- U.S. Army Cold War Era veteran. Distinguished Honor Graduate, Broadcaster Course, U.S. Defense Information School, Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana. Life Member, AMVETS. Served as an enlistee in the U.S. Army and a commissioned officer in the California Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve. Final assignment in the Individual Ready Reserve was Mobilization Designee, Army Public Affairs, The Pentagon and Soldiers Radio & TV, Washington Navy Yard, Washington D.C. Honorably discharged as a major.
- While stationed on active duty at Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia, moonlighted weeknights as sports anchor, 11 p.m. news, WJCL-TV (ABC) and weekends as an announcer and Gates 55 automation system operator, 97.3 WXLM-FM Savannah, circa 1976 to 1978. Hired at Channel 22 by the news director and anchor, Doug Weathers who appears in the movie The Gingerbread Man (1998). Bought the blazers he wore on air at WJCL at Kmart. Played pop, light rock, and middle of the road album cuts from his personal record collection at WXLM to enhance the limited easy listening music library without notifying the program director, his immediate supervisor. No one, not even the general manager who monitored the station, ever said a word. One Sunday morning the station's restroom was locked and there was no key to be found, nor were any restrooms open at that early hour in the vicinity of the studios located on River Street. Thus, while a prerecorded reel-to-reel tape of a weekly faith-based program played, he drove quickly all the way home to his apartment, unintentionally scared his wife and their cat who were still asleep in bed as he literally ran down the hallway, used the bathroom, and then raced back to the station a few minutes before the tape ended. Submitted a written complaint to management at the end of his shift. From that point on, the restroom was never locked.
- Presented a letter on behalf of California Gov. George Deukmejian to Bob Hope during a fundraiser for the United Aerospace Workers and McDonnell Douglas Corporation Veterans Memorial. The letter commended Hope for his many years of entertaining U.S. troops overseas during three wars, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. The gala affair, including dinner and star-studded entertainment, was staged in the main ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Hotel near the Queen Mary in Long Beach, Calif. on Oct. 22, 1990. Other attendees included Joey Bishop, the toastmaster, Bob Hope's wife, Dolores Hope, Lee Greenwood and his companion Shawn Southwick, Rose Marie and Morey Amsterdam from the 1960s TV series The Dick Van Dyke Show, Chuck Norris' younger brother Aaron Norris, NFL head coach George Allen, and other celebrities and distinguished guests. Military personnel, both officers and enlisted, and veterans also attended including commanders of statewide veterans service organizations. Due to the significant number of VIPs, there were four head tables on the two-level dais. The audience totaled nearly a thousand.
- As the California National Guard's deputy public affairs officer, interviewed Fred Silverman, president and CEO of NBC, during a California Broadcasters Association (CBA) semi-annual meeting in Monterey, Calif. in 1980. The subsequent story, published in Army Times, concerned satellite uplink and downlink time for the American Forces Radio and Television Service. Was invited to the meeting by Howard Smiley, president of CBA, and a friend of Maj. Gen. Frank J. Schober Jr., commanding general of the California National Guard.
- From his first marriage, one offspring, a daughter, Stefani (pronounced Stephanie) Levine (née Janosco). One grandchild, a grandson, Luis Lennon Marroquin, named after John Lennon of The Beatles.
- Against the wishes of his parents, sister, brother-in-law, and wife, enlisted as a college graduate at age 24 in the U.S. Army Delayed Entry Program four months prior to the fall of Saigon and evacuation of the U.S. embassy. Reported to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for basic combat training 20 days after the end of the Vietnam War.
- Inspired to enlist in the U.S. Army by a cousin and three uncles, Logan Brown, U.S. Army Vietnam veteran, Ralph Stein, U.S. Marine Corps World War II veteran, Peter "Pete" Janosco, U.S. Army World War II veteran, Nicholas "Nick" Janosco, U.S. Navy World War II veteran, killed in action aboard the New Orleans-class heavy cruiser USS San Francisco (CA-38) during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 12-13 November 1942.
