Kurt Browning

[Shinn-Reika]

Since I wasn't around when he was competing I must wonder what the general opinion of him is. I just saw his SOI program Nyah, and thought it was bloody amazing.

I somehow get the impression that he was theuber-masculine figure skater of his day. (kinda like michael weiss is now).

Anyway just curious on some history

[tdnuva]

Imho he is the most wonderful male skater of all times. He is doing great technically, but the best thing is his versatility. Already during his eligible career he began to skate themed programs.

And I never saw him as a skater who was stressing his masculine side more than the rest (as Michael Weiss does it). But he was not feminine either (like Johnny Weir). The one who ressembles him more artistically now is Jeff Buttle I would say. With choosing interesting music and beginning to interprete it.

I can only recommend that you go to a place like rinkside or so and try to get some video clips. So you can make up your own opinion.

[Bailey]

Kurt was so different as an amateur skater than a professional. Sometimes when I watch his old competitive performances, it's like watching two different skaters. The big difference - Kurt had hair and he was so cute! All of my friends had crushes on Kurt Browning when we were younger... He was not really a muscular skater, not at all like Michael Weiss. He was so much fun - his sense of humor was very evident in all his programs (especially exhibitions) and during interviews. Jeff Buttle's skating does somewhat remind me of a 'professional Kurt' but he doesn't have Kurt's personality. I have yet to see another skater who reminds me of Kurt!

WIthout doubt, technical skills would have been considered Kurt's strength, especially during the early years of his amateur career. He was known for being very inconsistent but skating well at the important events For example, he'd often not skate well at nationals but win the world championsihp. He was a real risk-taker as an amateur skater - the quad, numerous triple-triple combination in Munich in 1991 (when Petrenko did all his jumps in isolation). His versatility and artistry really developed when he moved to Toronto in 1992, the last few years of his amateur career. And, then of course he has become so wonderful as a professional skater. I've heard many people say that he has become more disciplined as a professional skater than he ever was as an amateur.

IMO, the best thing about Kurt is that his personality hasn't changed throughout the years. He's always had such a free-spirited, fun-loving personality. He is a superstar in Canada - a household name especially during his amateur career. He was the first to really push for athletes to be in control of their finances (back in the day, Skate Canada had strict rules about managing the athletes trust funds). But, with all his endorsements he was very smart to get an agent and earn the right to control of his money.

You should go to your local library and get his autobiography. It was written before he turned professional but it will give you a good sense of his amateur career. It's a very good read... I wish he'd write another autobiography, more current....

[Terri C]

I have a autographed copy of "Forcing the Edge"- a excellent read!

[dbny]

I somehow get the impression that he was theuber-masculine figure skater of his day. (kinda like michael weiss is now).


You happen to have seen Browning's one program, "Nyah", that could possibly give you that idea, although there is no doubt in my mind that Weiss could not come near Browning's high level of performance in any program. I would never characterize Browning as a particularly "masculine" skater. He never had anything in particular to prove, other than his excellence.

There really is no comparison. Kurt Browning is one of the all time great figure skaters. His showmanship, interpretive, and technical skills are right up there with those of Scott Hamilton.

[luna_skater]

I was not a fan of Kurt at all during his amateur days. I was on the Elvis train, and it made me nuts how an error-ridden Kurt would beat a clean Elvis. But Kurt has changed over time, and so have my opinions on skating...he is brilliant. It's like he was born with blades attached to his feet. I can't think of a skater who looks more natural on the ice. At the most recent SOI, the ONE thing that made me just about have a skategasm was a tiny little piece of edgework Kurt did on the spot on one foot. What I wouldn't give to be able to do that!

[gandalf]

At the most recent SOI, the ONE thing that made me just about have a skategasm was a tiny little piece of edgework Kurt did on the spot on one foot. What I wouldn't give to be able to do that!

I think you've hit the nail on the head here. Kurt was once a fantastic jumper who really pushed the technical limits of the sport but these days (and even as an amateur to a lesser extent), Kurt's legacy is his ability to move on the ice. The footwork this man can pull off is in a league all its own. I wish he would do more jump-less programs that focused exclusively on pure skating.

[loveskating]

Kurt Browning as an amateur always inspired, because he was always pushing the envelope, in every way...loop combos, quads, everything, and so musical and artistic! His programs were just always so full and innovative, even as an amateur.

