Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch died on Friday. He was 88.

George Arzt, a spokesman for Koch, said he died at 2AM at New York-Presbyterian hospital. A funeral will be held on Monday at Temple Emanu-El in Manhattan.

Koch, a Democrat, ran New York City for 12 years, during which time he saved the city from near-financial ruin.

After leaving City Hall in 1990, Koch battled assorted health problems.

Opinionated and bombastic, Koch was equally loved and loathed.

“You punch me, I punch back,” he once said. “I do not believe it's good for one's self-respect to be a punching bag.”

A lifelong bachelor, Koch championed gay rights, but refused to discuss his sexual orientation.

“My answer to questions on this subject is simply, 'fuck off.' There have to be some private matters left,” he once said.

In speaking to The New York Times, he explained: “I do not want to add to the acceptability of asking every candidate, 'Are you straight or gay or lesbian?' and make it a legitimate question, so I don't submit to that question. I don't care if people think I'm gay because I don't answer it. I'm flattered that at 84 people are interested in my sex life – and, it's quite limited.”

He also became the target of AIDS activists, who argued that the mayor was slow in his response to the epidemic out of fear of being outed.