George Steinbrenner
Encyclopedia
George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930 July 13, 2010) was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner of Major League Baseball
's New York Yankees
. During Steinbrenner's 37-year ownership from 1973 to his death in July 2010, the longest in club history, the Yankees earned seven World Series
titles and 11 pennants
. His outspokenness and role in driving up player salaries made him one of the sport's most controversial figures. Steinbrenner was also involved in the Great Lakes
shipping industry.
Known as a hands-on baseball executive, he earned the nickname "The Boss." He had a tendency to meddle in daily on-field decisions, and to hire and fire (and sometimes re-hire) managers. Former Yankees manager Dallas Green
gave him the derisive nickname "Manager George."
He died after suffering a heart attack in his Tampa home on the morning of July 13, 2010, the day of the 81st All-Star Game
.
, the only son of Rita (née Haley) and Henry George Steinbrenner II, who had been a world-class track and field
hurdler while at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, from which he graduated in engineering
in 1927, first in his class. The elder Steinbrenner later became a wealthy shipping
magnate who ran the family firm operating freight ships hauling ore and grain on the Great Lakes. George III was named after his paternal grandfather, George Michael Steinbrenner II. Steinbrenner has two younger sisters, Susan and Judy.
Steinbrenner entered Culver Military Academy, in Northern Indiana
, in 1944, and graduated in 1948. He received his B.A. from Williams College
in Massachusetts in 1952. While at Williams, George was an average student who led an active extracurricular life. He was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon
fraternity. He was an accomplished hurdler on the varsity track and field team, and served as sports editor of The Williams Record, played piano
in the band, and played halfback on the football
team in his senior year. He joined the United States Air Force
after graduation, was commissioned a second lieutenant
and was stationed at Lockbourne Air Force Base in Columbus, Ohio
. Following honorable discharge in 1954, he did post-graduate study at Ohio State University
(1954–55), earning his master's degree in physical education
.
He met his wife-to-be, Elizabeth Joan Zieg, in Columbus, and married her on May 12, 1956. The couple had two sons Hank Steinbrenner
and Hal Steinbrenner
, and two daughters Jessica Steinbrenner and Jennifer Steinbrenner-Swindal.
football coach Woody Hayes
. The Buckeyes were undefeated national champions that year, and won the Rose Bowl. Steinbrenner served as an assistant football coach at Northwestern University
in 1955, and at Purdue University
from 1956 to 1957.
In 1957, Steinbrenner joined Kinsman Marine Transit Company, the Great Lakes
shipping
company that his great-grandfather Henry had purchased in 1901 from The Minch Transit Company, which was owned by a family relation, and renamed. Steinbrenner worked hard to successfully revitalize the company, which was suffering hardship during difficult market conditions. In its return to profitability, Kinsman emphasized grain shipments over ore. A few years later, with the help of a loan from a New York bank, Steinbrenner purchased the company from his family. He later became part of a group that purchased the American Shipbuilding Company, and, in 1967, he became its chairman and chief executive officer. By 1972, the company's gross sales were more than $100 million annually.
In 1960, against his father's wishes, Steinbrenner entered the sports franchise business for the first time with basketball
's Cleveland Pipers
, of the ABL
. Steinbrenner had hired John McClendon, who became the first African American
coach in professional basketball and persuaded Jerry Lucas
to join his team instead of the National Basketball Association. McClendon had led Tennessee A&I University
to three straight NAIA
small college championships in the late 1950s. The Pipers switched to the new professional American Basketball League in 1961; the new circuit was founded by Abe Saperstein
, owner of the Harlem Globetrotters
. The league and team experienced financial problems, and McClendon resigned in protest halfway through the season; however, the Pipers had won the first half of a split season. Steinbrenner replaced McClendon with former Boston Celtics
star Bill Sharman
, and the Pipers won the ABL championship in 1961-62. The ABL folded in December 1962, just months into its second season. Steinbrenner and his partners lost significant money on the venture, but Steinbrenner paid off all of his creditors and partners over the next few years.
With his burgeoning sports aspirations put on hold, Steinbrenner turned his attention to the theatre
. His involvement with Broadway
began with a short-lived 1967 play, The Ninety Day Mistress, in which he partnered with another rookie producer, James Nederlander. Whereas Nederlander threw himself into his family's business
full-time, Steinbrenner invested in a mere half-dozen shows, including the 1974 Tony Award
nominee for Best Musical, Seesaw
, and the 1988 Peter Allen
flop, Legs Diamond
.
ownership, which had acquired the team in 1965
. In 1972, CBS Chairman William S. Paley
told team president E. Michael Burke
the media company intended to sell the club. As Burke later told writer Roger Kahn, Paley offered to sell the franchise to Burke if he could find financial backing. Steinbrenner, who had participated in a failed attempt to buy the Cleveland Indians
from Vernon Stouffer
one year earlier, was brought together with Burke by veteran baseball executive Gabe Paul
.
On January 3, 1973, Steinbrenner and minority partner Burke led a group of investors, which included Lester Crown
, John DeLorean and Nelson Bunker Hunt
, in purchasing the Yankees from CBS. For years, the selling price was reported to be $10 million. However, Steinbrenner later revealed that the deal included two parking garages that CBS had bought from the city, and soon after the deal closed, CBS bought back the garages for $1.2 million. The net cost to the group for the Yankees was therefore $8.8 million.
The announced intention was that Burke would continue to run the team as club president. But Burke later became angry when he found out that Paul had been brought in as a senior Yankee executive, reducing his authority, and quit the team presidency in April 1973. (Burke remained a minority owner of the club into the following decade, but as fellow minority owner John McMullen stated, "There is nothing in life quite so limited as being a limited partner of George Steinbrenner.") Paul was officially named president of the club on April 19. It would be the first of many high-profile departures with employees who crossed paths with "The Boss." At the conclusion of the 1973 season
, two more prominent names departed: manager
Ralph Houk
, who resigned and took a similar position with the Detroit Tigers
; and general manager Lee MacPhail
, who became president of the American League
.
The 1973 off-season would continue to be controversial when Steinbrenner and Paul sought to hire former Oakland Athletics
manager Dick Williams
, who had resigned immediately after leading the team to its second straight World Series
title. However, because Williams was still under contract to Oakland, the subsequent legal wrangling prevented the Yankees from hiring him. On the first anniversary of the team's ownership change, the Yankees hired former Pittsburgh Pirates
manager Bill Virdon
to lead the team on the field.
Steinbrenner quickly became famous for his rapid turnover of management personnel. In his first 23 seasons, he changed managers 20 times (Billy Martin
alone was fired and rehired five times). He also employed 11 general managers over 30 years. He was equally famous for pursuing high-priced free agents and then feuding with them. In July 1978
, Billy Martin famously said of Steinbrenner and his $3 million outfielder Reggie Jackson
, "The two were meant for each other. One's a born liar, and the other's convicted." The comment resulted in Martin's first departure, though officially he resigned (tearfully), before Yankees President Al Rosen
could carry out Steinbrenner's dictum to fire him.
Another notable Steinbrenner policy was his military-style grooming code: All players, coaches, and male executives were forbidden to display any facial hair other than mustaches (except for religious reasons), and scalp hair
could not be grown below the collar. (Long sideburns and "mutton chops" were not specifically banned.) The policy led to some unusual and comical incidents.
During the 1973 home opener against the Cleveland Indians
, as the Yankees, cap
s removed, were standing at attention for the National Anthem
, Steinbrenner, in the owner's box next to the New York dugout
, noticed that several players' hair was too long for his standards. As he did not yet know the players' names, he wrote down the uniform numbers of the offenders (Thurman Munson
, Bobby Murcer
, and Sparky Lyle
), and had the list, along with the demand that their hair be trimmed immediately, delivered to Houk. The order was reluctantly relayed to the players.
In 1983, at Steinbrenner's behest, Yankee coach Yogi Berra
ordered Goose Gossage
to remove a beard he was growing. Gossage responded by shaving away the beard but leaving a thick exaggerated mustache
extending down the upper lip to the jaw line, a look Gossage still sports to this day.
The most infamous incident involving facial hair occurred in 1991. Although Steinbrenner was suspended, the Yankee management ordered Don Mattingly
, who was then sporting a mullet
-like hair style, to get a hair cut. When Mattingly refused he was benched. This led to a huge media frenzy with reporters and talk radio repeatedly mocking the team. The WPIX
broadcasting crew of Phil Rizzuto
, Bobby Murcer
, and Tom Seaver
lampooned the policy on a pregame show with Rizzuto playing the role of a barber sent to enforce the rule. Mattingly would eventually be reinstated. Coincidentally, The Simpsons
episode "Homer at the Bat
", which was filmed earlier that year, included Mattingly as a guest star who is suspended from play by Mr. Burns for his sideburns
being too long, despite shaving the area of his head above where side burns grow. In 1995, Mattingly again ran afoul of the policy when he grew a goatee. Steinbrenner publicly criticized him for it and Mattingly eventually trimmed it to a mustache. Mattingly was clean-shaven later as a coach with the Yankees.
David Wells
occasionally wore a goatee and informed the media he would be willing to pay any fine to do so.
During the 1981 World Series
, Steinbrenner provided a colorful backdrop to the Yankees' loss of the series. After a Game 3 loss in Los Angeles
, Steinbrenner called a press conference in his hotel room, showing off his left hand in a cast and various other injuries that he claimed were earned in a fight with two Dodgers fans in the hotel elevator. Nobody came forward about the fight, leading to the belief that he had made up the story of the fight in order to light a fire under the Yankees. After the series, he issued a public apology to the City of New York for his team's performance, while at the same time assuring the fans that plans to put the team together for 1982 would begin immediately. He was criticized heartily by players and press alike for doing so, as most people felt losing in the World Series was not something requiring an apology.
; in 1974 Steinbrenner pleaded guilty to making illegal contributions to Nixon's re-election campaign, and to a felony charge of obstruction of justice. He was personally fined $15,000 and his company was assessed an additional $20,000. On November 27 of that year, MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn
suspended him for two years, but later reduced it to fifteen months. Ronald Reagan
pardoned Steinbrenner in January 1989, one of the final acts of his presidency.
, Steinbrenner made headlines by signing Dave Winfield
to a 10-year, $23 million contract, making Winfield baseball's highest-paid player. In 1985
, Steinbrenner derided Winfield's poor performance in a key September series against the Toronto Blue Jays
:
This criticism eventually became somewhat of an anachronism, as many believed Steinbrenner made the statement following the 1981 World Series
. Part of that comment later led Ken Griffey Jr. to list the Yankees as one team he would never play for.
