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Telling the full story of the trial of the century isn’t possible without sharing the context of the other trial of the century that preceded it. Prolific TV producers Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan understood that when crafting their acclaimed 2016 FX miniseries The People v. O.J. Simpson. While that 10-episode effort is laser-focused on all things O.J. Simpson, the early installments include more than a few mentions of two other Southern Californian true crime figures: Lyle and Erik Menendez.
“It’s always the big cases that melt down: McMartin, Twilight Zone, Menendez – why is it always the famous ones?” District Attorney Gil Garcetti (Bruce Greenwood) opines in the series’ second episode.
The trials of Lyle and Erik Menendez and O.J. Simpson are inextricably linked in the annals of true crime history. That’s because, by the time former football star, actor, and American icon O.J. Simpson took the stand in his murder trial in 1995, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office already had ample experience in prosecuting cases amid intense public scrutiny thanks to the preceding trial of the Menendez brothers.
Lyle and Erik Menendez killed their father, José, and their mother, Kitty, in 1989. After a lengthy indictment process, CA v. Menendez began in earnest in 1993 and was broadcast to the world via Court TV and dogged print reporting led by Dominick Dunne at Vanity Fair. That coverage served as a grim prologue for the media circus that The People v. O.J. Simpson trial would become, replete with “breakout” stars and witness stand moments gone viral long before the widespread adoption of the internet. Lyle and Erik’s first trial ended in a hung jury and mistrial. Their second, in which the judge pointedly did not allow cameras in the court room, ended with the brothers convicted for first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder.
In a sense, the “media-fication” of both the Menendez and Simpson trials continues with Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story on Netflix. Also created by Murphy and Brennan, this nine-episode series services as a sort of prequel to their People v. O.J. Simpson opus. Viewers of the show will find many “characters” and “plotlines” they recognize from the O.J. case that help establish both the Monsters and American Crime Story franchises as part of the same fictional universe. But, of course, none of this is fictional. It all really happened. Here are the ways in which the two respective miniseries (and real life) intersect.
Robert Shapiro Was a Menendez Confidante and an O.J. Attorney
Hollywood attorney Robert Shapiro has a strange way of finding himself in the middle of high profile murder trials. Normally that wouldn’t be too unusual for a defense attorney, but Shapiro’s background was mostly in settling civil matters for the rich and famous, not defending them from murder charges. That all change when he got involved with the Lyle and Erik Menendez saga in 1989.
When a warrant was issued for Lyle and Erik Menendez’ arrest, Shapiro reached Erik by phone in Israel, where he was participating in a tennis tournament. Shapiro convinced Erik to return home and turn himself in, assuring him that he would not want to experience prison in a foreign country. We see these events play out in Monsters episode 3, with Shapiro being played by Salvator Xuereb.
Funnily enough, this event is also referenced in The People v. O.J. Simpson when Shapiro (played in the series by John Travolta) points to the time that he got Erik Menendez to come back to the U.S. as evidence that he can convince O.J. to turn himself in as well.
Shapiro represented the Menendez brothers only briefly before turning over their defense to the more accomplished Leslie Abramson. A similar dynamic played out in the O.J. trial where Shapiro gave deference to Johnnie Cochran, Alan Dershowitz, F. Lee Bailey, and others. Though he did remain on the defense team in that instance.
Dominick Dunne Covered Both Trials For Vanity Fair
Dominick Dunne plays a major role in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story. Played by Nathan Lane (who, intriguingly, played F. Lee Bailey in The People v. O.J. Simpson), Dunne covered the Menendez trial extensively for Vanity Fair and helped set the tone and approach for all mainstream true crime coverage going forward.
The real-life Dunne would go on to cover the O.J. trial for Vanity Fair as well. For that reason, he appears as a character in The People v. O.J. Simpson, played by Robert Morse (Mad Men). Both miniseries depict Dunne as a gossipy busybody who revels in sharing the details of the respective cases with his well-to-do friends at fancy parties. Monsters, however, delves deeper into his pathology.
Dominick Dunne experienced an immense personal tragedy when his daughter, actress Dominique Dunne (of Poltergeist fame), was strangled and killed by her abusive ex-boyfriend, John Thomas Sweeney. Dominick Dunne’s frustrating and traumatic experience with Sweeney’s subsequent murder trial led to his second career as a true crime journalist. Before that he was a successful movie producer.
The Menendez Brothers and O.J. Simpson Crossed Paths Multiple Times
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story episode 8 features what could be described as a dark comic book-style crossover of famous killers.
“We’ve got a VIP coming in,” a prison guard tells Erik after ordering the inmates to tidy up the premises. Indeed they do have a VIP coming in as none other than O.J. Simpson arrives, played via voice and silhouette by Trae Ireland (taking over from Cuba Gooding Jr. in The People v. O.J. Simpson).
Erik and the Juice then share a moment after, inexplicably, the jailers give O.J. the cell right next to the Menendez boy. Erik warns O.J. about the bad advice that Robert Shapiro gave him before adding that he should consider taking a plea deal. This is highly ironic, of course, since the Menendez brothers will eventually be found guilty of murder while O.J. will escape conviction.
Believe it or not, this stranger-than-fiction meet up actually occurred in the Los Angeles County Men’s Central Jail. In the 2018 book The Menendez Murders, Erik tells writer Robert Rand that he and O.J. did have neighboring cells and he did share legal advice with him. The 2018 A&E docuseries The Menendez Murders: Erik Tells All even goes further, with Erik claiming that he helped O.J. get in touch with his eventual lawyer Johnnie Cochran.
Prison wasn’t even the first time the Menendez brothers’ path crossed with Simpson. Before he was a radio industry executive at RCA, Jose Menendez worked at the Hertz rental car company and helped negotiate Simpson’s infamous Hertz endorsement deal. As such, Lyle recalls meeting Simpson at the Menendez family home in the 1970s. It really is a small world for the rich and famous of Los Angeles County.
All nine episodes of Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story are available to stream on Netflix now.
The post Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’s Many O.J. Simpson Connections appeared first on Den of Geek.
