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'The Great Imposter and Me': New ESPN doc reveals Detroiter Barry Bremen's biggest secret

chandler engelbrecht, detroit free press
·4 min read

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Barry Bremen garnered national attention after posing as a player in an NBA All-Star Game, an MLB umpire at the World Series, a referee in an NFL game and as a cheerleader for the Dallas Cowboys. These stunts, and many more, led Bremen to earn the nickname of “The Great Imposter.”

While this legacy is forever engraved in sports history, Bremen was secretly building another one that’s just becoming public knowledge 11 years after he died from ​​esophageal cancer in 2011, on his 64th birthday.

More than three dozen people have learned that, through sperm donation, Bremen — a Detroit native who worked as an insurance salesman when he wasn’t sneaking into iconic sports venues — is their biological father. This story is covered thoroughly in the newest episode of ESPN's "E60," which premiers Tuesday.

Barry Bremen once posed as a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. Purportedly the only man ever to appear as one, his "career" was short lived - he was hustled off the field quickly.
Barry Bremen once posed as a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. Purportedly the only man ever to appear as one, his "career" was short lived - he was hustled off the field quickly.

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The documentary, titled “The Great Imposter and Me,” was written and narrated by 11-time Emmy winner Jeremy Schaap, and is told largely through Bremen’s wife, Margo, the three children they raised — and the biological children Bremen never met.

It also features interviews with former NBA star Otis Birdsong (Kansas City Kings) and MLB Hall of Famer George Brett (Kansas City Royals), both of whom developed friendships with Bremen and helped him pull off some of his stunts.

Another key figure in Bremen’s rise was Dick Schaap, Jeremy’s father and a notable sports writer and broadcaster. Dick Schaap first interviewed Bremen on "The Today Show" after he snuck into the 1979 NBA All-Star Game. From there, the two developed a close bond as Dick Schaap also aided Bremen’s famous antics.

“This tells two seemingly distinct stories,” Jeremy Schaap told the Free Press. “It’s about this great sports imposter who did all those things that, today, would be impossible to pull off because of the ways in which the world has changed. At the same time, he was a man who was all about family. That seems like typically where these stories end, but it doesn’t.

“Ultimately, this story’s all about family, identity and the final great reveal from the man known as 'The Great Impostor.’ … To me, it’s a very human story with a lot of layers that obviously is about much more than sports.”

Metro Detroiter Barry Bremen once posed as a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, as part of a hobby that saw him sneak into many sporting events.
Metro Detroiter Barry Bremen once posed as a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader, as part of a hobby that saw him sneak into many sporting events.

Bremen's secret offspring began after he, while staying anonymous, donated sperm to a Detroit clinic after the birth of his first child.

Produced and directed by Russell Dinallo, who Schaap calls the “bus driver” of the piece, “The Great Imposter and Me” explores how Bremen’s biological children discovered each other through 23andMe’s genetic testing service. From there, it details the painstaking efforts one of Bremen’s offspring used to track their lineage and find the Bremen family through social media.

Schaap, who has a close friendship with the Bremen family, was one of the first people the Bremens told about their discovery in the late 2010s. After more and more people came out with proof Bremen was their biological father, the family arranged a get-together.

Cameras captured the moment the group of approximately three dozen people all shared the same space; Schaap is sure of one thing — Bremen would’ve loved to be there.

“Barry would embrace all of this,” Schaap said. “I think some people would react differently. They might not want to be part of it. They might be confused by what they participated in. But knowing Barry, and you’ll hear Margo say this, he would’ve loved to meet all these people, to meet his biological children and grandchildren. … He’d be at every birthday party, every Christmas party, all of that stuff. Because that's the type of person he was. He was a people person.

“He would’ve thought this was the coolest thing ever. And I think he would’ve said, ‘The more, the merrier.’ Barry (became the Great Imposter) because, as he said, he loved getting attention, being famous, being a celebrity. But, you scratch that away, and what mattered was family. That’s what connects all of this.”

Metro Detroiter Barry Bremen snuck his way into dozens of major sporting events in the 1970s and 80s, including the Pro Bowl.
Metro Detroiter Barry Bremen snuck his way into dozens of major sporting events in the 1970s and 80s, including the Pro Bowl.

“The Great Imposter and Me” debuts at 7 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN and will be available to stream on ESPN+ after its airing.

Chandler Engelbrecht is a reporting intern at The Detroit Free Press and can be reached at CEngelbrecht@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @ctengelbrecht.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 'The Great Imposter and Me': ESPN doc reveals Barry Bremen's secret