My condolences to his family and friends.

RIP Al. What a fantastic guy and a fantastic pinball guy. Many times I have interacted with Al in person and that many more times on the phone. The phrase "he will be missed" is used all of the time, but it will never apply more than it does in this case. Godspeed my friend!

Which one is he?

Very sorry to read this. My condolances. I met him several times at various shows. I remember having luch with him and Jack during Pinball Expo. We're all pinball enthusiasts, but he really was enthusiastic about the game. RIP

A true NYC legend…when he called me 20 years ago and asked for help on his dimension I had zero clue the crazy couple of decades that would follow.

RIP Al. Whenever there were pinball machines or friends around there was a smile on his face.
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Damn…this is not fair.

Just hung out with him in November.
I first met him while I was on leave from active duty in the military. He was driving a Mini Cooper and servicing games in NYC. The dude had a ton of stories and I’d always make a point to call/text him whenever I was in NY or at a pin show. He always made sure to take care of his mom. I hope she’s ok.
I’m going to miss you AL and your strong will.
Fck!
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RIP AL. Yes a true gentleman n LEGEND...

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Damn.

Very sorry to hear. Talked to him often when he needed tech help.

RIP AL. My condolences you your family and loved one.

LTG : (
Disclaimer : I will miss you my friend.

What a terrible loss.

He supported my show and bought a shirt back in September! One of only 3 people who reached out to buy one who didn’t go. Really cool of him to support us like that.

RIP pinaholic
Enjoy that great arcade in the sky, Al!

My first encounter with Al was one for the books. I meet Al five minutes before getting in my friends truck to drive to Chicago from New York.. first impressions were not great.. he was shot out of a cannon that day... I was thinking, oh boy, this is going to be a LOOOONG drive... By the time we pulled into Chicago.... We were all thick as thieves and I had a life long friend... Al's passion for pinball was unparalleled.. never have I met someone so into pinball in my life. Our second outing to Chicago Al couldn't drive out so he flew in, without a hotel reservation so Me and my friend Dennis put AL up in our hotel room we bought a cot and the madness begun... Al made everything an Adventure.. Al got us a private tour to the Stern factory where he let everyone know what he thought about the quality of their parts.... I could go on.... he was a legend.

You will be missed Uncle AL.. we lost a brother today...

Gutted.
Harry.

One of the true characters in the hobby.
RIP sir..

Oh no

I talked to him at pretty much every show I went to and hosted. Interesting guy and certainly an enthusiastic pinhead. He'll be missed

Only met Al a few times but it was always a pleasure. Sad to hear of his passing and I hope it as painless and easy.

Ive taken at least 100 road trips in my 54 years,but that one will always be my favorite

The legend….and Slash, backstage at MSG October 2019 I believe.

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Sad day indeed. Al was a fixture at every pinball show and his crazy antics were sure to make you laugh. I first met him at Kevin's shop where he was a fixture. Good person with a good soul. Rest in peace,.Al.

Rip al his legacy will live forever!!!! i met al at Chicago expo years ago he smelt the sticky icky coming out of my pocket we instantly became freinds and were smoking Cali “his stories were hypnotic if you new him you know exactly what I mean pinball truly lost a legend he will be truly be missed

So so sorry to hear - Alan was always fun to be around at shows and LIVED for pinball. And yes he was a piece of work in the best of ways - you always knew a good time was ahead when you saw him coming ! I will miss you bud !
Joe

Al and I spoke on the phone and messaged each other monthly. Thought I’d never met him in person, I wish I would have had the chance.
I could tell he was a character by our phone conversions.
He also supported my restoration business PinBall ReBorn and became the first person to own two of my restorations.
From time to time, he would say how much he was enjoying them.
He liked to give advice on tools he’d discovered.
Recently, he was going to send me some LED bulb samples to try out from Sunny Chen.
I didn’t realize he was so well known and loved in the pinball community…but it doesn’t surprise me.
Rest in peace buddy.

Smoke a fat J and enjoy a slice of the best pizza you can find in his honor tonight please.

I never met Al but he was always asking me to repair a bunch of his EM machines. I did his Astro in the beginning of this year and he was so happy to have it in his collection. Nice guy and I’m sure will be missed by all.

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A true legend and a great friend he will be truly missed
Always was a great time hanging with Al and partying
I'll be wearing my Pinball Rasta shirt in his honor
RIP my friend

Damn sad day. When I 1st started collecting and only had one pin at home Uncle Al was kind enough to leave pins at different locations in the city just to share pinball. A true pinball legend. I'll raise a glass and smoke a bowl in your honor. Rest in Peace Al

I first met Al and some of his NYC co-conspirators at Expo in 2011, which will always be a special memory for me and my family. Al was so friendly, enthusiastic, and welcoming to clueless big-event noobs like me and my young son. I was always glad to catch up with Al at later events. I wish his family comfort and peace.

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Al was a fun guy, true ambassador to pinball, a customer as well as a friend.

I’ll miss the conversations for sure. A sad day for pinball

Such terrible news.

