This summer a new kind of business arrived in Hoboken, transforming 650 Newark Street into a studio dedicated to a rare artistic medium: neon. Inside, artisans with decades of experience bend glass tubes into letters and other shapes, then illuminate them with the dazzling gas.
While the family-run business is new to Hoboken, you might already be familiar with its work: Manhattan Neon has created neon, LED, and other large-format signs for iconic New York City landmarks like Madame Tussauds as well as hip brands like SoulCycle, Anthropologie, and Intermix. Film and television production companies also come to Manhattan Neon when they’re building sets — Amazon Prime’s Emmy-winning show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel rented a vintage General Electric sign, a clock, and other pieces from the shop. Keep reading for more about this one-of-a-kind business that’s found a new home in Hoboken.
The Story
Marilyn Tomasso grew up in the sign-making business. Her family started a sign company after World War II, and her husband, Pat, started working for them after they married. Then, in 1984, the couple branched out and started Manhattan Neon. Their son, Peter, joined the company after college.
Everything changed this year — after 35 years in Manhattan, their building, Chelsea Terminal {near Hudson Yards}, was purchased by a new owner, and their lease renewal unexpectedly fell through. The family struggled to find a new home for their business in the city. That’s when they decided to set up shop in Peter’s longtime home, Hoboken. Manhattan Neon’s entire staff followed them.
“It turned out to be a blessing,” Marilyn said.
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The Space
The first thing guests will notice when they enter the white building at 650 Newark Street is a wall of a dozen neon clocks. It’s Marilyn’s collection. Over the years, she’s acquired commercial clocks from gas stations and antique clocks from a famous Cleveland company. The Manhattan Neon team refurbishes them.
“It’s wonderful to get an old one,” she says. “If the neon doesn’t work or the clock motor is gone, it doesn’t matter. It’s fixable.”
Garage-style glass doors let plenty of natural light into the studio’s front room, which also contains rows of wooden work tables. Marquee signs that say “MACY’S,” “LIQUORS,” and “D’Aiuto Baby Watson Cheesecake” stretch across the walls.
In another room, designers map out new projects beneath a white neon sign that says “POWER.” A hallway leads to another room where a worker blows into an instrument attached to a glass tube. Nearly every inch of wall space is lined with more neon signs of all shapes and sizes.
The Process
Neon signs are the product of a complicated handmade art. The signage style exploded in popularity in the 1940s but fell out of favor by the 1970s, replaced by plastic signs with fluorescent bulbs. Now, interest in neon is resurfacing.
To create a neon sign, a worker known as a glass or tube bender blows into a straight glass tube while heating it over a flame. When a portion of the glass becomes soft and pliable enough, the bender moves it to a non-flammable surface and manipulates it into the desired shape. The process is repeated until the shape is complete, then electrodes are added to the ends of the tube. Gas fills the tube and an electric current makes it glow.
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At Home in Hoboken
Manhattan Neon has worked with plenty of famous clients, but anyone — from local business owners in need of vinyl signs for an event to brides-to-be interested in a unique piece of wedding decor — can order a custom sign.
{Photo credit: @80riverhoboken}
Restaurants and other local businesses have already started working with Manhattan Neon. For example, 80 River Bar and Kitchen {previously Cadillac Cantina} opened in September and has already become an Instagram backdrop, thanks to a custom Manhattan Neon pink sign over the staircase that reads “Keep it sexy Hoboken.”
“Peter wants to do every neon in Hoboken,” Marilyn says, laughing. “It’s our neighborhood now. It’s our community.”
Have you ordered anything from Manhattan Neon yet? Let us know in the comments!
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