George Steinbrenner | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Steinbrenner in 1980 | |
| Born | George Michael Steinbrenner III (1930-07-04)July 4, 1930 Rocky River, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | July 13, 2010(2010-07-13) (aged 80) Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupations |
|
| Known for | Owner ofNew York Yankees (MLB) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4, includingHank andHal |
| Family | Steinbrenner |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Air Force |
| Service years | 1952–1954 |
| Rank | .svg) First lieutenant |
| Unit | Strategic Air Command |
George Michael Steinbrenner III (July 4, 1930 – July 13, 2010), nicknamed "theBoss", was an American businessman who was the principal owner and managing partner ofMajor League Baseball'sNew York Yankees from 1973 until his death in 2010. He was the longest-serving owner in club history, and the Yankees won sevenWorld Series championships and 11American Leaguepennants under his ownership. His outspokenness and role in driving up player salaries made him one of the sport's most controversial figures. Steinbrenner was also involved in theGreat Lakes andGulf Coast shipping industry.
Originally known as a very hands-on owner, Steinbrenner 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 managerDallas Green gave him the derisive nickname "Manager George".[1] However, from the early 1990s onward, he mostly left the Yankees in the hands of the baseball operations staff and rarely interfered. He officially retired from day-to-day control of the team in 2008.
He died after suffering a heart attack in his Tampa home on the morning of July 13, 2010, the day of the81st All-Star Game. The Yankees are now owned byYankee Global Enterprises, for which Steinbrenner's four children have served as general partners.
Steinbrenner was born inRocky River, Ohio,[1] the only son of Rita (née Haley) and Henry George Steinbrenner II. His mother was an Irish immigrant who had changed her name from O'Haley to Haley.[2] His father was ofGerman descent[3][4] and was a world-class track and fieldhurdler while atMassachusetts Institute of Technology, from which he graduated in engineering in 1927, first in his class and a distinguished scholar innaval architecture.[5][6][7] The elder Steinbrenner later became a wealthy shipping magnate who ran the family firm operating freight ships hauling ore and grain on theGreat Lakes, inherited from his great-grandmotherSophia Steinbrenner and her mother Anna Minch.[8][9] George III was named after his paternal grandfather, George Michael Steinbrenner II.[5] Steinbrenner had two younger sisters, Susan and Judy.[5] At age nine, the elder Steinbrenner staked George to a couple of hundred chickens, and he peddled hens and their eggs door to door. "I learned a lot about business from raising chickens," he toldSports Illustrated. "Half of my customers began buying because they were afraid of me."[10]
In 1944, Steinbrenner enteredCulver Military Academy inNorthern Indiana, graduating in 1948. He received his B.A. fromWilliams College in 1952. While at Williams, George was an average student who led an active extracurricular life. He was a member ofDelta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He was an accomplished hurdler on the varsity track and field team, and served as sports editor ofThe Williams Record, played piano in the band, and played halfback on thefootball team in his senior year.[11] He joined theUnited States Air Force after graduation, was commissioned asecond lieutenant and was stationed atLockbourne Air Force Base inColumbus, Ohio. Following honorable discharge in 1954, he did post-graduate study atOhio State University (1954–55), earning his master's degree inphysical education.
He met his wife-to-be,Elizabeth Joan Zieg, in Columbus, and married her on May 12, 1956.[11] The couple had two sons,Hank andHal, and two daughters, Jessica Steinbrenner and Jennifer Steinbrenner-Swindal. The Steinbrenners also have numerous grandchildren. All four of the Steinbrenners' children eventually got divorced, some multiple times, resulting in several former-in-laws being removed from the Yankees' management.[12]
While studying at Ohio State, he served as a graduate assistant toBuckeye football coachWoody Hayes.[13] The Buckeyes were undefeated national champions that year, and won theRose Bowl. Steinbrenner served as an assistant football coach atNorthwestern University in 1955, and atPurdue University from 1956 to 1957.[1][14]
Steinbrenner joined Kinsman Marine Transit Company in 1957, theGreat 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.[15] 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.[11] 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 theAmerican 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.[16]
In 1960, against his father's wishes, Steinbrenner entered the sports franchise business for the first time with basketball'sCleveland Pipers, of theNational Industrial Basketball League (NIBL). Steinbrenner had hiredJohn McClendon, who became the first African American coach in professional basketball and persuadedJerry Lucas to join his team instead of the rivalNational Basketball Association.[17][18] The Pipers switched leagues, to the new professionalABL in 1961; the new circuit was founded byAbe Saperstein, owner of theHarlem Globetrotters. The league and its teams 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 formerBoston Celtics starBill 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.[11]
With his burgeoning sports aspirations put on hold, Steinbrenner turned his attention to the theatre. His involvement withBroadway began with a short-lived 1967 play,The Ninety Day Mistress, in which he partnered with another rookie producer,James M. Nederlander. Whereas Nederlander threw himself intohis family's business full-time, Steinbrenner invested in a mere half-dozen shows, including the 1974Tony Award nominee for Best Musical,Seesaw, and the 1988Peter Allen flop,Legs Diamond.[19]
The Yankees had been struggling during their years underCBS ownership, which had acquired the team in1965. In 1972, CBS chairmanWilliam S. Paley told team presidentE. Michael Burke the media company intended to sell the club. As Burke later told writerRoger 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 theCleveland Indians fromVernon Stouffer one year earlier,[20] and who had been an investor in Buffalo's failed1969 Major League Baseball expansion bid,[21] was brought together with Burke by veteran baseball executiveGabe Paul.
