Popular Sportscaster Glenn Brenner Dies

WASHINGTON (AP) _ Washington sportscaster Glenn Brenner, whose witty, irreverent style made him one of the capital’s most popular television personalities, died today of a brain tumor. He was 44.

Brenner was stricken in November after competing in the Marine Corps marathon, and doctors then said he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. Doctors discovered the inoperable tumor on Friday.

The Washington Redskins dedicated their NFC championship victory to Brenner and head coach Joe Gibbs presented the sportscaster with the game ball.

Brenner had worked at WUSA-TV for 15 years. Brenner, one of the Washington area’s most recognizable television personalities, was known for his wit and often self-deprecating style.

Station officials said he appealed to a large cross-section of viewers, attracting both the ″sports junkie″ and the ″non-sports lover.″

The Washington Post called Brenner ″one of the truly funny men on television.″ In an editorial today, the Post said ″more, he has emphasized the part of athletics that too many experts on these games neglect, and that is the moral side: the follies, the big mistakes, the ugly acts and the sporting ones. He has made it all very human.″

Over the last decade, Brenner, a Philadelphia native, had become a dedicated runner, competing in local races and running from 3 to 5 miles almost daily.

Before joining WUSA in February 1977, Brenner worked as a sportscaster for KYW-TV in Philadelphia from 1976 to 1977. He was a sports reporter for WOWK-TV in Huntington, W.Va., from 1975 to 1976.

Brenner began his broadcasting career in 1972 with WMVB Radio in Millville, N.J. He left that station to join WFIL Radio in Philadelphia, where he spent two years in news reporting and promotion.

Brenner had a pitching contract with the New York Mets for four years, then signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. He left professional baseball in 1972 because of problems with his arm.