He is very smart, always seemed complicated, a great sense of humor, very, very creative, bored with the commonplace, yet not a prima donna at all, someone who has a passion for skating, a "good" person, a caring person.

IMHO Kurt is among the all time great skaters, along with Wylie, Boitano, Kulik, Abt, Yags, there is very little he cannot do, and do at a very high standard.

[Teenes]

I'm not qualified to comment on impressions of Kurt as an eligible b/c I wasn't a fan back then, but if you're looking for some history, check this out:
http://www.kurtfiles.com/memorylane/memory.php

It's from the old Kurt Klub page, and they did a fantastic job summing up Kurt's autobiography and compiling together some really interesting information and quotes about Kurt's amateur career. I personally find the commentator quotes particularly interesting, especially if you're looking for some insight into how Kurt was perceived at the time.

[NJSk8Fan]

I only know Kurt as a professional.
He is one-of-a-kind. Charming, versatile, funny, amazing...Gene Kelly on skates, such amazing footwork...How I wish he were still skating/touring full-time and that there were more pro events to see him participate in!

[loveskating]

Well, there are other skaters as talented as he is that we could be seeing...Kulik and Abt both are, and Kulik is better on the jumps; both can do all those things, although they have different characteristics; I'd include Wylie but he too is older and I don't want either of them to wreck their bodies and spend the rest of their lives in pain.

[dbny]

Well, there are other skaters as talented as he is that we could be seeing...Kulik and Abt both are, and Kulik is better on the jumps; both can do all those things, although they have different characteristics; I'd include Wylie but he too is older and I don't want either of them to wreck their bodies and spend the rest of their lives in pain.

I don't agree. Kulik is younger and that automatically makes him better on the jumps. Abt is not consistent and does not have Kurt's "born with skates" look on the ice. I've seen Kulik in SOI, and he wonderful, but no one else has Kurt's breadth of performance, except Scott Hamilton.

I only know Kurt as a professional.
He is one-of-a-kind. Charming, versatile, funny, amazing...Gene Kelly on skates, such amazing footwork...How I wish he were still skating/touring full-time and that there were more pro events to see him participate in!

You've obviously seen Kurt's amazing "Singing In The Rain" program, in which he becomes Gene Kelly. It's one of my favorites, and the one I always show to my non skating fan friends, because they all know the original.

[tdnuva]

You've obviously seen Kurt's amazing "Singing In The Rain" program, in which he becomes Gene Kelly. It's one of my favorites, and the one I always show to my non skating fan friends, because they all know the original.
Then you should add "That's entertainment" to your collection. That one is even more fab....

[Teenes]

Kurt may not be touring on SOI full-time, but I'd say he's still skating full-time. Last season he did 17 stops on the SOI tour, the Celebration on Ice tour, and the full CSOI tour, as well as a bunch of shows. He must have been skating full-time, because he somehow skated more programs in one year than he has in his entire career last season - 15 programs, 9 of which were new. If you're only following his career on TV, though, you wouldn't realize that, b/c only 9 of the programs were broadcast (5 shows/competitions).

[Joe Impressive]

Yes, Forcing The Edge is a must read!! Kurt is the BEST!! :bow:

[Terri C]

I also would like to add that I've had the chance to meet Kurt personally while he competed at what was the World Professional Championships and a few times when he came to my area for SOI! He is very nice and always takes time to meet and talk with fans!

[Sydney]

I can't think of any skater in recent history who has had as much of an influence on skating as Kurt Browning, both technically and artistically. Maybe because Elvis Stojko took the mantle right afterwards, people tend to speak less about Kurt's influence on the technical aspect of skating, but he certainly left quite a legacy. First person to land a quad, first person to land three triple-triple combos in a program. I also admired the way his jumps seemed to come out of nowhere. There was none of this long setup and telegraphing that I see from so many skaters nowadays. He would have triples coming out of spread eagles.

Artistically, people still talk about Casablanca. I see so many skaters trying to emulate him and embody a character like he did. He was always creative, trying out new things. For example, in his Hindu War God SP, he interpreted different gods (or something like that - to tell the truth, I always thought that it was a rather odd program) and his Bonzo's Montreux SP contained only a drum solo.

Also, he was outgoing and charismatic. To this day, whenever Kurt Browning comes up in a conversation, I see people's faces light up. His wide appeal translated well commercially - I still remember his commercial for Diet Coke. He had at least three specials I know of on the CBC. I didn't know about him pushing athletes to have more control over their finances, but more power to him. If you ever have a chance to watch his "You Must Remember This" special, it embodies a lot of what we've all talked about here - creativity, versatility, charm, his appreciation of his fans, his comraderie with his friends, his sense of humour. Anyone know if the CBC has plans to release this on DVD? Is anyone pushing for it?

