The following is an expanded version of a memorial from the Feb. 8, 2017, issue.
Anthony passed away April 7, 2014. Graduating summa cum laude in philosophy, Tony managed to be both an academic geek and a California cool cat, while at Princeton. Many of his evenings were spent at Firestone Library, deciphering tough philosophical analyses and gabbing with fellow philosophy majors. When he wasn’t talking shop, Tony was pursuing his passion for jazz. He led friends on expeditions to The Village Vanguard to hear music by such great players as saxophonist Gato Barbieri, and Tony played the saxophone himself in a favorite Princeton rock band, The Friends of the Family.
Tony earned his Ph.D. from UCLA. He taught initially at Yale and from 1988, as professor of philosophy at the University of California at Santa Barbara (UCSB), where for several years he chaired the department. The Anthony Brueckner Memorial Conference was hosted by UCSB in 2015. Tony devoted most of his research to Cartesian skepticism, delivering searching analyses of arguments for and against the claim that we know nothing about the external world. His most important work on the subject is collected in his 2010 book, Essays on Skepticism (Oxford University Press).
Tony is survived by his wife, Leslie; and their two sons, Kurt and Kim. Tony also leaves behind countless relatives, friends, and students — all of whom miss his unaffected manner, his dry wit, and his limitless time and energy for others. Tony was a beautiful man, and life for him would always have been too short.