Illustration by Riccardo Vecchio

Howard Rubenstein
WHO: President
WHAT: Rubenstein Associates
He’s variously described as a fixer, an agent, a hired gun, and the dean of damage control. Broadly speaking, Howard Rubenstein gets paid to dull the jagged edges of the city’s Establishment. His specialty is relationships, providing access, making introductions, trading information—a one-man Facebook for the city’s aging elite, generations of mayors and governors, real-estate heavy hitters, labor unions, the largest cultural institutions, and, of course, the Yankees. But it’s a social network that matters. Last year, at the age of 76, Rubenstein helped engineer Bloomberg’s term-limits putsch.

“He’s one of the few people who has maintained political and personal power throughout Republican and Democratic administrations and generations,” says Randi Weingarten.

Related:

• Archive: “Cover Story”
• Articles by Jacob Gershman | Chris Smith
• Table of Contents: Oct 26, 2009 issue of New York | Subscribe!