Current:Home > MyRosie O'Donnell says she's 'like a big sister' to Menendez brothers Lyle and Erik-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Rosie O'Donnell says she's 'like a big sister' to Menendez brothers Lyle and Erik
View Date:2024-12-23 23:24:55
Rosie O'Donnell says she feels "like a big sister" to the Menendez brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez.
In an interview with Variety published Friday, the former panelist on "The View" opened up about her friendship with Lyle Menendez and how she thinks the brothers will be released from state prison "sooner than later."
"We talk a lot," O’Donnell said in the interview with Variety. "I told them I would do what I could with whatever dwindling fame I have to bring light to their story."
The brothers are serving prison time for killing José Hernandez and Mary Louise "Kitty" Hernandez at the family's Beverly Hills home in 1989.
The Variety interview took place one day after Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón announced that his office would review new evidence of alleged sexual abuse brought forth by the brothers' attorneys.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
The brothers have long maintained that sexual abuse is the motive for their parent's murder.
Rosie O'Donnell says Barbara Walters called Lyle Menendez 'very cunning' and 'a murderer'
The former daytime talk show host first heard from Lyle Menendez 30 years ago, but didn't support the famous older brother because O'Donnell says "View" creator and broadcasting legend Barbara Walters told her to ignore him.
Walters, who died in December 2022, famously interviewed the brothers for ABC.
But then, O'Donnell "came in two years ago as a cheerleader" when the pair reconnected after the comedian watched a documentary that revisited the Menendez case and featured evidence that the brothers were molested by their dad.
“I got a call from Lyle’s wife, I didn’t even know he had a wife, asking if I would talk to him,” O’Donnell told Variety. “He called me on Mother’s Day last year," adding that the brothers are "excited" about a potential release. She also shared that the Menendez brothers are "happy" with calls to be freed, and she spoke to Lyle Menendez on Thursday night.
"I told them then, “You’re going to get out of there.” They didn’t really believe me, but I believe that the wrong will be righted. They’re still reticent to believe it’s going to happen," O'Donnell told the outlet.
Rosie O'Donnell says she has visited Menendez brothers in prison
During the interview, O'Donnell also detailed her visit to meet Lyle Menendez last year Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, the California state prison near San Diego where both brothers are imprisoned.
"I saw Lyle and gave him a hug," the comedian recalled of her visit. "Then Erik came over to me, hugged me, and whispered in my ear, "Thank you for loving my brother.’ It was very, very moving to me."
Kim Kardashian: Free Menendez brothersafter brutal 1996 killings of parents
O'Donnell even hinted at being present at the pair's potential release saying she would be there "If they wanted me there, of course, but I don’t want to overshadow things." She told Variety the brothers are "going to need a lot of therapy to figure out how to be in the world after having been in prison for 35 years.
And the former "Rosie O'Donnell Show" host has a gift for Lyle Menendez if the brothers are released from prison: a meal at celebrity hotspot Nobu, which boasts a slew of locations around the country and world.
"I’ve always told Lyle that I will take him to Nobu because he thinks that’s the place to go," O'Donnell told Variety.
She recalled telling Menendez, "'Buddy, when you get out, I’ll take you to Nobu.' When I talked to him the other day, he said, 'When are we going to Nobu?' I said, 'Sooner than you think.'"
Contributing: Jonathan Limehouse
veryGood! (53)
Related
- Steelers shoot for the moon ball, but will offense hold up or wilt in brutal final stretch?
- Republicans Propose Nationwide Offshore Wind Ban, Citing Unsubstantiated Links to Whale Deaths
- U.S. cruises to 3-0 win over Vietnam in its Women's World Cup opener
- Rural Communities Like East Palestine, Ohio, Are at Outsized Risk of Train Derailments and the Ensuing Fallout
- Congress is revisiting UFOs: Here's what's happened since last hearing on extraterrestrials
- Josh Hartnett and Wife Tamsin Egerton Step Out for First Red Carpet Date Night in Over a Year
- To Reduce Mortality From High Heat in Cities, a New Study Recommends Trees
- Tennis Star Naomi Osaka Shares First Photo of Baby Girl Shai
- Tony Todd, star of 'Candyman,' 'Final Destination,' dies at 69
- Climate Resolution Voted Down in El Paso After Fossil Fuel Interests and Other Opponents Pour More Than $1 Million into Opposition
Ranking
- Martin Scorsese on the saints, faith in filmmaking and what his next movie might be
- New IPCC Report Shows the ‘Climate Time Bomb Is Ticking,’ Says UN Secretary General António Guterres
- Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James Biggest Sale Is Here: Save 70% and Shop These Finds Under $59
- Can the New High Seas Treaty Help Limit Global Warming?
- NBPA reaches Kyle Singler’s family after cryptic Instagram video draws concern
- Reneé Rapp and More Stars Who Have Left Their Fame-Making TV Series
- Wildfire Smoke May Worsen Extreme Blazes Near Some Coasts, According to New Research
- Women fined $1,500 each for taking selfies with dingoes after vicious attacks on jogger and girl in Australia
Recommendation
-
New wildfires burn in US Northeast while bigger blazes rage out West
-
The Red Sea Could be a Climate Refuge for Coral Reefs
-
Proof Patrick and Brittany Mahomes' Daughter Sterling Is Already a Natural Athlete
-
Loose lion that triggered alarm near Berlin was likely a boar, officials say
-
Michigan soldier’s daughter finally took a long look at his 250 WWII letters
-
Frustrated by Outdated Grids, Consumers Are Lobbying for Control of Their Electricity
-
Selena Gomez Confirms Her Relationship Status With One Single TikTok
-
Some will starve, many may die, U.N. warns after Russia pulls out of grain deal