Norman E. Brinker
Encyclopedia
Norman Eugene Brinker was a prominent restaurateur who was responsible for the creation of new business concepts within the restaurant field, such as the salad bar
.
with fast food company Jack in the Box, rising to oversee its expansion into a regional chain in the United States. After leaving the company he founded several chains, including Steak & Ale. With its sale to Pillsbury in 1976, Brinker rose to new heights, eventually becoming president of the company's entire restaurant operations. At the height of his tenure with Pillsbury he was responsible for the creation or oversaw the operations of such restaurants as Bennigan's
, Burger King
and Haagen Dazs. It was when he left Pillsbury in 1984 to purchase a small gourmet burger shop called Chili's
that Brinker saw his greatest business success. The company eventually became one of the largest restaurant holding companies in the world with 5 chains operating 1900 restaurants in 25 countries. Now known as Brinker International
, the company currently employs over 100,000 people and has system-wide sales exceeding US$4 billion annually.
During the 1950s, Brinker engaged in a hectic and busy lifestyle. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1952; during his stint in the service, Brinker used his passion and talent for horse riding to earn a place on the United States Olympic Equestrian team in the 1952 Summer Olympics
in Helsinki, Finland, and the 1954 Modern Pentathlon
World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. While stationed in San Diego, California
, he chose to attend San Diego State College, now San Diego State University. It was during his time in college that he met and married Tennis Grand Slam
winner and world champion Maureen "Little Mo" Connolly
in 1955, became president of his class, and graduated with honors in 1957. His marriage, which produced two children, ended in 1969 when she succumbed to gastric cancer. His 1971—1976 marriage to Margrit Fendt produced two more children. In 1981, Brinker met and later married his third wife, Nancy Goodman
, on February 14, 1983. During his time with her, Brinker adopted her son from her first marriage, was gravely injured in a polo accident in 1993, was chair of the United States Polo Association, inducted into the Polo Hall of Fame and retired from Brinker International in 2001. They engaged in many Republican
causes and fund-raising missions during their time together. The couple was amicably divorced in 2003. He married his fourth wife, Toni Chapman, in March of the same year and remained with her until his death in 2009.
While Brinker created and donated to numerous charities and foundations over his lifetime, it was his twenty-year marriage to Nancy that produced one of most famous charities of the 20th century. With the memory of his first wife's battle with the disease in the 1960s, the Brinkers used his wealth to establish a fund dedicated to advancing treatment for cancer in the name of Mrs. Brinker's sister who had died of breast cancer
in 1980 at the age of 39. The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation was established in 1982 and eventually became known as Susan G. Komen for the Cure
; it since has become one of the most prominent cancer-related charities in the world. Despite the divorce, Brinker remained with the foundation until the end.
, named Oscar's. At the time, Oscar's owner Bob Peterson had also opened a second chain in the area called Jack in the Box; while Brinker succeeded in his position, he was eventually drawn to Peterson's growing fast food business. It was at Jack-in-the-Box that Brinker flourished, helping the business expand across the Southwestern United States
. Within two years of moving over to the company, he had been elevated to the position of president of the company and amassed a 20% stake in the company. Brinker developed a close professional relationship with Peterson, taking many of his business philosophies to heart and developing the food service philosophy that he attempted to follow throughout his career. Brinker said of Peterson that "Bob Peterson was really my mentor. Everything we do here today started back then. Letting ideas rise from below, treating people right—all of that."
When Jack in the Box went public in the early 1960s, Brinker sold his interest in the company and moved to Dallas
with the intent to open a new business. His first endeavor was a coffee shop he named after himself, Brinks. The concept was to create a restaurant that catered to the 25-44 year-old demographic, a group that was still in the early stages of developing a taste for inexpensive fast food
. The shop proved successful, and he sold it two years later. Using the proceeds from the sale, he opened a new chain in 1966 with the intent of providing an affordable steak dinner to the middle class
. He called his new concept Steak and Ale
.
