Irving Kristol, the political writer and publisher who died Sept. 18 at age 89, was remembered for his youthful radicalism that evolved into an emphatic rejection of communism and the counterculture, giving him the moniker of “the godfather of neo-conservatism.”

“His wisdom, wit, good humor and generosity of spirit made him a friend and mentor to several generations of thinkers and public servants,” said the editors of the conservative Weekly Standard magazine in announcing its founder’s death on its Web site. Kristol died of complications from lung cancer.

Irving Kristol

Born in New York City in 1920, Kristol was at first similar to so many other children of Jewish immigrants — passionate about books and allied with the working class, a teenager during the Great Depression.

After serving in World War II, he returned to New York and was hired to edit Commentary, then a liberal publication, and contributed reviews on religion and philosophy and other subjects.

But Kristol left his liberal views behind as he became increasingly disillusioned by the perceived failures of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society and the rise of crime, drug abuse and other problems that government programs were supposed to solve.

He was a flagship in the network of think tanks, media outlets and corporations that helped make conservatism a reigning ideology for at least two decades.

Vice President Dick Cheney was a longtime admirer, and President George W. Bush awarded Kristol a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002.

Active in publishing for more than half a century, Kristol wrote essays and reviews for the New Leader and Commentary; released several books and co-founded a seminal neo-conservative journal, the Public Interest. He was a contributor to the Wall Street Journal and a fellow at a key think tank, the American Enterprise Institute.

Kristol also taught at New York University, among other accomplishments.