Brandon Tartikoff
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference
(written from a Production point of view)
Brandon Tartikoff (13 January 1949 – 27 August 1997; age 48) was the Chairman of Paramount Pictures from 1991 to 1992.
Prior to helming Paramount, Tartikoff was the president of NBC Entertainment from 1980 to 1991, where he was responsible for bringing NBC out of a ratings slump with innovative programming such as The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Cheers, and other programs.
With the success of the six (at the time) Star Trek films and Star Trek: The Next Generation, he approached Rick Berman and Michael Piller and asked them to create a third live action Star Trek series to launch into syndication. Berman and Piller returned to the series notes that they had previously discussed with Gene Roddenberry, and worked up a proposal, which Tartikoff later approved, for what would become Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. (Trek: The Unauthorized Behind-The-Scenes Story of The Next Generation, DS9 Season 1 DVD special "A Bold New Beginning")
Tartikoff later died in 1997 from complications of Hodgkin's Disease, and the DS9 episode "A Time to Stand" was dedicated to his memory.