On July 30, 1990, Steinbrenner was banned permanently from day-to-day management (but not ownership) of the Yankees by MLB Commissioner Fay Vincent
for paying a gambler named Howie Spira $40,000 to dig up "dirt" on Winfield. Winfield had sued the Yankees for failing to contribute $300,000 to his foundation, a guaranteed stipulation in his contract. (Vincent originally proposed a 2-year suspension, but Steinbrenner wanted it worded as an "agreement" rather than a "suspension" to protect his relationship with the U.S. Olympic Committee; in exchange for that concession, Vincent made the "agreement" permanent.)
After considerable negotiation with Vincent's office, Robert E. Nederlander, one of Steinbrenner's theatre partners and a limited partner in the Yankees organization, became the managing general partner.
In 2001, Winfield cited the Steinbrenner animosity as a factor in his decision to enter the Hall of Fame as a representative of his first team, the San Diego Padres, rather than the team that brought him national recognition, the Yankees.
to develop instead of trading them for established players. Steinbrenner's having "got religion" (in the words of New York Daily News
reporter Bill Madden) paid off. After contending only briefly two years earlier, the 1993 Yankees
were in the American League East race with the eventual champion Toronto Blue Jays
until September.
The 1994 Yankees
were the American League East leaders when a players' strike wiped out the rest of the season. Similarly, a players' strike had cut short their 1981 playoff effort.
The team
returned to the playoffs in 1995
(their first visit since 1981
) and won the World Series in 1996
. The Yankees went on to win the World Series in , and . The Yankees
lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks
in .
The Yankees made the playoffs every season through , winning the AL Pennant in seven games over the 2003 Boston Red Sox
. In 2003
, they won the ALCS
but lost the World Series
to the Florida Marlins
, which denied Steinbrenner, who had won the Stanley Cup
in June of that year as part-owner of the New Jersey Devils
, the distinction of winning championships in two major sports leagues in the same year.
The Yankees
' demise was furthered by the postseason collapse of 2004. While leading the eventual World Champion Boston Red Sox
three games to none (3-0) and 3 outs away from winning Game 4, the Red Sox stunned the Yankees and the baseball world by coming back to win Game 4 and then the next three games and sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals
in the World Series
. In , the Yankees
ended their post-season run with a third place finish in the American League East
. However, in , the Yankees
defeated the Philadelphia Phillies
in the World Series
to win a 27th championship, seven of which had been won under Steinbrenner's ownership.
to his death, George Steinbrenner spent most of his time in Tampa, Florida
, leaving the Yankees to be run by his sons Hank
and Hal Steinbrenner
. Hank in particular shows similar traits to his father.
After ceding day-to-day control of the team, Steinbrenner made few public appearances and gave no interviews. Associates and family members refused to comment on rampant speculation concerning his declining health, specifically rumors that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease
. The Yankees went to great lengths to prevent anyone outside Steinbrenner's immediate family and closest business associates from speaking to him, or even getting a glimpse of him on the rare occasions when he made an appearance at Yankee Stadium. Temporary curtains were set up to block views of his entry and exit routes, and no one was allowed near the vehicles transporting him. The press elevator carrying media members downstairs to the interview areas were shut down before he arrived, and again toward the end of the game while he departed.
Steinbrenner made a rare appearance in the Bronx on the field for the 79th All-Star Game
on July 15, 2008. Wearing dark glasses, he walked slowly into the stadium's media entrance with the aid of several companions, leaning upon one of them for support. He later was driven out on to the field along with his son Hal at the end of the lengthy pre-game ceremony in which the All-Stars were introduced at their fielding positions along with 49 of the 63 living Hall of Famers.
In subsequent occasional visits to spring training, regular-season games, and other outings, he used a wheelchair.
On April 13, 2010, Derek Jeter and Joe Girardi privately presented the first 2009 World Series Championship ring to Steinbrenner in his stadium suite. He was "almost speechless", according to reports.
George Steinbrenner's estimated net worth was $1.15 billion USD in 2009 according to the Forbes 400
List in Forbes
magazine issued in September 2009.
George Steinbrenner was the first owner of a baseball team to sell cable TV rights (to MSG Network
).
In 1997, the Yankees signed a 10-year, $97 million deal with Adidas
. A dispute with MSG over the cable rights fee ended with the creation of the Yankees' own YES Network
.
George Steinbrenner has been able to grow the Yankees from a $10 million franchise to a $1.2 billion heavyweight. In 2005, the Yankees became the first American professional sports franchise to be conservatively estimated as being worth over one billion dollars. If one adds up the revenue of $1.2 billion valuation of the 36% Yankees owned YES Network to the team revenue (the other 64% is owned by Goldman Sachs
and the former New Jersey Nets
owner which is also a minority owner of the ballclub), they far surpass even the Dallas Cowboys
in total estimated value.
once quipped that he had seen Steinbrenner's yacht and that, "It was a beautiful thing to observe, with all 36 oars working in unison." Former sportscaster Hank Greenwald
, who called Yankee games on WABC
radio for two years, once said he knew when Steinbrenner was in town by how tense the office staff was.
He usually kept his complaints about the team broadcasters he approved of (except for the YES Network
crew, who have generally not been his direct employees) out of the newspapers. However, he was known to be upset with the sometimes blunt commentary of former broadcaster Jim Kaat
and former analyst Tony Kubek
.
The 1986 World Series
was called "Steinbrenner's nightmare," because it was a showdown between two of the Yankees' biggest rivals, their cross-town rival New York Mets
and their most hated rival, Boston Red Sox
. As a result, Steinbrenner wrote articles in The New York Post
on the World Series. The Mets won that World Series, which relieved many Yankee fans.
Steinbrenner had a reputation as a domineering boss. Only three Yankee employees were continuously employed from the start of Steinbrenner's ownership in 1973 until the end of his tenure. One of those is long time Head Athletic Trainer Gene Monahan
, who recently missed his first spring training in 48 years after being diagnosed with cancer.
Harvey Greene, the Yankees' Director of Media Relations from 1986-1989, talked about the experience of working under Steinbrenner:
George Steinbrenner was involved with thoroughbred
horse racing
from the early 1970s. He owned Kinsman Stud Farm in Ocala, Florida
and raced under the name Kinsman Stable
.
in Barcelona, Spain, Steinbrenner comforted United States Olympic Swimming medalist Ron Karnaugh through his father's death and maintained a relationship with him until his death. At his residence in Tampa, Steinbrenner supported numerous individuals and charities including the Boys and Girls Club as well as the Salvation Army
. Mel Stottlemyre
recalled that during his myeloma cancer treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital he had mentioned in passing to Steinbrenner how he regretted not being able to watch Yankee games from his room. Stottlemyre heard that Steinbrenner went all the way to Mayor Rudy Giuliani
to ensure he was able to watch the broadcasts from his room. Steinbrenner had also donated $1 million to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital where a wing was named in his honor.
Billy Martin
were lampooned in a '70s Miller Lite
beer commercial in which Steinbrenner tells Martin "You're fired!" to which Martin replies "Oh, no, not again!" After one of Martin's real-life rehirings, the commercial was resurrected, only with Steinbrenner's line redubbed to say "You're hired!"
He hosted Saturday Night Live
on October 20, 1990 at the same time his former outfielder and Yankee manager, Lou Piniella
, led the Cincinnati Reds
to a World Championship. In the opening sketch, he dreamt of a Yankees team managed, coached, and entirely played by himself. In other sketches, he chews out the SNL "writing staff" (notably including Al Franken
) for featuring him in a mock Slim Fast
commercial with other ruthless leaders such as Saddam Hussein
and Idi Amin
and plays a folksy convenience store manager whose business ethic is divergent from that of Steinbrenner.
In The Simpsons
episode "Homer at the Bat
", Mr. Burns fires Don Mattingly
for refusing to shave sideburns only Burns could see. It is often assumed that this was a parody of an argument Steinbrenner and Mattingly had in real life with regards to Mattingly's hair length. However, the episode was actually recorded a year before the suspension actually occurred, and was nothing more than a coincidence. As Mattingly walks off the baseball field, he states, "I still like him [Burns] better than Steinbrenner."
He appeared as himself in the Albert Brooks
comedy The Scout. In 1991, he played himself in an episode of Good Sports
, with Farrah Fawcett
and Ryan O'Neal
.
In the 1994 computer game Superhero League of Hoboken
, one of the schemes of the primary antagonist, Dr. Entropy
, is to resurrect George Steinbrenner to bring chaos to the world and rule together. The superhero
es foil his plan by resurrecting Billy Martin.
After a public chastising of Yankees shortstop
Derek Jeter
for "partying too much," the two appeared in a Visa
commercial club-hopping. A 2004 Visa commercial depicted Steinbrenner in the trainer's room at Yankee Stadium, suffering from an arm injury, unable to sign any checks, including that of his then-current manager Joe Torre
, who spends most of the commercial treating Steinbrenner as if he were an important player.
George Will
once described Steinbrenner as an "error machine" and a "baseball dumb-o-meter."
Steinbrenner also was a fan of professional wrestling
. He wrote the foreword of the 2005 Dusty Rhodes
autobiography and was a regular at old Tampa Armory cards in the 1970s and 1980s. In March 1989, he appeared in the front row of the WWF's
Saturday Night's Main Event broadcast, even interacting with manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan at one point (Heenan remarked about the guy he managed in the ring at the time to Steinbrenner "I've got a ring full of Winfield"). At WWF WrestleMania 7, Steinbrenner, WWF owner Vince McMahon
, and NFL announcer Paul Maguire
filmed a skit with the trio debating instant replay. He was also present in the front row of an edition of WCW Monday Nitro
in early 1998 when the event took place in Tampa.
At the funeral of his long time friend Otto Graham
in December 2003, Steinbrenner fainted, leading to extensive media speculation that he was in ill health.
New York Daily News
cartoonist Bill Gallo
often cited Steinbrenner's German heritage by drawing him in a Prussia
n military uniform, complete with spiked helmet, gold epaulettes and medals, calling him "General von Steingrabber."
In ESPN
's miniseries
The Bronx is Burning
, he is portrayed by Oliver Platt
.
, when George Costanza
worked for the Yankees for several seasons. Lee Bear portrayed the character, and Larry David
provided voice-over
performances whenever the character spoke. Steinbrenner's full face was never shown
, and the character was always viewed from the back in scenes set in his office at Yankee Stadium. The character appeared in the following episodes: "The Opposite
", "The Secretary
", "The Race", "The Jimmy", "The Wink", "The Hot Tub
", "The Caddy", "The Calzone
", "The Bottle Deposit", "The Nap
", "The Millennium", "The Muffin Tops
", and "The Finale".
