Sports memorabilia dealers expect O.J. Simpson spike

Jeremy Brown has no plans to restock O.J. Simpson items in his downtown Las Vegas sports memorabilia store.

The few Simpson trading cards he has — including a Topps card from his 1969 rookie season — is plenty.

“Anytime somebody’s in the news, it’s always going to see an initial spike for a few days for those few people that hope to get lucky or think that it’s going to be something relevant and in-demand,” said Brown, who owns Ultimate Sports Cards and Memorabilia on Fremont Street.

“That spike lasts all of seven to 10 days at best,” he said.

If the Parole Board rules in Simpson’s favor Thursday, the former football star and actor could be released from Lovelock Correctional Center by Oct. 1. He is serving a nine- to 33-year sentence for 12 convictions — including kidnapping and armed robbery — related to a 2007 robbery of two memorabilia collectors at the Palace Station hotel-casino in Las Vegas.

Memorabilia, which led to the sapping of Simpson’s physical freedom, could provide him economic freedom if he’s released. Signing autographs might be one of Simpson’s only options for making a living, Brown said.

“Because, quite honestly, at age 70, what else is he going to do for money?” he said.

Simpson items will always be conversation starters, said Kieta, a memorabilia store co-owner who uses only one name.

“He’s so controversial,” she said. “OK, I mean, who doesn’t love to talk about O.J.? Everybody has a comment about O.J.”

Kieta and Victor Moreno own Memorabilia.Expert, a Desert Inn Road memorabilia shop that does most of its business online. Their shop has a few Simpson items, including a Buffalo Bills mini-helmet he signed while in jail awaiting trial in the 1990s when he was accused of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ronald Goldman.

Most people who collect Simpson items do so based on his football career, Kieta said.

“But I think with time, just as they would with (famed gangster John) Gotti, you know, there’s a fascination, there’s a historic value to it,” she said.

Brown, who has appeared on the hit History channel show “Pawn Stars” as a sports memorabilia expert, said he expects Simpson to make public signing appearances if he is granted parole.

“I guarantee you he’s going to have a residency at some shop,” Brown said. “That’s going to happen.”

But the scandal-ridden Pro Football Hall-of-Famer and Heisman Trophy winner won’t be invited to Ultimate Sports Cards and Memorabilia. Brown isn’t thrilled to see “The Juice” back in the spotlight.

“It’s pathetic,” he said.

In the days following Simpson’s highly publicized parole hearing Thursday, Brown expects a flurry of phone calls about Simpson memorabilia and window shoppers gawking at Simpson items.

“They’ll just kind of laugh and look at it, point, and that’s about it,” Brown said.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter.