Brian Freshwood
Brian "Freshwood" Brushwood (16 March 1931 - 1 May 2012) was secretary of agriculture, vaudeville performer, and author.
Early Life
Freshwood is most well known as the Secretary of Agriculture for Herbert Hoover, a position he held at the impressive age of 2. It is still unclear as to whether the legacy he left in the office was that of his own volition. Around the same time he developed a long and storied career on vaudeville, ushering out the era in the United States. It was from this era when he became known as "The Great Shwood." His later claims to fame can be most directly attributed to his popularized four-fingers-in-the-nose trick.
Later In Life
Nearing the end of Freshwood's life, he became a prolific author and speaker. He wrote the now famous autobiography, I Can't Smell Smoke, But I'm Sure I Will One Day Die In A Fire. It is within this comprehensive reflection on his life, emerged one of Freshwood's more lively quotes, "Everybody lift your glasses, and smack your asses!"
Freshwood's Stanford commencement address is renowned for its tenacity and unspoken universal truths. Unfortunately all video footage of the speech was misplaced and never found, the circumstances of the incident are still under investigation. The one message that perseveres in all who attended the speech recall a perturbed Freshwood clarifying, "If anybody ever lights me on fire, please don't just talk about it. Come and put me out, this is a preventable situation."
Death
The sad and untimely passing of Brian Brushwood was comprehensively covered on MSNBC. At approximately 8pm Eastern 1 May, 2012, a fire consumed Brian Brushwood. This coincided with the beginning of NSFW Episode 125, which pushed the show back 10 to 15 minutes. Brushwood was then known as Freshwood for his proclivity to "burn like fresh wood in a kindling". Though Tom and Justin mourned, they set a timer on their sadness to not be overwhelmed with sorrow.
Controversy
Controversy surrounding his death radiate from allegations that with malice of forethought, Tom Merritt set the fire that killed Freshwood. TWiT legal counsel Ira Sockman thoroughly reviewed the tapes and delivered an official statement concluding that all allegations were based off of hearsay from an off-handed glib comment. Merritt has yet to comment further on the matter, but Sockman states, "It was unprofessional and inconsiderate. We were all a bit shaken up by losing such a monumental hero, Tom most of all; he really looked up to the guy. We're taking appropriate actions to remedy the matter. Pretend I'm not here."