The fictional Steinbrenner talked nonstop, regardless of whether anyone was listening, and sometimes referred to himself as "Big Stein". The team owner was known for eccentric decisions, such as cooking jerseys, threatening to move the team to New Jersey "just to upset people", scalping his owner's box tickets, wearing Lou Gehrig
's uniform pants (and panicking about "that nerve disease
" being contagious), trading several players to Frank Costanza's dismay, and canceling a meeting
because he wanted George Costanza to get him an eggplant calzone
. In "The Wink", the Steinbrenner character mentions all of the people he fired, saying Billy Martin
four times, and mentions then-current manager Buck Showalter
, but then quickly swears Costanza to silence. Though intended as a joke, the comment proved prophetic: A few weeks after the episode aired, Steinbrenner replaced Showalter as manager with Joe Torre
.
Steinbrenner's involvement with Seinfeld began when he refused a request to make a cameo appearance
and permit a Yankees pennant
to appear; the show nonetheless used the pennant. A year later, Steinbrenner was asked to permit a Yankees uniform to appear on the sixth-season "The Chaperone". The owner was still angry about the unauthorized pennant, and knew so little about the show that after reading the script he believed George Costanza had been named after him as an insult. He refused to permit the uniform's use unless the character was renamed. After watching the show and enjoying both it and the Costanza character, however, Steinbrenner approved the uniform, and later maintained that he was a fan of the show and that "Costanza is always welcome back." He filmed three scenes for the Seinfeld season 7 finale, "The Invitations", but they were edited out when the time of the original episode ran longer than the allowed time. They are on the Seinfeld Season 7 DVD Disc 4.
Jerry Seinfeld
said after Steinbrenner's death: “Who else could be a memorable character on a television show without actually appearing on the show? You felt George even though he wasn’t there. That’s how huge a force of personality he was."
, one of the NCAA’s
highest honors.
In 1992, Steinbrenner was presented with Tampa's most prestigious civic service award, the Tampa Metro Civitan Club's Outstanding Citizen of the Year Award.
In 2000, Steinbrenner was honored as Grand Marshal at the German-American Steuben Parade
on Fifth Avenue in New York City. At this largest German-American event in the country, he was greeted by tens of thousands who celebrated him as an outstanding American of German heritage.
The Steinbrenner Band Hall
at the University of Florida
was made possible by a gift from George and Joan Steinbrenner in 2002. The facility was completed in 2008 and serves as The Pride of the Sunshine
's rehearsal hall and houses offices, instrument storage, the band library and an instrument issue room.
A new high school in Lutz, Florida
, which opened for about 1600 students in August 2009, is named George Steinbrenner High School
. Steinbrenner was a generous contributor to the Tampa Bay area.
Legends Field, the Yankees' Spring Training facility in Tampa, was renamed George M. Steinbrenner Field in March 2008 in his honor by his two sons, with the blessing of the Hillsborough County Commission and the Tampa City Council. The entrance to the new Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium
at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
has also been named for Steinbrenner and his family. A life-size bronze statue of Steinbrenner was placed in front of the stadium in January 2011.
Steinbrenner appeared on the 2011 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot
.
, George Steinbrenner died of a heart attack
at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Florida
. His death came nine days after his 80th birthday, two days after the passing of long time Yankee Stadium public address announcer Bob Sheppard
, and eight days before that of former Yankee manager Ralph Houk. On July 14, the Yankees announced that players and coaches would wear a Steinbrenner commemorative patch on the left breast of their home and road uniforms, and a Bob Sheppard commemorative patch on the left arm.
The Steinbrenner family added a monument to Monument Park
on September 20, 2010 to honor Steinbrenner. He is buried at Trinity Memorial Gardens in Trinity, Florida
.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
. During Steinbrenner's 37-year ownership from 1973 to his death in July 2010, the longest in club history, the Yankees earned seven World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
titles and 11 pennants
Pennant (sports)
A pennant is a commemorative flag typically used to show support for a particular athletic team. Pennants have been historically used in all types of athletic levels: high school, collegiate, professional etc. Traditionally, pennants were made of felt and fashioned in the official colors of a...
. His outspokenness and role in driving up player salaries made him one of the sport's most controversial figures. Steinbrenner was also involved in the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
shipping industry.
Known as a hands-on baseball executive, he earned the nickname "The Boss." He had a tendency to meddle in daily on-field decisions, and to hire and fire (and sometimes re-hire) managers. Former Yankees manager Dallas Green
Dallas Green
George Dallas Green is a former pitcher, manager, and executive in Major League Baseball. After playing for the Philadelphia Phillies and two other teams, he went on to manage the Phillies, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets, and managed the Phillies when they won their first World Series...
gave him the derisive nickname "Manager George."
He died after suffering a heart attack in his Tampa home on the morning of July 13, 2010, the day of the 81st All-Star Game
2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 81st midseason exhibition between the All-Stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball...
.
Early life and education
Steinbrenner was born in Rocky River, OhioRocky River, Ohio
Rocky River is an affluent western suburb of Cleveland, Ohio, United States located in Cuyahoga County approximately nine miles west of Public Square in downtown Cleveland. The city is named for the river that forms its eastern border...
, the only son of Rita (née Haley) and Henry George Steinbrenner II, who had been a world-class track and field
Track and field
Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
hurdler while at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, from which he graduated in engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
in 1927, first in his class. The elder Steinbrenner later became a wealthy shipping
Shipping
Shipping has multiple meanings. It can be a physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo, by land, air, and sea. It also can describe the movement of objects by ship.Land or "ground" shipping can be by train or by truck...
magnate who ran the family firm operating freight ships hauling ore and grain on the Great Lakes. George III was named after his paternal grandfather, George Michael Steinbrenner II. Steinbrenner has two younger sisters, Susan and Judy.
Steinbrenner entered Culver Military Academy, in Northern Indiana
Northern Indiana
Northern Indiana is the region of Indiana including 26 counties bordering parts of Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio. The area is generally sub-classified into other regions. The northwest is economically and culturally intertwined with Chicago, and is considered part of the Chicago metropolitan area...
, in 1944, and graduated in 1948. He received his B.A. from Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
in Massachusetts in 1952. While at Williams, George was an average student who led an active extracurricular life. He was a member of Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon is a fraternity founded at Yale College in 1844 by 15 men of the sophomore class who had not been invited to join the two existing societies...
fraternity. He was an accomplished hurdler on the varsity track and field team, and served as sports editor of The Williams Record, played piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
in the band, and played halfback on the football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team in his senior year. He joined the United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
after graduation, was commissioned a second lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...
and was stationed at Lockbourne Air Force Base in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. Following honorable discharge in 1954, he did post-graduate study at Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
(1954–55), earning his master's degree in physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
.
He met his wife-to-be, Elizabeth Joan Zieg, in Columbus, and married her on May 12, 1956. The couple had two sons Hank Steinbrenner
Hank Steinbrenner
Henry G. "Hank" Steinbrenner III is the part-owner and Senior Vice President of the New York Yankees, along with his brother Hal Steinbrenner....
and Hal Steinbrenner
Hal Steinbrenner
Harold Z. Steinbrenner, known as Hal, is part owner of the New York Yankees with his brother Hank Steinbrenner, the co-chairperson, and a general partner for the Yankees...
, and two daughters Jessica Steinbrenner and Jennifer Steinbrenner-Swindal.
Pre-Yankees career
While studying at Ohio State, he served as a graduate assistant to legendary BuckeyeOhio State Buckeyes football
The Ohio State Buckeyes football team is an intercollegiate varsity sports team of The Ohio State University. The team is a member of the Big Ten Conference of the NCAA, playing at the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly Division I-A, level. The team nickname is derived from the state...
football coach Woody Hayes
Woody Hayes
Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes was an American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Denison University , Miami University , and Ohio State University , compiling a career college football record of 238–72–10.During his 28 seasons as the head coach of the Ohio...
. The Buckeyes were undefeated national champions that year, and won the Rose Bowl. Steinbrenner served as an assistant football coach at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in 1955, and at Purdue University
Purdue University
Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six-campus Purdue University system. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and...
from 1956 to 1957.
In 1957, Steinbrenner joined Kinsman Marine Transit Company, the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
shipping
Shipping
Shipping has multiple meanings. It can be a physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo, by land, air, and sea. It also can describe the movement of objects by ship.Land or "ground" shipping can be by train or by truck...
company that his great-grandfather Henry had purchased in 1901 from The Minch Transit Company, which was owned by a family relation, and renamed. Steinbrenner worked hard to successfully revitalize the company, which was suffering hardship during difficult market conditions. In its return to profitability, Kinsman emphasized grain shipments over ore. A few years later, with the help of a loan from a New York bank, Steinbrenner purchased the company from his family. He later became part of a group that purchased the American Shipbuilding Company, and, in 1967, he became its chairman and chief executive officer. By 1972, the company's gross sales were more than $100 million annually.
In 1960, against his father's wishes, Steinbrenner entered the sports franchise business for the first time with basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
's Cleveland Pipers
Cleveland Pipers
The Cleveland Pipers was an American basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio that played in the short-lived American Basketball League from 1961-62. General Manager, Mike Cleary hired John McLendon, the first African American head coach in professional basketball to lead the squad. Playing under...
, of the ABL
American Basketball League
American Basketball League is a name that has been used by three defunct basketball leagues in the United States:*American Basketball League , the first major professional basketball league...
. Steinbrenner had hired John McClendon, who became the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
coach in professional basketball and persuaded Jerry Lucas
Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas was a basketball player from the 1950s to the 1970s, and is now a memory education expert. In 1996, the NBA's 50th anniversary, he was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history...
to join his team instead of the National Basketball Association. McClendon had led Tennessee A&I University
Tennessee State University
Tennessee State University is a land-grant university located in Nashville, Tennessee. TSU is the only state-funded historically black university in Tennessee.-History:...
to three straight NAIA
NAIA national men's basketball championship
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's Basketball National Championship has been held annually since 1937 . The tournament was established by James Naismith to crown a national champion for smaller colleges and universities...
small college championships in the late 1950s. The Pipers switched to the new professional American Basketball League in 1961; the new circuit was founded by Abe Saperstein
Abe Saperstein
Abraham M. Saperstein was an owner and coach of the Savoy Big Five, which later became the Harlem Globetrotters...
