It has been more than two decades since OJ Simpson was acquitted for the murders of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson. But the many years since the trial took place did not diminish the fervor around FX’s critically acclaimed series The People vs. OJ Simpson, which tapped into the country’s OJ nostalgia and is on its way to about a gazillion (presumed) Emmys this fall. Now CBS is trying to hop on the true-crime television adaptation train as well with a JonBenet Ramsey series set to air next year.
The difference between the JonBenet Ramsey story and the OJ saga is that the former has not stayed in the public consciousness nearly as much as the latter. Many people recall the general details, that Ramsey was a child pageant queen who was murdered when she was 6. Most remember that her parents were under heavy suspicion, as Ramsey’s body was discovered in their basement. Some may even remember that she was found the day after Christmas, making the situation incredibly tragic. But that is about as deep as the commonly remembered facts go.
Now that her story is being told via a network television show rather than just through cable news clips and speculation, long lost details may come to light and inform people about her life and death in equal measure. Perhaps new evidence will even come to light in the process.
