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When the Entertainer interviewed R&B star Usher back in 1998, he was only twenty years old, and touring to promote his new album My Way. The now multi-platinum album went on to sell eight million copies worldwide, and Usher quickly rose to the top of R&B artists in the late 90s.

Eleven years later, Usher is still a force in the industry, and has sold 38 million albums to date. Billboard recognized him as one of the most successful Hot 100 Singles artists of all-time, ranking higher than any other artist of his generation.

He has always had an interest in philanthropic activities as well, founding a non-profit charity called New Look, which encourages young people to take a “new look” on life through education and real-world experience. Following Hurricane Katrina, he was among the artists who signed up for the Katrina relief concert, and also founded Our Block to help with the re-construction effort in some of the devastated sections of New Orleans. He has also done a Public Service Announcement entitled “Do Something,” which encourages youth to engage themselves in the local civic environment.

Usher founded music label US Records, a subsidiary of Clive Davis’ J Records and Sony BMG. He as introduced, via his label, such acts as rapper Pico Love, singer Rayan and R&B vocal group One Chance. He is also a part owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, and is now worth an estimated $375 million.

In this 1998 interview, Usher speaks about growing up and his mother’s role in his career, the process of recording My Way, and how he’s dealt with fame and fortune.

Read the complete interview after the jump:

R&B heartthrob Usher — Doing it his way

August 20, 1998

Usher, the nineteen-year-old recording star who calls the music he makes “hip hop soul pop” is making his transition into manhood his way. Usher Raymond’s “way” was just what executive producers L.A. Reid, Babyface Edmunds, and Jermaine Dupris wanted to capture when constructing the songs that would make up his multi-platinum CD, “My Way.”

“What we ended up writing and recording is about my life, about what I’ve dealt with, being a teenager, going into manhood. It’s about my feelings, “said Usher. The first single from the album “You make Me Wanna” reached #2 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, second only to Elton John’s Princess Diana Tribute, “Candle in The Wind.” A series of performing and acting engagements followed, including appearances on Live with Regis and Kathy Lee and the Tonight Show. His acting debut on UPN’s Moesha, starring opposite Brandy (Atlantic Records), led to a recurring role on the soap series the “Bold and Beautiful.” In October, he will start a new film called “Light Up.”

Raised by his mother, who also manages him, Usher and his younger brother moved to Atlanta from Tennessee when Usher was twelve. Usher started signing in church choir and was spotted by a LaFace records’ representative at a local talent show. While his counterparts covered gangster-rap, Usher left out the profanity and sang from the heart. After an initial slow start, during the time that his voice changed, his recording career skyrocketed.

From the Beverly Garland Hotel, Usher and his mom, Jonetta, spoke to us in a personal interview. Asked how she balances the job of being both mom and manager, Jonetta answered, “I feel that every parent needs to pay close attention to what their child really wants in life and help them, even if it means denying yourself.“

“I try to teach him to always be himself. I tell him, ‘Set goals for yourself, and go in and get the most out of everything you do. And don’t depend on anyone.’ I try to give him my experiences and advise him-then I leave it up to him. I really raised him to know the difference between right and wrong. I let him know how I feel about things, and then he makes the decisions. He’ll ask me about a certain girl, and I will tell him how I feel about it. It doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad.”

Asked when Usher showed signs of talent, Jonetta stated, “I noticed it at the age of nine. He started out in my youth choir. When I saw him perform around the age of eleven, I knew he had true potential to be a star. He had something special. I think this is why his career has taken off the way it has. He’s just being himself and not doing it to please other people. It’s truly him and he loves it.”

Usher is on tour opening for Janet Jackson and scheduled to make a San Diego Appearance at the San Diego Sports Arena on August 28, 1998.

Usher, is it scary opening up for a large act like Janet Jackson?

I’m never scared, I may have butterflies but I’m never scared of an audience. That’s what being an entertainer is all about.

What does Janet Jackson think of your choreography?

She says she loves it.

Why do you think your music appeals to more than one generation and to more than one market?

Just because I’m young. Older people have already gone through what I’m going through, and young people like the fact that it’s cool, it’s hip, it’s young and energetic. But my personality comes across on the tracks. If you don’t really believe in what you are singing, people are not going to receive it. It’s just another song. That’s why it took time for Jermaine Dupri to find out what I would sing about, what I would talk about. And when I perform the song, I can add more emotion because I have gone thought it. It’s about my experiences.

How much of you is in the CD?

All of me. On every last one of those songs. I have experienced what I sing about at one time, or, at least, have come close to it.

What is your favorite song to perform live?

I always love doing Bobby Brown medley. It takes people back, and it expresses a variety of things. There is a lot of dance “old –school” in it. I perform “Rock with You” “Tenderoni,” and “Every Little Step.”

It’s unusual to hear a song that expresses a conversation like one you hear in “My Way.” Who thought of those lyrics?

My contribution came from making the song believable. My producer, Jermaine Dupri, actually followed me around and wrote stories about how I roll. And then, just having a hip-hop twist on it, it all came together.

I heard that Jermaine Dupris asked to listen in on your phone conversations.

