On February 18th, 2020 Frank Spencer Salacuse, loving husband and father of two passed away at age 79.
Frank was born in Niagara Falls, New York USA on November 17th, 1940 but he was a citizen of the world.
As a young man he dreamed of bigger things; A grade school teacher told his mother ‘Frank would be better off fishing’.
And so he did. He set out to fish for himself. He became a salesman. A very successful one at that. Anyone who met Frank knew that
he had a disarming charm that made people feel immediately comfortable in his presence. This was no sales pitch. This was who he was
and it happens to be the same exact quality that makes for an exceptional salesman.
After mastering the hardest part of salesmanship, the door slam, he decided to go into business for himself. He and a dear friend started Arbor Packaging where they
utilized the new technology of 'blister packaging' and packed other people’s products. He again went fishing. He flew to Japan in search of the thing. Always in search of the
thing. There he found it. He would call it Super Glue. In business he built his reputation on being fair. In a world where being fair can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars,
he chose honesty and fairness because it was an extension of who he was as a person.
He would teach his sons to fish too. When he saw his eldest son Adam rummaging though a Brooklyn comic book store trying to scrape the money together to buy a $12 X-Men book, Frank saw something. Again, always searching. Was it something from his childhood? Was it something he wanted for his son? Was it an investment? It was all three. Detective 27. The first appearance of Batman. A rare comic book. He was hooked. Frank went on to build one of the preeminent comic book collections in the world from the ground up. Detective 27, Marvel 1, Spiderman 1-100. In the guide books there is still a copy of Marvel 1 called ‘The Salacuse Edition.'
He was a good father. A dear husband and a great friend.
He is preceded in death by his parents, William Salacuse and Bessie Salacuse. His younger sister Anne Salacuse. His second wife Marcy Goldstein.
He is survived by his loving wife Catherine Salacuse (Ruhle), his sons Adam and Matthew Salacuse, stepdaughter Laetitia Franzini Jacquin, his three grandchildren Maiya, Violetta and Charlie Salacuse and his brother Jeswald Salacuse.
He will be greatly missed by all who knew him.
A memorial will be held in September 2020. Please look here for the announced date and place.