Born in 1926 in Elizabeth, Illinois, William R. Brown was raised almost exclusively by his aunt, following his mother’s death (from strep throat) when he was seven. His Aunt Gladys was a revolutionary in her own right, attending Oberlin College in the early twentieth century, working as a kindergarten teacher in nearby Dubuque, Iowa, and living the duration of her life unmarried. Brown was a prodigy musician, who was invited to California at age fifteen to study the coronet under the direction of Herbert Clark. Born into a family whose lineage can be traced back at least five generations, (to the early 1700’s) all of the men served in every U.S. war beginning with the Revolutionary War to the present. Following the family tradition, Brown left home at eighteen to join the army where he himself served in three major wars: WWII, Korea, and Vietnam rising to the rank of Colonel. Some of the honors achieved during his twenty-six year military career include service under General Patton, and receipt of the highly notable bronze star on two separate occasions.

Brown’s obsession with collecting started during his military career when he was stationed in France following WW II. He acquired French antiques & had them shipped back to the United States. Once he returned to the U.S., his obsession with collecting grew. He began buying and selling vintage homes on the North Shore of Chicago. He also opened an antique store in Chicago called Brown Beaver Antiques and developed a specialization in restoring and selling high-end items. His interests also included military memorabilia including rifles, swords, knives, canteens, flags, Civil War uniforms and more. He collected occupational shaving mugs, Victorian Fairings, and later objects belonging to famous and infamous historical characters ranging from the letters of Abraham Lincoln, childhood toys of Al Capone, weapons carried by Wyatt Earp, and other possessions belonging to individuals such as Jesse James, Emilio Zapata and Buffalo Bill. And of course, all of the objects in his collection were informed by another collection of books. Overall, he was obsessed with obtaining objects that carried major historical references.

William R. Brown was also my father. In looking at the content of his collections, they seem to be a way of carrying on traditions in the case of family pieces and recording critical moments in history in the case of the more famous ones. Brown actively sought out objects that were owned by family members in what appears to be an attempt to memorialize their existence and by default extend his own life. Both aspects of his collecting are also connected to a very essential component of human nature: the tendency to deny the inevitability of death. Many individuals attempt to prolong the inevitable by taking pills or having plastic surgery; my father used collecting and I use the creative process in a similar way. My own way of denying death is through art making and my father’s was collecting. This documentary also explores these parallels.

Besides exploring the notion of denying the inevitability of death, this project explores the broader relationship that exists between father and son. It also uncovers interesting similarities that are woven between Brown’s passion for collecting and my drive and commitment to producing art.