He was seeing that I had “game,” you know what I mean? That I have a good rap on the telephone. A lot of the things that were written were things that I was really going through. Every time I got on the phone, he would listen to how I talk and how confident I was in conversation — what I had to say, what I would talk about, and my reason for calling the person. He might turn the music down and say to me ‘yo,’ and I would tell the person to hold on for a second, and then he would listen in on my conversations.

At one point in your career you struggled with your voice changing and your first record, produced by Puff Daddy, didn’t sell as well as you had hoped. Producer Jermaine Dupri took a different approach with his method of artist development. What did those struggles teach you about the music industry, and why is “my Way” more successful?

You have got to be true to who you are. You can’t go out as a “fad” in the industry; you have to be true to who you are, and I figure that’s the reason why, maybe, I didn’t have as much success with the first album. That wasn’t me. That’s something Puffy wanted me to do, and it was a fad. Fads fade in and fade out whereas with “My Way,” Jermaine Dupris spent time to get to know me as a person. He just took what I had and wrote about it. He didn’t try to change me or make me do a certain thing. He made suggestions as far as dressing, but that is just something you do with your homeboys. You might, collaborate with each other. Like say, ‘Hell, what do you think about these tennis shoes, you know? How would you flip this outfit?’

Then eventually, I developed my own style. For example, I always wore a skullcap. That’s just something that was made bigger, but I really hooked it up and put it together.

If you could have two magic genie wishes with one being spiritual, one being professional, and one being personal, what would they be?

My spiritual wish would be to finally see God’s face … but I guess I would have to die for that. You have to stay close to God for that, and that’s my wish. My professional wish is to have longevity, to have popularity and prosperity far beyond any other artist. But it takes time to get that. My personal wish would be to have 100 more wishes.

Do you keep track of your record sales, or do you leave all the business to mom and just stay in the creative mode?

I live by the microphone, and my mother takes the business side, but she shows it to me. Definitely. I’m aware of what is going on with my money and my finances. My mom is my business manager though, and I do the artist side.

Is your album double-platinum?

Four times platinum.

Since you’ve gotten so successful, have you purchased any special gifts for your family?

I purchased a Mercedes Benz for my mom. My brother James is thirteen. I bought him a Kawasaki motor bike, cloths, tennis shoes, video games, and CDs.

What issues do you and your mom buck heads about?

Issues. Hmmm. The fact that I don’t always do what I say I’m going to do and … women. Every man has time in his life when he’s kind of blind to what the girl he’s talking to is all about, my mother has her opinion. My mother has a point. But maybe it doesn’t always apply.

I mean, how can you say what a relationship consist of if you aren’t a part of that relationship? I would say to her, ‘Why don’t you try to be friends with my friends? I’m single, you know?’ I don’t really have time for a relationship. That was what she was fearing, and I tell her, ‘Don’t worry about that. I’m single. I can have friends.’

In many ways you have been a positive role model for America’s youth. You are the national spokesperson for the U.S. Department of transportation’s “Get Big on Safety” campaign and participate in the NBA Stay in School Program.

It felt good to give back to the kids. I feel like they are our tomorrow, and we have to pay attention to them. We have to be quiet enough to hear what their needs are and try and help them out. I’m setting up a lot of things in my business nowadays. I’m doing a foundation. I try to stress how easy it is to do something if you just put your mind to it.

Do you feel a responsibility to our youth because of the public attention you get?

There is a responsibility, but at the same time you try to live your life. You try to do everything and make the same mistakes that every other kid will make at the age of nineteen, and then you realize you can’t make those mistakes because people will take it the wrong way. You have to give up a lot of your privacy.

When you date, do women find it difficult to get past your player image?

Well, I wouldn’t say I’m a player. The sex appeal is just me. I’m confident of myself and my sexuality, and I guess that’s the reason why I can’t the way I do on stage, but it doesn’t mean I go out in the street and hung on everybody. It’s just a performance. “My Way” was about a girl that was a friend of mine, but her boyfriend couldn’t accept the fact that we were friends. That is the reality of it. Her boyfriend was so jealous that I would play it off like we were doing something. I never said we were sexually active, but I would say ‘You can get mad if you want to, but one day she’s still going to give it up.’ I guess that’s where that comes from. The song “One Day You’ll Be Mine” was just a song … I met a girl, and I really dug her. I liked the way she looked, and we started talking. I said, ‘One day you’ll stop this and be mine.’ All of those aren’t player moves … it’s just reality. Those are all romantic things I felt, but people will interpret it the way they want to.

What kind of music do you listen to?

I like a variety. I like to see an artist show variety, that he or she has versatility. I like to hear hard-core-rap — don’t get me wrong — but I also like to listen to Maxwell at the end of the day.

What’s the best advice your mom ever gave you?

Strivers achieve what dreamers believe.

How often does she say that to you?

She only had to say it once for me to remember it for life.

Jenny and her late husband Sidney, who passed away in 2008, have been philanthropy and horse racing mainstays in San Diego and around the world. Some of the organizations she supports include San Diego Hospice, Easter Seals, the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the United Way. The Craigs donated $10 million to Fresno State University (Sid’s alma mater) in 1992 for a new business school and, in 1996, donated another $10 million to the University of San Diego, which used the money, for among other things, to build the beautiful Jenny Craig Pavilion – an on-campus arena that houses the USD basketball program and multiple concerts a year.

