Ray Kottner, New York's iconic "Taxi Ray," died June 14 of a heart attack on the sidewalk beside his cab. He was 82.

Born in the city in 1926, Kottner was the middle child, between two sisters. At 19, he was drafted into General Patton's Third Army in World War II, and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

Kottner started at Columbia upon his return to study veterinary medicine but left to become a taxi driver when he became unable to cope with the aftereffects of his military service.


A lifelong New Yorker who drove taxis for over 60 years until the day he died, Kottner saw the city evolve and grow around him even as he and his old Checker taxi remained a constant.

"He really loved his job," said Mustafa Saleh, a store owner in Hell's Kitchen who knew him.

Since the Taxi and Limousine Commission took away his medallion five years ago, Kottner had been giving free rides to anybody who hailed his taxi. Instead, he accepted only tips-but he said he made more money that way than he would have from fares.

He acted as Hell's Kitchen's neighborhood chauffeur, driving residents anywhere around the city they wanted.

He also was known to help local shop owners like Saleh by carrying merchandise in the back of his cab.

Felix Miller, the day manager at one of Kottner's favorite restaurants, Hallo Berlin, considered Kottner like family.
"He's like your uncle. He would always put a smile on your face," Miller said.

Miller recalled taking rides in Kottner's iconic 1982 Checker taxi cab-one of the last cars the Checker Taxi Company made before ceasing production in 1982. Kottner, a Checker devotee, bought his last cab two years ago from a seller in North Carolina after the 1976 Checker taxi cab he had owned for six years broke down.

Kottner paid close attention to politics and policy throughout the five boroughs and beyond.

"He was a prodigious reader. He read and retained everything," said Jeanne Merlino, Kottner's younger sister.
A big fan of Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Kottner had a sign made for the top of his taxi promoting "Bloomberg for President." But as Bloomberg continued denying interest in the 2008 election throughout 2006 and 2007, Kottner changed the sign to "Bloomberg Won't Run, Soooo... Taxi Ray for President."

He even carved out a platform, which in a February 2007 interview with City Hall he outlined as focused on his own proposals for fighting crime and expanding renewable energy. As of then, he said he had already collected 19 votes.
"If Bloomberg won't change the world," Kottner said at the time, "then Taxi Ray will."

Kottner has already been cremated and his ashes placed at Ferncliff Cemetery in Westchester. His taxi, however, remains where Kottner last parked it on 45th Street between 10th and 11th Avenues, the rooftop sign still declaring his candidacy. Its fate for now remains unknown.

Robert Santoro, Kottner's nephew, said the family plans to sell the famed Checker cab, committed to keeping it out of a junkyard.

"It's too good for that," he said.