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In 1979 he became chairman, succeeding the colorful and quotable John deButts, who was a company spokesman in AT&T commercials. Brown's image has been bland by comparison. While respected for his intelligence and technical expertise, he has never been a great communicator. His speeches to groups of employees or Wall Street analysts can have a narcotic effect. Asked to explain his formula for success, he admits that "it isn't my charisma." AT&T insiders say he hides his emotions and signals distress only by growing ominously silent. On balance, that stolid style has been an asset. Says Rawleigh Warner Jr., chairman of Mobil and an AT&T director: "He's equitable, and he doesn't lose his cool. There are no highs or lows, just steadiness." Brown, who lives in Princeton, N.J., with his second wife, Ann Lee, works off much of his tension by playing tennis and at least two rounds of golf each week. His handicap: 11.
One of the few ways to get a rise out of Brown is to suggest that AT&T is a monopoly-coddled giant without the agility needed to compete in free markets. "If we're not competent," he says, "I wonder why the competitors are trying to get Congress and the Federal Communications Commission to restrict us in various ways. We must be making a mark somewhere, or the competition wouldn't be so frightened." After spending nearly four decades in a company shackled by Government regulation, Brown is eager to show what an unbound AT&T can do. He is sure that the competition will soon be saying in awe, "Good grief, Charlie Brown!"