- As a member of the garage band The Flipside, performed on the back of a flatbed truck surrounded by teenage girls in the Cal Store parking lot in Lakewood for the crowd gathered to greet California Gov. Edmund G. Brown in 1966. Traveling by train and accompanied by the actor James Garner, Governor Brown, Jerry Brown's father, was campaigning against Ronald Reagan for re-election. The members of the band were Steve Janosco, lead guitar, keyboards, backing vocals, Paul Fishbein, rhythm guitar, keyboards, lead and backing vocals, Nick Hogan, bass guitar, lead and backing vocals, and Lynn Wagle, drums, percussion, ocarina, lead and backing vocals. Inspired by The Beatles' first performance on The Ed Sullivan Show (1948) on Sunday, Feb. 9, 1964, Steve, Paul, Nick and Lynn subsequently formed the band while students at Hoover Junior High School in Lakewood. The group disbanded when the four childhood friends graduated from Lakewood High School (LHS) in 1969. Others who played with the band albeit briefly were Paul's younger brother David Fishbein, guitar, and Harvey Baker, a fraternity member and LHS upperclassman, keyboards.
- Performed as a tenor slide trombonist with the Long Beach City College Viking Marching Band at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum during the 1971 Pro Bowl halftime show featuring stuntman and daredevil Evel Knievel, actor Lee Majors, and actor and balladeer Jim Nabors. After catapulting off the takeoff amp, Knievel, sitting atop a souped-up motorcycle, flew through the air over the top of several buses parked on the field and landed successfully on the landing ramp on the other side. Meanwhile, Majors, dressed like an Apollo astronaut, launched himself into the air with a rocket engine strapped to his back. Nabors sang the national anthem with no accompaniment except a drum roll. Tommy Walker, creator of the halftime show, thought it was the most exciting "Star Spangled Banner" he had ever heard. He could hear the pigeons when they flew out of the stadium. Under the direction of LBCC Band Director Ron Logan, a contemporary of trumpeter and bandleader Herb Alpert, the band entered the coliseum through a tunnel playing the triumphant "Conquest," the fight song for the University of Southern California. Standing at attention mid-field while playing his heart out with dozens of his fellow musicians and witnessing the spectacle before him, Steve thought to himself, "It doesn't get any better than this".
- At age nine, walked on a picket line with his father, John Janosco, West Coast Field Representative, United Packinghouse Workers of America, during the summer of 1960 to support workers striking against the company Valley Feed and Seed, Phoenix, Ariz., for better pay, benefits, and working conditions. Most of the workers were immigrants from Mexico.
- Moonlighted as a Lee Greenwood tribute artist in California and Nevada, 1984-1998. One of his first appearances was at Sacramento's most popular country music night club, The Yellow Rose in Citrus Heights. With an alto saxophone from Jack's House of Music in Sacramento, performed a three-song medley, "Streamline," "You've Got a Good Love Comin'," and "God Bless the USA," featuring a color guard with active duty soldiers from the U.S. Army Recruiting Battalion-Sacramento using equipment from the Sacramento Army Depot. All three judges voted him the winner of that night's talent contest.
- Produced the first Memorial Day media event at the California Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Capitol Park in May 1989 following the dedication the previous December. The names of more than 5,000 Californians in military service who made the supreme sacrifice during the Vietnam War are inscribed on the Sacramento memorial located on the grounds of the state Capitol.
- Competing against entrants from throughout the state, he and his colleague, Michael Kilbane, won a Gold Award for Media Event, Dedication of the California Veterans Memorial, Annual Awards Competition, California State Information Officers (SiOC) Council. Outgoing Gov. Pete Wilson was the keynote speaker and Lt. Gov. Gray Davis, the incoming governor, was a no-show at the ceremony on Dec. 12, 1998, almost 10 years to the day after the dedication of the California Vietnam Veterans Memorial on Dec. 10, 1988. Steve accepted his award from the president of SiOC during the organization's annual awards luncheon in 1999. SiOC hosts an annual awards competition highlighting the "best of the best" in state public information.
- Played in four rock bands and one duo: The Flipside, Lakewood, 1964-1969, Sounds of Tyme, Paramount, 1969-1971, Midnight Ride, Backbeat, mid- to late '90s, Koenig & Dakota, 2010-2011, Citrus Heights, California.
- Sang and played acoustic-electric 6-string and 12-string guitar during Friday Night Open Mic at Nicholson's MusiCafe in Folsom, California from 2013 to 2019. Specialized in songs by popular American and British rock bands of the 1960s including Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth," written by Stephen Stills, The Kinks' "Tired of Waiting for You," written by Ray Davies, and from the album A Hard Day's Night (1964), The Beatles' "Things We Said Today," credited to John Lennon and Paul McCartney, written by Paul McCartney.
- Thanks to his trombone teacher, Jim Nelson, got a gig as bass trombonist with the Los Angeles/Orange County Doctors Symphony to play Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker Suite" during a Christmas concert in December 1971. His parents, John and Beatrice Janosco, attended.