, owner of the Harlem Globetrotters
Harlem Globetrotters
The Harlem Globetrotters are an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism, theater and comedy. The executive offices for the team are currently in downtown Phoenix, Arizona; the team is owned by Shamrock Holdings, which oversees the various investments of the Roy E. Disney family.Over...
. The league and team experienced financial problems, and McClendon resigned in protest halfway through the season; however, the Pipers had won the first half of a split season. Steinbrenner replaced McClendon with former Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
star Bill Sharman
Bill Sharman
William Walton "Bill" Sharman is a former professional basketball player and coach. Sharman completed high school in the rural city of Porterville, California and is mostly known for his time with the Boston Celtics in the 1950s, partnering with Bob Cousy in what some consider the greatest...
, and the Pipers won the ABL championship in 1961-62. The ABL folded in December 1962, just months into its second season. Steinbrenner and his partners lost significant money on the venture, but Steinbrenner paid off all of his creditors and partners over the next few years.
With his burgeoning sports aspirations put on hold, Steinbrenner turned his attention to the theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
. His involvement with Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
began with a short-lived 1967 play, The Ninety Day Mistress, in which he partnered with another rookie producer, James Nederlander. Whereas Nederlander threw himself into his family's business
Nederlander Organization
The Nederlander Organization, founded in 1912 by David T. Nederlander and based in Detroit, Michigan, is one of the largest operators of legitimate theatres and music venuesin the United States. Its first acquisition was a lease on the Detroit Opera House in 1912. The building was demolished in...
full-time, Steinbrenner invested in a mere half-dozen shows, including the 1974 Tony Award
Tony Award for Best Musical
This is a list of winners and nominations for the Tony Award for Best Musical, first awarded in 1949. This award is presented to the producers of the musical.-1940s:* 1949: Kiss Me, Kate – Music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Samuel and Bella Spewack...
nominee for Best Musical, Seesaw
Seesaw (musical)
Seesaw is a musical with a book by Michael Bennett, music by Cy Coleman, and lyrics by Dorothy Fields.Based on the William Gibson play Two for the Seesaw, the plot focuses on a brief affair between Jerry Ryan, a young lawyer from Nebraska, and Gittel Mosca, a kooky, streetwise dancer from the Bronx...
, and the 1988 Peter Allen
Peter Allen
Peter Allen was an Australian songwriter and entertainer. His songs were made popular by many recording artists, including Elkie Brooks, Melissa Manchester and Olivia Newton-John, with one, Arthur's Theme, winning an Academy Award in 1981...
flop, Legs Diamond
Legs Diamond (musical)
Legs Diamond is a musical with a book by Harvey Fierstein and Charles Suppon based on the Warner Brothers film "The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond"...
.
New York Yankees career
The Yankees had been struggling during their years under CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
ownership, which had acquired the team in 1965
1965 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees season was the 63rd season for the Yankees in New York and their 65th overall. The team finished with a record of 77-85, finishing 25 games behind the Minnesota Twins. New York was managed by Johnny Keane. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium.This season marked the beginning...
. In 1972, CBS Chairman William S. Paley
William S. Paley
William S. Paley was the chief executive who built Columbia Broadcasting System from a small radio network into one of the foremost radio and television network operations in the United States.-Early life:...
told team president E. Michael Burke
E. Michael Burke
Edmund Michael Burke was a U.S. Navy Officer, O.S.S. agent, C.I.A. agent, general manager of Ringling Bros...
the media company intended to sell the club. As Burke later told writer Roger Kahn, Paley offered to sell the franchise to Burke if he could find financial backing. Steinbrenner, who had participated in a failed attempt to buy the Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
from Vernon Stouffer
Vernon Stouffer
Vernon B. Stouffer, owned a national chain of restaurants, motor inns, and food-service operations and the Cleveland Indians from 1966-72. He played a key part in developing frozen foods and microwavable foods. His company Stouffer's was valued at $21.5 million when it was merged with Litton...
one year earlier, was brought together with Burke by veteran baseball executive Gabe Paul
Gabe Paul
Gabriel Howard Paul was an American executive in Major League Baseball who served as general manager of three teams and, perhaps most famously, as president of the New York Yankees under George Steinbrenner during the 1970s....
.
On January 3, 1973, Steinbrenner and minority partner Burke led a group of investors, which included Lester Crown
Lester Crown
Lester Crown is the son of Chicago financier Henry Crown , who created Material Service with two brothers in 1919, which merged with General Dynamics in 1959. He has been a perennial member of the Forbes 400 list since 1982...
, John DeLorean and Nelson Bunker Hunt
Nelson Bunker Hunt
Nelson Bunker Hunt is an American oil company executive. He is best known as a former billionaire whose fortune collapsed after he and his brother William Herbert Hunt tried but failed to corner the world market in silver. He is also a successful thoroughbred horse breeder.-Personal:Hunt was born...
, in purchasing the Yankees from CBS. For years, the selling price was reported to be $10 million. However, Steinbrenner later revealed that the deal included two parking garages that CBS had bought from the city, and soon after the deal closed, CBS bought back the garages for $1.2 million. The net cost to the group for the Yankees was therefore $8.8 million.
The announced intention was that Burke would continue to run the team as club president. But Burke later became angry when he found out that Paul had been brought in as a senior Yankee executive, reducing his authority, and quit the team presidency in April 1973. (Burke remained a minority owner of the club into the following decade, but as fellow minority owner John McMullen stated, "There is nothing in life quite so limited as being a limited partner of George Steinbrenner.") Paul was officially named president of the club on April 19. It would be the first of many high-profile departures with employees who crossed paths with "The Boss." At the conclusion of the 1973 season
1973 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees season was the 71st season for the team in New York, and its 73rd season overall. The Yankees finished with a record of 80-82, finishing 17 games behind the Baltimore Orioles. The Yankees were managed by Ralph Houk. The Yankees played at old Yankee Stadium, on the south side...
, two more prominent names departed: manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
Ralph Houk
Ralph Houk
Ralph George Houk , nicknamed The Major, was an American catcher, coach, manager, and front office executive in Major League Baseball...
, who resigned and took a similar position with the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
; and general manager Lee MacPhail
Lee MacPhail
Leland Stanford MacPhail, Jr. is an American retired front-office executive in Major League Baseball...
, who became president of the American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
.
The 1973 off-season would continue to be controversial when Steinbrenner and Paul sought to hire former Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
manager Dick Williams
Dick Williams
Richard Hirschfeld "Dick" Williams was an American left fielder, third baseman, manager, coach and front office consultant in Major League Baseball. Known especially as a hard-driving, sharp-tongued manager from 1967–69 and 1971–88, he led teams to three American League pennants, one National...
, who had resigned immediately after leading the team to its second straight World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
title. However, because Williams was still under contract to Oakland, the subsequent legal wrangling prevented the Yankees from hiring him. On the first anniversary of the team's ownership change, the Yankees hired former Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
manager Bill Virdon
Bill Virdon
William Charles Virdon is a former outfielder, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. A premier defensive outfielder during his playing days as a center fielder for the St...
to lead the team on the field.
Steinbrenner quickly became famous for his rapid turnover of management personnel. In his first 23 seasons, he changed managers 20 times (Billy Martin
Billy Martin
Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin, Jr. was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager. He is best known as the manager of the New York Yankees, a position he held five different times...
alone was fired and rehired five times). He also employed 11 general managers over 30 years. He was equally famous for pursuing high-priced free agents and then feuding with them. In July 1978
1978 New York Yankees season
The 1978 New York Yankees season was the 76th season for the Yankees. The team finished with a record of 100-63, finishing one game ahead of the Boston Red Sox to win their third American League East title. The two teams were tied after 162 games, leading to a one-game playoff, which the Yankees...
, Billy Martin famously said of Steinbrenner and his $3 million outfielder Reggie Jackson
Reggie Jackson
Reginald Martinez "Reggie" Jackson , nicknamed "Mr. October" for his clutch hitting in the postseason with the New York Yankees, is a former American Major League Baseball right fielder. During a 21-year baseball career, he played from 1967-1987 for four different teams. Jackson currently serves as...
, "The two were meant for each other. One's a born liar, and the other's convicted." The comment resulted in Martin's first departure, though officially he resigned (tearfully), before Yankees President Al Rosen
Al Rosen
Albert Leonard Rosen , nicknamed "Al", "Flip", and the "Hebrew Hammer", is a former American professional baseball player who was a third baseman and right-handed slugger in the Major Leagues for ten seasons in tthe 1940s and 1950s.He played his entire 10-year career with the Cleveland Indians in...
could carry out Steinbrenner's dictum to fire him.
Another notable Steinbrenner policy was his military-style grooming code: All players, coaches, and male executives were forbidden to display any facial hair other than mustaches (except for religious reasons), and scalp hair
Hairstyle
A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human head. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.-History of...
could not be grown below the collar. (Long sideburns and "mutton chops" were not specifically banned.) The policy led to some unusual and comical incidents.
During the 1973 home opener against the Cleveland Indians
1973 Cleveland Indians season
The Cleveland Indians season was the 73rd in the franchise's history. The club finished in sixth place in the American League East.- Offseason :In January, Vernon Stouffer sold the Cleveland Indians to Nick Mileti for $10 million dollars...
, as the Yankees, cap
Baseball cap
A baseball cap is a type of soft cap with a rounded stiff brim. The front of the cap typically contains designs or logos of sports teams ,...
s removed, were standing at attention for the National Anthem
The Star-Spangled Banner
"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The lyrics come from "Defence of Fort McHenry", a poem written in 1814 by the 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet, Francis Scott Key, after witnessing the bombardment of Fort McHenry by the British Royal Navy ships...
, Steinbrenner, in the owner's box next to the New York dugout
Dugout (baseball)
In baseball, the dugout is a team's bench area and is located in foul territory between home plate and either first or third base. There are two dugouts, one for the home team and one for the visiting team. In general, the dugout is occupied by all players not prescribed to be on the field at that...
, noticed that several players' hair was too long for his standards. As he did not yet know the players' names, he wrote down the uniform numbers of the offenders (Thurman Munson
Thurman Munson
Thurman Lee Munson was an American Major League Baseball catcher. He played his entire 11-year career for the New York Yankees...
, Bobby Murcer
Bobby Murcer
Bobby Ray Murcer was an American Major League Baseball outfielder who played for 17 seasons between 1965 and 1983, mostly with the New York Yankees, whom he later rejoined as a longtime broadcaster...
