I was saddened to hear that John Y Brown Jr passed on 22 November (the 59th anniversary of the assassination of JFK).

One of the first things I had learned about Governor Brown was his purchase of Kentucky Fried Chicken (then but a few restaurants in some small towns) from Colonel Sanders (still keeping it finger licking good). From 1964 (when his group purchased the chain for $ 2 million) until 1971, they augmented its presence to 3500 worldwide stores..  The chain was then sold to the food conglomerate Heublein for  $ 284 million (that’s about $ 2 billion in 2022 dollars).   As the junior partner, his share was only $ 35 million.  He bought an “also ran” basketball team (the Kentucky Colonels) and also devoted his efforts to help Democratic candidates across America.

His next big foray was to run for governor of Kentucky. One of his governor duties was to co-chair the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). (This was among the favorite efforts of Senator Jennings Randolph of West Virginia, who had asked me [twisted my arm is more like it]  to help improve the water/sanitation situation for the ARC residents. And, it was when I first met the Governor.) As a somewhat liberal Democrat, he managed to win and try to make Kentucky a business friendly state.   (He helped the Commonwealth navigate through a recession.)  In 1982, he served as state host to the first Inc 500 gala. (Our firm was among those being honored.)

Governor Brown and has glamorous second wife, Phyllis George Brown (the former Miss America), along with the publisher and editorial staff of Inc 500 regaled us (the 500 fastest growing small businesses in the USA)  with a series of wonderful events. I still remember how much fun- and how much I learned- over that extended weekend.

(Like Virginia, Kentucky doesn’t allow consecutive terms as governor.  As such, Brown was preparing a run for the Senate, but, instead,  suffered a heart attack and had to  pass.  That’s when Mitch McConnell won the seat, as a Republican.)

Governor Brown, as many a wealthy business is wont to do, managed to acquire ownership of a few professional sports organizations, after his tenure. These included the aforementioned  Kentucky Colonels, the Boston Celtics, and the Buffalo Braves (now known as the LA Clippers).

He also formed a joint venture with Kenny Rogers (Kenny Rogers Roasters) that he sold to Kenny in 1991. 5 years later, Phyliss George filed for divorce; they attempted a reconciliation, but the divorce moved forward in 1997, after 18 years of marriage. His third marriage to Jill Roach lasted 5 years (until 2003).

Governor Brown succumbed to complications from COVID-19. He will be honored at the State Capital Rotunda on Tuesday (29 November 2022), with a 3 pm funeral service the following day.

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