- As sports anchor, 11 p.m. news, WJCL-TV (ABC), Savannah, Ga. in 1977, interviewed Pepper Rodgers, Georgia Tech's football coach, who was promoting his new book, "Pepper!: The Autobiography of an Unconventional Coach".
- Worked for the U.S. government and the State of California during the administrations of two presidents and five governors: Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Jerry Brown, George Deukmejian, Pete Wilson, Gray Davis, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Carter, Reagan, Brown, Deukmejian and Wilson were the best of times. Davis and Schwarzenegger were the worst of times.
- Volunteered with Veterans for John Kerry for President in 2004. Co-produced the media event staged in October on the south steps of the state Capitol in Sacramento honoring Nadia McCaffery and Cindy Sheehan, the mothers of two California soldiers killed in Iraq while supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. Both mothers presented remarks at the event. McCaffrey is the mother of Sgt. Patrick R. McCaffrey Sr., 34, California Army National Guard, based in Petaluma, hometown: Tracy, died June 22, 2004 near Balad, 50 miles north of Baghdad. Sheehan is the mother of Specialist Casey Sheehan, 24, U.S. Army, based at Ft. Hood, Texas, hometown: Vacaville, died April 4, 2004 in Sadr City, a suburb of Baghdad.
- Narrated the change of command ceremony, Headquarters, 24th Infantry Division (Mechanized) and Fort Stewart/Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia, for Maj. Gen. Donald Rosenblum, outgoing commanding general (CG), and Maj. Gen. James Vaught, incoming CG, at Ft. Stewart, Sept. 22, 1977. Less than three years later, Vaught served as overall commander of the infamous failed rescue mission of American hostages in Iran.
- Competing against entrants from throughout the U.S. and around the world, including the American Forces and Radio and Television Service, he and a colleague, Specialist Harry Williams, won a Keith L. Ware Award, Honorable Mention, Single Radio Newscast, National Guard News, Episode: The Floods of 1980. National Guard News was a monthly 5-minute radio newscast created, co-written, and directed by Steve and produced by the Broadcast Section, 69th Public Affairs Detachment (PAD), California Army National Guard, circa 1978-1985. He and his fellow broadcasters recorded the program on drill weekends in the studios of 1140 KRAK-AM or 96.1 KCTC-FM Sacramento. The Air Force Audio-Visual Center, Norton Air Force Base, San Bernardino, dubbed the program and mailed a 5-inch reel or an analog cassette plus a rundown sheet to more than a hundred radio stations in California. The Maj. Gen. Keith L. Ware Communications Awards Competition recognizes soldiers and Department of the Army civilian employees for excellence in achieving the objectives of the Army Public Affairs Program.
- Came "this close" to meeting Linda Ronstadt and California Gov. Jerry Brown while dining with Maj. Gen. Frank J. Schober Jr. and other members of the general's staff at a Mexican restaurant on Olvera Street in Los Angeles in 1980. Schober, a Brown appointee, and the governor, with Ronstadt standing by his side, conversed for several minutes in the waiting area of the restaurant. Schober was commanding general of the California National Guard, director of the State Military Department, and California's adjutant general.
- Declined an invitation to audition as a contestant for the ABC game-show and romance TV series The Dating Game (1965) in 1970. At the time of the phone call, Jacquelin, his high school sweetheart, had just ended their relationship.
- Appears in one scene with Brad Pitt in the Oscar-nominated motion picture Moneyball (2011), filmed in foul territory between home plate and third base at the Oakland Coliseum in 2010. Cast as a Pre-Game VIP Executive by Beau Bonneau Casting, San Francisco.
- Played in Sounds of Tyme, 1969-1971, a family band based in Paramount, a suburb of Los Angeles. Managed by the family patriarch, Doug Brandon Sr., the members included the band's leader, Doug Brandon Jr., vocals, keyboards, woodwinds, his younger brother, Grammy and Emmy winner Kevin "Brandino" Brandon, vocals, bass guitar, flute, their older sister, Cheryl Brandon, vocals, keyboards, percussion, Mike Kennedy, lead guitar, Fred Valenzuela, drums, Steve Janosco, tenor slide trombone, bass trombone, rhythm guitar, background vocals, Eric DeLoreto, trumpet, and Duane Bolden, woodwinds. Valenzuela, a butcher by trade, quit the band after getting married and was replaced by a drummer named Mikey. Greg, a friend of Doug Jr., was the roadie.
