The fortune Alex Spanos amassed over six decades began with bologna.
The year was 1951, and the son of a Greek immigrant was unemployed and broke, searching for a way to provide for his wife and two young children. He convinced a Stockton bank to loan him $800 to buy a panel truck and supplies to make bologna sandwiches to sell to migrant farm workers.
The humble beginning grew into a multi-billion dollar collection of businesses, now overseen by his son, Dean, and centered around the family’s most valuable asset: the National Football League’s Chargers.