With the Steak and Ale chain, Brinker originated the concept of the modern casual dining restaurant that is now ubiquitous in the marketplace. One of the innovations that Brinker introduced with Steak and Ale was the salad bar. Besides the novel concept of having customers leave their tables to serve themselves from a salad buffet, the Dallas-based chain also created the now common stock introduction of "Hi, my name is ______, and I will be your waiter tonight." These ideas were part of an overall plan to establish a restaurant that was more relaxed with a more casual atmosphere. Over the next ten years, he went on to establish a niche industry that was situated between the fast-food and higher-priced gourmet segments of the restaurant field. By 1976, he had taken the chain to 109 restaurants, and had successfully introduced the American consumer to the concept of the chain restaurant. He then sold his company to Pillsbury and assumed a position in the company's restaurant division.
As a part of the acquisition, Brinker was given the position executive vice president of Pillsbury's restaurant operations as well as a seat on the company's board of directors. During his tenure as executive VP, Brinker oversaw the creation of the company's Bennigan's
chain. Bennigan's was the first in a new concept of restaurants intended to attract single people, a concept that became known as the "fern bar
". As his status in Pillsbury grew, Brinker was asked to take over the operations of its main fast food chain, Burger King.
By the early 1980s, Burger King's sales had begun to fade. Brinker was tasked with turning the brand around and strengthening its position against its main rival, McDonald's
. One of his first acts was to initiate an advertising plan emphasizing claims that Burger King's flame-broiled burgers were better and larger than its rival's. The program, arguably the first attack ads on a food chain by a competitor, was controversial in that before it fast food ads only made allusions to the competition in a vague manner, never mentioning them by name. McDonald's sued Burger King and their ad agency at the time, the J. Walter Thompson Company
. Child actress Sarah Michelle Gellar
was also implicated in the lawsuit because of her appearance in these television commercials. The suit was settled the following year on undisclosed terms. Despite the controversy, the ad plan boosted same store sales when sales took off. The whole situation at the time became known as the Burger Wars
.
He worked for the company in this capacity until 1982 when he was promoted to president of Pillsbury's food service division. His new role expanded his oversight to include the company's other chains, including Burger King
, Quik-Wok and Poppin' Fresh. However his new position was short lived, as he left the company in 1984 to take over a small, Dallas-based gourmet burger chain called Chili's
.
Some of the people that have worked with Brinker have gone on to oversee competing chains, such as Applebee's
and T.G.I. Fridays. The vice president of OSI Restaurant Partners of Tampa, Florida, Joseph L. Jackson, began his career as a general manager of Steak and Ale who made a favorable impression with Brinker during his time with the company. Other restaurant chains and food service companies that Brinker directly or indirectly influenced include Boston Market
, Flying J, Lettuce Entertain You, Sizzler
and many others. Outside of the restaurant business, former colleagues have taken the lessons they learned from him and gone into such divergent fields as human resources
management; corporate and private investigations; and market research
services using such programs as customer satisfaction
surveys and mystery shopping
.
. As a child, Norman took on odd jobs to supplement the family's modest income, creating a rabbit farm at the age of 10, managing a "120-mile-long" paper route and buying and selling horses to help make ends meet for the family. In high school, he attended the New Mexico Military Institute
. He later served in the Navy, which brought him to San Diego, California. He later attended San Diego State College
and graduated in 1957 at the age of 26. An avid and talented polo enthusiast, in 1952 Brinker was a member of the Olympic Equestrian team, competing in the 1952 Summer Olympics
in Helsinki, Finland, and later competed in the 1954 pentathlon competition at the world championships in Budapest
In June 1955, Norman married tennis player Maureen "Little Mo" Connolly
. The couple shared a passion for horses. Her professional tennis career ended due to a freak accident on a horse at the age of 18. They had two daughters, Cindy Brinker (Simmons), who was born in 1957, and Brenda Brinker (Bottum), who was born in 1959. Maureen died at the age of 34 on June 21, 1969, after a three-year-long battle with ovarian cancer. The relationship between Norman and Maureen was depicted in a 1978 telefilm, Little Mo, which starred Glynnis O'Connor
as Maureen, Mark Harmon
as Norman, and Anne Baxter
as Maureen's mother.
Brinker married his second wife, Magrit L. Fendt, on March 7, 1971. Over the next five years, he and Fendt had two children: Christina and Mark. The couple divorced in 1976.
