The games have long been determined, the dust settled decades ago from the conquests and heartaches delivered by the San Diego Chargers.
Not any Chargers bunch, mind you, but Air Coryell’s proud members who were the architects of the most exciting era in a franchise that, also years ago, left San Diego.
But the love those Chargers players from the 1970s and ’80s, and anyone associated with those squads, shared with each other never dissipated. If someone earned their stripes on coach Don Coryell’s watch, well, they never had to watch their back.
It was always one-for-all and all-for-one with these rascals, which brings us to the incomparable Dr. Richard Gilbert, a longtime member of the Chargers back when lightning bolts were spotted locally with regularity.
Gilbert, a Charger without a uniform but the essence of the excellence and entertainment that those Air Coryell teams displayed, turns 98 on Monday.
“He was always one of the guys,” said Dan Fouts, the former Chargers quarterback. “It was that New York-thing he had, whatever that was, and he was just fun to be around.”
How so?
Gilbert’s Coryell imitations are legendary. His wry sense of humor snags victims at every turn. His quips are iconic, with Fouts sharing one that Gilbert, a podiatrist who was a trailblazer in matching sports and feet, never skipped.
“The first time I had a problem with plantar fasciitis, I went to see him,” Fouts said of the man affectionately known as ‘Feets.’ The first thing he said was, ‘Take off your pants and let’s take a look.”’
Fouts laughed. Gilbert, with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes, laughed. Anyone hearing the tale laughs as well.
Everyone knows Fouts is top-shelf, by the way he heaved a football that landed him in every Hall of Fame imaginable. But few know what a grand sport Fouts is, along with his wife, Jeri, in putting wind under Gilbert’s wings and keeping that Chargers flame flickering.
Gilbert, a streetwise kid from Brooklyn, is at the sunset of a life that took him to the NFL’s biggest stages, where he rubbed shoulders and treated the feet of the game’s biggest stars. He resides in Seacrest Village Retirement Community in Encinitas.
Those that Gilbert befriended back then give back, every Tuesday, with a Zoom call, which is engineered with Fouts calling the signals. Ex-Chargers join with glee, all with the purpose of spilling affection toward a man they cherish, well, from head to toe.
“We love him and always appreciated the way he took care of us,” former Chargers kicker Rolf Benirschke said. “Looking back now over the many years, we have all really come to appreciate how special those times were. So when one of ‘us’ is going through a difficult time, the word gets out and the guys want to do whatever they can to help.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Fouts tandem started holding Zoom dates, and “Tuesdays with Dr. Gilbert” became a regular occurrence. It was so popular that other Seacreast residents started taking similar calls on iPads with their family and friends.
That morphed into in-room visits with Gilbert. Just make sure you bring the goods. Gilbert, an East Coast guy with a San Diego vibe, prefers Jersey Mike’s roast beef sandwiches, accompanied by chips and either brownies or chocolate chip cookies.
Or both.
“It’s like we have a little picnic,” Jeri Fouts said.
Except they’re no ants and few say uncle when the chats get rolling, with Gilbert’s favorite singers, Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett, soaring in the background. If someone cues the Glenn Miller Band, that’s keen, too.
“We talk about when he was in high school and how he worked at Yankee Stadium as a ‘stile guy,” Fouts said. “He did the turnstile at the celebrity gate for all the players’ wives. He talks about playing shortstop at Ohio State and we bet on everything.”
The wagers seldom exceed a dollar. The conversations they fuel are priceless.
Ditto for Gilbert’s expression when many former Chargers, his Chargers, ditched Zoom and showed up in mass.
Along with Gilbert’s incredible caregivers, Chargers fan Glen Franco, in particular, the Bolt Brigade supplies the spiritual medicine.
Among those joining Fouts and Benirschke were Charlie Joiner, Del Mar’s Billy Ray Smith, Ed White, Oceanside’s Willie Buchanon, Hank Bauer, Don Macek and Bob Horn.
“When getting together, the magic happens and we relive old memories, tell old stories,” Benirschke said. “It brings us back to that very special time.”
Minutes shared with Gilbert are sands in the hourglass that are well spent.
“You could see by the gathering what it means to be loved and to give love,” Gilbert said. “This team had a lot of love, and there are things we will never forget. You can’t take away the memories, and we sure have a lot of memories.”
Here’s to many more “Tuesdays with Dr. Gilbert”, as his one-time patients became long-time friends. It’s a graceful circle that tugs at anyone’s heartstrings, feet first.
Contact Jay Paris at [email protected] and follow him @jparis_sports
