Remembering Glenn Brenner

In Ecclesiastes chapter 1, the Preacher laments many things. One of his laments has to do with the lack of any enduring footprint from one generation to the next (1.4, 1.11). Such is the case for nearly all of us. It is a sad and unnerving reality that the vast majority of us will not be remembered at all within 2 generations of our death. While our response to this reality is a subject for another day, there are the rare exceptions to this rule. One of them might well be Glenn Brenner.

Glenn Brenner became the sports anchor at WTOP-TV (later WDVM, then WUSA) in Washington DC in 1976. He died prematurely in 1992 at the age of 44 from an inoperable brain tumor. For the 15+ years that Brenner was in DC, he became a towering fixture. Upon his death, several members of Congress paid tribute to his life in speeches before Congress. Bush 41 also paid official tribute to Brenner. The Washington Redskins, who were in the midst of a dominating Superbowl run at the time of Brenner's death, dedicated their NFC Championship win over the Lions to him.

For me, I have many memories of Brenner through the TV screen. Before Brenner came to DC when I was 6, Warner Wolf was the main sports guy in town, and my parents swear that I loved Warner Wolf. I don't remember much about Warner Wolf, but I do remember Glenn Brenner. Realizing full well that my memories and perceptions are probably not totally reliable, I have nonetheless come to believe that Glenn Brenner was a fairly important person in our home, especially in the first 10 or so years he was in DC.

When I look back on our home life from 1976 through around 1987, I remember that while we were always taken care of as children, there were some tight times and some stressful times. There was the hostage crisis and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan abroard, and there was inflation, unemployment and high interest rates and gas prices at home for a number of years. Looking back, I don't recall my Dad laughing much during those years. He laughs quite often these days. But back then, I'm not sure there was much to laugh about. Enter Glenn Brenner. Brenner's nightly sports review was entertaining, and often downright hilarious. To my recollection, Glenn Brenner was the only one who could reliably make my Dad laugh hard night after night and bring some levity into the nightly routine of bad news and worse news. If my recollections are at least 50% accurate, it is hard not to say that Glenn Brenner made an important impact in our home, even though we never actually met the man. Particularly in those early years of Brenner's tenure, I don't know whether Brenner was intentional about offering a counterweight to the dire news of the day. But I do know that's what he was to me as I would watch my Dad get great joy out of Brenner's nightly segment. Brenner was a riot, and he was the relief and release we needed, and I know we weren't the only ones.

I also remember with considerable clarity how the city reacted when Brenner died. I was 21 at the time, and had lived a fairly cloistered life by choice. I noticed something that struck me as incredible. In the midst of the Rodney King injustice and in the aftermath of the Marion Barry drug sting, Washington DC was a city that was racially polarized and very on-edge at the time of Brenner's death. It was often said of Washington DC that the Redskins football team was the only thing that brought the city together, and there was a good bit of truth to it. But as it turned out, so did Glenn Brenner. In news report after news report, African Americans and Caucasians were equally distraught over Brenner's passing. Brenner had truly become part of the city's fabric, and the entire city, regardless of race, gender, economic condition, or any other human barrier, grieved together. Again, one has to remember the degree to which everything about Washington DC had boiled down to race and resentment in those days in order to appreciate how astonishing it was to have this white guy be so beloved by seemingly everyone. Gordon Peterson once told the story of how he was visiting Brenner at GW Hospital before his death when a homeless woman came up to him and said that she was praying for Brenner. That's when it hit him just how universal Brenner's appeal was.

Today, 15+ years after Brenner's death, he is still a subject of conversation. It seems like everytime a member of the old Channel 9 news lineup is interviewed today, they are asked about what it was like to work with Brenner. Gordon Peterson says that he still misses Brenner terribly, and in truth, Peterson doesn't appear to have ever been quite the same on the air since Brenner died. For many who knew Brenner personally, it really does seem like a part of them died when Brenner died. The phrase 'one in a million' is overused and banal. But in Brenner's case, I think it really is true. During tough days for a city that was in the grips of runaway crime and violence, and for countless families like ours who were fighting a tough economy and insecurity at every corner, Glenn Brenner accomplished something truly remarkable. Through his light-heartedness, he helped lift the spirits of an entire city that might have otherwise given in to despair and hopelessness. Brenner knew he was liked, but I doubt he knew how important he was to so many. I'm confident he knows now.

When I think about Brenner these days, I realize that a lot has gone missing in the years after his death. The city had to move on from Glenn Brenner, and in many ways, we have. But not entirely. The sheer number of people in these parts who still remember Brenner and wax nostalgic about him indicates that something very precious and unique is no longer with us. Washington DC is a very transitory town that's full of important people and short memories. Here, as much as anywhere, it is very difficult to make any kind of enduring footprint. Brenner not only did that, he did it by transcending so many barriers that so often limit one's appeal and impact. Brenner once said that people watch him not primarily because they're interested in sports highlights, but because they feel a genuine connection that he said was mutual and was something he was very intentional about cultivating. Mission Accomplished.