The Craig name has also become synonymous with horse racing over the years, as they have run many a successful horse in Del Mar and other tracks worldwide after purchasing a ranch and breeding operation off San Dieguito Road in Rancho Santa Fe in 1995. Their colt, Dr. Devious (who Jenny mentions later in this article), placed seventh at the 1992 Kentucky Derby and won two big races overseas. Filly Paseana is now in the Racing Hall of Fame and their horse Candy Ride won six races in a row in 2003 – that same year setting a Del Mar track record for one and quarter miles.

In the meantime, the business she started has now grown to over 550 weight loss centers, employing about 3,000 people. Craig still resides in Rancho Santa Fe, where she spends much of her time with family and friends. In the following 1998 interview with Paul Arnold, Craig talks about how her business got started, what it takes to become successful and some of the things she enjoys doing in her spare time. We hope you enjoy our look back:

JENNY CRAIG – One of today’s icons of healthy living

By Paul Arnold

Jenny and her late husband Sidney

The name Jenny Craig has clearly become an icon in the area of healthy living.Since 1984 when Jenny and husband Sid started developing centers in Australia, until present day, the growth in the Jenny Craig Empire has been the stuff of what entrepreneurial dreams are made.

Today the company that Mrs. Craig laid the foundation for has approximately 800 centers in five countries. She has also written several books including two best-sellers based on healthy living and is still very active in the company’s day-to-day operations, although she now finds time to enjoy other pleasures like playing with her grandchildren and owning a champion race horse or two.

Jenny was kind enough to take a moment to chat with us recently from her international headquarters on Torrey Pines Road in La Jolla.

Jenny, when you first got into the fitness industry, did you ever have a vision that this was going to develop into the international company it has?

Probably not when I first entered it because when I first entered the industry, it was at the result of gaining weight during a pregnancy. That was back in 1959 when my daughter was born and I had gained close to 50 pounds. I never had a weight problem before, so after Michelle was born I still had about 30 or 35 pounds to lose. So I went to the only thing that was available in those days; a gym. And in the process of my losing weight, I noticed that people’s whole personalities were changing as they were losing weight, and I was just fascinated. I saw people that when I first met them were very withdrawn and introverted, and these same people as they lost weight, they became very extroverted and they were dressing differently and everything. I was just amazed at the relationship that weight plays in your overall self-image. So, when the manager asked me to go to work for him I accepted because I thought, ‘Gee, this is really interesting.’ In those days, I didn’t even really realize that it was going to be a lifetime career. It wasn’t until I opened my own business in 1964 that I realized it was something I wanted to do.

How did you become so knowledgeable in the area?

Well, in 1975 I had gone through a personal life-change, in that I was going through a divorce and I knew that I wanted to do something different with my life so I moved from New Orleans to Chicago and I was then working for Body Contour, Inc. At that time my present husband, Sid Craig, was the president of Body Contour. So when he asked me to open Chicago, I did. And I guess it was 1976, he came to Chicago and he said, ‘Where’s your husband?’ I told him I was going through a divorce. He kind of chuckled and said ‘that’s interesting, so am I.’ So we started dating and fell in love and then we got married. The partner that Sid had at the time, we approached them to see if we could buy them out, or if they wanted to buy us out because we wanted to go more to the direction of the involvement of nutrition, which that company did not, it was strictly a ladies figure control salon, so, it was strictly for reshaping the body. It really didn’t deal with nutrition at all and we could see that the world was going in that direction.

So you sold out to them in 1982 and then moved to Australia. Why Australia?

Yes, the reason was because we signed a two-year ‘non-compete’ agreement in North America. So we were kind of limited to English-speaking countries because it’s hard enough to go into a foreign country and start a new business, but to do it with a language barrier would have been impossible. So we decided on Australia, and when we first went there we opened twelve centers in Melbourne. It wasn’t an overwhelming success at first. We just worked through it.

When did the concept start to ‘click?’

We were lucky. I think the turning point was probably when I started doing live commercials on the Burt Newton Show. Burt Newton is the Johnny Carson of Australia, he has tremendous ratings and he was doing a program at that time called New Faces. In fact, Paul Hogan, ‘Crocodile Dundee’, got his start on that show, he went on as a blind, knife-throwing tap dancer, I believe. He went on as a joke and he won and that’s really how he got his start.

You started doing live commercial spots?

So I started doing live commercials on the Burt Newton Show because it’s a very family-oriented show and it had such high ratings. Burt and I developed a good rapport. Burt kept asking me when we were going to open a center in his hometown. And so finally one day I went on and told him that I had good news, that on Monday we were opening a center there. The phones started ringing, we couldn’t handle the business; it was incredible. We had people standing outside waiting with numbers. So, we sort of permeated Australia, we went all through the country, we have 97 centers there, which is about max. Because there’s only 16 million people. After we did that our ‘non-compete’ was up and we decided to come back to America, and that was in 1985.

You’ve had such phenomenal growth; did your tremendous success shock you?