On January 3, 1973, Steinbrenner and minority partner Burke led a group of investors, which included Nederlander,Lester Crown,John DeLorean,Nelson Bunker Hunt, andMarvin L. Warner, in purchasing the Yankees from CBS.[22] 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.[23]
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 ownerJohn McMullen stated, "There is nothing in life quite so limited as being a limited partner of George Steinbrenner."[24]) 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 the1973 season, two more prominent names departed:managerRalph Houk, who resigned and took a similar position with theDetroit Tigers; and general managerLee MacPhail, who became president of theAmerican League.
The 1973 off-season would continue to be controversial when Steinbrenner and Paul fought to hire formerOakland Athletics managerDick Williams, who had resigned immediately after leading the team to its second straightWorld 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 formerPittsburgh Pirates managerBill Virdon to lead the team on the field.[25]
There is nothing in life quite so limited as being a limited partner of George Steinbrenner.
During the1981 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 to light a fire under the Yankees.[26] 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.[27] He was criticized by players and press alike for doing so, as many felt losing in the World Series was not something requiring an apology.[28]
Steinbrenner enforced a military-style grooming code: Allplayers, coaches, and male executives were forbidden to display any facial hair other thanmustaches (except for religious reasons), and scalphair 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.[29][30]
During the 1973 home opener against theCleveland Indians, as the Yankees,caps removed, were standing at attention for theNational Anthem, Steinbrenner, in the owner's box next to the New Yorkdugout, 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, andSparky 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.[31]
In 1983, at Steinbrenner's behest, Yankee coachYogi Berra orderedGoose Gossage to remove a beard he was growing. Gossage responded by shaving away the beard but leaving athick 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, Yankees management orderedDon Mattingly, who was then sporting amullet-like hairstyle, to get a haircut. When Mattingly refused, he was benched.[29] This led to a huge media frenzy with reporters and talk radio repeatedly mocking the team. TheWPIX broadcasting crew ofPhil Rizzuto, Bobby Murcer, andTom 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 byMr. Burns for hissideburns being too long, despite shaving the area of his head above where sideburns grow. In 1995, Mattingly again ran afoul of the policy when he grew a goatee.
In 2005, after signing with the Yankees, formerBoston Red Sox center fielderJohnny Damon, who was known for his long beard and shoulder-length hair during his time with the Red Sox, said about the policy: "Without a doubt, George Steinbrenner has a policy and I'm going to stick to it. Our policy with the Yankees is to go out there and win and we're going to try and bring another championship to them."[32] Steinbrenner later noted, "He looks like a Yankee, he sounds like a Yankee and he is a Yankee."[33] Damon claimed he was already planning on cutting his hair after the 2005 season.[33]
After the1980 season, Steinbrenner made headlines by signingDave Winfield to a 10-year, $23 million contract, making Winfield baseball's highest-paid player.[34] In 1985, Steinbrenner derided Winfield's poor performance in a key September series against theToronto Blue Jays:
Where is Reggie Jackson? We need a Mr. October or a Mr. September. Winfield is Mr. May. My big guys are not coming through. The guys who are supposed to carry the team are not carrying the team. They aren't producing. If I don't get big performances out of Winfield,Griffey andBaylor, we can't win.
— Steinbrenner toNew York Times sportswriterMurray Chass.
