In Memoriam: Albert Sklar

Albert Sklar, who created a line of neon products under the Absko name and a member of the California Sign Assn., passed away June 15 at his home in Sun City West, AZ. He was 83.

When he was 13, Al had a part-time job sweeping the floors at Philadelphia’s Meco Signs. He volunteered for active duty during World War II and when he returned, took a union apprenticeship. He was a journeyman tubebender by the time he was 22.

By the late 1950s, Al moved to San Diego, where he worked as a glassblower at various neon shops. He also opened one of the first wholesale plastics companies in the city.

His father having been an actor with the Yiddish Theatre, Al began a theatrical career in 1962 in San Diego. By the 1990s, he’d been on nearly every stage in the city. He also appeared on TV shows such as Mission Impossible and the film Attack of the Killer Tomatoes.

In 1982, Al and wife Barbara opened a wholesale neon shop, Neon by Sklar, which they ran for 20 years.

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He invented and patented a borosilicate glass insulator, which he called G* cups, and went on to invent the C.P.A housing, the GG* cups and a whole line of products under the company name Absko Products (a combination of the words Al, Barb Sklar and company).

He is survived by his wife, Barbara, and daughter Ruth Sheila.