSON: Don't cross me on this. NEUMAN: I don't know what you mean, but, sure, whatever you say.
(I walk out as Simpson closes the door behind me.)
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