How ‘big sister’ Rosie O’Donnell defended the Menendez brothers despite Barbara Walters’ warning
nypost.comErik and Lyle Menendez even before Ryan Murphy’s “Monsters” came out.The comedian, 62, went on “Larry King Live!” 30 years ago and said she believed the Menendez brothers’ claims that they were molested by their father, Jose Menendez.
The siblings murdered Jose and their mom, Kitty Menendez, in 1989 and were sentenced to life in prison without parole in 1996 — which is all explored in the massively popular new Netflix show.In a new interview with Variety, O’Donnell said she got a letter from Lyle, 56, after going on King’s show — but her future “The View” co-host, Barbara Walters, warned her about supporting the siblings at the time.“I was out to lunch with Barbara Walters and our publicist Cindy Berger, and I said, ‘Barbara, you’re not going to believe this, but guess who wrote to me — Lyle Menendez,’ ” O’Donnell recalled.“Barbara said, ‘Ignore him, he’s a murderer.
He’s very cunning,’ ” O’Donnell added.Walters, who died in 2022 at 93, interviewed Lyle and Erik, 53, for “20/20” after they were found guilty of first-degree murder.
O’Donnell listened to Walters’ advice until 2022 when the Max documentary “Menendez: Monsters or Misjudged” came out and prompted O’Donnell to publicly express her support for the brothers.She told Variety that Lyle’s wife, Rebecca Sneed, contacted her and arranged a phone call between O’Donnell and Lyle on Mother’s Day 2023.“We talk a lot,” O’Donnell said of herself and Lyle, who, along with his brother, is being held at the Richard J.
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