The other day, a few friends of mine were sitting around, watching sports, drinking beer and shooting the breeze, which prompted a fascinating question.
Big Time Matty, as I refer to him, asked, “Felix, in all the years you have done entertainment and talk radio, what athletes and entertainers have you met and where?”
My adrenaline started to surge as memories flooded my brain. I had to think for a few seconds, but I already knew my response.
It was 1977. I began a full-time job as a DJ at the Distillery Nightclub in Solana Beach. After the new owners watched me spin records at The Oz, a private discotheque in Mission Valley on the National University campus, I was hired.
I moved to Solana Beach from Los Angeles a year earlier. I worked as a jeans salesman in LA at the iconic boutique, Fred Segal. I was in the middle of Hollywood, and stars were plentiful. This would prep me for the years to follow.
Sports has always been a massive interest of mine. I love athletes, performers, teams, leagues and the personalities that make up the games.
The first big athlete I met in San Diego was the Hall of Fame wide receiver, Lance “Bambi” Alworth, who was truly a legend of all legends. Alworth is still regarded as one of the greatest San Diego Chargers.
As I was introduced to him, I noticed he was a pretty small guy with a pretty-boy Hollywood look and country boy persona. The women loved him. And we have remained friends to this day.
Next up was Ozzie Smith in 1978. Ozzie played for the Padres, owned by McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc and his wife, Joan. That year, the Padres were the most horrendous team assembled. Ray once apologized to the fans over the loudspeaker during a game for the team’s horrible performance.
And the Padres weren’t just bad — they were cheap, too. Ozzie jokingly took out an ad in the local newspaper looking for a second job and his days were numbered in San Diego.
After games, Ozzie and I and the bartenders and waitresses would stay after the club had closed and talk.
Ozzie was later traded to the St. Louis Cardinals before the 1982 season and became a Hall of Fame baseball player over the next 14 years.
The club allowed me to meet many athletes and break the ice with a series of personal introductions. I was honored to meet Willie Buchanon, Bill Walton, Jimmy Connors, Dave Concepcion, Pete Rose, Willie McCovey, Joe DiMaggio, and many others.
One night, I was performing at the club and it was packed shoulder-to-shoulder. I look up and over and spotted one of my all-time idols standing with a group of friends — jockey Bill Shoemaker.
The “Shoe” was an international icon in the horse racing world. I kept my eyes on him while spinning dance records. I remember thinking, “This guy is tiny.” Years later, I interviewed him in Las Vegas.
In 1980, I accepted a job with the San Diego Clippers. The job was the best feeling I ever had associated with sports.
I watched Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Dr. J — all of the NBA greats — at the San Diego Sports Arena for a 41-game home schedule.
I held a young Kobe Bryant, whose father, Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, was a member of the Clippers’ squad, and I knew Kobe’s mother, Pam.
The Clippers later relocated to Los Angeles. I met Kobe for a quick minute but never had the chance to further a friendship.
Most of the athletes I met were down-to-earth, friendly, kind and approachable.
To me, they are just ordinary people who excelled in sports. Others were rude, self-centered and out of touch (I’m not mentioning any names, Barry Bonds).
Music, entertainment, radio and sports have been my cup, which has allowed me to meet people I never would have dreamed of as a kid from a small town in western Pennsylvania.
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