Hispanic Heritage spotlight: Musician Bill Lopez of Apple Valley

Editor's note: This is the first article in a planned monthlong series to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Check future editions of the Daily Press for more stories.

During the week, you’ll probably find retired teacher Bill Lopez at a local library teaching adults how to read, playing guitar at a local convalescent home, or praying for strangers in the parking lot of Super Target in Apple Valley.

The 68-year-old Lopez spoke in humble tones as he shared his love of teaching, involvement with Southern California radio, and meeting the late Los Angeles Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn.

“I’m just a normal guy who’s been blessed with a lot of opportunities,” said Lopez, who lives in Apple Valley. “I may be heading for 70, but there’s plenty of time to do more, God willing.”

‘’Bowling for Dollars’

A Pomona native, Lopez said he met Hearn in 1973 when the Hall of Fame broadcaster hosted the popular TV game show "Bowling for Dollars."

During his multi-decade run as the radio voice of the Lakers, Hearn hosted the TV show for four years, beginning in 1972 when it aired on KHJ-TV Channel 9, which later transitioned to KCAL-TV.

Lopez appeared on the show when he was 19 years old and was part of a small Southern California rock band originally dubbed Stale Cookies.

“When I met Chick, I was shocked because I didn’t realize how tall he was,” Lopez said. “When I watched him on TV, he was usually sitting behind a table, so I thought he was average height.”

Several online websites list Francis Dayle "Chick" Hearn’s height at 6 feet, 3 inches, a stature that earned him a basketball spot with the Amateur Athletic Union before his broadcast career.

Lopez earned his TV spot with Hearn and a bowling ball when his late mother, Jessica Price, sent the show’s producer a game show entry postcard on behalf of her son.

According to Lopez, his 94-year-old mother, born in Diamond Bar, was a game show fanatic and even attended "The Price is Right with host Drew Carey" in 2020, the year before she died.

“Back in the ‘70s, all it took to get on most game shows was a postcard and a little luck,” Lopez said. “I have to credit my mom for being the instigator that got me on the show.”

With TV cameras rolling and a small studio audience watching, Hearn asked Lopez about the group who accompanied him to the show.

“I told Chick that my band came along to support me,” Lopez said. “When he asked the name of my band, I froze because we didn’t have a name yet.”

Suddenly, Lopez remembered the homemade cookies one fellow band member passed during the freeway road trip to the studio.

“I told Chick that our band’s name was Stale Cookies because that was the first thing that came to mind,” Lopez said. “Next thing I know, I was directed to grab a bowling ball and to play the game.”

As Lopez approached the lane, he noticed that the bowling floor didn’t have a traditional smooth finish, which allowed bowlers to slide as they approach the ball’s release point.

“With every step, I could feel my shoes sticking, which resulted in a gutter ball,” Lopez said. “That’s when Chick muttered into the microphone, ‘That’s the way the cookie crumbles.’ He was quick-witted and so clever with his words.”

During his second attempt, Lopez nearly got a strike. A week later, the show mailed Lopez a check for $8, one dollar for each pin knocked down.

What is Hispanic Heritage Month?: Latinos and Latino culture can be celebrated year-round

The Band

Lopez’s band was eventually dubbed Money, a name inspired by the single of the same name, which appeared in the 1973 Pink Floyd album “The Dark Side of the Moon.”

“We played mostly dances and parties. One year, we played a high school reunion at the Disneyland Hotel,” Lopez said. “I guess our big break was when Griswold's Smorgasbord Restaurant in Redlands asked us to play regularly.”

In 1975, the band renamed itself Iron Horse and still exists to this day, according to Lopez, who admitted that he’s no longer a part of the Orange County-based musical group.

Radio days

In the ’80s, Lopez studied broadcast journalism at Cal Poly Pomona. One study trip included audience participation at the “Hour Magazine” TV show hosted by the late actor Gary Collins.

