June 17, 1994: White Bronco

LOS ANGELES - It was supposed to be New York's day in the sun. That afternoon, New York had thrown a parade for the Rangers, Stanley Cup Champions for the first time in 54 years. That night, in the same building in which the Rangers won their series, the Knicks were playing the Houston Rockets in Game 5 of the finals, looking to take a 3-to-2 lead in the series. It seemed as though the entire sports world was centered on Madison Square Garden in the heart of Manhattan.

As the Knicks and Rockets were in the middle of another low-scoring slugfest, the NBC affiliates covering the game suddenly put the game on split screen, in the lower half of the screen. In the top screen, the predominant image was of a solitary white Ford Bronco, driving slowly up Interstate 405 being pursued by scores of Los Angeles Police cars.

Confusion. Why on earth was the NBA finals being pre-empted by a car chase? Sure, it had been kind of a dull series, but the games had been relatively close, and the Knicks were one of the most prominent teams in the league. You'd think they'd get the night to themselves. It didn't make sense that the networks would show an LA car chase instead.

Then we found out the truth, and we let out a collective gasp: O.J. Simpson was in the Bronco with a gun to his own head.

Suddenly, the game meant nothing.

Suddenly, America was transfixed in the plight of the man who had once been viewed as the best running back in the NFL. He was the poster child for off-field success, one of the first black athletes to receive numerous marketing opportunities, the charasmatic man who was the antithesis of what people hated about the modern athlete.

And now he was a fugitive from justice.

The game was no longer of any importance when put up against this real-life prime-time drama. Viewers were fascinated: why didn't Simpson turn himself in like originally planned? Was he trying to flee? If so, why was the car moving so slowly? Was he really going to kill himself on the LA freeway? We don't want to watch that, do we? We can't stop watching now, can we?

As the chase went on, it became more absurd. Soon, people could be seen lining the freeway, cheering the Bronco while the half-dozen police cars followed closely behind. It seemed odd that people would be cheering and supporting a man accused of double murder, but everything about that day seemed odd.

Nobody knew it then, but that was just the start of the craze. Simpson's surrender and subsequent trial became absolute must-see TV. His acquittal counts as one of this generation's "where were you when" moments (junior high American history class). The car chase qualifies for many, as well, but that answer is easier. They were watching a basketball game. One that the Knicks won 91-84. But nobody remembers that. They just remember the white Bronco.