On February 14, 1981, Norman married a third time, to Nancy Goodman
, the former wife of Neiman Marcus executive Robert Leitstein. Goodman's son with Leitstein, Eric Blake Leitstein, took Brinker's surname after the marriage. The marriage provided Nancy with funding and an immediate network of financial and political support for the foundation dedicated to the memory of Nancy's sister, Susan G. Komen, which became the Susan G. Komen for the Cure
and related Komen Race for the Cure. The couple were active Bush Pioneers, wealthy donors who provided $100,000 or more of financial support for George W. Bush's presidential ambitions.
On January 22, 1993, Norman was seriously injured during a polo match in a high-speed collision with another rider at the West Palm Beach Polo and Hunt Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Suffering serious head injuries and in what was anticipated to be a prolonged coma, three days after the accident Norman was succeeded by Ron A. McDougall as chief executive officer of Brinker International; despite his retirement, Brinker retained the title of Chairman Emeritus. Some years after the accident Norman and Nancy had an amicable divorce after 20 years of marriage and Nancy moved on to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Hungary early in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2003. Norman Brinker remained a close advisor to Nancy Brinker in the years following their divorce.
In March 2003, Norman married his fourth wife, Toni Chapman.
He died on June 9, 2009, from aspiration pneumonia
while on vacation in Colorado.
Salad bar
A salad bar is a buffet-style table or counter at a restaurant or food market on which salad components are provided for customers to assemble their own salad plates...
.
Biography
He was born on June 3, 1931. He began his career in the 1960s in Southern CaliforniaSouthern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
with fast food company Jack in the Box, rising to oversee its expansion into a regional chain in the United States. After leaving the company he founded several chains, including Steak & Ale. With its sale to Pillsbury in 1976, Brinker rose to new heights, eventually becoming president of the company's entire restaurant operations. At the height of his tenure with Pillsbury he was responsible for the creation or oversaw the operations of such restaurants as Bennigan's
Bennigan's
Bennigan's is an Irish pub-themed casual dining restaurant chain with locations throughout the United States, and in 14 countries and 15 territories outside the continental U.S...
, Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
and Haagen Dazs. It was when he left Pillsbury in 1984 to purchase a small gourmet burger shop called Chili's
Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is a restaurant chain founded by Larry Lavine. The chain has more than 1400 casual dining restaurants, mostly located in the United States and Canada...
that Brinker saw his greatest business success. The company eventually became one of the largest restaurant holding companies in the world with 5 chains operating 1900 restaurants in 25 countries. Now known as Brinker International
Brinker International
Brinker International, Inc. , is the parent company of Chili's and Maggiano's Little Italy.-History:It was founded in 1975 as Chili's Bar and Grill, purchased by restaurateur Norman E. Brinker in 1983 and rechristened Brinker International in 1990; it now has more than 1,500 restaurants worldwide...
, the company currently employs over 100,000 people and has system-wide sales exceeding US$4 billion annually.
During the 1950s, Brinker engaged in a hectic and busy lifestyle. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1952; during his stint in the service, Brinker used his passion and talent for horse riding to earn a place on the United States Olympic Equestrian team in the 1952 Summer Olympics
1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...
in Helsinki, Finland, and the 1954 Modern Pentathlon
Modern pentathlon
The modern pentathlon is a sports contest that includes five events: pistol shooting, épée fencing, 200 m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a 3 km cross-country run...
World Championships in Budapest, Hungary. While stationed in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, he chose to attend San Diego State College, now San Diego State University. It was during his time in college that he met and married Tennis Grand Slam
Grand Slam (tennis)
The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...
winner and world champion Maureen "Little Mo" Connolly
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly Brinker was an American tennis player who was the first woman to win all four Grand Slam tournaments during the same calendar year.-Biography:...
in 1955, became president of his class, and graduated with honors in 1957. His marriage, which produced two children, ended in 1969 when she succumbed to gastric cancer. His 1971—1976 marriage to Margrit Fendt produced two more children. In 1981, Brinker met and later married his third wife, Nancy Goodman
Nancy Brinker
Nancy Goodman Brinker is the founder and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, an organization named after her only sister, Susan, who died from breast cancer in 1980 at age 36. Brinker was also United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2001 to 2003 and Chief of Protocol of the United States from...
, on February 14, 1983. During his time with her, Brinker adopted her son from her first marriage, was gravely injured in a polo accident in 1993, was chair of the United States Polo Association, inducted into the Polo Hall of Fame and retired from Brinker International in 2001. They engaged in many Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
causes and fund-raising missions during their time together. The couple was amicably divorced in 2003. He married his fourth wife, Toni Chapman, in March of the same year and remained with her until his death in 2009.
