David E. "Ned" Skinner II (1920 – August 7, 1988) was a shipping heir and philanthropist in
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
who was one of the first owners of the
Space Needle
The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center f ...
and
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...
.
He was born in Seattle and attended Lakeside School. He was the grandson of David E. Skinner (1867–1933) who owned the
Skinner & Eddy
The Skinner & Eddy Corporation, commonly known as Skinner & Eddy, was a Seattle, Washington-based shipbuilding corporation that existed from 1916 to 1923. The yard is notable for completing more ships for the United States war effort during Worl ...
shipyard, the Pacific Steamship Co., and the
Port Blakely Mill Company
Blakely Harbor is an inlet on the east shore of Bainbridge Island, Washington, south of Eagle Harbor Eagle Harbor may refer to several places in the United States:
* Eagle Harbor, a development on Fleming Island, Florida
* Eagle Harbor, Maryland, ...
. Skinner graduated
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
in 1942 and served aboard a destroyer during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. He married Kayla Lagasa in 1942.
After the death of his father G. W. Skinner in 1953, he took over the
Alaska Steamship Company
The Alaska Steamship Company was formed on August 3, 1894. While it originally set out to ship passengers and fishing products, the Alaska Steamship Company began shipping mining equipment, dog sleds, and cattle at the outbreak of the Klondike G ...
. When it went into decline ultimately closing in 1971 he branched into real estate with the Skinner Corporation owning the Skinner Building and
5th Avenue Theatre
The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in Seattle's Skinner Building, in the U.S. state of Washington. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land are owned b ...
,
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961.
History
Pepsi was ...
Herman Sarkowsky
Herman Sarkowsky (June 9, 1925 – November 2, 2014) was a Seattle, Washington, United States businessman, philanthropist, thoroughbred breeder, and former sports executive. He was a co-founder of two Pacific Northwest sports franchises, the Portl ...
were the two original investors in the
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...
as they formed the organization Seattle Professional Football. They would be joined by four others. After the NFL awarded the franchise to Seattle the group formed a partnership with the
Nordstrom
Nordstrom, Inc. () is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin in 1901. The original Wallin & Nordstrom store operated exclusively as a shoe store, and ...
family having controlling interest.
Skinner was active in philanthropies throughout Seattle noting:
:If all corporations gave just two percent of their pre-tax earnings there isn't a school, hospital, retirement home or museum that would have to conduct a fund-raising drive. The money would be there.
Among his philanthropies were the Seattle Opera, the
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) is a ballet company based in Seattle, Washington, in the United States. It is said to have the highest per capita attendance in the United States, with 11,000 subscribers in 2004.
The company consists of 49 dan ...
, the
Seattle Repertory Theater
Seattle Repertory Theatre (familiarly known as "The Rep") is a major regional theatre located in Seattle, Washington, at the Seattle Center. It is a member of Theatre Puget SoundPacific Science Center, and Seattle Art Museum. He founded the Skinner Foundation in 1956 and donated 5 percent of the Skinner Corporation's profits to the foundation.