During a Sounds of Tyme rehearsal in the Brandon family's garage, met Rick Henn, lead singer, drummer, and songwriter for the band The Sunrays, managed by The Beach Boys' father Murry Wilson after Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson fired him as their first manager. Cheryl Brandon, a friend of Henn, coordinated the courtesy visit on behalf of her brother, Doug Brandon Jr. Henn, a friend of Carl Wilson, composed The Sunrays' hit songs "I Live for the Sun" and "Andrea," which reached #51 and #41, respectively, on Billboard's Hot 100 in 1965. - Co-produced a live satellite uplink and downlink from the California State Military Museum to Saudi Arabia in 1990 so five wives and one husband could visit with their spouses serving overseas with the California National Guard during the Gulf War. The California Department of Veterans Affairs, KCRA-TV - Channel 3 (NBC) Sacramento, and CNN produced the media event anchored by KCRA's Carol Bland in Old Sacramento and Roy Stearns, a U.S. Army Reserve officer, in the Arabian Peninsula.
- Auditioned in the mid-1980s with his duet partner, Joy Tew, for Puttin' on the Hits (1984), an American syndicated music/variety competition show, co-executive produced by Dick Clark and Chris Bearde, a guest lecturer in one of Steve's broadcasting classes at California State University-Long Beach, spring semester, 1972. Joy created their color-coordinated costumes. Joy's friend, Jennifer, a professional dancer, choreographed their performance. Steve's mom, Bea Janosco, accompanied them to the audition at the Debbie Reynolds Dance Studio in North Hollywood. Steve and Joy were the only contestants who performed a country music song during the auditions, Gary Morris' and Crystal Gayle's hit song "Makin' Up for Lost Time" (The Dallas Lovers Song) from the CBS TV series Dallas (1978). The single, written by Morris and Dave Loggins, went to number one for one week and spent a total of fourteen weeks on the country chart, 1985-1986.
- As the California National Guard's deputy public affairs officer, interviewed on camera former Iranian hostage Sgt. 1st Class Donald Hohmann, U.S. Army, 38, in the studios of KMUV-TV - Channel 31 Sacramento in 1981. The independent station aired the taped interview as an episode of the Cal-Guard TV talk show National Guard Now. A print version of the interview was published in Soldiers magazine. At the time of his capture, Hohmann served as an Army medic in the U.S. embassy.
- With his duet partner, Joy Tew, won first place in the talent contests at all three Sacramento County locations of Stuart Anderson's Black Angus Steakhouse: Greenback Lane, Citrus Heights, Watt Ave., Arden-Arcade, Florin Road, South Sacramento. Joy's friend, Jennifer, a professional dancer, choreographed their performance of "Makin' Up For Lost Time (The Dallas Lovers' Song)," number 1 in the US on Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart in 1986.
- Separate panels of judges selected his screenplay, The Wrecking Yard, as a winning entry in two film festivals, Access Sacramento's A Place Called Sacramento and NCTV's Here in Nevada County in 2014.
- Although a life-long registered Democrat, coordinated Grammy-winner Lee Greenwood's performance of "God Bless the USA" at a campaign rally for Gov. Pete Wilson (R-CA) at a veterans organization post in Riverside on the Sunday prior to election day in November 1994. Hollywood Mayor Johnny Grant was the master of ceremonies. Months prior to the event in Southern California's Inland Empire, attended a fundraiser in Sacramento for Wilson's rival, Secretary of State Kathleen Brown (D-CA), Gov. Jerry Brown's (D-CA) youngest sister. Was invited to the fundraiser by Maj. Gen. Frank J. Schober Jr. who also attended the backyard barbecue. Schober served as commanding general of the California National Guard, director of the State Military Department, and California's adjutant general during Brown's first two terms as governor.
- Played the "Marines' Hymn" at a piano recital in the third grade.
- Owned and operated a small mobile DJ business Have Music Will Travel, named after the TV series Have Gun - Will Travel (1957), 1988-2000. Hired by various clients for dances, fundraisers, parties, and receptions including the Veterans Inaugural Reception on January 7, 1995 in Medal of Honor Hall at the California Department of Veterans Affairs for Gov. Pete Wilson (R-CA) following his defeat of California state Treasurer Kathleen Brown (D-CA) in the 1994 gubernatorial election.