While Brinker created and donated to numerous charities and foundations over his lifetime, it was his twenty-year marriage to Nancy that produced one of most famous charities of the 20th century. With the memory of his first wife's battle with the disease in the 1960s, the Brinkers used his wealth to establish a fund dedicated to advancing treatment for cancer in the name of Mrs. Brinker's sister who had died of breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
in 1980 at the age of 39. The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation was established in 1982 and eventually became known as Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, formerly known as The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, often referred to as simply Komen, is the most widely known, largest and best-funded breast cancer organization in the US....
; it since has become one of the most prominent cancer-related charities in the world. Despite the divorce, Brinker remained with the foundation until the end.
Professional
After Brinker had graduated from college, he took a job with a small chain of diners in San Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, named Oscar's. At the time, Oscar's owner Bob Peterson had also opened a second chain in the area called Jack in the Box; while Brinker succeeded in his position, he was eventually drawn to Peterson's growing fast food business. It was at Jack-in-the-Box that Brinker flourished, helping the business expand across the Southwestern United States
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
. Within two years of moving over to the company, he had been elevated to the position of president of the company and amassed a 20% stake in the company. Brinker developed a close professional relationship with Peterson, taking many of his business philosophies to heart and developing the food service philosophy that he attempted to follow throughout his career. Brinker said of Peterson that "Bob Peterson was really my mentor. Everything we do here today started back then. Letting ideas rise from below, treating people right—all of that."
When Jack in the Box went public in the early 1960s, Brinker sold his interest in the company and moved to Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
with the intent to open a new business. His first endeavor was a coffee shop he named after himself, Brinks. The concept was to create a restaurant that catered to the 25-44 year-old demographic, a group that was still in the early stages of developing a taste for inexpensive fast food
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
. The shop proved successful, and he sold it two years later. Using the proceeds from the sale, he opened a new chain in 1966 with the intent of providing an affordable steak dinner to the middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
. He called his new concept Steak and Ale
Steak and Ale
Steak and Ale was an American chain of casual dining restaurants, operated by S&A Restaurant Group. Steak and Ale was founded as an independent restaurant chain in Dallas, Texas, on February 26, 1966, by Norman E. Brinker...
.
With the Steak and Ale chain, Brinker originated the concept of the modern casual dining restaurant that is now ubiquitous in the marketplace. One of the innovations that Brinker introduced with Steak and Ale was the salad bar. Besides the novel concept of having customers leave their tables to serve themselves from a salad buffet, the Dallas-based chain also created the now common stock introduction of "Hi, my name is ______, and I will be your waiter tonight." These ideas were part of an overall plan to establish a restaurant that was more relaxed with a more casual atmosphere. Over the next ten years, he went on to establish a niche industry that was situated between the fast-food and higher-priced gourmet segments of the restaurant field. By 1976, he had taken the chain to 109 restaurants, and had successfully introduced the American consumer to the concept of the chain restaurant. He then sold his company to Pillsbury and assumed a position in the company's restaurant division.
As a part of the acquisition, Brinker was given the position executive vice president of Pillsbury's restaurant operations as well as a seat on the company's board of directors. During his tenure as executive VP, Brinker oversaw the creation of the company's Bennigan's
Bennigan's
Bennigan's is an Irish pub-themed casual dining restaurant chain with locations throughout the United States, and in 14 countries and 15 territories outside the continental U.S...
chain. Bennigan's was the first in a new concept of restaurants intended to attract single people, a concept that became known as the "fern bar
Fern bar
Fern bar is an American slang term for an upscale or preppy bar or tavern catering to singles usually decorated with ferns or other "fussy" plants, as well as such decor as fake Tiffany lamps...
". As his status in Pillsbury grew, Brinker was asked to take over the operations of its main fast food chain, Burger King.
