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Brian Russell Overland

Obituary

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Brian Overland Obituary

Published by Legacy Remembers on Aug. 16, 2025.

Brian Overland's life was tragically cut short on Thursday, June 19, 2025. He is survived by brothers Mark (Bellingham, WA) and Allan & Vera Jr. (Renton, WA); sister Martha Ann (Gig Harbor, WA); nephews Matthew Overland and Aaron Sullivan; and nieces Katelyn Overland and Nina McCloud. He was predeceased by his parents, Allan and Betty Overland, and brother Colin Overland.

Born July 28, 1958, in Tacoma and raised in Gig Harbor, Brian was intellectually gifted from the start. He took his first college course at age 10, earned an associate of arts degree from Tacoma Community College just two months after high school, and graduated from Peninsula High at 17-earning praise in a prominent front page article in the the Tacoma News Tribune, which included a quote from noted professor Joe Betz, who said that Brian "just well may be the reincarnation of the Renaissance Man."

Brian studied economics and computer science at Yale (yet also had time to star in numerous plays), graduating in 1980. In 1985, he joined Microsoft, contributing for a decade across roles-from software tester to project lead. Afterward, he pursued his lifelong love of writing, authoring numerous influential books on C++ and Python.

Brian's reach extended far beyond academia. On Quora, he answered thousands of questions, attracted more than 100 million views worldwide, and built a loyal following of readers who saw him as the go-to source for deep knowledge.

He had a brilliant mind and could master literally any subject-from mathematics, physics, and computer science to philosophy, Shakespeare and science fiction. Among other things, he was a chess whiz, a devoted fan of Star Wars, Star Trek, and The Lord of the Rings, and a passionate writer of fiction. He also had a deep love of all kinds of music and had a particular love of the Beatles. Brian also loved board games (especially Magic: The Gathering), poker, tennis, and became an enthusiastic Seahawks fan later in life.

But it was Brian's warmth, humor, and generosity that defined him most. He was fiercely loyal to family and friends, always protective, always kind. He radiated positivity and made people laugh, cry, and wonder. He would drop anything for those he loved at a moment's notice.

Everyone who met Brian knew they were in the presence of someone unique. He was truly one of a kind and he will be forever missed.

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Recent Activity

October 22, 2025

Ron Overland posted to the memorial.

September 19, 2025

Gary Camp posted to the memorial.

August 16, 2025

Legacy Remembers posted an obituary.

2 Entries

Ron Overland

October 22, 2025

'Brian and I were the closest of cousins. He was an intellectual genius and his 12 written thick computer programming books proved it. He had an incredible sense of humor and sophisticated satire on almost any subject. We texted and called each other almost every single day for many years together, texting and discussing, dissecting and making fun of original star trek and how fascinating we both found it. He emulated Mr. Spock and we made fun of Shatner. We lived a hundred miles apart but got together every saturday night on our phones to make fun of svengoolie and low budget horror films, lost in space and batman. Together we discussed for hours, family, star trek, philosophy, religion, politics etc. We were a lot like close brothers and we had an eternal friendship. I will miss our visits at his condo at lake samammish and I was the very last person brian spoke to minutes before his tragic accident. I only wish instead of a text, he would have called me because I'm sure I could have cautioned and warned him to stay off the road and call 911, state patrol and a tow truck. If there is an afterlife like we discussed, I hope he knows how much he was loved by me and his entire family and friends. Brian will always be greatly missed by all who knew him and especially by me. I will continue to remember all our times together and all that we shared in our talks and discussions. He was so much fun to talk to. Thanks, Brian for being more than a cousin!