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The forgotten history of Bruce Jenner: How the 1970s all-American hero ended up here
wapo ^ | February 4 at 6:26 PM | Emily Yahr

Posted on 02/05/2015 3:16:11 AM PST by 9thLife

One day in 1977, about a year after Bruce Jenner shattered a world record to win the decathlon gold medal at the Montreal Summer Olympics, he met up with his sportswriter friend Barry McDermott to play tennis in New York City.

McDermott suggested a match at his private club — but that wasn’t Jenner’s style. Privacy was never his priority.

The pair went to Central Park, where word quickly spread that Bruce Jenner (Bruce Jenner!) was playing on the public courts. McDermott remembers the crowd growing, as he had known it would, gawkers pressed against the chain-link fence, watching the handsome star athlete’s every move.

It wasn’t a bid for publicity, McDermott insists: Jenner — as celebrated in that era as Michael Phelps or Lance Armstrong at their peak — already had plenty of that. “It was more of a ‘Let’s hang out with the people instead of the elitists,’ ” his friend recalled.

Four decades later, Jenner is still hanging out with the people: the millions of viewers tuning in to “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” the popular E! reality franchise starring America’s most shamelessly oversharing celebrity family. Jenner — once the most famous of the clan — is largely a supporting player on the show and its four spinoffs, the weary, eye-rolling dad overshadowed by his preening ex-wife Kris, the self-proclaimed “momager,” and their many camera-friendly kids.

From left, Bruce Jenner, Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian and Robert Kardashian arrive at an event in May 2011. (John Sciulli/Getty Images for City of Hope)

But now the buff heartthrob of America’s disco era is poised again to be the center of attention, in a way few fans could have imagined in 1976.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: 15minutesoffame; abcdisneynews; barrymcdermott; brucejenner; callmebruce; celebrity; chickify; corporateliberalism; freakshow; gaynewsrooms; jenner; mentalillness; pinkjournalism; realitytelevision; transgender; transjenner; waltsrotatingcorpse
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To: 9thLife

I’m pretty sure anyone under 40 only knows Bruce Jenner as Kim Kardashian’s husband. It’s kind of amusing to me because he accomplished a lot more than any of those attention hounds.


21 posted on 02/05/2015 5:01:42 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: 9thLife

whoops! I meant Kris Kardashian/Jenner. Shows how much I know about that stupid show!


22 posted on 02/05/2015 5:03:05 AM PST by Old Teufel Hunden
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To: All

Was it Jenner or Dwight Stone that wore the “interesting” Mickey Mouse shirt to some games?


23 posted on 02/05/2015 5:38:02 AM PST by tenger (It's a good thing we don't get all the government we pay for. -Will Rogers)
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To: 9thLife

Back in 1999... Bruce was one of the 10 best athlete in Connecticut in the 20th Century. Now, Bruce is just a shadow of what he was. Most Americans forgot he was a gold medal winner - now he could win a gold medal for being a moron.


24 posted on 02/05/2015 5:45:25 AM PST by ExCTCitizen (I'm ExCTCitizen and I approve this reply. If it does offend Libs, I'm NOT sorry...)
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To: a fool in paradise

Daytime TV is for Obama’s supporters...


25 posted on 02/05/2015 5:51:48 AM PST by ExCTCitizen (I'm ExCTCitizen and I approve this reply. If it does offend Libs, I'm NOT sorry...)
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To: ExCTCitizen

Heh. Native of Newtown....and we all know what happened in Newtown.


26 posted on 02/05/2015 5:52:04 AM PST by Daffynition ("We Are Not Descended From Fearful Men")
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To: Boardwalk

He has 2 kids with his first wife, 2 with his second and 2 with Kris.


27 posted on 02/05/2015 6:10:36 AM PST by Andy'smom (How many more acts of love can we take?)
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To: tenger

Dwight Stone


28 posted on 02/05/2015 7:04:39 AM PST by cport (How can political capital be spent on a bunch of ingrates)
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To: Daffynition

native of Newtown


He attended Newtown H.S., but was actually born in Mount Kisco, NY.
Other than that, he is another one of the weirdos from Newtown.

Google “Divorce, Connecticut Style” or “Fairfield Hills Hospital”, for examples.

Thank you.


29 posted on 02/05/2015 7:30:07 AM PST by jttpwalsh
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To: jttpwalsh

There’s something in the water, up there.


30 posted on 02/05/2015 7:34:26 AM PST by Daffynition ("We Are Not Descended From Fearful Men")
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To: yldstrk

31 posted on 02/05/2015 7:38:09 AM PST by Daffynition ("We Are Not Descended From Fearful Men")
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To: Daffynition

native of Newtown


He attended Newtown H.S., but was actually born in Mount Kisco, NY.
Other than that, he is another one of the weirdos from Newtown.

Google “Divorce, Connecticut Style” or “Fairfield Hills Hospital”, for examples.

Thank you.


32 posted on 02/05/2015 7:40:28 AM PST by jttpwalsh
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To: Daffynition

Regrets for duplicate posting.


33 posted on 02/05/2015 7:41:17 AM PST by jttpwalsh
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To: Daffynition

There’s something in the water, up there.


Agreed. There used to be an unwritten rule, back in the days when hitch hiking was popular (60’s) - NEVER pick up a hitch hiker in Newtown !


34 posted on 02/05/2015 7:43:16 AM PST by jttpwalsh
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To: 9thLife

A person can learn and practice to be a shrubbery if they wanted to. It is amazing the mental illnesses out there including this “transgender” curiosity that blooms into a full blown psychosis.


35 posted on 02/05/2015 7:44:21 AM PST by CodeToad (Islam should be outlawed and treated as a criminal enterprise!)
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To: 9thLife

Forrest Gump


36 posted on 02/05/2015 7:58:03 AM PST by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: SaveFerris

He does look pretty weirded out.


37 posted on 02/05/2015 9:29:37 AM PST by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose o f a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped.)
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To: Daffynition

“There’s something in the water, up there.”

Paging Erin Brockovitch....somebody ought to find out what’s in that water.


38 posted on 02/05/2015 12:51:50 PM PST by LottieDah (If only those who speak so eloquently on behalf of animals would do so on behalf of the unborn.)
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; cardinal4; ColdOne; ...
That can happen when a man marries into someone else's money, then moves into a whorehouse.

Kendall and Scott Allegation

39 posted on 02/05/2015 1:05:47 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary men)
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To: sten
if you need more reason to cut the cord feeding liberal propaganda into your brain (tv/cable), i can’t help you.

This crap doesn't affect the shows I watch. I like almost all of the rest of the world like TV and TV wouldn't be worth a crap without cable.

Just because garbage "liberal propaganda" is offered doesn't mean a staunch conservative like me has to watch it. I have this neat new invention called the remote control so I damn sure don't need your help and certainly didn't ask for it. If you had some self contol you could enjoy cable TV too.

My new TV even has an "off" switch.

40 posted on 02/05/2015 1:26:42 PM PST by Eaker (I'm a glass half-shattered kinda guy.)
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