This criticism eventually became somewhat of ananachronism, as many believed Steinbrenner made the statement following the1981 World Series.[35] Part of that comment later ledKen Griffey Jr. to list the Yankees as one team for which he would never play.[36]
In 2001, Winfield cited Steinbrenner's animosity as a factor in his decision to enter theHall of Fame as a representative of his first team, theSan Diego Padres, rather than the team that increased his national recognition, the Yankees.[37]
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 ofGene Michael and other executives and allowed promising farm-system players such asBernie Williams to develop instead of trading them for established players. Steinbrenner's having "got religion" (in the words ofNew York Daily News reporter Bill Madden) paid off. After contending only briefly two years earlier, the1993 Yankees were in the American League East race with the eventual championToronto Blue Jays until September.[38]
The1994 Yankees were the American League East leaders when aplayers' strike wiped out the rest of the season. Coincidentally, aplayers' strike had aided their 1981 playoff effort.[26]
In1995 the team returned to theplayoffs for the first time since 1981. However, Steinbrenner elected to fire managerBuck Showalter after the series ended in a decisive Game 5 loss to the Seattle Mariners. He also fired Michael from the GM spot after the season ended. Three days after firing Showalter on October 31, rankled by the angry responses by fans, he attempted to woo him back (while presumably movingJoe Torre to a desk job rather than the manager position). Showalter elected to honor the word he gave to theArizona Diamondbacks and thus Steinbrenner went with Torre to manage the team.[39] In 1996, the Yankees beat the Atlanta Braves in six games to win theWorld Series. They went on to Series wins in1998,1999, and2000, and fell short of a fourth straight title in2001 with a seventh-game loss to theArizona Diamondbacks.[40]
The Yankees then made the playoffs every season through 2007.[40] In2003, they beat theBoston Red Sox to win the AL pennant, but lost theWorld Series to theFlorida Marlins, denying Steinbrenner—who had won theStanley Cup in June of that year as part-owner of theNew Jersey Devils—the distinction of winning championships in two major sports leagues in the same year.[41]
In 2008, theYankees ended their postseason run with a third-place finish in theAmerican League East. However, in 2009, theYankees defeated thePhiladelphia Phillies in theWorld Series to win a 27th championship, seven of which had been won under Steinbrenner's ownership.[40]
Steinbrenner namedSteve Swindal, his son-in-law, to be his successor in June 2005.[42] When Swindal and Jennifer Steinbrenner divorced in 2007, the Yankees bought Swindal out of his financial stake in the team, withHal Steinbrenner succeeding Swindal as chairman ofYankee Global Enterprises.[43]
From2006 to his death, Steinbrenner spent most of his time inTampa, Florida. After the 2007 season and the decision not to bring back managerJoe Torre, Steinbrenner was in poor enough health that he officially retired and handed control of the Yankees to his sons Hal andHank Steinbrenner.[44] The transition was formally completed in 2008.[45]
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 fromAlzheimer's disease. A 2007 interviewer said: "He doesn't look all right. In fact, he looks dreadful. His body is bloated; his jawline has slackened into a triple chin; his skin looks as if a dry-cleaner bag has been stretched over it. Steinbrenner's face, pale and swollen, has a curiously undefined look. His features seem frozen in a permanent rictus of careworn disbelief."[46] 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 was shut down before he arrived, and again toward the end of the game while he departed.[47]
Steinbrenner made a rare appearance in the Bronx on the field for the79th 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.[48]
In subsequent occasional visits to spring training, regular-season games, and other outings, he used a wheelchair.[49]
On April 13, 2010,Derek Jeter andJoe Girardi privately presented the first 2009 World Series Championship ring to Steinbrenner in his stadium suite. He was "almost speechless", according to reports.[50]
Steinbrenner's estimated net worth was $1.15 billion in 2009 according to theForbes 400 List inForbes magazine issued in September 2009.[51] He was the first owner of a baseball team to sell cable TV rights (toMSG Network).[52]
On July 13, 2010, the morning of the2010 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, Steinbrenner died of a heart attack at St. Joseph's Hospital inTampa, Florida.[53] His death came nine days after his 80th birthday, two days after the death of longtimeYankee Stadium public address announcerBob Sheppard,[54] and eight days before that of former Yankee managerRalph 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.[55] July 15 marked the Yankees' first home game at Yankee Stadium after both the All-Star break and Steinbrenner's passing. Prior to the game, the team presented a mural above the right-center field bleachers in the late owner's honor while closerMariano Rivera laid a bouquet of flowers on home plate.[56]The Steinbrenner family added a monument toMonument Park on September 20, 2010, to honor Steinbrenner.[57] He is buried at Trinity Memorial Gardens inTrinity, Florida.
