Personal life and death[edit]

Rick was married to the former Sydelle Helfgott, who also served as vice president for his company, Sklar Communications. They had two children: a son Scott and a daughter Holly and three grandchildren: Emily, Samantha and Jacob.


Prior to his death, Sklar had been an avid runner for more than ten years, taking it up in the late 1970s. He ran his first New York City Marathon in 1982, finishing 4 hours, 21 minutes, and 36 seconds; coming in 642nd out of 857 who finished the race in his age group. He began to have problems with his left foot, which necessitated him quitting the sport by 1990.^[4]


In June 1992, he entered Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan for a minor operation that would allow him to run again. Although in good health, he died on the operating table due to a lack of oxygen and other mistakes made by the hospital staff.^[5][3]