- Volunteered as Chair, Entertainment Committee, Sacramento Stand Down, 1988-1998. Created, scouted talent, produced, directed, performed in, and served as the MC for USO-type shows presented during the three-day annual event that provides a safe retreat at a secure base camp for homeless veterans to take care of personal hygiene, get clean clothing, enjoy warm meals, receive medical and dental care, and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow veterans in a safe environment.
- As Public Affairs Officer, California Department of Veterans Affairs, sang patriotic songs in California and Nevada for various audiences including Pearl Harbor survivors, homeless veterans, retired military officers, commanders of statewide veterans organizations, residents of the Veterans Home of California in Yountville, and patients at the Palo Alto VA Medical Center, 1988-1998.
- Served as a staff member of the Governor's Interagency Task Force on Homelessness. On behalf of the California Department of Veterans Affairs, submitted recommendations to the task force to help homeless veterans. The task force prepared recommendations for Gov. Gray Davis on July 1, 2002.
- Met one of his teenage music idols, Sal Valentino, during a Friday Night Open Mic at Nicholson's MusiCafe in Folsom, Calif. in December 2018. Valentino is an American rock musician, singer and songwriter, best known as lead singer of The Beau Brummels. Steve includes the band's "Don't Talk to Strangers" in his repertoire.
- Volunteered with Charlie Brown for Congress, California's 4th Congressional District, U.S. House of Representatives. Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Charles Brown, the Democratic candidate, lost to John Doolittle, the Republican incumbent, by less than four percentage points in 2006 and Tom McClintock, the Republican candidate, by less than one percentage point in 2008.
- Volunteered with Ami Bera for Congress, California's 3rd Congressional District, and, as it was renumbered, 7th Congressional District, U.S. House of Representatives. Dan Lungren, the Republican incumbent, won re-election, defeating Bera, the Democratic candidate, 51% to 43% in 2010. Bera, a medical doctor, defeated Lungren 51% to 49% in 2012.
- Volunteered with the Remembrance Memorial for California Korean War Veterans. Provided PR support to Ron Jabaut, founder, and Frank Broz, co-chair, two Bay Area Korean War veterans in charge of the project. Wrote and distributed news releases and media advisories. Sang at the memorial dedication on Aug. 1, 1998 in Santa Nella, Calif. Located off of Interstate 5 in the San Joaquin Valley National Cemetery, the memorial is dedicated to the 2,496 Californians missing or killed in action during the Korean War. The monument includes 16 white granite panels engraved with the U.S. military members' names.
- Beginning in 1993, sang and played guitar and/or keyboards over the next several years in seven bands in the first seven rounds of Skip's Music's adult music program Weekend Warriors, "an easy way to get back into the fun of playing with other musicians, without the hassle of starting, rehearsing, booking and maintaining a working band".
- Volunteered at the California State Military Museum, 1119 Second St., Old Sacramento, 1988-1998. Provided PR support to Donald E. Mattson, a Vietnam veteran and the museum's creator, founder, and director.
- Majored in music at Long Beach City College and California State University, Dominguez Hills, 1969-1971. Principal instrument: Tenor slide trombone.
- Played tenor slide trombone in the Long Beach City College Concert Band and Marching Band, 1969-1971. Based on his ability to sight read and play scales from memory in two octaves, challenged his way up from third trombone, last chair, to second trombone, first chair. His fellow trombonists were surprised. The band director, Ron Logan, was impressed. His trombone teacher, Jim Nelson, was proud.
- Worked on one Oscar-winning motion picture, Milk (2008), and one Oscar-nominated motion picture, Moneyball (2011).
- 1983 Winner, Top Civilian Employee, U.S, Army Sacramento District Recruiting Command (DRC). Assigned as a public affairs specialist to the Advertising and Sales Promotion Division. The DRC's area of operations encompassed the Central Valley, Northern California excluding the Bay Area, and Northwestern Nevada.
- Competing against entrants from throughout the state, won a Silver Award for Special Report, A Study on the Status of Homeless Veterans in California, Annual Awards Competition, California State Information Officers Council, 2003. Contributors included Academy Award-winning actor Gregory Peck's son, Stephen Peck, M.S.W., president and CEO of U.S. VETS, based in Los Angeles. His contribution was invaluable.
- Received his first Taft-Hartley for The Etruscan Smile (2018).
- Graduate of California State University, Sacramento and the U.S. Defense Information School.
- Worked on 13 episodes covering all four seasons of the Netflix TV series 13 Reasons Why (2017).
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