A Brash Embodiment of the City He Led

Edward I. Koch, the master showman of City Hall, who parlayed shrewd political instincts and plenty of chutzpah into three tumultuous terms as New York's mayor with all the tenacity, zest and combativeness that personified his city of golden dreams

NEW YORK – Former Mayor Ed Koch, the combative, acid-tongued politician who rescued the city from near-financial ruin during a three-term City Hall run in which he embodied New York chutzpah for the rest of the world, died Friday. He was 88. Koch died

I WAS a late arrival to the Ed Koch fan club. I grew up in a liberal, Jewish, Bella Abzug-loving household, and my parents spoke of him with a level of contempt they usually reserved for Republicans. Centrist Democrats are a dime a dozen these days

Ed Koch, the legendary three-term mayor of New York City between 1978 and 1989, discusses signature moments from his long political career and city life in an interview recorded in 2012. He died on Friday morning in Manhattan at 88 years old. Photo: AP

Ed Koch -- one of the most popular mayors in New York City history -- died early this morning at the age of 88.Koch had been hospitalized earlier this…