Jack French Kemp (1935-2009) was born in Los Angeles, California, and excelled as a quarterback at Occidental College before a professional football career. Drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957, he played briefly for the San Francisco 49ers and in the Canadian Football League, but achieved greatest success with the Buffalo Bills of the American Football League (AFL) from 1962 to 1969, leading them to two AFL championships and earning multiple All-Star honors. Kemp served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army from 1959 to 1960. After retiring from football due to injury, he entered broadcasting and business in Buffalo, New York. Transitioning to politics in the 1970s, Kemp advocated for supply-side economics, tax cuts, and enterprise zones to combat urban poverty. He served as a U.S. Representative from New York, ran unsuccessfully for the 1988 Republican presidential nomination, and was Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President George H.W. Bush. Kemp was the 1996 Republican vice-presidential nominee. Following the campaign, he continued as a commentator, corporate board member (e.g., Ernst & Young), and co-chair of the Empowerment Zones initiative. Diagnosed with cancer in 2009, he passed away at age 73.