Leo Zuckerman

Leo was born in Vienna, Austria to Frieda Teichler Zuckerman and Jacob Zuckerman.

His sister Zita arrived seven years later. He remembered his early years in Vienna as being idyllic, frequently surrounded by a large extended family. His father was a tailor and his mother a homemaker. They lived well and were happy.

In late 1938, the life that they had known came to an abrupt halt due to Kristallnacht.

His father’s tailor shop was destroyed, and his family was forced to flee the country without their belongings. They were fortunate to have Frieda’s family in New York, which allowed them to immigrate to the United States. Tragically, most of the extended Zuckerman family that remained, later perished.

Upon immigration to the U.S., Leo’s childhood in Brooklyn began and it proved to be quite a struggle due to the language barrier. Later, even as he assimilated, he always felt his childhood was cut short and that his parents, Frieda and Jacob, never overcame the hardships that they had been forced to endure.

At an early age, Leo discovered a love of chemistry, and he was very proficient in math. He attended P.S. 64, P.S. 149 and Jefferson High School. Admittedly, he would say he was only a fair student due to a lack of motivation, until his Senior year in high school when he decided to apply himself to his studies. Upon graduation he was accepted into Adelphi College, which he attended for two years and later matriculated to the University of Delaware, where he graduated in 1952 with a BA in Chemical Engineering.

Leo’s time at the University of Delaware was facilitated by the Jewish League. He was sponsored by Arline and Phillip Kasakove, to whom he was eternally grateful. While at the University he joined the Jewish Fraternity AEPi and met his college sweetheart Geraldine (Geri) Weinorth. Leo and Geri later married and lived a happy life for 15 years. They had four sons, Robert, Frederic, J Scott, and Charles.

Leo’s early career started at the Dupont Company, in Wilmington, Delaware. He was there for just a short time before being drafted into the Army during the Korean War.

He was stationed at Fort Huachuca, Arizona and thankfully was never deployed. Due to his background in chemical engineering, he was tasked with testing and studying battlefield air quality.

When his Army assignment was complete, Leo was hired by the Callory Chemical Corporation in Oklahoma. There he was in charge of taking a boron fuel product from the test tube through a pilot plant all the way to full production. This product was for the B1 Bomber. The project was eventually cancelled in 1958 which sent Leo on a mission looking for another job.

General Dynamics in San Diego, CA was hiring, so Leo travelled to San Diego and instantly fell in love with the city. He vowed to remain in San Diego one way or another and thankfully he was hired for the position. His work for General Dynamics included again taking a product (high temperature resin) from research to production. During his time at General Dynamics, it was Leo’s dream to own his own business, so he saved up and invested his money to make that dream a reality.

At the beginning of 1962, Leo bought a small company from George Merry, named Merry X-Ray Co. and as they say…the rest is History. Under Leo’s leadership for over 50 years, he transformed this small x-ray janitorial service company with 1 employee (himself) to a company with hundreds of employees. Merry X-Ray became his legacy…the Company remains in the family, currently being run by his son Chip, and continues successfully to this day. Now known as MXR Imaging, Inc., the company employs over 400 people and has a footprint in every state nationwide.

Along with his passion for business, Leo extensively enjoyed life and his many phases within it. His love of dancing led him to immerse himself in the "disco" era of the '70s.

He even opened his own nightclub called "Maxis" in Mission Valley. It was during this time that he met many of his lifelong friends.

In 1984, Leo met Emma Brunetto and after a whirlwind courtship they were married.

They were truly the love of each other’s lives and were happily married for over forty years.

Together they lived life to the fullest. They traveled the world and later enjoyed trips to New York, Las Vegas, and Hawaii on rotation. They frequently attended the theatre both locally and in New York, the opera, and also enjoyed concerts of many genres.

Leo was a member of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club for close to fifty years. He was a passionate racing fan who attended the races daily every season for most of those years. Leo enjoyed the challenge of handicapping, meeting up with friends, and entertaining at the racetrack. It was truly his happy place that never got old and became a part of his persona.

Leo also belonged to the Young President’s Organization (YPO), the Chief Executives Organization and served as Chairman for other organizations throughout his years. All these organizations, but especially YPO, helped him realize his dreams for his company and along the way garner meaningful lifelong friendships.

Leo and Emma cherished time with their family and friends and took great pleasure in celebrating all of life’s special occasions with their loved ones. Leo and his sons have been an integral part of the Brunetto Family. He brought a lot of joy into everyone’s life through his sense of humor and he lit up every room with his zest for life.

Leo lived a truly remarkable life in every sense of the word. He succeeded in all that he aspired to do and above all he was loved.

Leo is survived by his beloved wife Emma, his children Bob, Scott (Kim), Chip (Sarah), and grandson Jacob. Predeceased by his son Fred Zuckerman on May 8, 2023.

He is also survived by his sister Zita Liebermensch, her children and grandchildren; Emma’s siblings, John, Domenic (Helene), Ben (Celina), Dorothy (Nino); numerous nieces, nephews, and great-nieces and nephews.

Services will be held on Thursday, March 6th at Our Lady of the Rosary Church, 1668 State Street San Diego, CA 92101, at 9:00am. Interment to follow at Holy Cross Cemetery 4470 Hilltop Drive, San Diego, CA 92102.

In lieu of flowers the family suggests donations in honor of Leo be made to Jewish Family Service, San Diego Humane Society or the San Diego Police Foundation. All organizations to which Fred volunteered his time and talents.