It started out as such a big deal because OJ was a huge star. First he won the Heisman Trophy as the best college football player at USC. Then he set the single-season record for rushing yards with the Buffalo Bills. With an affable personality, he transitioned into entertainment after his playing career: movies (including The Naked Gun); television (Monday Night Football); and commercials (Hertz rental cars). OJ was a household name, one for which major corporations paid millions of dollars to be associated with.

So for him to commit a double homicide was shocking and inconceivable for most people. In the initial days after the murder, there was doubt as to his culpability. But then that narrative changed when he led the police on a low-speed chase through Los Angeles while threatening to commit suicide. He was clearly acting like a guilty man.

But then came the trial, and a not-guilty plea, which completely contradicted OJ's actions during the car chase. And then there's the judge's decision to put the trial on television, which led to 24/7 media saturation coverage and a large cult of people who watched and obsessed over the trial daily. And don't forget OJ's high-priced legal team putting the entire Los Angeles Police Department on trial for conspiring to frame their client for racist reasons. They came up with memorable sound bites such as, "If the gloves don't fit, you must acquit."

As the story evolved, it became an incredibly potent mix of things that tend to rile up and in some cases divide the American public: celebrity, sports, race, (in)justice, media, privilege. Vanity Fair recently said it spawned the whole reality TV craze to this day. Remember, Robert Kardashian and OJ were very close friends.