, and Sparky Lyle
Sparky Lyle
Albert Walter "Sparky" Lyle is an American former left-handed relief pitcher who spent sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball . He was a closer from 1969 to 1977, first for the Boston Red Sox and then the New York Yankees. A three-time All-Star, he won the American League Cy Young Award in 1977...
), and had the list, along with the demand that their hair be trimmed immediately, delivered to Houk. The order was reluctantly relayed to the players.
In 1983, at Steinbrenner's behest, Yankee coach Yogi Berra
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra is a former American Major League Baseball catcher, outfielder, and manager. He played almost his entire 19-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
ordered Goose Gossage
Goose Gossage
Richard Michael "Goose" Gossage is a former Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. During a 22-year baseball career, he pitched from 1972-1994 for nine different teams, spending his best years with the New York Yankees and San Diego Padres. The nickname "Goose" is a play on his surname...
to remove a beard he was growing. Gossage responded by shaving away the beard but leaving a thick exaggerated mustache
Horseshoe moustache
A horseshoe moustache is a full moustache with vertical extensions grown on the corners of the lips and down the sides of the mouth to the jawline, resembling an upside-down U or a horseshoe...
extending down the upper lip to the jaw line, a look Gossage still sports to this day.
The most infamous incident involving facial hair occurred in 1991. Although Steinbrenner was suspended, the Yankee management ordered Don Mattingly
Don Mattingly
Donald Arthur "Don" Mattingly is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nicknamed "The Hit Man" and "Donnie Baseball", he played his entire 14-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
, who was then sporting a mullet
Mullet (haircut)
The mullet is a hairstyle that is short at the front and sides, and long in the back. . The mullet began to appear in popular media in the 1960s and 1970s but did not become generally well-known until the early 1980s...
-like hair style, to get a hair cut. When Mattingly refused he was benched. This led to a huge media frenzy with reporters and talk radio repeatedly mocking the team. The WPIX
WPIX
WPIX, channel 11, is a television station in New York City built, signed on, and owned by the Tribune Company. WPIX also serves as the flagship station of The CW Television Network...
broadcasting crew of Phil Rizzuto
Phil Rizzuto
Philip Francis Rizzuto , nicknamed "The Scooter", was an American Major League Baseball shortstop. He spent his entire 13-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
, Bobby Murcer
Bobby Murcer
Bobby Ray Murcer was an American Major League Baseball outfielder who played for 17 seasons between 1965 and 1983, mostly with the New York Yankees, whom he later rejoined as a longtime broadcaster...
, and Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver
George Thomas "Tom" Seaver , nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets...
lampooned the policy on a pregame show with Rizzuto playing the role of a barber sent to enforce the rule. Mattingly would eventually be reinstated. Coincidentally, The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Homer at the Bat
Homer at the Bat
"Homer at the Bat" is the seventeenth episode of The Simpsons third season, which originally aired February 20, 1992. The episode follows the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant softball team, led by Homer, having a winning season and making the championship game. Mr. Burns makes a large bet that the...
", which was filmed earlier that year, included Mattingly as a guest star who is suspended from play by Mr. Burns for his sideburns
Sideburns
Sideburns or sideboards are patches of facial hair grown on the sides of the face, extending from the hairline to below the ears and worn with an unbearded chin...
being too long, despite shaving the area of his head above where side burns grow. In 1995, Mattingly again ran afoul of the policy when he grew a goatee. Steinbrenner publicly criticized him for it and Mattingly eventually trimmed it to a mustache. Mattingly was clean-shaven later as a coach with the Yankees.
David Wells
David Wells
David Lee Wells , nicknamed "Boomer", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Wells was considered to be one of the game's better left-handed pitchers, especially during his years with the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched the fifteenth perfect game in baseball history...
occasionally wore a goatee and informed the media he would be willing to pay any fine to do so.
During the 1981 World Series
1981 World Series
The 1981 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers, marking their third meeting in the Series in five years as well as a record eleventh Series meeting overall and last Series meeting to date...
, Steinbrenner provided a colorful backdrop to the Yankees' loss of the series. After a Game 3 loss in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Steinbrenner called a press conference in his hotel room, showing off his left hand in a cast and various other injuries that he claimed were earned in a fight with two Dodgers fans in the hotel elevator. Nobody came forward about the fight, leading to the belief that he had made up the story of the fight in order to light a fire under the Yankees. After the series, he issued a public apology to the City of New York for his team's performance, while at the same time assuring the fans that plans to put the team together for 1982 would begin immediately. He was criticized heartily by players and press alike for doing so, as most people felt losing in the World Series was not something requiring an apology.
Campaign contributions to Nixon and pardon
The "convicted" part of Billy Martin's famous 1978 "liar and convicted" comment referred to Steinbrenner's connection to Richard NixonRichard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
; in 1974 Steinbrenner pleaded guilty to making illegal contributions to Nixon's re-election campaign, and to a felony charge of obstruction of justice. He was personally fined $15,000 and his company was assessed an additional $20,000. On November 27 of that year, MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kuhn
Bowie Kent Kuhn was an American lawyer and sports administrator who served as the fifth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from February 4, , to September 30,...
suspended him for two years, but later reduced it to fifteen months. Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
pardoned Steinbrenner in January 1989, one of the final acts of his presidency.
Dave Winfield controversy
After the 1980 season1980 New York Yankees season
The 1980 New York Yankees season was the 78th season for the franchise in New York, and its 80th season overall. The team finished with a record of 103-59, finishing in first place in the American League East, 3 games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles. The Kansas City Royals swept the Yanks in the...
, Steinbrenner made headlines by signing Dave Winfield
Dave Winfield
David Mark Winfield is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. He is currently Executive Vice President/Senior Advisor of the San Diego Padres and an analyst for the ESPN program Baseball Tonight...
to a 10-year, $23 million contract, making Winfield baseball's highest-paid player. In 1985
1985 Major League Baseball season
In 1985, the Major League Baseball season ended with the Kansas City Royals defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in the seventh game of the I-70 World Series. Bret Saberhagen, the regular season Cy Young Award winner, was named MVP of the Series...
, Steinbrenner derided Winfield's poor performance in a key September series against the Toronto Blue Jays
1985 Toronto Blue Jays season
The Toronto Blue Jays season saw the Blue Jays finishing first in the American League East with a record of 99 wins and 62 losses. The win total of 99 is a franchise record, and the division title was the franchise's first....
:
This criticism eventually became somewhat of an anachronism, as many believed Steinbrenner made the statement following the 1981 World Series
1981 World Series
The 1981 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Los Angeles Dodgers, marking their third meeting in the Series in five years as well as a record eleventh Series meeting overall and last Series meeting to date...
. Part of that comment later led Ken Griffey Jr. to list the Yankees as one team he would never play for.
On July 30, 1990, Steinbrenner was banned permanently from day-to-day management (but not ownership) of the Yankees by MLB Commissioner Fay Vincent
Fay Vincent
Francis Thomas "Fay" Vincent, Jr. is a former entertainment lawyer and sports executive who served as the eighth Commissioner of Major League Baseball from September 13, 1989 to September 7, 1992.-Early life and career:...
for paying a gambler named Howie Spira $40,000 to dig up "dirt" on Winfield. Winfield had sued the Yankees for failing to contribute $300,000 to his foundation, a guaranteed stipulation in his contract. (Vincent originally proposed a 2-year suspension, but Steinbrenner wanted it worded as an "agreement" rather than a "suspension" to protect his relationship with the U.S. Olympic Committee; in exchange for that concession, Vincent made the "agreement" permanent.)
After considerable negotiation with Vincent's office, Robert E. Nederlander, one of Steinbrenner's theatre partners and a limited partner in the Yankees organization, became the managing general partner.
In 2001, Winfield cited the Steinbrenner animosity as a factor in his decision to enter the Hall of Fame as a representative of his first team, the San Diego Padres, rather than the team that brought him national recognition, the Yankees.
Reinstatement and championship years
Steinbrenner was reinstated in 1993. Unlike past years, he was somewhat less inclined to interfere in the Yankees' baseball operations. He left day-to-day baseball matters in the hands of Gene Michael and other executives, and allowed promising farm-system players such as Bernie WilliamsBernie Williams
Bernabé Williams Figueroa Jr. is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and Puerto Rican musician.-Early life:...
to develop instead of trading them for established players. Steinbrenner's having "got religion" (in the words of New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
reporter Bill Madden) paid off. After contending only briefly two years earlier, the 1993 Yankees
1993 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 1993 season was the 91st season for the Yankees. The team finished with a record of 88-74 finishing 7 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays. New York was managed by Buck Showalter. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium...
were in the American League East race with the eventual champion Toronto Blue Jays
1993 Toronto Blue Jays season
The Toronto Blue Jays season involved the Blue Jays finishing first in the American League East with a record of 95 wins and 67 losses. They were shut out only once in 162 regular-season games. The Blue Jays would repeat as World Champions and become the first back-to-back champions since the New...
until September.
The 1994 Yankees
1994 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 1994 season was the 92nd season for the Yankees. New York was managed by Buck Showalter and played at Yankee Stadium. The team finished with a record of 70-43 finishing games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles, having the best record in the American League and the second-best...
were the American League East leaders when a players' strike wiped out the rest of the season. Similarly, a players' strike had cut short their 1981 playoff effort.
The team
1995 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 1995 season was the 93rd season for the Yankees, their 71st playing home games at Yankee Stadium. Managed by Buck Showalter, the team finished with a record of 79-65, seven games behind the Boston Red Sox. They won the first American League Wild Card...
returned to the playoffs in 1995
1995 American League Division Series
-Seattle Mariners vs. New York Yankees:-Game 1, Tuesday, October 3:Jacobs Field in Cleveland, OhioAfter a 39-minute rain delay, Game 1 got underway with two veterans, Roger Clemens and Dennis Martínez, starting the opener. The Red Sox jumped in front first in the third on John Valentin's two run...
(their first visit since 1981
1981 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 1981 season was the 79th season for the Yankees. In the ALCS, the Yankees swept the Oakland Athletics for their only pennant of the 1980s. However, they lost in the World Series in 6 games to the Los Angeles Dodgers. New York was managed by Gene Michael and Bob Lemon...
) and won the World Series in 1996
1996 World Series
-Game 1:Sunday, October 20, 1996 at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New YorkGame 1 and Game 2 were originally scheduled for Saturday, October 19 and Sunday, October 20, respectively. Rain on October 19, however, washed out Game 1. The schedule was moved up one day, with Game 1 and Game 2 rescheduled for...
