Rosie O’Donnell believes the Menendez brothers could be released within 30 days

Rosie O’Donnell received a letter from Lyle Menendez about thirty years ago, after he saw her on “Larry King Live,” stating that she believed Erik’s claims that they had been abused by their father.

“I was having 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 recalls. ‘Barbara said, ‘Ignore him, he’s a murderer. He is very cunning. ”

Walters had previously interviewed Lyle and his brother Erik in prison for “20/20.”

O’Donnell followed her advice. But two years ago, when a documentary was released showing new evidence that Lyle and Erik had been abused by their father, O’Donnell spoke out on social media and in the press in support of the siblings. “I got a call from Lyle’s wife – I didn’t even know he had a wife – asking if I wanted to talk to him,” O’Donnell says. “He called me on Mother’s Day last year.”

Lyle and Erik are currently serving life sentences without the possibility of parole for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty.

O’Donnell and Lyle became fast friends. “We talk a lot,” O’Donnell says. “I told them I would do what I could with the dwindling fame I have to bring light to their story. I said, “It’s not the nineties, Lyle. I’m not on that show anymore.’ I think if you have a strong opinion about something and you want to try to help society, you can use your voice, because the children who are abused at home have no voice. It is up to the adults who were once those children to speak for them.”

O’Donnell becomes emotional when he met Lyle last year when she made a trip to see him in prison in San Diego. “I saw Lyle and gave him a hug,” she says, choking back tears. ‘Then Erik came to me, hugged me and whispered in my ear, ‘Thank you for loving my brother.’ It was very, very moving for me.”

I spoke with O’Donnell a day after it was announced that a court hearing has been scheduled for Erik and Lyle, as Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón considers new evidence that they were allegedly abused by their father. At the same time, Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, continues to generate renewed interest in the case.

What was your reaction when you heard about the prosecutor and the new court hearing?

I got a little warning from the guys and their lawyers. So I knew it was coming. I was beyond excited. I knew from talking to them that they were both scared to hope that it could be exactly what it turned out to be. As soon as the news broke, I texted them and said, “It’s really happening. Now put that smile on your face. Here we go.” This is what they’ve been waiting for for decades, and it’s about time. I think it’s time for us as a society to say, “We made a mistake and we didn’t understand what we understand today .” It’s kind of a miracle, but so deserving. I’m so happy for them.

When was the last time you spoke to Lyle?

Last night.

How are they?

They are excited. They are happy. I came in two years ago as a cheerleader. I then told them, “You guys are getting out of there.” They didn’t really believe me, but I believe the injustice will be righted. They are still reluctant to believe this will happen.

Did you always think this day would come?

I actually did that because of the new evidence. Our culture simply wasn’t ready to even talk about this topic in 1989 or the early 1990s. But as a country we have been through so much in those 35 years. As a society, we now understand that boys are in fact sexually abused at a very high rate, almost as often as girls. So it’s a misconception to think that men don’t do that with young boys.

When do you think they will be released?

Sooner than later.

Ryan Murphy told me yesterday that he thinks they could be out by Christmas.

I would be surprised if this happened within the next 30 days. I don’t think they’ll keep them waiting much longer. Ryan has done them a favor by doing them a disservice. [O’Donnell previously criticized “Monsters” as being inaccurate.] Ryan is a talented filmmaker with his own style and stamp. I just don’t know if this situation, this true story, necessarily influenced his wheelhouse.

But you could see how the show brought more attention to the issue and possibly pushed things forward.

I think everyone who brought attention to it should be commended, including ‘Monsters’. I’m glad it happened. I’m not one to say it helped or didn’t help. I just know that in my opinion it could have been much more accurate.

Have you become a kind of surrogate mother for them?

I feel like a big sister in a way. Lyle is one of the most highly praised inmates in the California prison system. You can’t ignore that. If he was some kind of psychopath who yelled at everyone and a maniac, would he have done hospice for the dying prisoners? Would he have done everything that allowed him to finally move from San Francisco to his brother’s house because he had ten straight years without a single infraction? No one can mask their mental illness that much in 35 years. To be the extraordinary prisoners that they both are is also quite a damning testimony.

What impact do you think Kim Kardashian has had by advocating for their release?

I think it’s fantastic. She is one of the most famous people in the world and commands an insane amount of media attention. I’ve never met her. I don’t know her. I love that she stands up for some causes the way she does, and more people should do that if they believe in something. I think she has now helped the prosecutor come to this conclusion. There have been many postponements since they did this in over a year. They’ve had this folder and all the evidence and all the facts for a year, but it didn’t happen until after Ryan Murphy and Kim Kardashian, to give them both credit and in any way possible, happened. So bravo to them.

Are you going to contact Kim?

I wouldn’t know how to do that. Maybe I can call Kathy Griffin for her number [Laughs.]

If or when Lyle and Erik are released, will you wait for them outside the prison?

If they wanted me there, of course. But I don’t want to overshadow things. Their family has been waiting for them. All their mother’s relatives, all their cousins, about seventy people are waiting for this part of their family to return. I’m happy to see them or take them out to eat. It will be a very, very difficult transition. They will need a lot of therapy to figure out how to live in the world after 35 years in prison.

Where do you take them out for dinner?

I have always told Lyle that I will take him to Nobu because he thinks this is the place he needs to go. Sometimes I would talk to him in the evening and say that my friends and I were going to Nobu for lunch. I’d say, “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.”

This Q&A has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.