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 announcerJack Buck once said that he had seen Steinbrenner's yacht and that, "It was a beautiful thing to observe, with all 36 oars working in unison."[58] Former sportscasterHank Greenwald, who called Yankee games onWABC radio for two years, once said he knew when Steinbrenner was in town by how tense the office staff was.
Steinbrenner usually kept his complaints about the team broadcasters he approved of (except for theYES 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 broadcasterJim Kaat and former analystTony Kubek.
The1986 World Series was called "Steinbrenner's nightmare",[59] because it was a showdown between two of the Yankees' biggest rivals, theircross-town rival theNew York Mets and theirmost hated rival, theBoston Red Sox. As a result, Steinbrenner wrote articles in theNew York Post on the World Series.[60] The Mets won that World Series, which relieved many Yankee fans. In addition, Yankees fans attended the parade saying that "anyone who beats Boston is worth coming down for."[61]
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.[62] One of those is long time Head Athletic TrainerGene Monahan, who in 2010 missed his first spring training in 48 years after being diagnosed with cancer.[63]
Harvey Greene, the Yankees' Director of Media Relations from 1986 to 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.[64]
Steinbrenner was involved withthoroughbredhorse racing from the early 1970s. He owned Kinsman Stud Farm inOcala, Florida and raced under the nameKinsman Stable.
Steinbrenner gave to many charitable causes. In 1982, George, "while attending the funeral of a police officer killed in the line of duty, was deeply moved by the ceremony in which the American flag was folded military-style and presented to the officer's surviving spouse and young children". "He was concerned about their education and who would help with the cost, so he established the Silver Shield Foundation," said Foundation's Co-founder James E. Fuchs, a close friend of Mr. Steinbrenner's.[65] He often donated to the families of fallen police officers in the Tampa Police Department and theNew York City Police Department in addition to college scholarships for many poor children.[17]
During the1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, Steinbrenner comforted United States Olympic Swimming medalistRon Karnaugh through his father's death and maintained a relationship with him until his death.[66] At his residence in Tampa, Steinbrenner supported numerous individuals and charities including theBoys and Girls Club as well as theSalvation Army.[67]Mel Stottlemyre recalled that during hismyeloma cancer treatment atMemorial 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 MayorRudy Giuliani to ensure he was able to watch the broadcasts from his room.[68] Steinbrenner had also donated $1 million to St. Joseph's Children's Hospital where a wing was named in his honor.[69]
Although Steinbrenner was a registeredRepublican, he donated money to numerousDemocratic senators and representatives, including $6,300 toChuck Schumer, $9,600 toCharles Rangel, $1,000 toPeter W. Rodino, and $750 toGeorge J. Mitchell.[70] Steinbrenner generally voted Republican at the presidential level, having supportedGeorge H. W. Bush in the1988 and1992 elections, as well asGeorge W. Bush in2000 (and donating $5,000 to the Bush-CheneyFlorida recount fund). However, in2008, Steinbrenner's presidential donations crossed party lines, as he donated to Democratic candidateHillary Clinton along with Republican candidatesRudy Giuliani andJohn McCain, contributing $2,300 to Clinton's campaign, $4,600 to Giuliani's campaign, and $15,000 to McCain Victory 2008.[71][70]In 1989, after seeingDonald Trump onThe Morton Downey Jr. Show, he wrote a letter to Trump suggesting he should run for president.[72]
Early on, Steinbrenner became infamous in Cleveland circles for berating anyone who dared cross him.[73] This style followed him to the Yankees; he quickly became infamous for overseeing rapid turnover of management personnel. In his first 23 seasons, he changed managers 20 times;Billy Martin alone was fired and rehired five times. During his first 26 years with the club, he went through 13 public relations directors. "The first time George fires you, it's very traumatic," oft-fired Yankees flack Harvey Greene said. "The three or four times after that, it's like, Great! I've got the rest of the day off."[74] Greene, the Yankees' PR director was fired by Steinbrenner, however the next day Steinbrenner's assistant called Greene and asked why he wasn't at work. After arriving at work late, Steinbrenner told Greene "If you're late again, you're fired."[75]
Steinbrenner employed 11 general managers over 30 years. He was equally famous for pursuing high-priced free agents (i.e.,Catfish Hunter,Reggie Jackson, andDave Winfield) 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 PresidentAl Rosen could carry out Steinbrenner's dictum to fire him.