. The Yankees went on to win the World Series in , and . The Yankees
2001 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 2001 season was the 99th season for the Yankees. The team finished with a record of 95-65 finishing 13.5 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox. New York was managed by Joe Torre. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium. Roger Clemens had sixteen straight wins, tying an American...
lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks
2001 Arizona Diamondbacks season
The 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks, in their fourth year of existence, looked to improve on their 2000 season. They had to contend in what was a strong National League West Division....
in .
The Yankees made the playoffs every season through , winning the AL Pennant in seven games over the 2003 Boston Red Sox
2003 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox' 2003 season included the Red Sox attempting to win the American League East division, the ALDS, and the American League.-Offseason:...
. In 2003
2003 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 2003 season was the 100th season for the Yankees. The team finished with a record of 101-61 finishing 6 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox. New York was managed by Joe Torre. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium. In the playoffs, they defeated the Boston Red Sox in 7 games in...
, they won the ALCS
2003 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Wednesday, October 8, 2003 at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New YorkBacked by three home runs, Tim Wakefield shut the Bombers down in Game 1.-Game 2:Thursday, October 9, 2003 at Yankee Stadium in Bronx, New York...
but lost the World Series
2003 World Series
The 2003 World Series marked the 99th baseball World Series event. The Florida Marlins defeated the New York Yankees in six games, 4–2.-Background:...
to the Florida Marlins
2003 Florida Marlins season
The 2003 Florida Marlins season was a season in American baseball. The Marlins were the National League Wild Card Winners, the National League Champions, and the World Series Champions.-Offseason:...
, which denied Steinbrenner, who had won the Stanley Cup
2003 Stanley Cup Finals
The 2003 Stanley Cup Finals was a best-of-seven playoff series that determined the champion of the National Hockey League for the 2002–03 season...
in June of that year as part-owner of the New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, the distinction of winning championships in two major sports leagues in the same year.
The Yankees
2004 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees' 2004 season was the 102nd season for the Yankees. The Yankees opened the season by playing two games against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in Japan on March 30, 2004. The team finished with a record of 101-61, finishing 3 games ahead of the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. New...
' demise was furthered by the postseason collapse of 2004. While leading the eventual World Champion Boston Red Sox
2004 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox 2004 season was the 103rd Major League Baseball season for the Boston Red Sox franchise. Managed under Terry Francona, the team finished with a 98–64 record...
three games to none (3-0) and 3 outs away from winning Game 4, the Red Sox stunned the Yankees and the baseball world by coming back to win Game 4 and then the next three games and sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals
2004 St. Louis Cardinals season
The St. Louis Cardinals 2004 season was the team's 123rd season in St. Louis, Missouri and the 113th season in the National League. The Cardinals went 105-57 during the season and won the National League Central division by 13 games over the NL Wild-Card Champion Houston Astros...
in the World Series
2004 World Series
The 2004 World Series was the Major League Baseball championship series for the 2004 season. It was the 100th World Series and featured the American League champions, the Boston Red Sox, against the National League champions, the St. Louis Cardinals...
. In , the Yankees
2008 New York Yankees season
The 2008 New York Yankees season was the 106th season for the New York Yankees franchise. The Yankees hosted the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday July 15, 2008. It was the 83rd and last season at Yankee Stadium prior to the team's move to a new ballpark just north of the current...
ended their post-season run with a third place finish in the American League East
American League East
The American League Eastern Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions . This division was created before the start of the 1969 season along with the Western Division...
. However, in , the Yankees
2009 New York Yankees season
The 2009 New York Yankees season was the 107th season for the New York Yankees franchise. The Yankees opened their new Yankee Stadium on April 3, 2009, when they hosted an exhibition game against the Chicago Cubs...
defeated the Philadelphia Phillies
2009 Philadelphia Phillies season
The Philadelphia Phillies' 2009 season was the 127th season in the history of the franchise. The team, managed by Charlie Manuel, began their sixth season at Citizens Bank Park and defense of their 2008 World Series championship on April 5...
in the World Series
2009 World Series
The 2009 World Series was the 105th edition of Major League Baseball's championship series. The best-of-seven playoff was contested between the Philadelphia Phillies, champions of the National League and defending World Series champions, and the New York Yankees, champions of the American League...
to win a 27th championship, seven of which had been won under Steinbrenner's ownership.
Retirement
From 20062006 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees 2006 season was the Yankees 104th season in New York, and their 106th overall going back to their origins in Baltimore. The season finished with the Yankees winning the AL East Division...
to his death, George Steinbrenner spent most of his time in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, leaving the Yankees to be run by his sons Hank
Hank Steinbrenner
Henry G. "Hank" Steinbrenner III is the part-owner and Senior Vice President of the New York Yankees, along with his brother Hal Steinbrenner....
and Hal Steinbrenner
Hal Steinbrenner
Harold Z. Steinbrenner, known as Hal, is part owner of the New York Yankees with his brother Hank Steinbrenner, the co-chairperson, and a general partner for the Yankees...
. Hank in particular shows similar traits to his father.
After ceding day-to-day control of the team, Steinbrenner made few public appearances and gave no interviews. Associates and family members refused to comment on rampant speculation concerning his declining health, specifically rumors that he was suffering from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
. The Yankees went to great lengths to prevent anyone outside Steinbrenner's immediate family and closest business associates from speaking to him, or even getting a glimpse of him on the rare occasions when he made an appearance at Yankee Stadium. Temporary curtains were set up to block views of his entry and exit routes, and no one was allowed near the vehicles transporting him. The press elevator carrying media members downstairs to the interview areas were shut down before he arrived, and again toward the end of the game while he departed.
Steinbrenner made a rare appearance in the Bronx on the field for the 79th All-Star Game
2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 79th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, New York, home of the New York Yankees, on...
on July 15, 2008. Wearing dark glasses, he walked slowly into the stadium's media entrance with the aid of several companions, leaning upon one of them for support. He later was driven out on to the field along with his son Hal at the end of the lengthy pre-game ceremony in which the All-Stars were introduced at their fielding positions along with 49 of the 63 living Hall of Famers.
In subsequent occasional visits to spring training, regular-season games, and other outings, he used a wheelchair.
On April 13, 2010, Derek Jeter and Joe Girardi privately presented the first 2009 World Series Championship ring to Steinbrenner in his stadium suite. He was "almost speechless", according to reports.
George Steinbrenner's estimated net worth was $1.15 billion USD in 2009 according to the Forbes 400
Forbes 400
The Forbes 400 or 400 Richest Americans is a list published by Forbes Magazine magazine of the wealthiest 400 Americans, ranked by net worth. The list is published annually in September, and 2010 marks the 29th issue. The 400 was started by Malcom Forbes in 1982 and treats those in the list like...
List in Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
magazine issued in September 2009.
George Steinbrenner was the first owner of a baseball team to sell cable TV rights (to MSG Network
MSG Network
The MSG Network, now shortened to simply MSG, is a regional cable television and radio network serving the Mid-Atlantic United States. It is focused on New York City sports teams...
).
In 1997, the Yankees signed a 10-year, $97 million deal with Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
. A dispute with MSG over the cable rights fee ended with the creation of the Yankees' own YES Network
YES Network
The Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network is a New York City-based, regional cable television channel; it broadcasts a variety of sports events, with an emphasis on New York Yankees baseball games, and New Jersey Nets basketball games. YES made its debut on March 19, 2002...
.
George Steinbrenner has been able to grow the Yankees from a $10 million franchise to a $1.2 billion heavyweight. In 2005, the Yankees became the first American professional sports franchise to be conservatively estimated as being worth over one billion dollars. If one adds up the revenue of $1.2 billion valuation of the 36% Yankees owned YES Network to the team revenue (the other 64% is owned by Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
and the former New Jersey Nets
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
owner which is also a minority owner of the ballclub), they far surpass even the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
in total estimated value.
Off the field
In addition to being an intense boss to his on-field employees, Steinbrenner was also known for pressuring and changing off-field employees (including various publicity directors), sometimes chewing them out in public. Longtime Cardinals announcer Jack BuckJack Buck
John Francis "Jack" Buck was an American sportscaster, best known for his work announcing Major League Baseball games of the St. Louis Cardinals. Buck received the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1987, and is honored with a star on the St. Louis Walk of Fame...
once quipped that he had seen Steinbrenner's yacht and that, "It was a beautiful thing to observe, with all 36 oars working in unison." Former sportscaster Hank Greenwald
Hank Greenwald
Howard "Hank" Greenwald is a former Major League Baseball announcer, known best for being a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants.-Early career:...
, who called Yankee games on WABC
WABC (AM)
WABC , known as "NewsTalkRadio 77 WABC" is a radio station in New York City. Owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media, the station broadcasts on a clear channel and is the flagship station of Cumulus Media Networks...
radio for two years, once said he knew when Steinbrenner was in town by how tense the office staff was.
He usually kept his complaints about the team broadcasters he approved of (except for the YES Network
YES Network
The Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network is a New York City-based, regional cable television channel; it broadcasts a variety of sports events, with an emphasis on New York Yankees baseball games, and New Jersey Nets basketball games. YES made its debut on March 19, 2002...
crew, who have generally not been his direct employees) out of the newspapers. However, he was known to be upset with the sometimes blunt commentary of former broadcaster Jim Kaat
Jim Kaat
James Lee "Jim" Kaat , nicknamed "Kitty", is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins , Chicago White Sox , Philadelphia Phillies , New York Yankees , and St...
and former analyst Tony Kubek
Tony Kubek
Anthony Christopher "Tony" Kubek is a retired American professional baseball player and television broadcaster....
.
The 1986 World Series
1986 World Series
The 1986 World Series pitted the New York Mets against the Boston Red Sox. It was cited in the legend of the "Curse of the Bambino" to explain the error by Bill Buckner in Game 6 that allowed the Mets to extend the series to a seventh game...
was called "Steinbrenner's nightmare," because it was a showdown between two of the Yankees' biggest rivals, their cross-town rival New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
and their most hated rival, Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. As a result, Steinbrenner wrote articles in The New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
on the World Series. The Mets won that World Series, which relieved many Yankee fans.
Steinbrenner had a reputation as a domineering boss. Only three Yankee employees were continuously employed from the start of Steinbrenner's ownership in 1973 until the end of his tenure. One of those is long time Head Athletic Trainer Gene Monahan
Gene Monahan
Gene Monahan is the current head athletic trainer for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball. He has spent almost 50 years with the Yankees organization and since 1973 has been part of their training staff...
