Maxine
Brown Russell, the vivacious entertainer, mother, grandmother, aunt,
sister, and friend passed today at Bowman Hospice in Little Rock,
Arkansas from complications of heart and kidney disease at the age of
87. Her family was by her side.
Born
April 27, 1931 in Campti, Louisiana, Russell was predeceased by her
parents, Floyd and Birdie Brown, sisters Bonnie Ring and Norma Sullivan,
brothers Jim Ed Brown and Raymond Brown, and her son, Tommy H. Russell,
Jr. She is survived by two children, Jimmy Russell (Mary) and Alicia
Short (Curtis), six grandchildren (Caitlin, Daniel, Meredith, Eva,
Patrick, and Katherine), and two great-grandchildren (Atlas and Aina).
As
one-third of the popular Country trio The Browns, Maxine enjoyed a
lengthy career that spanned the 1950s and ’60s. The group released
multiple “million-sellers,” including “The Three Bells,” “The Old
Lamplighter,” “Scarlet Ribbons,” and “Send Me The Pillow You Dream On.”
As a songwriter, her first taste of success came with The Browns’
release of “Looking Back To See.”
Maxine
was the “cut up” of the globally-renowned trio, and always the life of
the party during the group’s tours, including jaunts in the U.K and
Japan. The Browns joined The Grand Ole Opry in 1963 and appeared on hit
television shows of the day, including: The Ed Sullivan Show, The Arthur Murray Show, The Perry Como Show, American Bandstand with Dick Clark, and The Jerry Lewis Show.
In 2012, Russell was awarded the Ella Dicky Literary Award for her 2005 autobiography, Looking Back To See. The Browns were proud members of The Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame, The Arkansas Walkway of Stars, The Missouri Walkway of Stars, and recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame. In 2015, The Browns were inducted into the prestigious Country Music Hall of Fame.
Funeral services are being planned and will be announced soon.