Old video resurfaces where Dave Chappelle claims OJ Simpson was ‘one of the nicest people’ he's met
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: After OJ Simpson’s family announced the controversial athlete’s death on April 10, a video of Dave Chappelle insisting that the former NFL star was ‘one of the nicest people’ he has ever met has gone viral.
In the wake of Simpson’s death aged 76 following a short battle with prostate cancer, the old video of Chapelle, 50, has been making the rounds of the internet.
After becoming a breakout star in the NFL and having a successful career as a running back with the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers, Simpson courted immense controversy when he was accused of the grisly murders of his wife Nicole Brown, and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994.
Following an eleven-month-long trial, which is often dubbed as the ‘trial of the century’, the former athlete was acquitted in the case of double murders.
With the death of Simpson, the old video of Chapelle recounting the experiences of his run-ins with the athlete has resurfaced on the internet.
Dave Chappelle said OJ Simpson was one of the nicest persons
During a show at the Hollywood Palladium in 2017, the comedian recounted the four precise instances when he met Simpson. It was later used in a Netflix special as well.
Chappelle could be seen recounting to the audience that his first meeting with Simpson happened in 1991 - when the athlete was at the peak of his stardom and Chappelle was just starting his career, per Daily Mail.
‘The Closer’ star recounted to his audience, “At the time I was 18, I had done a show in Santa Monica and the guy from the club came up and was like, 'OJ Simpson's here and he said he wants to meet you'."
He continued, “I was like, 'What? F**k yeah'. I ran down the steps and OJ was there and he was like, 'Hey man how are you? It's nice to meet you, you're doing really good work. I hope good things happen in your life'.”
“I said, 'Thanks Mr. Juice'. Standing beside him was his soon-to-be slain wife. That woman was very nice to me, she actually embraced me,” recalled the comedian referring to Nicole.
He further narrated, "She said, 'I think you're adorable, good luck to you', and she hugged me and held me for a long time.”
He also joked, “I whispered in her ear, 'B***h are you trying to get us both killed?' I'm just kidding I didn't say that.”
Following his first interaction, Chappelle explained that he met Simpson after the infamous trial. After getting acquitted by a jury, Simpson was found civilly liable and ordered to pay out $33.5 million in damages to the victims' families.
Chappelle recalled his second meeting and narrated to his audience, “The second time I met OJ Simpson was right after the trial of the century, when OJ Simpson was the most famous or infamous face on planet earth.”
He shared that he was dining at a restaurant in Beverly Hills with his agents when he noticed Simpson walking towards the exit.
The ‘Half Baked’ star noted, “The restaurant fell still. I was shocked. I didn't mean to say it out loud but it just came out. 'OJ?' I said.”
He continued, “He stopped and turned around to see who said it, saw my black face and correctly assumed it was me,” before adding, “He came over to the booth I was in, leaned over my white [agents] and shook my hand.”
"'How are you young man?' [he asked]. He looked in my eyes and I could see in his eyes that he didn't remember meeting me the first time. And then he walked away. I looked back at my agents and they had nothing short of disgust on their faces,” shared the comic star.
Chappelle then recalled getting asked by one of his agents named Sharon, “How could you shake hands with that murderer?”
He also recounted that at that point he replied, “Sharon, with all due respect, that murderer ran for over 11,000 yards,” referring to his feat as a football player.
He also recalled mentioning the glove incident, saying, “And he was acquitted so you know, f**k it. The glove didn't fit.”
Chappelle shared that he met OJ Simpson for the third time in 2004 when he was “doing great in life,” doing a world tour and starring in ‘The Chappelle Show’.
Chappelle shared with his audience that he saw Simpson sitting in the front row of the audience during one of his shows in Miami, Florida.
Chappelle recounted, “I saw recognition in his eyes and it filled me with pride that he knew who I was,” before adding, “I didn't acknowledge his presence because it was a white audience and I didn't want to start a panic.”
He added, “I did my show, and it went great. And at the end, I gave OJ a signal to let him know I knew he was there.”
Nevertheless, the comedian shared that at the end of the performance, Simpson visited him in his greenroom where they chatted for about 90 minutes. In the end, he thanked Chappelle for his “hospitality” and left.
Recounting the meeting, Chappelle said, “In my experience, OJ Simpson was the nicest man I ever met. He was nice to me, he was nice to my friends, and the conversation was filled with warmth, levity, humor, and wisdom.”
He, however, also added, “As soon as the door closed [me and my friends] all looked at each other like, 'That n***a did that s**t'. It was a feeling. I could feel murder in the room.”
His fourth meeting with Simpson took place when both of them were invited to a party hosted by Michael Jordan for the Kentucky Derby.
Chappelle said that as he was talking with fellow comedian Chris Tucker, he saw Simpson approach them with a camera in his hand.
The ‘Sticks & Stones’ star reminisced, “He had his camera ready. He was like, 'Dave, Chris, good to see you guys. Let's all get together for a picture'.”
However, he explained that at that point he was on a wobbly path career-wise, and a photo with Simpson might tarnish his reputation.
Chappelle said, “At the same time, me and Chris were like, 'No, we can't do that. Sorry Juice, my career was too flimsy to survive a picture with you'.”
Internet reacts to Dave Chapelle's characterization of OJ Simpson
The internet came up with mixed reactions to Chappelle's story as the readers commented online.
One of the social media users observed, "Thanks Dave. The central, and very illuminating, heart of this story? Makes it clear that OJ Simpson spent the rest of his life a PARIAH. To everyone. Even with one of the few people that found something worthwhile in him. As Dave Chapelle’s final story shows."
Someone else chimed in, "At one point, even Nicole Brown thought he was sooo nice too."
"Well yes, you weren’t his wife. Nobody expects that he beat you while you met him socially," said someone else.
Another fan who followed the infamous 'trial of the century', remarked, "Most of us, at that time, thought OJ Simpson was great -- Until he was in that GETAWAY CAR/VAN then read the news and folllowed the trial."
"He's only giving his opinion on the time he met him of course OJ would be on his best behaviour whilst meeting people," said another netizen.
Another detractor observed, "Every sociopath is apparently nice in public."
Someone else added, "It is said that AdoIf HitIer was a nice man, charming to women and kind to dogs."
Meanwhile, another user said with sarcasm, "Nice to you? Wow that erases any violence in his life."
"Chappelle wouldn’t be making these jokes if his own daughter or son had been murdered," said someone else.
This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.
