His father, known as "Ted" Brown, played VFL football with St Kilda in 1911, and with Carlton from 1914 to 1920. His older brother, known as "Vin" Brown, played for Carlton from 1941 to 1948.
Formerly a competitive rugby player in New South Wales, Brown made his debut for Carlton, against Essendon, at Princes Park, on 10 June 1950 at the age of 26.[3][4]
In the round 15 match against St Kilda, Brown was reported by boundary umpire John Hicks for striking St Kilda's Ray Houston during the second quarter;[5] the VFL Tribunal dismissed the charge on 2 August 1955.[6]
^Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2009). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (8th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. p. 97. ISBN978-1-921496-00-4.
^A pre-season report on Carlton's recruits, under the sub-heading "Brown promising", included the comment that, "The recruits who are heading for senior honours include John Brown, who is making a rapid transition from Rugby to our own code. While he was teaching in New South Wales he played Rugby, but now he is improving with every run as an Australian rules player. Last night he was against Ray Garby, and gave that talented player no quarter." (Warburton Wanted as Full Forward, The Argus, (Wednesday, 12 April 1950), p.25.