Walter Earl Brown

Walter Earl Brown, known to his friends as "Earl," passed away peacefully in his sleep at his home in Sherman Oaks, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 10, 2008, following an extended illness. Earl had celebrated his 79th birthday with friends on Dec. 25, 2007. He will be dearly missed by his many friends and relatives across the country.
Earl was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Christmas Day 1928, to Walter L. and Hattie Earl Brown. Earl's father Walter played in a "swing" big band, so as a child Earl traveled with his parents, living in several cities. Eventually moving to Logan to be close to his mother's family, Earl attended Woodruff Elementary school. During his years in Logan, Earl made lifelong friendships with Ralph Dunn, his cousin Gerry Earl, as well as many others.
At age 11, Earl's family moved to California, where two years later his father passed away, followed by the passing of his mother when Earl was 21. Earl had two special aunts in Logan (Clara Taylor, "his other mother," and Mae Jenkins) to whom he remained very close. Each Christmas, Earl would return to Logan to be with his aunts and their families. He was also very close to the families of two of his cousins, Don Earl and Carol Jenkins Jeppesen. The Earl family (Shari, Craig, Joni, Cyndi and Lori) and the Jeppesen family (Steve, Julie, Karen and Jennifer) were blessed to spend their early Christmas eves with Earl Brown.
Earl had a prolific and illustrious career in show business as a singer, composer, vocal arranger and writer of special material. His work in television, films, revues, musical recordings and nightclubs began at an early age and continued until his passing. During the 1940s and '50s Earl is remembered for having been the arranger and singer in the highly acclaimed vocal group "The Skylarks." In 1968 he wrote a hit song for Elvis Presley entitled "If I Can Dream," which became a gold record and has been re-recorded by Barry Manilow and others. The song was recently performed on "American Idol" by Celine Dion as a duet with Elvis, who was resurrected on stage as a holographic image. Earl wrote songs for Frank Sinatra, Mama Cass, Michael Feinstein, Dianne Reeves, (including the Grammy winning "Who's Minding the Store?") and many others. For years he was the vocal director on hit variety shows including "The Danny Kaye Show," "The Dinah Shore Show," "The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour," "The Osmond Brothers' Show," "The Andy Williams Show," "The Carol Burnett Show" and many other television programs and specials. Most recently Earl was the vocal arranger and writer of special material for "The Palm Springs Follies" for the past 14 seasons.
Earl is survived by cousin Don (Gloria) Earl, Smithfield, Utah; cousins-in-law, M. Kae (Ellen Rae) Jeppesen, North Logan, Utah, JoAn Earl, Fort Worth, Texas, and their families; and his "best friend" Ralph (Jackie) Dunn, Logan, Utah. He was preceded in death by his parents, aunts, uncles, cousin Carol Jenkins Jeppesen, and his "favorite" cousin and buddy, Gerald E. Earl.
The Earl family members in Utah and Texas would like to express their gratitude and appreciation to Chris Gore for the love and care that he unselfishly gave Earl Brown in the last years of his life. We will be forever grateful.
A viewing will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 18, at Forest Lawn Mortuary, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles, Calif., 90068. The memorial service will be held at 2:30 p.m on Saturday, Jan. 19, at Forest Lawn's Old North Church (800-204-3131 or 323-769-7306).