Bruce Jenner
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Athletics | ||
Competitor for the  United States |
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| Olympic Games | ||
| Gold | 1976 Montreal | Decathlon |
| Pan American Games | ||
| Gold | 1975 Mexico City | Decathlon |
William Bruce Jenner (born October 28, 1949 in Mount Kisco, New York) is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite, and television personality, known principally for winning the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics.
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[edit] Early Life
Bruce Jenner attended Newtown High School in Newtown, Connecticut, from Sleepy Hollow High School in North Tarrytown, New York. Jenner earned a football scholarship and attended Graceland College (now Graceland University), but a knee injury forced him to stop playing football and switch to the decathlon. He was mentored by Graceland's track coach L.D. Weldon, who was the first to recognize Jenner's potential and encouraged him to pursue the decathlon. Jenner debuted in the decathlon at the Drake Relays in 1970- placing sixth.
[edit] Olympic career
Jenner, placed third in the decathlon at the 1972 U.S. Olympic trials, and finished in tenth place at the 1972 Munich games. His success prompted him to devote himself full-time to [a gruelling training regime, which he openly acknowledged was supported and graciously subsidised by his then wife In 1974 and 1976, he was the American champion in the event,[1] and he won a gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics, setting a world record of 8,634 points. . He was the 1976 recipient of the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Jenner was also the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year in 1976. He was inducted into the Olympic Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame and Connecticut Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.
[edit] Television appearances
After his Olympic success, Jenner appeared with Grits Gresham in an episode of ABC's The American Sportsman. The program featured Gresham hunting, fishing, or shooting in exotic spots with celebrities. In the early 1990s he was the host of an infomercial for a stair-climbing exercise machine called the Stair Climber Plus.
Since 2002, Jenner has appeared as himself on a variety of game shows and reality TV programs. In January 2002 he participated in an episode of the American series of The Weakest Link featuring Olympic athletes. In February and March 2003, he was part of the cast of the American series of I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, and made a cameo on a season three episode of The Apprentice that originally aired in May 2005. He was partnered with Tai Babilonia for Skating with Celebrities that aired January-March 2006 (they were eliminated during the fifth of seven episodes). Jenner has additionally served as a guest judge on Pet Star on Animal Planet, and appeared with his family on NBC's Celebrity Family Feud.
[edit] Television Success
In late 2007 and 2008[2] Jenner, along with wife Kris Jenner, stepdaughters Kim, Kourtney, Khloe and stepson Robert (from Kris' marriage to attorney Robert Kardashian), and daughters Kylie and Kendall, starred in the E! reality series Keeping Up with the Kardashians; season two had an average of 1.6 million viewers, an increase over the previous cycle, and the show was renewed for a third season.[3]
Jenner appeared as himself in Nickelodeon's made-for-TV Gym Teacher: The Movie.
Jenner was a guest on The Bonnie Hunt Show on October 6, 2008. [4]
Jenner was referenced on an episode of Family Guy originally aired on November 16, 2008 where he carried Peter out of his third grade classroom.
[edit] Other appearances
Following his Olympic success, Jenner appeared on the front of Wheaties brand breakfast cereal as a "Wheaties champion". Of several hundred athletes who have been so featured, Jenner is one of seven Wheaties spokesmen. He was invited to the White House to meet with President Gerald R. Ford who autographed a political cartoon that featured the pair.
In 1980, Jenner made his acting debut in the film Can't Stop the Music which has become a cult classic over the years since its release. The disco-era comedy about the singing group The Village People was a notorious flop, though, and Jenner never made another theatrical film. However, he did appear in a few TV movies. He also guest-starred in a handful of episodes of the 80s TV police drama CHiPs as Officer Steve McLeish (substituting for star Erik Estrada when he was in a contract dispute with the studio).
[edit] Personal life
His company, Bruce Jenner Aviation, sells aircraft to executives and corporations.[5]
Jenner has dyslexia -- he appeared on the sitcom Silver Spoons where he revealed his condition to the Stratton family—and after retiring from sports, built a successful career as a motivational speaker and television sports commentator (making an appearance on the series Learn To Read).
His first marriage to Chrystie Crownover (15 December 1972 - 2 January 1981) produced two children, daughter Casey Jenner (b. June 4, 1980) and first son Burt Jenner (b. 1978).[6][7] His other sons, Brandon (b. June 10, 1981) and Brody born August 21, 1983 (with second wife Linda Thompson, to whom he was married from 1981 to 1983), appeared in their own reality show The Princes of Malibu, which featured them living with their stepfather David Foster. Brody is also on the reality show The Hills.
Jenner is currently married to Kris (née Houghton, who was previously married to Robert Kardashian). He has two daughters with Kris named Kendall Nicole (b. November 3, 1995) and Kylie (b. August 10, 1997). He is also the stepfather of Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian and Rob Kardashian.
Jenner has had several plastic surgeries on his face. He has had repair done to his face to correct the previous surgeries, and it was aired on the reality show he and his family stars in, Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
[edit] References
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This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (May 2009) |
- ^ "USA Outdoor Track & Field Champions: Men's Decathlon". USA Track & Field. c. 2001-2009. http://www.usatf.org/statistics/champions/USAOutdoorTF/men/mDec.asp. Retrieved on 2009-05-27.
- ^ Cristina Kinon, "E! renews 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians'," NYdailynews.com, November 13, 2007.
- ^ Daniel Frankel, "'Kardashians' gets third season," DailyVariety.com, July 13, 2008.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Bruce Jenner Aviation website
- ^ Hey, Mister Fantasy Man, Sports Illustrated, 3 November 1980.
- ^ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0421064/bio www.imdb.com Biography for Chrystie Jenner.
Chrystie was born Chrystie Crownover; she was Chrystie Jenner during her marriage to Bruce Jenner. She married Richard Scott on 10 July 1982, and is now known as Chrystie Scott.
[edit] External links
- Bruce Jenner Official Bio
- Wheaties spokesperson
- Bruce Jenner's U.S. Olympic Team bio
- Bruce Jenner Gold Medal Greats Page
- Official site
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
Preceded by Nikolay Avilov |
Men's Decathlon World Record Holder August 10, 1975 – May 15, 1980 |
Succeeded by Daley Thompson |
| Awards | ||
| Preceded by Fred Lynn |
Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year 1976 |
Succeeded by Steve Cauthen |
| Preceded by Tim Shaw |
James E. Sullivan Award 1976 |
Succeeded by John Naber |
| Sporting positions | ||
Preceded by Ryszard Skowronek |
Decathlon Best Year Performance 1975 – 1976 |
Succeeded by Aleksandr Grebenyuk |
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