No, it was never a shock. Sid and I aren’t ten-year planners; we just say this is was we want to do by next month, or next year. We just put our heads down and go to work. And even though it seems like a sort of overnight success, it’s kind of like lifting weights, you can’t one day just decide you’re going to life a heavy weight. You have to start with less weight and work up to it. It’s the same thing with business. All the years I had the experience before of being in the industry prepared me to accept the responsibility of a much larger company. And since we started with Jenny Craig with twelve centers, it’s the same principle; we’ve not evolved into running 800 centers. I mean, if someone had said to me back in 1982, ‘you’re going to be in charge of 800 centers’ I would have though that’s a big order. I’ve never been afraid to attempt anything, but whether or not I would have been prepared for it is another question.

What have been the biggest challenges in achieving that size?

Well, it’s been different challenges at different points. When we first went to Australia, two days before we were due to open, we had our vitamins formulated here in the U.S. and we were almost ready to begin manufacturing them when they came to us and said ‘Australia is very low in selenium, and selenium helps to prevent cancer so why don’t you add selenium into the vitamins? I think you’ll be doing the country a favor.’ So we said, ‘Sure, go ahead and do it.’ Well, when the vitamins got to Australia, the health department looked at selenium in the vitamins and said, ‘You can’t use these. Only a chemist can prescribe selenium.’ So they were threatening the whole deal. We didn’t know what to do, so we asked what our options were. They told us we had two options: to either send them back to the United States, or dumb them overboard. To send them back it would cost something like $20,000 so we dumped them overboard. So, needless to say, there are a lot of healthy fish in Australia.

Have there been any challenges working with your husband?

Actually, that hasn’t been so much of a challenge, believe it or not. I think it’s added another dimension to our marriage. We work well together because we have established boundaries. Sid handles all of the marketing and I’ve always handled all of the operations. I wrote the manuals, did the hiring, the training, I worked out in the field. But, by the same token, Sid never ran an ad that he didn’t get my advice on first to ask me what I think of it. He knows that you have to know how the promotions are going to play out in the field. So he would always consult me, and vice-versa. I never did anything in operations without first saying, “what do you think of this?”

Do you have rules about not talking about business at home?

No, I wish we did. This is a 24-hour job.

You’re notorious of being a hard working putting in long hours. Have you been able to back away from that a little bit now, or are you still putting in those long hours?

No, I have backed away a little bit. I try to confine most of my activities to public relations projects, I go around the country sometimes. Like when we launched a book I did 17 cities in 10 days. And it was constant, all day long doing interview, book signings. Other than that, I go into the office most days and open my mail and have meetings, but I don’t work out in the field anymore and I’m not involved in training. I do voicemails to all of the centers and things like that. I really do have a lot more time now than I used to. When we first started we were putting in like 15-18 hours a day.

What does Jenny Craig do for fun?

Well, really, I have always enjoyed my work. It has been fun for me. It was not like I had to look for diversions for fun. I‘ve always been very active in sports, I like to exercise. Each year I go on a walking trip with my daughters and some friends. It’s all women. We just go,. We’ve walked through Tuscany, Austria, other parts of France. It’s just a wonderful experience. Also, a big hobby of mine, well not a hobby, it’s a business, but horses keep me pretty entertained.

You’re well known for your success in your involvement in that area. What got you into the horse business?

My brother was a trainer. I’ve always loved horses because he loved horses and he introduced me to them. I loved horses well before I knew Sid, but he does also. So when I met Sid he had a couple of horses and we’ve added to the stables. I think what really put us into a different category was on Sid’s 60th birthday I gave him a horse, Dr. Devious, who won the English Derby and the Irish Championship; he had a pretty nice career. Then Sid sold him to the Japanese for a very nice sum. That sort of started us off at a different level.

What year was that?

That was 1992.

Does that take much of your time?

Well, yes and no. We’re active when the horses are active. For instance, we go to the Derby and all the big races. But during the week, we don’t do anything with the horses. They’re in training and the trainers work with them. SO, except for watching the races, there’s not a whole lot more we’re involved in.

Obviously, you’ve helped a lot of people and you’re internationally recognized. Does that pose some interesting times when you’re out in public?

I’m usually pretty noticed, but not so much lately as I have been in the past because I haven’t been doing a lot of commercials. But when I do commercials myself, everywhere I go people will come up to me and tell me about their success, or something they know, some family member or friend. I never mind that, I really don’t. I know how important it is to them to have achieved those things and I really don’t mind hearing them.

So it hasn’t posed any special problems?

No, it really hasn’t. It’s always good news. I’ve never had anyone tell me that my program hasn’t worked for them or they hate me. Nothing abusive, just always very nice.

Encapsulate your philosophy on healthy living.

I think that people should recognize that it really isn’t the quantity of life that’s important, it’s the quality. And I think that everyday we should do everything we can to improve and enhance the quality of our lives. I think that good nutrition takes care of your body, exercise, spending time with the people you love, and just enjoying every minute is what life is all about.

A younger Randy Jones winds up, sporting the 70s uniform and 70s hair

In our second installment of our Time Capsule series, we go back to the April 1998 issue of the Entertainer, where Paul Arnold interviews longtime Padres ace and current barbeque master, Randy Jones. Today, he is the co-host of the Padres BP show on XX 1090 AM. His’ famous barbeque restaurant — Randy Jones Barbeque — is a favorite among fans at PETCO Park, and Jones popular brand of barbeque sauce continues to sell briskly at local supermarkets.

