Milton Friedman
Nobel-Prize Winning Economist

Milton Friedman, one of the nation's leading economists, won the Nobel Prize in 1976. He was a major voice against government intervention in the economy, promoting his ideas in a bestselling book, Free to Choose, which he wrote with his wife, Rose. Born in Brooklyn, he grew up in Rahway. He earned his bachelor's degree from Rutgers, a master's degree from the University of Chicago, and a doctorate from Columbia University. While at Rutgers, he studied under Professor Arthur F. Burns, later the chairman of the Federal Reserve and an advocate of the monetarist school of economics, which maintains that the economic cycle is determined more by money supply and interest rates than by fiscal policy.

Mr. Friedman, known for his fierce intellectual integrity, has turned away offers of government positions, fearing that his principles might prevent his carrying out administration objectives. He was a former president of the American Economic Association, a member of the research staff of the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a former triweekly columnist for Newsweek. Mr. Friedman taught at the University of Chicago, where he promoted the Chicago school of economics. In 1998, Mr. Friedman and his wife published Two Lucky People: Memoirs. Prior to his recent death, he was been a senior research fellow at the Hoover Institute of Stanford University.