It was the case that had millions of Americans tuning into Court TV like they were watching a Hollywood drama.
Lyle and Erik Menendez. Rich, good looking brothers on trial for brutally murdering their parents.
They were eventually found guilty and sent away for life, but 28 years later the case still fascinates.
It makes for riveting television, even if we know how it all ends for the real life Erik and Lyle Menendez.
The Law and Order True Crime series does more than just duplicate what happened in the brother's two trials.
Carlos Gomez, a Miami native, plays their father Jose Menendez. "What makes the series great is we go home with these characters and see how life was outside the courtroom."
And it wasn't what it appeared. Behind the millions, mansion and cars there were allegations of severe verbal and sexual abuse that came out at trial. Gomez says, "Behind closed doors there was a world we didn't know about."
Gomez who starred in A & E's drama series, "The Glades" (2010-2013) says there was a different feeling on set since they were portraying real people involved in a real crime instead of a fictionalized crime.
"It is because when we did the shooting scene it was exactly how the house looked. We had technical advisors at the scene. They showed us exactly which kid shot, moved, reloaded. Because it was so serious it took a different level on set."
Gomez says it's a challenging role and he had to dig deep to find some humanity in Jose Menendez.
"The more I researched Jose Menendez the harder it was for me to believe this guy could do such a thing. By all appearances, he was an incredibly successful man. But as we would learn there were terrible allegations of sexual and verbal abuse. I couldn't help but think that this was the last image this man had of his children."
A case that played out on television decades ago is attracting a whole new audience today. Law and Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders airs Tuesday night at 10 p.m. on NBC/WPTV