Randy Jones – Life is Good
(and Tasty)

By Paul Arnold

Randy Jones has clearly made a very successful transition from Major League Baseball into the business world. The secret seems to be the same attitude that made him a successful, Cy Young Award-winning Major League pitcher: Work hard, work smart and enjoy it. Randy took a few moments out of his busy schedule to chat recently.

When you were at Chapman College, did you ever think you were going to make it to the big leagues?

I never really thought I’d make it to the big leagues. I thought I’d play professional baseball, but not the big leagues. That was my dream, my goal. I pitched the same way I did in college when I was in the big leagues — I wasn’t overpowering, I just had this uncanny ability to win ballgames. So, I knew I’d play some minor leagues, but I didn’t know if I’d get to pitch in the big leagues.

Walk us through how you got to the majors.

In 1972 I got my degree out of Chapman College and I was a fifth round draft pick by the San Diego Padres after I graduated. From there I spent one week in rookie league ball in Washington where I pitched the first game of the season, and the next day they sent me to AA ball. I went to the Texas League in Louisiana, where Duke Snyder was my manager and that was an invaluable education. I learned a lot. In ’73 I went back to AA spring training in Yuma and then went back to Louisiana, where I won eight out of my nine first starts. It just so happened that at that time, the Padres traded the only left-handed starting pitcher they had on staff to Cincinnati. That left a void and I was 8-1, so they called me up and gave me a chance to pitch in the big leagues.

So you were twenty-two years old when you were signed?

Yes, only twenty-two. I was twenty-three when I pitched my first game.

Was that a mixed blessing to be in the big leagues but playing for the Padres, who were not competitive?

There are two ways of looking at the situation: I figured that when I graduated from college, I was either going to get drafted by the San Diego Padres or the Detroit Tigers. With the Detroit Tigers, there was lots of tradition but they had a solid pitching staff up there — so my career in the minor leagues might have been real long with them. There was more opportunity with the Padres than there was with the Detroit Tigers. I was just excited about the possibility of getting to pitch in the big leagues.

How did you handle that, being only twenty-two years old and being in the ‘big show’?

I relied on my instincts; I didn’t try to rationalize why I was there. I just felt that the people from the San Diego organization believed that I could compete on the Major League level. I had to trust their instincts until I got four or five starts under my belt, then I came to understand how it went in the big leagues and I had the ability to adapt and adjust and I realized that I could pitch on that level.

So it clicked that quickly for you?

Well, even though I was only twenty-three, I had thrown a lot of baseball in college. I was mature enough and I knew how to set up hitters and that’s basically what you have to do in the big leagues. You have to be able to set up hitters, change speed and hit spots. I had been doing that for many, many years. And that’s what you have to be able to do on the Major League level. For hitters, you have to understand what their weaknesses are, pitch to those weaknesses and to stay away from their strengths. That’s what I had been able to do.

Speaking of hitters, who were the top three or four hitters you faced?

Steve Garvey was always a tough out for me, George Foster with the Reds, and Gary Matthews with the Giants.

Did you have certain ballparks you just hated or loved?

I hated St. Louis, and even Shea Stadium for the first half of my career. They were both tough ballparks for me — not just the acoustics, but it just seemed like every ground ball found a hole and whatever bad that could happen would happen.  I couldn’t buy a win in those two ballparks. But on the other hand, I absolutely loved Cincinnati and the Astrodome in Houston. I loved Wrigley Field. I think it has to do with how much success you have at different ballparks. Your comfort level goes up with it.

Tell us about the experience of winning the Cy Young Award.

It’s a boyhood dream come true. If people could just understand how many hours upon hours, both physically and mentally, that you work to win it. To go through what I did, like when I lost 22 games in ’74, and turning that around in ’75 and winning 20 games, pitching in the All-Star game, winning the ERA title and coming in second to Tom Seaver for the Cy Young award — I got so close I could just taste it. My goal in ’76 was to win it. I started in December of ’75 getting ready and that was my mental goal, and I actually did it. It was a great year. I never pitched that well in all my life. I received fan support and team support, and that’s what it takes.

You knew you were coming to the end of a good career, how did you make the transition to ‘civilian life’? You’ve obviously done it incredibly successfully. Talk about making the transition from baseball into business.

I think the one advantage I had was my mental approach. I had always prepared myself mentally. The nerve damage in my arm forced me to retire when I was thirty-two years old. I knew how much hard work went into being a very successful pitcher and an athlete, and all I tried to do was come back out into the business world and apply myself in the same way.  Things don’t come to you, but if you commit yourself to something and you’re willing to work at it, then you make things happen. It’s just like in pitching, you don’t wait for things to happen, you make them happen. In business, it’s a lot of hard work and I’m not afraid of getting my hands dirty and going out and working. I really enjoy doing it.

What got you into the food service industry?

