John Kenneth Galbraith -- social economist, Harvard professor, diplomat -- is dead at 97. His work influenced Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, as well as generations of U.S. politicians. He spoke with NPR's Howard Berkes in 1999.

The 6-foot-8 Galbraith literally towered over many of the people he brushed paths with over his astonishingly long career. He tells Berkes that his role as supervisor of price controls during World War II was the height of his official power. But his influence lives on.

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