[loveskating]

I don't agree. Kulik is younger and that automatically makes him better on the jumps. Abt is not consistent and does not have Kurt's "born with skates" look on the ice. I've seen Kulik in SOI, and he wonderful, but no one else has Kurt's breadth of performance, except Scott Hamilton.

Well, I think Kulik is every bit as good as Kurt, can do anything Kurt can do at the present time and more (Kurt was one of his inspirations as a student of skating). Abt can pretty much do anything Kurt can do.

Obviously, they are very different personalities, but if Kulik had the skating establishment support that Kurt did, he would be just as charasmatic on the ice and off it.

[the old gurl]

IMHO, Alexei Yagudin has the potential to follow more in Kurt's footsteps than anyone else I've seen (who isn't currently eligible). His time in SOI has been well-spent learning how to be a showman and his unfortunate hip problems have helped him focus even more on other entertaining aspects of his skating. Of course, the innate 'hawtness' factor doesn't hurt either :)

That being said, Kurt is still in a class of his own when it comes to versatility -- and no one can touch his feet. :bow:

[evereg]

Well, I think Kulik is every bit as good as Kurt, can do anything Kurt can do at the present time and more (Kurt was one of his inspirations as a student of skating). Abt can pretty much do anything Kurt can do.

Obviously, they are very different personalities, but if Kulik had the skating establishment support that Kurt did, he would be just as charasmatic on the ice and off it.I will give Kulik his due, but charisma has absolutely nothing to do with "skating establishment". According to the dictionary, charisma is 1) “ability to inspire enthusiasm interest or affection in others by means or personal charm or influence” or 2) “a gift or power believed to be divinely bestowed”. That wasn't something that the "skating establishment" gave Kurt. Now, if you want to talk about marketing, well that is a different story.

[phoenix]

The thing that sets Kurt so far apart from most others is that I don't think anyone would care if he never jumped again. His "Nyah" program was a masterpiece & not many skaters could hold your attention like he does when he just plain skates. The "born w/ skates on look" is a great way of putting it. He is truly an artist, & I've always been convinced if he hadn't become a skater he would have been a dancer.

Some of the footwork passes he's done still make my jaw drop, even after I've seen them & know what's coming.

[loveskating]

I will give Kulik his due, but charisma has absolutely nothing to do with "skating establishment". According to the dictionary, charisma is 1) “ability to inspire enthusiasm interest or affection in others by means or personal charm or influence” or 2) “a gift or power believed to be divinely bestowed”. That wasn't something that the "skating establishment" gave Kurt. Now, if you want to talk about marketing, well that is a different story.

We just see the underlying issues differently...I believe that being chosen adds a huge amount of confidence for anyone...and if Kulik were chosen like Kurt was chosen (and I recall when he was consitently beaten by others when he actually outskated them, and what that did to his confidence, which later returned).

Anyway, Kurt is not skating a lot -- which was complained of, and which is the only reason I mentioned Kulik in this thread == and it would be nice to see someone who can skate as well as Kurt out there...Kulik is the only one I've seen who, although a different personality, is every bit as good as Kurt as to the skating.

[icedancer2]

I definitely put Kurt in the category of skaters that can basically do anything that is asked of them on the ice... -- phenomenal.

There are not too many that I would put in that category, but actually, Ilia Kulik is one of them -- we just don't get to see him enough!

[proam]

Very doubtful that there will be another Kurt Browning, he is totally unique. In all my years of being a skate fan I haven’t seen anyone come near Kurt’s genius. :bow:

Although Ilia lacks a Kurt charisma, he is one of the most naturally gifted and beautiful skaters and I would rate Ilia pretty high up in the skate world.
How can you not watch Ilia jump and just swoon? :yum:

Disagree about Yagudin, IMO, he is not naturally gifted, let’s just say he follows directions well, plus he is sort of clunky skater, not as bad as Elvis clunky, but clunky nonetheless.

[evereg]

We just see the underlying issues differently...I believe that being chosen adds a huge amount of confidence for anyone...and if Kulik were chosen like Kurt was chosen (and I recall when he was consitently beaten by others when he actually outskated them, and what that did to his confidence, which later returned).