In ’87, AGS Foods was my sister and brother-in-law’s company, and I went to help them out because they needed somebody to travel for them and handle their military accounts. I got into the food business because I was so used to working out of a suitcase. So, I traveled the country and the world opening up new accounts on military installations for them and through it, I learned quite a bit about the food business. Once I burned out on that in the early ‘90s, it just so happened that I ran into Ken Wolfe, who is the general manager at Service America Stadium. We were playing golf one day and that’s when the barbeque concept came up. Ken said he needed one more eatery at the ballpark for a certain location and I said, ‘Well, maybe we ought to do a barbeque.’ And it turned out that six weeks later we opened up the Randy Jones Ballpark Barbeque there at the stadium.

Tell me the truth: Is this really your recipe for the barbeque sauce?

Yes, we figured that out first then we went to the coleslaw and potato salad and the actual menu. The half-pound hot dog I had actually seen during my travels working with the military, so I researched it and found those and brought them in. It’s gone over really well — it’s a fun, fun atmosphere. I think its key not just to have the good food, but my being there and talking to the people every home game over the last five years has built it up to be incredibly successful.

Tell us about your rollout plans.

First of all, I felt that we needed to have a headquarters, which is the Randy Jones Big Stone Lodge in Poway, where I’ve lived since in came to San Diego in ’73. Then, having the catering company there, Buckboard Catering, I felt that was a great vehicle for my product to be able to go out and cater parties for different groups of people. We started thinking of some new concepts for doing fast food barbeque, which hasn’t really been done yet. And that’s what we’re doing right now. We’re going to go out and try to get some small set-ups where we can have barbeque ribs and chicken — the same things we feature at the stadium — and be very consistent throughout the community. We’d like to have these available in different venues, whether it be at the Sports Arena, one of the shopping malls here in San Diego, or by a movie theater. We think we can do that, to drive the barbeque business into the fast food industry.

It seems like you’re having a lot of fun at it.

I do have fun. I enjoy what I do and that’s very important. It makes it a lot easier when you get up in the morning and you enjoy what you do. You don’t mind putting in the 15 or 16 hours a day it sometimes takes.

What do you think about the state of Major League Baseball compared to fifteen years ago when you got out?

Obviously, I’m a little bit concerned like anyone else would be. Salaries, well, God bless the players, the more the merrier, I know how short careers can sometimes be.  The money has taken baseball from the game itself and it’s exposed the business part of the game. The players are making so much money; it’s gotten away from them, to play in that atmosphere. I see too many players that aren’t getting involved in the community, or aren’t really role models for the kids — it’s not as family-oriented as it was when we were there. But the game is still happening, it’s entertainment and it’s in the entertainment business. I hate to see that kids today are looking at more money than the game itself and the good that can be done. They just see the dollar signs and that’s controlling them right now.

What do you think about expansion?

I like expansion. It prepares more players to play in the big leagues and it creates more jobs. The development of baseball is healthy, although you can saturate the market.  Are we going to have world baseball one of these days? I don’t know. I’m sure it will probably be tried. I think we’re going to see an awful lot of things develop by the year 2000.

Tell us about your broadcast schedule this season.

Well, this year will be a little bit different. Last year was a lot of fun: I did a lot of pregame and postgame talks on Channel 4 at home games. This year you’ll see a little bit less of me on TV. I might produce some pregame shows, but I’m doing a lot of radio. I should be on the Padres postgame doing an awful lot of that. I really enjoy doing the radio and talking to the fans. I look forward to it.

When do you sleep?

That’s the one thing: I get about six to seven hours of sleep. Eight hours are very rare these days. Apparently I don’t need it. This job is a seven-day a week job, so I’m never off Saturdays and Sundays. In my line of work, Saturdays and Sundays are the busier days. Hopefully on Tuesday or Thursday I can take a little time off with my wife and do some chores around the house, or play a little golf.

In what should be a blast from the past for Charger fans, the two discuss the circumstances revolving around XTRA losing the rights to Chargers broadcasts, in addition to the sorry state of the 1997 Chargers squad.

Lee Hamilton: “The Franchise” speaks out
By Paul Arnold

Lee Hamilton graces the cover of the Entertainer (Jan. 1998)

For the past eleven years, Lee “Hacksaw” Hamilton has been the voice of the Chargers, until last month when the team announced a deal with KFMB to take over as their radio station. Hamilton, known as “The Franchise” by his many fans and listeners of his p.m. drive talk show and for his honest, straight-forward style, was devastated by this decision and took a few moments to share his thoughts.

P: Lee, tell me when it became clear to you that the decision to replace XTRA had been made.

In October, management here at XTRA told us they were not going to negotiate with them anymore, they had given them five different offers, they wouldn’t respond, they kept rejecting them. We offered them phenomenal money, and at that time I figured that it was the end of this run. You know, we offered them $15 million dollars cash, which is unbelievable money for this size marketplace. And the fact that we offered them all that with all the negatives about the franchise, bad football, bad relationships with media, bad controversy over the stadium expansion and tickets, the fact that we offered them that kind of money can, I think, attest to how much we valued the package.

P: What do you think it came down to, Lee?

