Highlights
- O.J. Simpson died of prostate cancer at 76, leaving behind a small net worth and over $100 million in debt.
- Simpson requested to be paid in cash for podcasts and appearances, making it hard to determine his actual income.
- Simpson owed the Goldman family over $100 million after he was found liable for the death of Ron Goldman in a civil case; he only paid $133,000.
O.J. Simpson's final years contrast the glitz and the glamor he experienced at the height of his success. On April 11, 2024, his family announced on X (formerly Twitter) that Simpson had died of prostate cancer the day before. He was 76. "He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren," the statement read. "During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace."
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RelatedKhloe Kardashian And OJ Simpson Relationship Questioned Again Soon After News Of His Death
When O.J. Simpson passed away in April 2024, people began discussing a long-standing rumor about the athlete and Khloe Kardashian.Following his death, there has been a renewed interest in Simpson, what he had been doing in the final years of his life, and how he is believed to have died with a relatively small net worth compared to his earlier earnings. He was over a hundred million in debt to Ron Goldman's family.
What Was O.J. Simpson's Net Worth When He Died?
O.J. Simpson went from being one of the NFL's biggest talents to a convicted felon, but he did not die a pauper. A portion of his income was meant to be paid to Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman's families. However, it wasn't easy to determine because, according to Page Six, he requested that he be paid in cash. This included podcast appearances, autograph signings, and golf trips.
"He would sign anything except anything that had to do with the trial or murder," an insider told the publication. "The stipulation was always that he had to be paid in cash." They added, "With being paid everything in cash, there was no way to document how much money he had access to." This makes it incredibly hard to determine Simpson's actual income in the last few years and perhaps does not accurately reflect his net worth, estimated at $3 million – a sum that pales compared to his earnings in the 90s.
Why Did O.J. Simpson Owe Millions In Debt?
In 1994, Nicole Brown (O.J. Simpson's ex-wife) and her friend Ronald Goldman were stabbed to death. Although Simpson was not found guilty on these charges in his 1995 trial, he would later be found liable for their deaths in a civil case, the Associated Press reports. Simpson was ordered to pay the respective families. According to People, Goldman's father, Fred Goldman, claimed that Simpson owed his family over $100 million, a claim the family's lawyer, David Cook, commented on.
"He died without penance," Cook told People. "He did not want to give a dime, a nickel to Fred, never, anything, never." The publication also notes that since the 1997 trial, Simpson is believed to have paid just $133,000 to the family. "He [still] owes on the current status of the judgment," Cook said of a court judgment from 2022.
RelatedOJ Simpson's Idea Of A "Joke" With An Interviewer Didn't Go The Way He Expected
OJ Simpson rattled an interviewer when he played a "joke" that no one thought was funny.The family also made a statement after Simpson's death. "The news of Ron's killer passing away is a mixed bag of complicated emotions and reminds us that the journey through grief is not linear," they wrote, per Associated Press.
Simpson is survived by his five children, although there is some debate about how much they will inherit. In an interview with People, attorney David Cook said that Goldman's family was looking into their options. "We need to get a lawyer or a number of lawyers who deal with this, very smart people to determine who it is or who it would be, and [start] taking depositions from people and/or finding out who they are and what information we need," he explained. "It's a big deal."
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