About Us
Our History
Since 1998, the MaddocksBrown Foundation has played an instrumental role in preserving and building essential programs and institutions. From higher education and the environment to the arts, human wellness and animal welfare, the Foundation focuses on organizations that are the infrastructure of our culture and community. Larger grants have included gifts to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), California State University at Northridge (CSUN), The Music Center of Los Angeles, and the University of Southern California (USC).
Linda Brown: Chairman
Linda Brown is chairman of the MaddocksBrown Foundation, a private foundation focused on healthcare and rehabilitation, education, elder care, environmental issues, and the arts. Born in Key West, Florida, Brown, the daughter of a Navy pilot, moved many times as a child before finally settling in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles. She attended the University of California at Irvine and graduated from California State University at Northridge with a specialization in Chinese History and continued on with graduate work in World History. Brown also studied finance and the stock market, and spent her early career in San Francisco working in the brokerage business and also for the Associated Press. A mother of three sons, she has always had an appreciation for the arts and education and its importance to our society and humanity. Brown received the Robert Abell Philanthropic Award from the Los Angeles Commission on Disabilities, and at one time was a docent at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). She also has served as a director of the PBS Foundation, served on the Board of KCET Los Angeles, and currently is on the Board of Councilors of the USC Iovine and Young Academy of the Arts, Technology and the Business of Innovation.
Russell Brown: Vice-chair
Filmmaker Russell Brown’s body of work includes five narrative features, two full-length documentaries, and a number of well-regarded narrative and documentary shorts. His feature films have opened theatrically in select cities to favorable reviews after playing at more than 150 festivals around the world. Brown’s work has garnered national and international awards for directing, writing, acting and editing. His diverse filmography includes Loren & Rose, Search Engines, The Blue Tooth Virgin, Annie and the Gypsy, Karen Black: On Acting, Conversation with a Cigarette, Mama Laura’s Boys, The 44 Scarves of Liza Minnelli, Above the Arroyo: A Dream of the Stairs of Los Angeles, Reality USA, and The Kaleidoscope Guy at the Market. Russell is a member of the Writer’s Guild of America and is a Film Independent Producing Fellow. His films are held as part of the collection at the UCLA Film and Television archive.
Brown serves as the Vice-chair at the MaddocksBrown Foundation, where he has spearheaded collaborations with the LA Philharmonic, the USC School of Poetry, Harvard-Westlake High School and the Da Camera Society. The Foundation focuses on higher education, the environment, the arts, human wellness, and animal welfare including Love On 4 Paws through which Russell provided support to hospital patients across Los Angeles as a certified animal therapist. He was awarded a commendation from the City of Los Angeles for his work with the Boys and Girls Club of Venice.
As Founder and Board Chair of FORT: LA, Russell brings a lifelong passion for celebrating the city of Los Angeles and its many diverse communities and cultures..
