Parks and Recreation- Boston Patriots

It was quite common in the 1960’s for the man of the house to work two jobs. He was either staying late at the first one, or going to the other. The most commonly used term from that era was “wait till your father gets home”. The problem was that Mom did not know, either. The term was so popular that Hanna-Barbera created an animated sitcom that ran on NBC from 1972-1974. The voices were Joan Gerber and Tom Bosley.

In 'Tales from New England Patriots Sideline' by Michael Felger, former Patriots QB Steve Grogan speaks about his second job. One day, I waited on a lady for about 20 minutes trying to find out exactly what she needed. After I went behind the counter to write up the order, she turned to me, “Does Steve Grogan really own this place? “. And I said, yes ma’am, he does. “Then she asked, “Does he actually come into the store? “ And I said, “Yes, ma’am, he is here every day. “She recognized the name, but she had no idea that it was me. I finally had to tell her. I get that a lot. For some reason, I don’t think Tom Brady has the same problem.

WR/PK Gino Cappelletti worked as a teller at the Suffolk Downs race track as his second job. Gino was one of the captains of the early Patriots teams, but that did not come with any special privileges. In Concord, fellow captain, Tony Sardisco was in charge of the recreation department. In those days, the ball fields were loaded with youngsters. This was the pre-mobile device era where parents always knew where their kids were.

Tony was always available going from one playground to the next making sure the fields were mowed, and the equipment was there as well. He did have an old Green International truck that he could carry his supplies in. I seriously doubt the town paid for his mileage.


It was during this time that the public school system got a new librarian. She was from Sweden, and she looked like the actress, Inger Stevens. Her last name was Johansson, just like the famous boxer, Ingemar. Her husband, Ludvig was a soccer player who was in the United States teaching this foreign sport to anybody who would listen. 32.6 million viewers watched the 1966 FIFA World Cup. 43 million Brazilians watched the opening game of the 2014 FIFA World Cup between Croatia and Brazil. Ludvig had a lot of work to do.

When the word got out, that the soccer player and his librarian wife, were at the playground practicing field goals, it drew quite a crowd of youngsters. He was a left footed kicker, and she was the holder. They practiced kicks from the 40 yard line, and he consistently belted them through the uprights. Back then, the goal posts were on the back line of the end zone. All they needed was a center to snap the ball.

The AFL didn’t have any prima donnas. Before you knew it, Tony was stretching and snapping a few practice hikes softly to the librarian. After some scolding, Tony whipped them back like Lonie Paxton to Ken Walter. The kids would start the countdown, 3,2,1. Time and again, “Snap, ball down, hold is perfect, and the kick is good. “ All that was missing was Gil Santos.

Inger and Ludvig went back to their homeland. Tony got a real job and moved away. Bill Belichick would have loved him. The guy played on both sides of the line of scrimmage. He could play all three positions on the offensive line. He was captain of the first Patriots team. He showed up on time. He worked hard. He taught. He listened to his coach (Inger). He was a nice guy. He was my friend.

The 1960 Fleer Tony Sardisco Football Card is still in mint condition.

Paul Murphy is a freelance writer from New Hampshire.

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