The show featured Collins, the award-winning syndicated daytime talk show host, interviewing celebrities, and chatting about current affairs, cooking, and popular culture.

During that time, Lopez met college student Rob Fukuzaki, who eventually joined ABC7 in 1994, when he became the first male Japanese-American TV anchor in Los Angeles local TV News.

“I worked for KTSJ radio in Pomona, a small station that had no money but needed on-air and studio talent,” Lopez said. “Oftentimes, we call up LaVerne University and ask if any of their broadcast journalism students would like some experience.”

One of those interns was Fukuzaki, who Lopez described as “a sharp, young kid with a lot of talent and passion. I knew that one day he was going to make it big."

A sports anchor for ABC7 Eyewitness, Fukuzaki’s many accomplishments included his induction into the Southern California Sports Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2014.

During the same decade, Lopez worked at Crawford Broadcasting’s KBRT 740 AM radio station in Costa Mesa as a master producer of commercial radio spots. The radio station primarily airs Christian talk radio programming.

Radio gig, but no Texas accent

“In 1988, the owner of the broadcasting company offered me a chance of a lifetime, a talk show host gig in Dallas, Texas, during afternoon drive time,” Lopez said. “The show was dubbed Talk from the Heart, Dallas. I was 34 years old, ambitious, and ready to take on the challenge.”

The company gave Lopez one week to prove himself. He was promised a full-time gig if he drew a radio audience, if not, he was out.

After a week, he said, Lopez drew few listeners, mostly because he “flew solo” with no studio assistant and most radio listeners glued to NBC TV and the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, Korea.

“I died a thousand deaths that week,” Lopez said, “It’s hard to compete with the Olympics. I also didn’t have a Texas accent, which didn’t help.”

Lopez also worked at K-Life radio near the Inland Center Mall in San Bernardino.

Teaching

After a nearly 26-year teaching career, Lopez retired in 2017 from Excelsior Charter School.

But with a desire to continue teaching, Lopez began instructing adults on how to speak English and how to read.

“I volunteer weekly at the Hesperia Branch Library as part of the San Bernardino County Library literacy program,” Lopez said. “The opportunity to teach is so rewarding, and I’m flabbergasted by the number of students over the age of 50.”

Cajon Pass song

A few years ago, Lopez penned the country tune “Cajon Pass” for a gentleman living at the Tender Heart Adult Day Health Care facility in Hesperia.

“I’m not a country singer, but this guy at the facility loves that type of music, so I decided to create a song for him,” Lopez said. “I was inspired to write the song by my regular drive from the High Desert to Calimesa, where my mother used to live.”

Backed up traffic, dangerous driving conditions, and an army of bad drivers, the Cajon Pass is a “nightmare and a potential harvest of music ideas," Lopez said.

His previous 70-mile trips through the Cajon Pass to visit his mother and back home again were real eye-openers for the singer who never commuted regularly down the hill, Lopez said.

“I couldn’t believe the amount of traffic and the crazy way people drive through the pass,” Lopez said. “Those long trips provided the perfect ingredients for the song.”

Lopez, who has played the guitar for nearly 50 years, said his song includes references to cars going “way too fast” through the Cajon Pass where “a cross by the road” and “flowers on the ground” tell a story too often told.

Lopez takes music classes at Victor Valley College and plays his guitar at various churches in the High Desert.

He also played guitar at places such as the Sterling Commons Memory Care Community in Victorville and the High Desert Branch of the California Writers Club.

“I also play the guitar for our prayer group in the parking lot of Super Target in Apple Valley,” Lopez said. “We ask people if they need prayer, and the response has been good. We’ve prayed for the homeless, shoppers, the curious, young, old, Christians, and non-Christians.”

Lopez’s music and interviews can be found on his “Rockville Radio 7.77 Podcast,” which can be found on Apple, Spotify, and other podcast streaming platforms.

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227 or RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Hispanic Heritage: Singer Bill Lopez recalls Lakers legend Chick Hearn