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A RESOLUTION honoring the life and accomplishments of former Kentucky 1
Governor John Young Brown Jr. 2
WHEREAS, John Young Brown Jr. was born on December 28, 1933, in Lexington, 3
Kentucky, to the late U.S. Congressman John Y. Brown Sr. and Dorothy Inman Brown; 4
and 5
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. was an avid sportsman in high school and 6
distinguished himself as one of Encyclopedia Britannica's top salesmen in the country, 7
paying his way through college and law school at the University of Kentucky; and 8
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. initially practiced law with his father in Lexington 9
and Louisville, Kentucky, before leaving the active practice of law in 1964; and 10
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. was only 30 years old when he purchased Kentucky 11
Fried Chicken (KFC) from its founder Harland Sanders in 1964 and, within seven years, 12
he transformed the restaurant into one of the world's largest fast-food chains; and 13
WHEREAS, because of John Y. Brown Jr.'s exceptional business management 14
skills, KFC became a worldwide success, resulting in significant gains when he sold the 15
company in 1971; and 16
WHEREAS, after selling his interest in KFC, John Y. Brown Jr. went on to invest 17
in several other restaurant ventures and also purchased three separate professional 18
basketball teams: the American Basketball Association's Kentucky Colonels and the 19
National Basketball Association's Boston Celtics and Buffalo Braves (now known as the 20
Los Angeles Clippers); and 21
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. was a talented businessman and was named one of 22
the top 200 American business leaders of the 20th century by Harvard Business School in 23
2009; and 24
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. was elected Kentucky's 55th Governor in 1979. 25
During his term as Governor, John Y. Brown Jr. created a more diverse cabinet than 26
previous administrations and changed the state's contracting procedures to a competitive 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 463
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bid process, saving millions of dollars. Despite hard economic times during his tenure, he 1
held the line in not raising taxes and brought in top Kentucky business leaders as cabinet 2
secretaries; and 3
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. had many successes as Governor, including the 4
establishment of the Governor's Scholars Program, which still exists today; and 5
WHEREAS, as Governor, John Y. Brown Jr. also used his business and marketing 6
skills to promote Kentucky nationally and abroad, which attracted major businesses like 7
UPS; and 8
WHEREAS, in addition to his business and political accomplishments, John Y. 9
Brown Jr. was also a philanthropist who built the Pamela Brown Auditorium at 10
Louisville's Actors Theatre in honor of his sister and was instrumental in creating the 11
Muhammad Ali Center. He also helped fund the downtown Louisville YMCA and helped 12
establish the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging at the University of Kentucky; and 13
WHEREAS, John Y. Brown Jr. passed away on November 21, 2022, surrounded by 14
his loving family, at the age of 88. He is survived by his five children: John Y. Brown III, 15
Sandy Steier, Sissy Brown, Lincoln Brown, and Pamela Brown; 12 grandchildren; and 16
longtime partner Mary Ellen Wheeler; 17
NOW, THEREFORE, 18
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of the 19
Commonwealth of Kentucky: 20
Section 1. The members of the House of Representatives do hereby honor the 21
life and accomplishments of former Kentucky Governor John Young Brown Jr. and 22
posthumously recognize him for his many accomplishments and dedication to the state of 23
Kentucky. 24
Section 2. The Clerk of the House of Representatives is directed to transmit a 25
copy of this Resolution to Representative Ken Fleming. 26