On Friday night, April 24, the world lost a truly incredible man. Richard (Dick) Norval Fults, affectionately known as Dickie-Lau, passed away in his home. At his bedside were his best friend Janet, her sister Suzanne, and two dear friends.
Dick died as he lived: with tolerance, optimism, patience, generosity of spirit, curiosity, humor, strength and grace.
Dick was born on March 26, 1946 in Lawton, OK, the son of Dixie and Norval Fults, stepson of Bob Agnew, and brother of Gary Fults. Dick’s personality was greatly shaped by his Oklahoma roots, growing up next door to his grandparents, Two-Mother and Two-Daddy (Stanley and Arlena Bates.) Dick had many stories from those times, as well as colorful anecdotes from life lessons learned working at Billy Bob’s Pawn Shop and Pont Ramey’s pool hall.
Dick was a child of the free-love, psychedelic 60s, embracing it all with his open minded, adventurous spirit. He left Oklahoma for California, settling in LA and later the San Francisco Bay Area.
One of Dick’s life-changing events was his 1979 purchase of an Apple II computer. Shortly afterward, he founded his first business hosting swap meets for similarly minded computer hobbyists. "Computer Supermarket” later became “Microshows," which over time added home shows to its offerings and was renamed "Richard James Corp."
It was during the early days of Microshows that Janet came into his life. They remained beautifully entangled in a deep and loving friendship ever since. In 2014, Dick left the Bay Area for Placerville, a move that brought him closer to Janet and to his country roots.
Dick thoroughly enjoyed a good, sparring debate and had a wicked, edgy sense of humor. His genuine interest in other people combined with his down home Okie friendliness found him making friends everywhere: with his neighbors, his landlord, the local post office clerk, his docs and nurses, and even one of his Bay Area Lyft drivers, with whom he had lunch a couple of times.
Dick’s exceptional curiosity and intelligence made him knowledgeable on a wide range of topics. His interests included science, ham radio, astronomy, photography, quantum physics, sci-fi, politics, computers, electronics, flying, sailing, traveling, food (the greasier, the better!) and cooking.
He loved figuring out how things worked and using his ingenuity to create, improve or repair things. That inventive mind was behind Dick’s later business, "Flash and Pass," producing flash card study aids for folks preparing for their ham radio and pilot license tests.
Dick also had an incredibly sweet, sentimental side and a generous, big heart. He had a soft spot for kids, dogs, and living beings of all kinds. He fed the birds and “critters” outside his home and welcomed ants and spiders within.
At Thanksgiving, he'd make a full turkey dinner with all the fixin's, package it up, and bring it in his suitcase to Oklahoma to share with his mom and stepdad, Dixie and Bob. At Christmas time, he would load up a couple of shopping carts with cool, fun toys, which he brought to Toys for Tots.
Dick was a once-in-a-lifetime friend: a multi-faceted, uniquely interesting man who was deeply loved, cherished, and treasured. He is truly irreplaceable.
Dickie Lau, you repeatedly told us “you ain’t gettin’ outta here alive.” For once, we were really hoping to prove you wrong.
