David Rakoff, Award-Winning Author, Dead at 47

David Rakoff, an award-winning author best known for his dark humor and cynical outlook on life, passed away today after a long battle with cancer. He was 47.

Rakoff wrote for The New York Times and Newsweek, among other publications, and his essay collection "Half Empty" won the Thurber Prize for American Humor. He also penned the bestselling books "Don't Get Too Comfortable" and "Fraud."

Rakoff's death was confirmed by Doubleday and Anchor Books.

"The world is a little less kind and a little less beautiful today," his longtime editor, Bill Thomas, said in a statement, adding:

"There were hundreds of reasons to love David. He was of course incredibly charming, witty and learned, a brilliant raconteur with the quickest mind imaginable, but most of all he was a generous soul. Though his life was cut infuriatingly short, it was rich beyond measure."

Doubleday will publish Rakoff's final piece in 2013, a work titled "Love, Dishonor, Marry, Die; Cherish, Perish."