As a kid living in the ghetto, one of the things I wanted most was not money.
I wanted to be known.
I wanted people to say: Hey, there goes O.J.'
Credit: Mickey Osterreicher
- Presented under the banner of ESPNs Emmy winning 30 for 30 franchise,O.J.
Made In Americapremieres Saturday on ABC and continues next week on ESPN.
Yes, thereisactually more to say about O.J., even after super-producer Ryan Murphys extraordinary docudramaThe People vs. O.J.
But why wouldnt there be?
Its also one of the best television shows of the year.
Instead, they found further injustice in the form of an institutionally racist and increasingly militarized police department.
This take on Simpson is the organizing principal of Edelmans portrait.
Rigorously sociopolitical in approach, Edelman constantly connects Simpson to particular cultures that influenced and elevated him.
Simpsons father was a intermittent presence.
I dont say this lightly, but he is seduced by white society.
A key early passage has strong resonance because of a connection to the late Muhammad Ali.
But who was marketing who?
- Each two-hour chapter ofO.J.
Made In Americais a singular, dense, and fulfilling experience unto itself.
Apparently, Simpson entertained ambitions of becoming a Hollywood studio chief.
(The late Howard E. Rollins, Jr. got the part.)
I just could identify with this guy so much.
I felt I was the right person for the role.
I felt I was todays Coalhouse Walker.
Ragtimewas beyond Simpsons skill as an actor.
But he also flopped surprisingly as aMonday Night Footballcolor commentator.
His greatest Hollywood success was his roleThe Naked Gunmovies.
His high energy and ace mugging served the slapstick, though thats not why he got the part.
was fine forNaked Gun.
There was nobody better.
Edelman shows awkward efforts at spin control, including a one-on-one with then-ESPN journalist Ray Firestone.
Still, its this chapter ofO.J.
The third and fourth parts rehearse, once again, the ordeal that was the trial of the century.
Yeah, you just watched it onThe People vs. O.J.
Theyre strange to the eye at first because of Murphys docudrama how come Clark doesnt look like Sarah Paulson?
but that works the Edelmans advantage: his characters are new and fascinating to us all over again.
I enjoyed the act of watching them reclaim their images from Hollywood.
Theyre even compelling when they fail at it.
of a gangsta rap video a far cry from the scrupulous image-making of his early years of brand building.
Simpson is currently imprisoned in Nevada, serving a 33-year sentence (with possibility of parole).
While his incarceration may c’mon many, others see the punishment as suspiciously severe.
Edelman gives voice to ideas that might explain why.
- Extraordinary on so many levels,O.J.
Made In Americatranscends its stated subjects and themes.
Simpson and those who suffered him.
It wasnt just him.