, who recently missed his first spring training in 48 years after being diagnosed with cancer.
Harvey Greene, the Yankees' Director of Media Relations from 1986-1989, talked about the experience of working under Steinbrenner:
- "When the team was on the road, you’d come back to your hotel late at night, and if your phone light was on, you knew that either there had been a death in the family or George was looking for you. After a while, you started to hope that there had been a death in the family."
George Steinbrenner was involved with thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
horse racing
Horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
from the early 1970s. He owned Kinsman Stud Farm in Ocala, Florida
Ocala, Florida
Ocala is a city in Marion County, Florida. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 53,491. It is the county seat of Marion County, and the principal city of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated 2007 population of 324,857.-History:Ocala...
and raced under the name Kinsman Stable
Kinsman Stable
Kinsman Stable is the nom de course for the American Thoroughbred racing stable of George Steinbrenner, best known as the owner of the New York Yankees Major League Baseball team...
.
Charitable work
Steinbrenner gave to many charitable causes. He often donated to the families of fallen police officers in the Tampa Police Department and the NYPD in addition to college scholarships for many poor children. During the 1992 Summer Olympics1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
in Barcelona, Spain, Steinbrenner comforted United States Olympic Swimming medalist Ron Karnaugh through his father's death and maintained a relationship with him until his death. At his residence in Tampa, Steinbrenner supported numerous individuals and charities including the Boys and Girls Club as well as the Salvation Army
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
. Mel Stottlemyre
Mel Stottlemyre
Melvin Leon Stottlemyre, Sr. is a former Major League Baseball pitcher and pitching coach. He played 11 years in the Major Leagues, all of them with the New York Yankees...
recalled that during his myeloma cancer treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital he had mentioned in passing to Steinbrenner how he regretted not being able to watch Yankee games from his room. Stottlemyre heard that Steinbrenner went all the way to Mayor Rudy Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis "Rudy" Giuliani KBE is an American lawyer, businessman, and politician from New York. He served as Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001....
to ensure he was able to watch the broadcasts from his room. Steinbrenner had also donated $1 million to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital where a wing was named in his honor.
In the media
Despite Steinbrenner's controversial status he poked fun at himself in the media. His frequent firings and rehirings of managerManager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
Billy Martin
Billy Martin
Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin, Jr. was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager. He is best known as the manager of the New York Yankees, a position he held five different times...
were lampooned in a '70s Miller Lite
Miller Lite
Miller Lite is a 4.2% abv pale lager brand sold by MillerCoors of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Sibling beers include Miller Genuine Draft and Miller High Life.-History:...
beer commercial in which Steinbrenner tells Martin "You're fired!" to which Martin replies "Oh, no, not again!" After one of Martin's real-life rehirings, the commercial was resurrected, only with Steinbrenner's line redubbed to say "You're hired!"
He hosted Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
on October 20, 1990 at the same time his former outfielder and Yankee manager, Lou Piniella
Lou Piniella
Louis Victor Piniella is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He has been nicknamed "Sweet Lou," both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager...
, led the Cincinnati Reds
1990 Cincinnati Reds season
The Cincinnati Reds' 1990 season was a season in American baseball. It consisted of the Reds winning the National League West, as well as the National League Championship Series in six games over the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the World Series in a four-game sweep over the overwhelming favorite...
to a World Championship. In the opening sketch, he dreamt of a Yankees team managed, coached, and entirely played by himself. In other sketches, he chews out the SNL "writing staff" (notably including Al Franken
Al Franken
Alan Stuart "Al" Franken is the junior United States Senator from Minnesota. He is a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, which affiliates with the national Democratic Party....
) for featuring him in a mock Slim Fast
Slim Fast
Slim•Fast is a brand of shakes, bars, snacks, packaged meals, and other dietary supplement foods sold in the U.S., UK, Ireland, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland and Latin America by Unilever. Slim Fast promotes diets and weight loss plans featuring its food products. Its U.S...
commercial with other ruthless leaders such as Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
and Idi Amin
Idi Amin
Idi Amin Dada was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Amin joined the British colonial regiment, the King's African Rifles in 1946. Eventually he held the rank of Major General in the post-colonial Ugandan Army and became its Commander before seizing power in the military...
and plays a folksy convenience store manager whose business ethic is divergent from that of Steinbrenner.
In The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Homer at the Bat
Homer at the Bat
"Homer at the Bat" is the seventeenth episode of The Simpsons third season, which originally aired February 20, 1992. The episode follows the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant softball team, led by Homer, having a winning season and making the championship game. Mr. Burns makes a large bet that the...
", Mr. Burns fires Don Mattingly
Don Mattingly
Donald Arthur "Don" Mattingly is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nicknamed "The Hit Man" and "Donnie Baseball", he played his entire 14-year baseball career for the New York Yankees...
for refusing to shave sideburns only Burns could see. It is often assumed that this was a parody of an argument Steinbrenner and Mattingly had in real life with regards to Mattingly's hair length. However, the episode was actually recorded a year before the suspension actually occurred, and was nothing more than a coincidence. As Mattingly walks off the baseball field, he states, "I still like him [Burns] better than Steinbrenner."
He appeared as himself in the Albert Brooks
Albert Brooks
Albert Lawrence Brooks is an American actor, voice actor, writer, comedian and director. He received an Academy Award nomination in 1987 for his role in Broadcast News...
comedy The Scout. In 1991, he played himself in an episode of Good Sports
Good Sports
Good Sports is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS network in 1991, starring Farrah Fawcett and Ryan O'Neal.-Synopsis:The show features the two main characters, Bobby Tannen, a once-famous former football player gone to seed and Gayle Roberts, an ex-Miss America , as mismatched anchors on an...
, with Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett was an American actress and artist. A multiple Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominee, Fawcett rose to international fame when she first appeared as private investigator Jill Munroe in the first season of the television series Charlie's Angels, in 1976...
and Ryan O'Neal
Ryan O'Neal
Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal , better known as Ryan O'Neal, is an American actor best known for his appearances in the ABC nighttime soap opera Peyton Place and for his roles in such films as Paper Moon , Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon , A Bridge Too Far , and Love Story , for which he received...
.
In the 1994 computer game Superhero League of Hoboken
Superhero League of Hoboken
Superhero League of Hoboken is a computer game from Legend Entertainment, designed by interactive fiction designer Steve Meretzky. The game combines the adventure and RPG styles of play and the superhero, comedy and post-apocalypse genres....
, one of the schemes of the primary antagonist, Dr. Entropy
Entropy
Entropy is a thermodynamic property that can be used to determine the energy available for useful work in a thermodynamic process, such as in energy conversion devices, engines, or machines. Such devices can only be driven by convertible energy, and have a theoretical maximum efficiency when...
, is to resurrect George Steinbrenner to bring chaos to the world and rule together. The superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
es foil his plan by resurrecting Billy Martin.
After a public chastising of Yankees shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
Derek Jeter
Derek Jeter
Derek Sanderson Jeter is an American baseball shortstop who has played 17 years in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees. A twelve-time All-Star and five-time World Series champion, Jeter's clubhouse presence, on-field leadership, hitting ability, and baserunning have made him a central...
for "partying too much," the two appeared in a Visa
VISA (credit card)
Visa Inc. is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered on 595 Market Street, Financial District in San Francisco, California, United States, although much of the company's staff is based in Foster City, California. It facilitates electronic funds transfers throughout...
commercial club-hopping. A 2004 Visa commercial depicted Steinbrenner in the trainer's room at Yankee Stadium, suffering from an arm injury, unable to sign any checks, including that of his then-current manager Joe Torre
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre is a former American professional baseball player and manager who currently serves as Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. A nine-time All-Star, he played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, first baseman and a third baseman for the...
, who spends most of the commercial treating Steinbrenner as if he were an important player.
George Will
George Will
George Frederick Will is an American newspaper columnist, journalist, and author. He is a Pulitzer Prize-winner best known for his conservative commentary on politics...
once described Steinbrenner as an "error machine" and a "baseball dumb-o-meter."
Steinbrenner also was a fan of professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
. He wrote the foreword of the 2005 Dusty Rhodes
Dusty Rhodes (wrestler)
Virgil Riley Runnels, Jr. , better known as "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler currently working for WWE...
autobiography and was a regular at old Tampa Armory cards in the 1970s and 1980s. In March 1989, he appeared in the front row of the WWF's
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
Saturday Night's Main Event broadcast, even interacting with manager Bobby "The Brain" Heenan at one point (Heenan remarked about the guy he managed in the ring at the time to Steinbrenner "I've got a ring full of Winfield"). At WWF WrestleMania 7, Steinbrenner, WWF owner Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, and NFL announcer Paul Maguire
Paul Maguire
Paul Leo Maguire is a former American football player and current television sportscaster.-Early sports career:Maguire attended Ursuline High School in Youngstown,Ohio and was recruited to play at The Citadel by the late Al Davis who was then an assistant coach and chief recruiter...
filmed a skit with the trio debating instant replay. He was also present in the front row of an edition of WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro
WCW Monday Nitro was a weekly professional wrestling telecast produced by World Championship Wrestling, created by Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff. The show aired Monday nights on TNT, going head-to-head with the World Wrestling Federation's Monday Night Raw from September 4, 1995 to March 26, 2001...
in early 1998 when the event took place in Tampa.
At the funeral of his long time friend Otto Graham
Otto Graham
Otto Everett Graham, Jr. was a professional American football and basketball player who played for the Cleveland Browns in both the All-America Football Conference and National Football League, as well as the Rochester Royals in the National Basketball League.-Early life:Born in Waukegan,...
in December 2003, Steinbrenner fainted, leading to extensive media speculation that he was in ill health.
New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
cartoonist Bill Gallo
Bill Gallo
Bill Gallo was a cartoonist and newspaper columnist for the New York Daily News.-Biography:Gallo was born in Manhattan, the son of a journalist father who died when Gallo was 11 years old. Gallo's mother and father were natives of Spain. When Gallo graduated from high school in 1941, he landed a...
often cited Steinbrenner's German heritage by drawing him in a Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n military uniform, complete with spiked helmet, gold epaulettes and medals, calling him "General von Steingrabber."
In ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
's miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
The Bronx is Burning
The Bronx Is Burning
The Bronx Is Burning is a television drama that debuted on ESPN on July 9, 2007, after the 2007 MLB Home Run Derby. It is an eight-episode mini-series adapted from Jonathan Mahler's best-selling book, Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning...
