Former New York Mayor Ed Koch dies at 88

Mike L. 

Big Apple's legendary Jewish mayor dies of congestive heart failure after years of repeated hospitalizations

Former Mayor Edward Koch, who presided over New York City during the turbulent late 1970s and '80s and came to personify the city with his wry and outspoken style, died on Friday at the age of 88, his spokesman said.

As mayor from 1978 to 1989, the forceful, quick-witted Koch, with his trademark phrase "How'm I Doing?," was a polarizing figure and the city's constant promoter.

Koch died of congestive heart failure at about 2 am at New York-Presbyterian hospital after a year of repeated hospitalizations, the spokesman for Koch said.

Peace to you, please, Ed Koch.

In my imagination he will always be the mayor of New York.