Anyway, Kurt is not skating a lot -- which was complained of, and which is the only reason I mentioned Kulik in this thread == and it would be nice to see someone who can skate as well as Kurt out there...Kulik is the only one I've seen who, although a different personality, is every bit as good as Kurt as to the skating.
:?? Sorry, but I still don't understand what you driving at. Charisma is something innate; something that someone is born with. Kurt has natural charisma. If he were an accountant, people would still be drawn to him.

[loveskating]

:?? Sorry, but I still don't understand what you driving at. Charisma is something innate; something that someone is born with. Kurt has natural charisma. If he were an accountant, people would still be drawn to him.

Well, according to Bette Midler, one can create charisma. However, even if it were only a natural gift, while I think Kurt has huge charisma, so does Kulik, but of a different type which I find just as engaging

Still, my point was and is that Kulik can skate at Kurt's level, SKATE -- and that includes footwork. I'm not driving at anything, I guess, other than when Kurt is not there it would sure be nice to see Kulik!

My kid says that Kurt sparkles, like Pavarotti's voice, that he simply sparkles all over the place...about Kulik she says watching him is like feeling an ocean wave. I pretty much concur.

I agree, answering another post, that Yags is not in the Kurt/Ilia category. I think he is not nearly as clunky as Stojko, though.

[evereg]

Well, according to Bette Midler, one can create charisma. However, even if it were only a natural gift, while I think Kurt has huge charisma, so does Kulik, but of a different type which I find just as engaging

Still, my point was and is that Kulik can skate at Kurt's level, SKATE -- and that includes footwork. I'm not driving at anything, I guess, other than when Kurt is not there it would sure be nice to see Kulik!

My kid says that Kurt sparkles, like Pavarotti's voice, that he simply sparkles all over the place...about Kulik she says watching him is like feeling an ocean wave. I pretty much concur.OK, I now understand your point. Kulik never drew me in the same way that Kurt did or does. Hey, that's just me.

[Teenes]

On the Ilia vs Kurt topic, I think Ilia is a tremendous skater who's very interesting and highly talented. He's definitely one of my favorite skaters. But personally, he's never quite given me as much a feeling of being "born in skates" as Kurt, and he seems to be naturally a lot more introverted, and I tend to think that extroversion translates better into natural showmanship. I also (and admittedly, I haven't followed his career that closely so I could just be missing data points) think that while Ilia has performed a variety of styles, some incredibly different and interesting, he hasn't quite demonstrated the same versatility as Kurt, that ability to do basically anything asked of him on the ice, as icedancer2 put it. But Kurt's also been around longer and had more opportunities due to the Golden Age of pro skating. If we had more opportunities to see Ilia, as loveskating says, I think he'd have more opportunities to demonstrate his versatility.

However, I do have to disagree with
Anyway, Kurt is not skating a lot

Kurt may not be skating as much as he did in the mid-90's, and he may not be touring with SOI full-time anymore, but he is still one busy skater. Just look at his schedule for the last couple years (and these don't count SOI or CSOI):
http://www.kurtfiles.com/events0405.php
http://www.kurtfiles.com/events0304.php
http://www.kurtfiles.com/events0203.php

On the other hand, less of these shows are televised, so that does deprive most of us of the ability to see him in a lot of these events.

[evereg]

On the Ilia vs Kurt topic, I think Ilia is a tremendous skater who's very interesting and highly talented. He's definitely one of my favorite skaters. But personally, he's never quite given me as much a feeling of being "born in skates" as Kurt, and he seems to be naturally a lot more introverted, and I tend to think that extroversion translates better into natural showmanship. .True, true. Thanks for hitting the nail on the head.

[Artemis]

I think Ilia is a tremendous skater who's very interesting and highly talented. He's definitely one of my favorite skaters. But personally, he's never quite given me as much a feeling of being "born in skates" as Kurt, and he seems to be naturally a lot more introverted, and I tend to think that extroversion translates better into natural showmanship.

I completely agree with that assessment. Of course I'm biased -- Kurt is my all-time favourite skater. And not just on-ice: he's also an incredible role model and unbelievable generous with his fans.

However, I do wonder in Kulik's case how much is true introversion as a personality trait and how much is language/culture barrier. Sense of humour, which is a not insignificant part of what we we interpret as charisma in skaters, is very much culture-specific. Not just Ilia, but many Russian skaters who try to do humorous programs for North American audiences often find them falling (not literally!) somewhat flat.