Whenever I saw him at any show I always knew it was going to be a great few days. His cheery disposition and boundless enthusiasm was just so infectious you couldn't help but be uplifted.

RIP Al. Shows won't be the same without you.

Thanks for posting this picture, Joe...I've never seen it and I'm the ugly bastard in the middle blessed to be sandwiched by two incredible guys. I last saw Al at Pinfest--he was there with Eddie Cramer (the two of them are pictured just above this post)--and you never know when it'll be the last time you see somebody. I wish I had talked to him more, but as always, I was in a mad rush to get somewhere.

Thanks for all the laughs in the short time we spent together, Al--you've left a huge hole in the pinball community, especially here on the east coast.

Stumbled across this video. Seemed like such a good dude. RIP

https://vimeo.com/224694214

Al was my friend and I will miss him dearly He was a true pinhead. Sometimes we would talk for hours and it was always only about pinball. Rest In Peace my friend I will never forget you.

Oh Shit. This sucks.

I met Al as a Customer, and then in Person, thanks to Joe, and the folks at Pintastic.

Talk about a first impression! Whenever we met again, we would share that smile,
as a result of a mind blowing water gun fight with the Hot Lady behind the carnival game,
and the forever navigation to make it to dinner, and back to the hotel.

Im smiling at the memory....I wish I could share more.
Ill "Toast" Al in a moment.

My wife was found of him, and the time we spent.

Im sad. RIP, my friend.

As it is mine my friend

Very Sorry to hear this

I have held email conversations with Al and he was always very pleasant and passionate about pinball

Saddened to read. Met him a few times at shows and always had an enjoyable chat. Rest In Peace Al.

Does anyone know the cause? UPDATE: Al told his brother last night he was sick with COVID. They found him today. Damn.

Al was an awesome dude! Always great hanging with him at all the shows he will be missed! RIP Pinball Rasta!

NYC, and the pinball world as a whole, just became a little less fun. RIP, buddy.

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Al was hilarious. A genuine guy you would happy to call your friend. Never one to mince words, he brought life to any event. The hobby lost a titan today. As the largest operator in NYC, if you found a machine in Manhattan or parts of Brooklyn, it was likely his.

Hope he's hanging out with Dahlia up there. They are/will missed.

I am very saddened by this. Through pintech I became close with Al this year. I am lucky enough to say that I purchased 2 games from him, my #MET Pro and #TSPP. They just became a little more meaningful to me.

Tonight's flipping will only be on the 2 pins that were Al's, all the rest will be off.

RIP Al.

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Al was a great guy and always wanted to help grow pinball and help me out too. Always super nice, enthusiastic and helpful. I missed a call from him yesterday morning, texted back later and never got a response... wish I had a chance to talk to him again. Going to bust out my Pinball Rasta shirt.

RIP Al

Never met Al, but saw him at just about every show I’ve ever attended as well as recognized his enthusiastic presence on forums over the years. All pinball, no drama kinda guy (and apparently quite feisty in real life). A bulb just went out on The Pinball Playfield. Rest In Peace, Al.

Never met him either but seeing all these testimonials and pics from you guys is cool. Good mojo and condolences sent to all who were friends with Al, seems like he had many.

I first stumbled upon Al outside Modern Pinball just before Christmas of 2014. It was SantaCon in NYC that day/night. My buddy pre-ordered a Big Lebowski at Expo a few weeks prior and Modern was hosting a VIP, Early Achiever party. We struck up a conversation outside, while I was smoking a cigarette. My first impression was literally WTF is this guys deal.

While talking, a “Drunken Santa” dropped his pants and began to relieve himself a few feet from where we were standing. Al and I just looked at each other and were dumbfounded. Little did I know that this chance encounter with this guy with a cane, who had no “filter” would turn into a friendship.

In the years to come, as we attended many of the shows, the first thing on my mind was finding Alan, above anything else. He was always the highlight of our “pinball” trips. What truly amazed me was the fact that it didn’t matter if you brokered million dollar deals or shoveled shit for a living, Al was your friend. As long as you were talking pinball, nothing else mattered.

Rest In Peace my dear friend, I will find you on the other side, you can count on it !!

Danny

That's a really cool way to honor him. He would appreciate that a lot.

So sad to hear this. R.I.P. Al.

I met Al on opening day of Modern Pinball NYC. Within minutes I felt like I was speaking to a close friend … he was such a great person to talk to. He stayed in touch over the years. Crushed to hear of his passing.

This is really sad news. I have met Al several times and he was a lot of fun to be around. Always joking, he gave me a lot of good laughs. I will miss seeing him at shows

My thoughts and prayers go out to his friends and family. I first met Al about a year ago when I bought a hobbit from him. We had several long conversations and boy did he have some entertaining stories. Al was quite a character and such a nice guy. I had really hoped to run into him in the future, this was certainly some sad news to see.

Every Expo we would sit in my room and smoke out, and I'd listen to him tell the most incredible, funny stories.
This is just numbing.