, he is portrayed by Oliver Platt
Oliver Platt
Oliver James Platt is a Canadian-American actor. He is currently starring in the Showtime original series, The Big C with Laura Linney.-Early life:...
.
Seinfeld caricature
Steinbrenner appeared as a character in the situation comedy SeinfeldSeinfeld
Seinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
, when George Costanza
George Costanza
George Louis Costanza is a character in the American television sitcom Seinfeld , played by Jason Alexander. He has variously been described as a "short, stocky, slow-witted, bald man" , "Lord of the Idiots" , and as "the greatest sitcom character of all time"...
worked for the Yankees for several seasons. Lee Bear portrayed the character, and Larry David
Larry David
Lawrence Gene "Larry" David is an American actor, writer, comedian and producer. He is best known as the co-creator , head writer, and executive producer of the television series Seinfeld from 1989 to 1996, and for creating the 1999 HBO series Curb Your Enthusiasm, a partially improvised sitcom in...
provided voice-over
Voice-over
Voice-over is a production technique where a voice which is not part of the narrative is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations...
performances whenever the character spoke. Steinbrenner's full face was never shown
Unseen character
In fiction, an unseen character is a character that is never directly observed by the audience but is only described by other characters. They are a common device in drama and have been called "triumphs of theatrical invention". They are continuing characters — characters who are currently in...
, and the character was always viewed from the back in scenes set in his office at Yankee Stadium. The character appeared in the following episodes: "The Opposite
The Opposite
"The Opposite" is the eighty-sixth episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld, which was also the 21st episode of Season 5. It aired on May 19, 1994. This was the first episode shot for Season 5, but it was intended to be the season finale. This is the last episode Tom Cherones directed...
", "The Secretary
The Secretary
"The Secretary" is the 95th episode of NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 9th episode for the sixth season, and was the first to use Castle Rock Entertainment's new logo after its acquisition from Turner...
", "The Race", "The Jimmy", "The Wink", "The Hot Tub
The Hot Tub
"The Hot Tub" is the 115th episode of NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 5th episode for the 7th season. It aired on October 19, 1995.-Plot:...
", "The Caddy", "The Calzone
The Calzone
"The Calzone" is the 130th episode of the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 20th episode of the seventh season. It aired on April 25, 1996.-Plot:...
", "The Bottle Deposit", "The Nap
The Nap
"The Nap" is the 152nd episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 18th episode for the 8th season. It aired on April 10, 1997. Larry David returned as recurring character George Steinbrenner, whom he would play in two other episodes near the end of this season and in the show's final...
", "The Millennium", "The Muffin Tops
The Muffin Tops
"The Muffin Tops" is the 155th episode of the sitcom Seinfeld. This was the 21st episode of the eighth season. It aired on May 8, 1997.-Plot:...
", and "The Finale".
The fictional Steinbrenner talked nonstop, regardless of whether anyone was listening, and sometimes referred to himself as "Big Stein". The team owner was known for eccentric decisions, such as cooking jerseys, threatening to move the team to New Jersey "just to upset people", scalping his owner's box tickets, wearing Lou Gehrig
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
's uniform pants (and panicking about "that nerve disease
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , also referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a form of motor neuron disease caused by the degeneration of upper and lower neurons, located in the ventral horn of the spinal cord and the cortical neurons that provide their efferent input...
" being contagious), trading several players to Frank Costanza's dismay, and canceling a meeting
Meeting
In a meeting, two or more people come together to discuss one or more topics, often in a formal setting.- Definitions :An act or process of coming together as an assembly for a common purpose....
because he wanted George Costanza to get him an eggplant calzone
Calzone
A calzone Italian: , "stocking" or "trouser") is a turnover that originates from Italy. It is shaped like a semicircle, made of dough folded over and filled with ingredients common to pizza....
. In "The Wink", the Steinbrenner character mentions all of the people he fired, saying Billy Martin
Billy Martin
Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin, Jr. was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager. He is best known as the manager of the New York Yankees, a position he held five different times...
four times, and mentions then-current manager Buck Showalter
Buck Showalter
William Nathaniel "Buck" Showalter III is an American Major League Baseball manager for the Baltimore Orioles. He has previously served in a similar capacity with the New York Yankees , Arizona Diamondbacks , and Texas Rangers...
, but then quickly swears Costanza to silence. Though intended as a joke, the comment proved prophetic: A few weeks after the episode aired, Steinbrenner replaced Showalter as manager with Joe Torre
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre is a former American professional baseball player and manager who currently serves as Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. A nine-time All-Star, he played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, first baseman and a third baseman for the...
.
Steinbrenner's involvement with Seinfeld began when he refused a request to make a cameo appearance
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
and permit a Yankees pennant
Pennant (sports)
A pennant is a commemorative flag typically used to show support for a particular athletic team. Pennants have been historically used in all types of athletic levels: high school, collegiate, professional etc. Traditionally, pennants were made of felt and fashioned in the official colors of a...
to appear; the show nonetheless used the pennant. A year later, Steinbrenner was asked to permit a Yankees uniform to appear on the sixth-season "The Chaperone". The owner was still angry about the unauthorized pennant, and knew so little about the show that after reading the script he believed George Costanza had been named after him as an insult. He refused to permit the uniform's use unless the character was renamed. After watching the show and enjoying both it and the Costanza character, however, Steinbrenner approved the uniform, and later maintained that he was a fan of the show and that "Costanza is always welcome back." He filmed three scenes for the Seinfeld season 7 finale, "The Invitations", but they were edited out when the time of the original episode ran longer than the allowed time. They are on the Seinfeld Season 7 DVD Disc 4.
Jerry Seinfeld
Jerry Seinfeld
Jerome Allen "Jerry" Seinfeld is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and television and film producer, known for playing a semi-fictional version of himself in the situation comedy Seinfeld , which he co-created and co-wrote with Larry David, and, in the show's final two seasons,...
said after Steinbrenner's death: “Who else could be a memorable character on a television show without actually appearing on the show? You felt George even though he wasn’t there. That’s how huge a force of personality he was."
Honors
Steinbrenner was awarded The Flying Wedge AwardThe Flying Wedge Award
The Flying Wedge Award is one of the NCAA’s highest honors. It is awarded to an individual who exemplifies outstanding leadership and service to the NCAA. The flying wedge was used in the early days of American football and became a symbol of the origin of the NCAA in 1906...
, one of the NCAA’s
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
highest honors.
In 1992, Steinbrenner was presented with Tampa's most prestigious civic service award, the Tampa Metro Civitan Club's Outstanding Citizen of the Year Award.
In 2000, Steinbrenner was honored as Grand Marshal at the German-American Steuben Parade
German-American Steuben Parade
The German-American Steuben Parade is an annual parade held in various cities across the United States. The New York City parade is held every third Saturday in September. It was founded in 1957 by German-American immigrants who, being part of the largest self -reported ancestral group in the...
on Fifth Avenue in New York City. At this largest German-American event in the country, he was greeted by tens of thousands who celebrated him as an outstanding American of German heritage.
The Steinbrenner Band Hall
The Pride of the Sunshine
The University of Florida Fightin' Gator Marching Band, also known as The Pride of the Sunshine, is the official marching band for the University of Florida. They play at every Florida Gators home football game in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and also performs at various other events such as pep...
at the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
was made possible by a gift from George and Joan Steinbrenner in 2002. The facility was completed in 2008 and serves as The Pride of the Sunshine
The Pride of the Sunshine
The University of Florida Fightin' Gator Marching Band, also known as The Pride of the Sunshine, is the official marching band for the University of Florida. They play at every Florida Gators home football game in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and also performs at various other events such as pep...
's rehearsal hall and houses offices, instrument storage, the band library and an instrument issue room.
A new high school in Lutz, Florida
Lutz, Florida
Lutz is an unincorporated census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 19,344 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Lutz is located at ....
, which opened for about 1600 students in August 2009, is named George Steinbrenner High School
Steinbrenner High School
George M. Steinbrenner High School is a public high school in Lutz, Florida. It is located adjacent to McKitrick Elementary and Martinez Middle Schools...
. Steinbrenner was a generous contributor to the Tampa Bay area.
Legends Field, the Yankees' Spring Training facility in Tampa, was renamed George M. Steinbrenner Field in March 2008 in his honor by his two sons, with the blessing of the Hillsborough County Commission and the Tampa City Council. The entrance to the new Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium
Boshamer Stadium
Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium is a baseball stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It is the home of the North Carolina Tar Heels baseball team.- History :...
at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
has also been named for Steinbrenner and his family. A life-size bronze statue of Steinbrenner was placed in front of the stadium in January 2011.
Steinbrenner appeared on the 2011 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot
Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 2011
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 2011 proceeded according to rules most recently revised in July 2010. As in the past, the Baseball Writers Association of America voted by mail to select from a ballot of recently-retired players...
.
Death
On July 13, 2010, the morning of the 2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 81st midseason exhibition between the All-Stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball...
, George Steinbrenner died of a heart attack
Myocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
. His death came nine days after his 80th birthday, two days after the passing of long time Yankee Stadium public address announcer Bob Sheppard
Bob Sheppard
Robert Leo "Bob" Sheppard was the long-time public address announcer for numerous New York area college and professional sports teams, in particular the MLB New York Yankees , and the NFL New York Giants .Sheppard announced more than 4,500 Yankees baseball games over a period of 56 years,...
, and eight days before that of former Yankee manager Ralph Houk. On July 14, the Yankees announced that players and coaches would wear a Steinbrenner commemorative patch on the left breast of their home and road uniforms, and a Bob Sheppard commemorative patch on the left arm.
The Steinbrenner family added a monument to Monument Park
Monument Park (Yankee Stadium)
Monument Park is an open-air museum located at the new Yankee Stadium containing a collection of monuments, plaques, and retired numbers honoring distinguished members of the New York Yankees....
on September 20, 2010 to honor Steinbrenner. He is buried at Trinity Memorial Gardens in Trinity, Florida
Trinity, Florida
Trinity is a census-designated place in Pasco County, Florida, United States. The population was 4,279 at the 2000 census. It is now speculated that the Trinity area has grown to almost triple the size with a probable population of 13,298...
.
External links
- George: The Poor Little Rich Boy Who Built The Yankee Empire
- The List: Steinbrenner's Worst ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
- George M. Steinbrenner III: #380 Richest American
- FBI file on George Steinbrenner
- Outstanding Citizen of the Year; Past Winners, Tampa Metro Civitan Club.
- George Steinbrenner at Find A GraveFind A GraveFind a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...
- Steinbrenner's basketball bio
- George Steinbrenner Dies