David Brenner helped generations of Americans laugh. In some ways a precursor to Jon Stewart and today’s political satirists, current events fueled Brenner’s humor. His first career as an award-winning documentary writer and producer in retrospect appears the perfect developmental ground for his later work as an observational comedic artist.

Brenner died Saturday after a battle with cancer.

Various tributes are noting his numerous appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. He also appeared as recently as 2010 on Modern Family, in an episode in which the family patriarch attends his standup show. The episode reaired Saturday night.

At HighBridge we will of course remember Brenner as the author of I Think There’s a Terrorist in My Soup, which he narrated on audio in two parts: I Think There’s a Terrorist in My Soup and I Think There’s Another Terrorist in My Soup.

The audios—their genesis and their content—are exemplary of Brenner’s particular gift to the world, both comedic and personal. Consider this excerpt from their description, written back in 2004:

Comedy legend David Brenner shows how humor can give us the power to transcend tragedy.

On September 11, 2001, David Brenner was in the midst of a 48-week standup comedy gig in Las Vegas. Immediately after the tragic day, he cancelled the engagement and instructed his manager to book him on a nationwide tour. He called it the “Laughter to the People” tour, and it was to become the most gratifying chapter in his long and distinguished career—a nightly session of hilarity and healing which absolutely confirmed his conviction that “laughter is the best medicine, and if one can laugh, one can live.”   . . . With humanity and honesty, he offers this work as a prescription for our ailing world. Apply liberally; repeat as needed.