American Tragedy is a 2000 American television film broadcast on CBS from November 12, 2000, to November 15, 2000, that is based on the O. J. Simpson murder case for the 1994 murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. Ving Rhames starred as defense attorney Johnnie Cochran. It was directed by Lawrence Schiller, and the screenplay was adapted from Schiller's book, American Tragedy: The Uncensored Story of the Simpson Defense, by novelist Norman Mailer, who had previously collaborated with Schiller on The Executioner's Song. It was produced by Fox Television Studios. Mailer publicly criticized CBS for its promotion of the miniseries, which used ads that focused on the fact that Simpson tried unsuccessfully to have the courts block its broadcast. It won a Satellite Award and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award.