Gifted athlete transitions to hosting online show
Brandon Buckingham interviews a man on the street for his YouTube show. • Photos submitted
By Tom Victoria
Brandon Buckingham carves his own path from dominating on the wrestling mat to creating his own Internet show.
The former college wrestling star conducts a contemporary version of man-on-the-street interviews, purposely seeking out people engaged in unusual activities. Brandon, 26, sustains his irreverent style of comedy without being malicious to those interviewed. The Maryland resident employs that method with his audience in mind.
“I want them to be entertained primarily,” Brandon said about his viewers. “I would also like them to get to know people they wouldn’t normally interact with and have some sense of humility when thinking about the downtrodden.”
Brandon travels the United States to create content for his show.
He stressed the appeal of interacting with random people who are capable of saying and doing anything.
“That’s the excitement of it,” Brandon said.
Among his videos are “A Night on Ocean City’s Boardwalk,” “Winnie the Pooh Debt Collector” in which he is dressed as the animated bear and “Napoleon Dynamite in the Street” in which he is made up to look like actor Jon Heder’s character. However, Brandon retained his moustache for the simulation, evoking stubborn Caesar Romero’s refusal to shave his moustache to play the Joker in the 1960s “Batman” television show.
Brandon, who is based in Maryland, fashioned his self-named YouTube show after comedian Tom Green, who rose to fame in the 1990s with an irreverent program that went from a local community channel to the Comedy Network before ending up on MTV.
Wrestler Brandon puts an opponent in a pinning combination.
“I watched Tom Green back in the day on MTV when I was like 4 to 6 years old,” Brandon said. “Ever since then, I’ve been really inspired by him and have continued to watch all the content he puts out. He was actually one of the first people to put an independent podcast out over the Internet.”
He also favors unbiased interviewing, which is bereft in today’s opinion-based media coverage.
“Yellow journalism is the norm,” Brandon said.
When another content creator’s perceived intrusion on his turf escalated into a feud, that person’s associate threatened litigation against Brandon. The unfazed upstart host used the situation to his advantage, generating a clever video showing him and his cronies soliciting landscaping work as the Lawn Wranglers to fund potential legal costs.
Having already traveled across the country, Brandon hopes to visit such locales as South Korea to ply his brand of humor, which includes adult material.
Brandon spent a lot of time in the gym, including many practices.
“People are way too prudish and quick to get upset,” he said about refusing to be squeamish about content. “I feel like nowadays, everyone enjoys being triggered. Instead of finding the humor in things, they will find a reason to be offended.”
Long before creating his own show, Brandon was making waves by doing well on the wrestling mat. He finished 6th in the state of Maryland.
“My dad was a wrestler and so were his brothers and nephews,” he said. “That’s the main reason I got into it. I also love the fact that it’s an individual endeavor in which no coach or team politics can hold you back. If you’re the better wrestler, you’ll start. If you work hard, you’ll always see results.”
Being 6-foot-3, he often was outmatched in strength by his opponent. When Brandon continued wrestling at the University of Maryland, he found an equalizer in a move called the spladle.
Brandon poses with Olympic wrestler Kyle Snyder, who won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympics.
“I always was above average but the spladle was big boost,” Brandon said. “The spladle is a pinning combination, but also a very effective defensive move to prevent your opponent from taking you down. It’s a cool move. It’s about exposing the subscapula (shoulder muscle).”
The spladle, which entails trapping and splitting the opponent’s legs, is often employed as a counter to a single-leg takedown.
“It’s kind of embarrassing being in a spladle,” Brandon said.
He was one of the wrestlers who purposely deployed it to claim victories. He racked up 50 pins with the move. Brandon was confidence enough in his abilities to the point that “spladle city” was printed on his wrestling singlet.
Brandon gets ready for another match.
“I could care less,” he said about opponents being forewarned of his signature move.
Brandon likely would have garnered more pins, but a torn knee ended the last season early.
Upon earning a degree, the elite athlete turned art teacher. Art is another interest of Brandon’s. However, teaching ended up not being one he pursued further. He explained students would be rewarded for misbehavior in that school district. Tiring of the situation, Brandon sought other goals. But his passion for art, particularly classical Greek, remains.
“They are really beautiful and amazing,” Brandon said.
In addition to being an artist, he is a writer of poems and lyrics.
“I still write from time to time,” Brandon said.
Although he would be glad to follow in Green’s footsteps by adding the small screen to his resume, that may not be in the cards.
Brandon sits with periodic guest Ken Bailey, his grandfather.
“I would like to have a television show, but don’t have the faith that the TV execs would allow me to have one,” Brandon said.
He said being a YouTuber keeps things interesting.
“It’s a tumultuous up and down roller coaster,” Brandon said.
Despite and adversities that come with being a content creator, he urged others considering it to plunge ahead.
“Stop making excuses no matter what kind of equipment you have,” Brandon said. “Try your best regardless of the outcome.”
Whatever the future holds, he hopes to leave a legacy.
“I’d like to be remembered as a funny, loyal and creative person,” Brandon said. “I really enjoy the many facets of art and hopefully, I’ll be remembered through what I’ve created.”
The link to Brandon's YouTube channel, which includes mature content, is: https://www.youtube.com/c/BrandonBuckingham
The link to Brandon's Instagram is: instagram.com/brandon_buckingham/?hl=en