Steve Brown died Saturday December 13, 2008 in Omaha. For years he was Vice President of Programming for the Star Stations (KISN, Portland).

No other details are available at this time, but this is a link to the discussion on the Nebraska Radio Forum.

http://nebraskamediadiscussionforums.yuku.com/topic/4155

I started being a fan of the Mighty 91 in 1959 when Steve Brown was there along with Hal Raymond,Wally Thornton, and of course Tom Murphy. there is a picture of those guys on Robin Mitchell's website. I bet Tiger Tom has memories of Steve. I remember seeing him when a deejay named POA tried to go up in a baloon but never did. This would have been in 1962 and Steve would have been the director of the star stations.

Worked for Steve at Kisn (he was national p.d of Star Stations at the time).....Steve was a world class radio man that created some of the greatest elements heard on top 40 radio in its day. He made everyone feel important, including a 18 year kid working on 10th & Burnside. One of my prized surveys is the 1959 Kisn survey with a very young Steve "Brownie" Brown doing mid-days. Steve was a powerhouse in top 40 radio. For trivia fans, he created the famous billboard at the airport "while youve been gone, we have been KISN your wife! Played the words for Indianapolis airport, since Stars station was WIFE in that market.
I was very sad to hear this as memories came rushing to my head. I was music director at Kisn and had to call my pick-hits into Steve (Omaha) ,.....he always listened and asked the right questions...and 99% of the time when he said "STIFF KID" ,...it was.

Steve Brown & Jim Tate became Co-PD's of KISN, announced on July 21, 1959, taking over that position from KISN's first PD Chris Lane. In August 1959 Steve Brown became soul PD. Then in October 1959 Hal Raymond took over the PD position when Steve Brown moved to KOIL in Omaha. Steve's KISN air shift was 9 to Noon.

Most of this information originally came from "Tiger" Tom Murphy.

In the 1963 Broadcasting Yearbook, Steve Brown is listed as KISN Promotional Manager by October 1962. I'm thinking this title was for the entire Star Station group since Steve was living in Omaha.

Dirty Dave "The Record Slave" sent me this on Steve Brown but I don't know where he found it:

-------------------Top 40 Pioneer Steve Brown Dies-------------------

OMAHA -- December 14, 2008: Steve Brown, who joined Top 40 KOIL "Mighty 1290" in Omaha in 1959 and later programmmed the station and its clustermates, died Saturday while preparing for his talk shift on Clear Channel News/Talker KFAB/Omaha.

Brown, says radio commentator and consultant John Rook at johnrook.com, "played a major role in the early history of Top 40 radio." KOIL under his purview served as a launching pad for Top 40 stars including Gary Owens, Dave Dean, Dr. Don Rose, and The Real Don Steele (a name Brown came up with). Brown also helped in the push to get the music of The Beatles and The Beach Boys on the air.

Brown remained in Omaha radio, later serving as a talk host on KKAR, and had most recently been doing Saturdays 4-7 on KFAB.

Here's a photo I shot of Steve in 1962.

http://www.pbase.com/deanej/image/29810444

The first SOUL PD, wow, they were WAY ahead of their time!!

GR8T photo!

http://www.rma1.com/Chronology/1959%20to%201961/kisnchart.jpg

here is a goodguy survey from 1959

Here's R&R's take on this:

Clear Channel talk KFAB/Omaha talk host and CHR/top 40 legend Steve Brown, age 68, died suddenly over the weekend while he was preparing for his Saturday afternoon (Dec. 13) show. The cause of death has not been released yet, but Brown had suffered from respiratory problems.

Brown worked with pioneer Don Burden at KOIL/Omaha, which spawned a number of well-known talent including The Real Don Steele, Gary Owens, Dr. Don Rose and many others. He would become national PD for KOIL's Star Stations affiliates in the 1960s-1970s. It was those duties that reportedly led him to be the person who first introduced the Beatles to the Beach Boys.

Brown helped bring talk radio to Omaha at KKAR in the 1980s.

Funeral services will be held Wednesday night (Dec. 17) in Omaha.

Roger Hart e-mailed me about Steve Brown. I asked Roger if I could post his interesting remembrances:
____________________________________________________________

Steve Brown was a clever and creative programmer. He gave me the 'Hart' moniker after hiring me away from KEX. Hence my liner "I dot the 'I' on Kisn'...reflecting on the logo of the moment.

'As to..."the creative side of 'grabbing the moment', Steve and I were both in Denver for the Beatles Red Rock Concert. Derek Taylor, the Beatles publicist who later went to work for The Raiders, Byrds and Beach Boys, had me behind the Beatles table, manning the left side, while he did the right.

Steve Brown, kneeling in front of the table asked for station endorsements, for which Ringo said 'We can't do that'...to which Steve responded, "Well, could you at least say hello to my wife?" Ringo responded, "Hello WIFE, we love you!"

Steve said 'thank you' with a smile, and got maybe the only existing station promo given by the Beatles, for WIFE AM in Indianapolis. In hindsight, he could have asked what they thought of Kissin'...and might have gained another Beatle liner.

Of all the talents that went through Star Stations, many landed in LA or other major markets, Tom Murphy, Don Steele, Johnny Williams, and more, a tribute to Burden and Browns' talent for selecting talent. I'm sure Tiger Tom, "World Famous', could add to that list.

Just thoughts...

Roger Hart