government<\/a> affairs.<\/p>\nDavidoff made one of his first marks in local politics during the anti-war unrest of the 1960s. In 1968, he was instrumental in resolving a high-profile incident at Columbia University and is credited with negotiating the release of Dean Henry Coleman, who was being held captive inside the school\u2019s occupied Hamilton Hall.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The historic incident was a flashpoint of the tumultuous era, indicative of the widespread anti-war and civil rights movements that defined the late 1960s in the United States.<\/p>\n
Sid Davidoff was a \u2018full-living guy\u2019<\/p>\n
Davidoff is survived by his wife, Linda Stasi, a popular journalist, who told City&State that her husband was \u201cbrilliantly smart\u201d and graduated law school at an earlier age than his peers, at the top of his class.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a tough guy, a genuine New York character\u2026 who was just the sweetest, kindest person in the world,\u201d she said. \u201cHe was so kind to everyone and so generous to everyone, from his family to his friends to anybody that needed anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Friends and colleagues described Davidoff as a political savant\u2014a street-smart master of NYC\u2019s intricate machinery, but with a big, warm personality.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just knew the pulse and measure of this city, right down to the ground. He was a natural political operative,\u201d friend and former co-worker Steve Isenberg told amNewYork. \u201cHe was a very warm, funny, irreverent, get-to-the-point-of-it person. He was a full-living guy.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to having a prominent role in NYC politics, Davidoff started the law firm of Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, which specializes in government relations matters.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was one of the few people who could operate between mayors and governors,\u201d Isenberg said. \u201cHe knew how government worked.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Finding love, and Lindsay<\/p>\n
Richard Esposito \u2014 a long-time communications strategist and outside editorial director for Schneps Media, amNewYork\u2019s parent company \u2014 recalled that his friend was instantly smitten when he first met his wife Linda while they worked at New York Newsday. Esposito was the city editor; Stasi was their gossip columnist.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was there when he was struck down by Linda Stasi\u2019s beauty, and witnessed a courtship as passionate and consuming as one could ever imagine,\u201d Esposito said. \u201cMy heart goes out to her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Esposito described his friend as a political powerhouse and an iconic figure in NYC.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cA weightlifter, and a heavyweight power broker,\u201d he said. \u201cStarting back during the administration of Mayor John Lindsay, Sid became a central, and central casting, part of the character of New York.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having made President Richard Nixon\u2019s list of political enemies, Davidoff did not shy away from voicing his opinions.\n<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was very much an unpretentious, no bull s\u2013t but very forceful guy,\u201d Isenberg shared. \u201cHe had a lot of insight into exactly what made the wheels turn and who made the wheels turn. He campaigned for hours and hours by Lindsay\u2019s side.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
And he loved his career, Isenberg said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\u201cHe sustained himself on the New York political scene for decades. Many of us went on to other things. He remained in the central life of New York politics and government, city and state. He remained a player. He loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Current politicians expressed their condolences on Davidoff\u2019s passing, some sharing that he was a legend.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
Davidoff\u2019s death prompted an outpouring of remembrances from current politicians, some of whom hailed him as a legendary figure in local politics.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\u201cSid was a legend. Warm, tough and always generous with his time. A true salt-of-the-earth New Yorker,\u201d NYC Council Member Justin Brannan said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
State Attorney General Letitia James described him as a \u201cbrilliant government worker and a great person.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
Davidoff\u2019s death marks the loss of a characteristic voice in New York\u2019s political and governmental scene.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sid Davidoff, an iconic figure in NYC\u2019s political scene for six decades with a start in former Mayor…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42612,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[98,24523,9,24,55,54,56,1260,87,23109],"class_list":["post-42611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-brooklyn","tag-mayor-john-lindsay","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-headlines","tag-new-york-city-news","tag-ny","tag-nyc-politics","tag-politics","tag-sid-davidoff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42611"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42611\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/42612"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"man](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Sid-Davidoff-Partner-Davidoff-Hutcher-and-Citron-LLP-NY-Law-Firm-NYC.webp\" "\\"Sid")
\t\t\t<\/p>\n