Paul Wagner remembers his longtime colleague and fellow Erie television reporter Scott Bremner for reasons other than his writing, charm, or treasured fedora. Bremner has a powerful memory.
“We were both covering a trial and I was taking page after page of notes,” said Wagner, who worked for WICU-TV in the 1980s and 90s when Bremner reported for WSEE-TV. “Scott would sit there and never take a note. I would later watch his report, thinking he must have missed some testimony. But he had all of it.”
Bremner, who spent 40 years with Erie TV stations as a reporter, anchor, and assignment editor, died of natural causes on Monday. He was 63.
Bremner, born in Ambridge, attended Grove City College before receiving a bachelor’s degree from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. In the early 1980s, he began his career as a video photography intern at WJET-TV.
Bremner, on the other hand, spent the majority of his career at WSEE, where he was noted for his versatility. He was equally adept at covering breaking news and light features, and he became well-known for his “Thoughts From Under the Hat” commentary, which garnered him three Regional Emmy Awards.
“Scott was one of the best writers for TV in town,” said Rich Forsgren, a longtime Erie Times-News photographer, and Bremner’s closest friend. “He also was witty and charming on camera and connected well with people. They were always coming up to him on the street.”
In addition to reporting, Bremner hosted WSEE’s 5:30, 6, and 11 p.m. newscasts and the station’s “Newswatch Insider” community program.
Bremner departed WSEE in 2014 to serve as the director of marketing and development at Home Instead Senior Care — Erie for roughly a year. In 2015, he returned to television as assignment director at WJET/WFXP.
“He would still go out and report when they needed someone,” Forsgren said. “Scott loved being on the streets.”