David Wells recalled he and Steinbrenner almost got into a fight during a heated argument. Wells later apologized to Steinbrenner for threatening to fight him.[76]
The "convicted" part of Billy Martin's famous 1978 "liar and convicted" comment referred to Steinbrenner's connection toRichard Nixon; in 1974, Steinbrenner pleaded guilty to making illegal contributions to Nixon's re-election campaign, and to a felony charge of obstruction of justice.[77] Faced with a cost overrun problem with the United States Commerce Department, Steinbrenner gave six of his American Shipbuilding employees "special bonuses" of $25,000 and directed them to then turn around and personally donate the funds to Nixon'sCommittee for the Re-Election of the President (CRP).[78]
Steinbrenner originally said he would fight the charges in court, but in August 1974, two weeks after Nixon resigned, Steinbrenner pleaded guilty to two charges in the case. He was personally fined $15,000 and his company American Shipbuilding was assessed an additional $20,000.[79] On November 27 of that year, MLB CommissionerBowie Kuhn suspended him for two years, but later commuted it to fifteen months.Ronald Reagan pardoned Steinbrenner in January 1989, one of the final acts of his presidency.[80][81]
On July 30, 1990, Steinbrenner was banned permanently from day-to-day management (but not ownership) of the Yankees byMLB CommissionerFay Vincent for paying a gambler namedHoward 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.[82] Vincent proposed a two-year suspension, but Steinbrenner wanted to have it worded as an "agreement" that had him leave baseball rather than a suspension in order to protect his reputation with theU.S. Olympic Committee (he also cited a reason of wanting to see his son take over). After considerable negotiation with Vincent's office,Robert Nederlander, one of Steinbrenner's theatre partners and a limited partner in the Yankees organization, became the managing general partner.[83] After Nederlander resigned in 1992, he was succeeded byJoe Molloy, George's son-in-law. A year later, Steinbrenner asked to be reinstated (having been convinced by owners such asJerry Reinsdorf that he had made a terrible mistake). Vincent agreed to reinstate him on the condition that he would drop some lawsuits he had others file against Vincent. However, Vincent was forced to resign from his job as commissioner not long after, and Steinbrenner would be reinstated by Vincent's successor,Bud Selig.[84][85]
Steinbrenner poked fun at himself in the media. His frequent firings and rehirings ofmanagerBilly Martin were lampooned in a '70sMiller 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'rehired!" The two commercials would sometimes alternate depending on Martin's status with the team.[86] InThe Simpsons episode "Homer at the Bat",Mr. Burns firesDon 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 regarding Mattingly's hair length. However, the episode was actually recorded a year before the suspension occurred, and was nothing more than a coincidence.[87] As Mattingly walks off the baseball field, he states, "I still like him [Burns] better than Steinbrenner."
New York Daily News cartoonistBill Gallo often cited Steinbrenner's German heritage by drawing him in aPrussian military uniform, complete withspiked helmet, goldepaulettes and medals, calling him "General von Steingrabber".[88]
George Steinbrenner appeared as a character in the situation comedySeinfeld, whenGeorge Costanza worked for the Yankees for several seasons. Mitch Mitchell and Lee Bear portrayed the character, andLarry David providedvoice-over performances whenever the character spoke. Steinbrenner's full face wasnever shown, and the character was almost always viewed from the back in scenes set in his office atYankee Stadium. The character appeared in the 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".[89]
The fictional Steinbrenner talks nonstop, regardless of whether anyone is listening, and sometimes refers to himself as "Big Stein". In "The Wink", Steinbrenner mentions all of the people he fired, sayingBilly Martin four times, and mentions then-current managerBuck Showalter, but then quickly swears Costanza to silence. Though intended as a joke, two weeks after the episode aired the Yankees announced that they had parted ways with Showalter.[90]
Steinbrenner's involvement withSeinfeld began when he refused a request to make acameo appearance and permit a Yankeespennant 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 episode, "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,[91] and later said he felt the show's portrayal of him was unflattering but essentially accurate to how he was at the time.[92]
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."[93]
George and his family moved to Bay Village, Ohio, and lived there for some time, just several houses away from where the infamous Sam Sheppard lived.
The owners, Ray Chambers, Lewis Katz, Peter Simon, George Steinbrenner are committed to this team and to New Jersey. (1:40)
What about the dilemma of the Yankee fans? This may be a series to eat their hearts out. As a Mets-oriented T-shirt says, 'Steinbrenner's Nightmare.'
| Preceded by | Owner of theNew York Yankees 1973–2010 | Succeeded by |
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