And of course no matter how much time the Russians (and Chinese, and Japanese etc.) skaters spend in the US or Canada, they're never going to feel quite as much at home as their North American counterparts. So that can sometimes put up a bit of a barrier between them and the audience.

[jcspkbfan]

As another Kurt fan who's followed his career virtually from the beginning, I can't add much more to Bailey's first post in particular (especially the last sentence about wanting Kurt to write another autobiography--LOL!) and most of the other comments posted here...but since Kurt's still my all-time favourite skater, I'll try. :P

First person to land a quad, first person to land three triple-triple combos in a program.

While we're on the topic of Kurt "firsts," I might as well add he was the first--and only--skater to win World titles both with and without compulsory figures (which were never Kurt's strong point).

To this day, whenever Kurt Browning comes up in a conversation, I see people's faces light up.

To give you more indication as to how well-known Kurt was at the time, after he fell during his 1994 Olympics SP, it was the big conversation topic at my high school...even among people who most definitely wouldn't normally consider themselves skating fans! Not to mention all the news programs just had to show that fall over and over and over again. :cry:

If you ever have a chance to watch his "You Must Remember This" special, it embodies a lot of what we've all talked about here - creativity, versatility, charm, his appreciation of his fans, his comraderie with his friends, his sense of humour. Anyone know if the CBC has plans to release this on DVD? Is anyone pushing for it?

I remember there was a bit of talk about CBC possibly releasing "You Must Remember This" after the last time they rebroadcast it as part of their 50th anniversary celebrations a few years ago, but as far as I know, nothing's ever come of it yet. :cry: ITA it (along with Kurt's earlier "Tall In The Saddle" special) should be released on DVD someday, though!

The thing that sets Kurt so far apart from most others is that I don't think anyone would care if he never jumped again. His "Nyah" program was a masterpiece & not many skaters could hold your attention like he does when he just plain skates.

I just found this comment interesting since "Nyah" (the program which started this thread) doesn't include any jumps or many other conventional skating elements in the first place. I actually thought the program suffered when Kurt had to add jumps to it in order to use it for a couple of competitions. As happy as I was to see that program a few more times than I originally expected, I thought adding jumps kind of defeated the original purpose of the program...namely, that one can create an interesting, artistic, difficult skating program without jumps or other traditional skating elements.

And I never saw him as a skater who was stressing his masculine side more than the rest (as Michael Weiss does it). But he was not feminine either (like Johnny Weir). The one who ressembles him more artistically now is Jeff Buttle I would say. With choosing interesting music and beginning to interprete it.

I'm also a big Jeff fan, but if I were to compare Jeff to any other skater, it would probably be Brian Orser. Since I'm also a big Orser fan, that's definitely not a slight on Jeff, though!

I can only recommend that you go to a place like rinkside or so and try to get some video clips. So you can make up your own opinion.

Kurt's actually the featured skater of the month at the rinkside.org forum. I'm not sure whether I'm allowed to post the direct link to the thread here, but those of you who missed out on seeing his best eligible performances the first time around can easily find many of them there right now. :D

One comment in particular which stands out to me from that time is from Scott Hamilton during the 1990 Worlds gala:

"He is such a great show skater. His competitive programs are technically sound, but if he took some of the personality he has in his exhibitions and put it into his long programs, he'd be unbeatable!"

Of course, we now know how accurate that prediction turned out to be! :D

For now, the only other thing I have to add is one of the best arguments I can think of to use against all the fans who constantly criticize pro skating is to imagine how much poorer the skating world would be today if Kurt had hung up his skates after retiring from eligible competition...or had his skating career cut short due to serious injury like sooo many of the top skaters who came after him.

[loveskating]

For now, the only other thing I have to add is one of the best arguments I can think of to use against all the fans who constantly criticize pro skating is to imagine how much poorer the skating world would be today if Kurt had hung up his skates after retiring from eligible competition...or had his skating career cut short due to serious injury like sooo many of the top skaters who came after him.

My favorite is his clown program...to me, its the essential Kurt, and it has great skating and very, very difficult choreography. Next would be Singing in the Rain, which was an amateur program originally.

Also, I've just appreciated the artistry and dignity of his shows. When Kurt is involved, you know its going to have a certain high level.

[jazzpants]

Any skater that can do a program with his/her skate guards on (http://www.kurtfiles.com/soi/soireviews/montreal03.php) get my :bow: ! :P