I think it came down to a combination of things. I met with Dean Spanos and he just indicated that part of this is a business-thing, that they are trying to package their radio and TV thing together, and have somebody write one check to them and take over everything, take over television, exhibition games, the selling of it, the packaging, the expenses, take over the whole radio package. I understand part of it being business, but I think there should be some loyalty going the other way. We’ve done an awful lot for them for 11 years, through a lot of bad times. The fact that we offered them $3 million a year hard cash and a five-year deal may attest to how important we thought it was and how much we wanted it. I think that part of it is they don’t want to be criticized. Well, that comes with ownership of a franchise, if you want fans to fork over good money on Sundays, then you better be prepared for whatever is going to happen Monday through Friday. And what they’re going to find out, even if they’re not on our station, is that fans are still going to call, and they’re still going to talk.

P: What kind of pressure was put on you when that controversy came about regarding some of your comments on your sports talk show?

There wasn’t a lot of pressure because they know the parameters of my job. And I’ve told them my feelings on how I was going to do my job. As long as I was honest and I was fair, then I don’t expect to hear anything. But they called at times and they were critical. I’d like them to call and say ‘thank you’, too, for all the things we’ve done on their behalf. And unfortunately, I’ve never heard a ‘thank you’ from them, and that disappoints me to no end.

P: So you never got any serious pressure — or management at XTRA never got pressure — that you were being too outspoken?

We got phone calls, we got people bitching about some of the things we said, but that’s okay, there’s nothing wrong with that. They always had an open line to me if they wanted to be critical about something I said, and they used that open line. And I had no difficulty with that. I wasn’t going to cave under the pressure, why should I? As long as I’m honest and fair. Sometimes fair can be complimentary, and sometimes fair can be critical. I think they deserve to be criticized for running Bobby Ross out of here. In fact, five years ago when Beathard almost left because of Spanos, they deserved to be criticized because of that. I wouldn’t be a man if I didn’t tell you what I thought, or I didn’t tell you the truth. And I don’t think listeners would want somebody on the air who was shilling for the club and lying to the people about what was going down. That’s my style and it’s always been my style since I first came here in 1987.

P: That’s why you’re “the franchise” … That last broadcast must have been real tough. Tell me about it.

Well the last month was hard because the team was terrible. When you’re averaging seven points a game … that’s awful. Their games were not very fun to broadcast because they just were not a very competitive team. The last broadcast we really went into it, we were going to try to have fun with it. We had 31 sound clips that we had pulled from our archives, we made a list of 30 different stories we wanted to tell, and we used them all. It wasn’t hard until right at the end. We got to the two-minute warning and I was going to make my closing comments, and I was doing fine until I looked at Jim Laslavic and I kind of got choked up. I think all of us were kind of choked up because we really loved gameday, we had a passion for it, and we loved doing the play-by-play, the fun and the excitement of it. I think we were all just kind of disappointed that we were looking at a 4 and 12 franchise that was headed downhill, and our careers as broadcasters were going down with it.

P: Let’s talk a bit about the season past. What are your thoughts as a recap on this season, and what do you think the Chargers need to do to turn this thing around?

The Chargers have some immense fence-mending to do in this community from a business standpoint and football standpoint. I don’t know how they’re going to sell tickets to a 4 and 12 team with all the negatives that have been swirling around this team since the day they got rid of Bobby Ross. In terms of the media, they have enormous repair work to do in terms of their relationships with the beat writers and those columnists. I don’t know how they come over from that. They had taking what was a really good working relationship under Bobby Ross and they’ve ruined it because of what Kevin Gilbride wanted to do. There was no cause for that. This isn’t New York where you’ve got 27 beat writers and columnists, and everybody’s got an angle, everyone’s got an agenda. No, there are two beat writers, one columnist, this one radio station, and a couple of TV stations. This is not New York, Philadelphia, or Boston, so I thought they grossly mishandled the media. Which then created a host of other problems for them.

P: Do you think that came from the top down? Did Alex Spanos say ‘stop this’?

It came from Gilbride. Gilbride wanted to run the thing a certain way, and Dean Spanos let him run the thing the way he wanted to, and they ran the relationship right into the ground. And that’s going to be a hard one to pick up the pieces, that relationship has been badly fractured. On the field, they ran off too many players. We went back and did a count: 21 of Bobby Beathard’s high draft picks in the last four years are gone.

P: Why do you think that is?

Some of it is injuries, age, lack of patience, some of it problems off the field. They just got rid of too many players. And couple that with the fact that a bunch of his free agent signings haven’t fanned out as they hoped they would.

P: Such as?

William Fuller, Marco Coleman. Maybe some of those guys will bounce back, they’ve got a very good defense and they’re going to get the injured people back healthy. Their major crisis now is: what do they do on the offensive side of the football? I mean, they scored eight touchdowns in the last eight games of the season, offensively. That’s just atrocious, you can’t live in the NFL with that type of production, and they ruined a good quarterback, they ruined Stan Humphries. This offensive line deteriorated even more this year and wrecked a $3 million dollar quarterback in the process. Now, they’re in big trouble, they’re in more trouble now than they were when Dan Fouts retired, because they have nobody waiting in the wings who can play. This will be a huge off-season for them in terms of how they are going to pick up the pieces of the offense.

P: If you’re Bobby Beathard, what do you do now?