By the early 1980s, Burger King's sales had begun to fade. Brinker was tasked with turning the brand around and strengthening its position against its main rival, McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
. One of his first acts was to initiate an advertising plan emphasizing claims that Burger King's flame-broiled burgers were better and larger than its rival's. The program, arguably the first attack ads on a food chain by a competitor, was controversial in that before it fast food ads only made allusions to the competition in a vague manner, never mentioning them by name. McDonald's sued Burger King and their ad agency at the time, the J. Walter Thompson Company
JWT
JWT is one of the largest advertising agencies in the United States and the fourth-largest in the world. It is one of the key companies of Sir Martin Sorrell's WPP Group and is headquartered in New York. The global agency is led by Worldwide Chairman and Global CEO Bob Jeffrey who took over the...
. Child actress Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Sarah Michelle Prinze , known professionally by her birth name of Sarah Michelle Gellar , is an American actress, singer and executive producer...
was also implicated in the lawsuit because of her appearance in these television commercials. The suit was settled the following year on undisclosed terms. Despite the controversy, the ad plan boosted same store sales when sales took off. The whole situation at the time became known as the Burger Wars
Burger Wars
The Burger Wars is series of off and on comparative advertising campaigns consisting of mutually-targeted advertisements that highlight the intense competition between hamburger fast food chains McDonald's, Burger King and others in the United States...
.
He worked for the company in this capacity until 1982 when he was promoted to president of Pillsbury's food service division. His new role expanded his oversight to include the company's other chains, including Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
, Quik-Wok and Poppin' Fresh. However his new position was short lived, as he left the company in 1984 to take over a small, Dallas-based gourmet burger chain called Chili's
Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is a restaurant chain founded by Larry Lavine. The chain has more than 1400 casual dining restaurants, mostly located in the United States and Canada...
.
Industry impact
Beyond launching several restaurant chains and the creation of one of the most widely emulated restaurant formats used in the market today, Brinker had another, indirect impact on the food service industry. Over his nearly fifty year career, he worked with, hired or trained many executives who have gone on to establish themselves within the modern restaurant industry in the United States and Canada. Many of these individuals started with him either at his Steak and Ale chain beginning or met him during the establishment of Bennigan's in the 1970s. Others were with him during the time as president of Pillsbury's restaurants division or came up through the Chili's system under his watch.Some of the people that have worked with Brinker have gone on to oversee competing chains, such as Applebee's
Applebee's
Applebee’s International, Inc., is an American company which develops, franchises, and operates the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar restaurant chain. As of September 2011, there were 2,010 restaurants operating system-wide in the United States, one U.S. territory and 14 other countries...
and T.G.I. Fridays. The vice president of OSI Restaurant Partners of Tampa, Florida, Joseph L. Jackson, began his career as a general manager of Steak and Ale who made a favorable impression with Brinker during his time with the company. Other restaurant chains and food service companies that Brinker directly or indirectly influenced include Boston Market
Boston Market
Boston Market, known as Boston Chicken until 1995, headquartered in Golden, Colorado, is a chain of American fast casual restaurants. It is owned by private equity firm Sun Capital Partners, headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida.-History:...
, Flying J, Lettuce Entertain You, Sizzler
Sizzler
Sizzler is a United States-based restaurant chain with headquarters in Culver City, California. The chain serves steak, seafood, and salad , as well as similar items.-History:...
and many others. Outside of the restaurant business, former colleagues have taken the lessons they learned from him and gone into such divergent fields as human resources
Human resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
management; corporate and private investigations; and market research
Market research
Market research is any organized effort to gather information about markets or customers. It is a very important component of business strategy...
services using such programs as customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in marketing, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation...
surveys and mystery shopping
Mystery shopping
Mystery shopping or a mystery consumer is a tool used externally by market research companies or watchdog organizations or internally by companies themselves to measure quality of service or compliance to regulation, or to gather specific information about products and services...
.
Personal
Norman Brinker was born on June 3, 1931, in Denver, Colorado, as an only child. His parents, Kathryn and Eugene Brinker, later moved to a 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) farm in Roswell, New MexicoRoswell, New Mexico
Roswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...
. As a child, Norman took on odd jobs to supplement the family's modest income, creating a rabbit farm at the age of 10, managing a "120-mile-long" paper route and buying and selling horses to help make ends meet for the family. In high school, he attended the New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico Military Institute
New Mexico Military Institute is a state-supported educational institution. NMMI is located in Roswell, New Mexico, United States. It is sometimes referred to as the West Point of the West and it is the only state-supported military college located in the western United States. NMMI includes a...
