William Safire

William Lewis Safire (Safir; December 17, 1929 – September 27, 2009) was an American author, columnist, journalist, and presidential speechwriter. He was a syndicated political columnist for The New York Times and wrote the popular 'On Language' column in The New York Times Magazine. Safire was born in New York City to a Jewish family of Romanian origin. He graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and attended the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University before dropping out. Safire delivered commencement addresses at Syracuse in 1978 and 1990 and later became a trustee.