Like I said on the talk show, Dean Spanos made the comment, after all the controversy, ‘Judge us at the end of the season’. Okay, I’m judging you, you’re 4 and 12, and the boss isn’t supporting the media, I think they’ve lost the community. What they need to do is go back in an restructure the ticket guarantee deal, get rid of that bad taste in the mouth for a lot of people, they need to go back in and guarantee that they’re not going to raise ticket prices for a couple of years. They’ve got a lot more money coming through the door with the new TV contracts, so there’s no need to take money from the fans. And then they need to ask some of veteran players who haven’t played for awhile to give them some money back, for the betterment of the franchise, so they can use that money to go get more free agents. If Humphries wants to play, he’s already said he’s willing to restructure his deal. If Stan’s willing to play, take some of his money, take some money from the defensive players who haven’t performed, and use that money to go buy offensive linemen. They’ve got a real high draft pick, and could probably get one of the good pass rushers. You could solve this thing real quick, if you could buy some quality offensive linemen if Stan plays.

P: What is Stan’s official word?

He hasn’t decided yet, it’ll be in early February. I think he’s going to retire. So now, they’ve really got a crisis. What do they do for quarterback?

P: Do you think it was fair for Wheelihan to be thrown into that situation, with that line situation? Could anyone really have made it work? Do you think Gilbride pushed the panic button too early, or do you just think he’s not the guy?

They had to get answers on the kid; he’s been there for three years. They just had to see whether he could, or couldn’t.

P: But even Humphries didn’t look good in that scenario, so do you think he’s not the guy, or do you think it was just throwing him in there with absolutely no line play?

A combination … A combination of a bad situation to work in, and he’s not ready.

P: Do you give up on him, or do you give him a shot?

No, I’d keep him around, but I’d pick another veteran. They’ve got to find a veteran quarterback, and they’ve got to find offensive linemen. If they find offensive linemen, then maybe Wheelihan can play, because he’s showed flashes that he was all right. Again, it all depends on what Stan does. If Stan were to come back and play, then I think they could survive, and they could put all their resources into the offensive line. If you’ve got to spend your resources to get a quarterback and then get offensive linemen, that’s only going to make it tougher because you’ve only got so many dollars you can use in a free agency.

P: Assuming Humphries retires, is the answer to try and find a veteran quarterback, and hope that Wheelihan can be brought along and more under control, or do you try and go after a Ryan Leaf-kind of quarterback in the draft?

I don’t think they can trade up, I think the price would be too steep. I would much rather spend that money in free agency in the offensive line, get a mid-level quarterback to buy you a couple of years, and just make the franchise better that way. I think their defense is there. They’ve got to get the offense. I don’t think they can trade for a number one pick, I think it’s just too steep a price to pay.

P: What do you say to Gilbride’s critics?

Is Gilbride not the guy? I think it’s unfair to say that, because he was ravaged by injuries. At the end of the year they had 15 players on injured-reserve. It was ridiculous; they had better players on I.R. than they did on the active roster. I think it’s unfair to say he’s not the guy. He obviously, I thought, was overwhelmed as a coach, and I think it’ll take some time for him to learn to delegate authority and maybe get some help creatively. He’s got to get more players in here, too. I think if they solve the player thing up front, then some of the other things will solve themselves as they go.

P: So you’re saying get a Jim Harbaugh-type, bring him in, buy yourself two or three years, maybe he clicks, things fall into place, he’s available for a reasonable fee, etc.

Yes, exactly.

P: This year the NFL wanted parity and they just about got it. What do you think the salary cap and changes in the game have done since you began broadcasting the NFL?

Some people have done a better job than others. I think it puts a tremendous amount of pressure on developing young players. It goes back to my shtick: the Chargers have gotten rid of 21 young draft picks over the last four years. That’s where you’ve got to develop your young players. If you lose a veteran to injury, or you lose veterans who jump, you’ve got to have young guys to replace them. The Pittsburgh Steelers are a prime example: they’ve lost 22 veterans to free agency in four years and they’re still playing good football, going into January. You’ve got to get great draft picks and develop them and make sure they’re ready to play. And for San Diego to play some and run some off, it hasn’t worked. I’d say that’s why they’re in some of the mess they’re in now. I don’t think free agency is the end all, be all, I think free agency can help you to plug a certain position, but I don’t think you can buy a team of free agents right off. It hasn’t worked here; it hasn’t worked for a lot of teams, like the Raiders. People have really missed out on that here, we’ve done a poor job in the draft and that’s why we’re sitting at 4 and 12.

P: What are your thoughts on Sunday’s championship games?

I think Denver’s more dangerous offensively than Pittsburgh; I guess I’ll pick Denver. Green Bay – San Francisco’s is a toss up, but I think Green Bay can win, I think Green Bay can win in ‘Frisco. It wouldn’t shock me to see Green Bay – Denver here in a couple of weeks.

P: If those two are in, who do you pick?

Wow, I’d pick Green Bay. I’m a big Brett Favre fan, he’s a difference maker, he makes plays. Not to say Elway doesn’t, but Brett makes more of them.

P: Lee, you’re a favorite of our readers here at the Entertainer. Thanks for the time and happy New Year.

Thanks, I’m going to stay here and visit talk shows, and we’ll see what transpires in the next six weeks.