. He later served in the Navy, which brought him to San Diego, California. He later attended San Diego State College
San Diego State University
San Diego State University , founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, is the largest and oldest higher education facility in the greater San Diego area , and is part of the California State University system...
and graduated in 1957 at the age of 26. An avid and talented polo enthusiast, in 1952 Brinker was a member of the Olympic Equestrian team, competing in the 1952 Summer Olympics
1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...
in Helsinki, Finland, and later competed in the 1954 pentathlon competition at the world championships in Budapest
In June 1955, Norman married tennis player Maureen "Little Mo" Connolly
Maureen Connolly
Maureen Catherine Connolly Brinker was an American tennis player who was the first woman to win all four Grand Slam tournaments during the same calendar year.-Biography:...
. The couple shared a passion for horses. Her professional tennis career ended due to a freak accident on a horse at the age of 18. They had two daughters, Cindy Brinker (Simmons), who was born in 1957, and Brenda Brinker (Bottum), who was born in 1959. Maureen died at the age of 34 on June 21, 1969, after a three-year-long battle with ovarian cancer. The relationship between Norman and Maureen was depicted in a 1978 telefilm, Little Mo, which starred Glynnis O'Connor
Glynnis O'Connor
Glynnis O'Connor is an American actress, perhaps best known for her work in the mid-1970s, including her lead actress roles in the TV version of Our Town and the films Ode to Billy Joe and Jeremy, all of which co-starred Robby Benson.O'Connor was born in New York City, the daughter of stage, film...
as Maureen, Mark Harmon
Mark Harmon
Mark Harmon is an American actor who has been starring in American television programs and films since the mid-1970s, after a career as a collegiate football player with the UCLA Bruins. Since 2003, Harmon has starred as Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the CBS series NCIS.-Early life:Harmon was born Thomas...
as Norman, and Anne Baxter
Anne Baxter
Anne Baxter was an American actress known for her performances in films such as The Magnificent Ambersons , The Razor's Edge , All About Eve and The Ten Commandments .-Early life:...
as Maureen's mother.
Brinker married his second wife, Magrit L. Fendt, on March 7, 1971. Over the next five years, he and Fendt had two children: Christina and Mark. The couple divorced in 1976.
On February 14, 1981, Norman married a third time, to Nancy Goodman
Nancy Brinker
Nancy Goodman Brinker is the founder and CEO of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, an organization named after her only sister, Susan, who died from breast cancer in 1980 at age 36. Brinker was also United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2001 to 2003 and Chief of Protocol of the United States from...
, the former wife of Neiman Marcus executive Robert Leitstein. Goodman's son with Leitstein, Eric Blake Leitstein, took Brinker's surname after the marriage. The marriage provided Nancy with funding and an immediate network of financial and political support for the foundation dedicated to the memory of Nancy's sister, Susan G. Komen, which became the Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, formerly known as The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, often referred to as simply Komen, is the most widely known, largest and best-funded breast cancer organization in the US....
and related Komen Race for the Cure. The couple were active Bush Pioneers, wealthy donors who provided $100,000 or more of financial support for George W. Bush's presidential ambitions.
On January 22, 1993, Norman was seriously injured during a polo match in a high-speed collision with another rider at the West Palm Beach Polo and Hunt Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Suffering serious head injuries and in what was anticipated to be a prolonged coma, three days after the accident Norman was succeeded by Ron A. McDougall as chief executive officer of Brinker International; despite his retirement, Brinker retained the title of Chairman Emeritus. Some years after the accident Norman and Nancy had an amicable divorce after 20 years of marriage and Nancy moved on to serve as the U.S. ambassador to Hungary early in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2003. Norman Brinker remained a close advisor to Nancy Brinker in the years following their divorce.
In March 2003, Norman married his fourth wife, Toni Chapman.
He died on June 9, 2009, from aspiration pneumonia
Aspiration pneumonia
Aspiration pneumonia is bronchopneumonia that develops due to the entrance of foreign materials into the bronchial tree, usually oral or gastric contents...
while on vacation in Colorado.
Publications
- Brinker, Norman Donald T. Phillips, On the Brink: The Life and Leadership of Norman Brinker Summit Publishing Group, 1996, 203 pages, ISBN 1565302125