A legendary life: George Steinbrenner dies at age 80

George Steinbrenner, whose bluster and larger-than-life persona helped return the New York Yankees to glory, died Tuesday at the age of 80 after suffering a heart attack in his adopted hometown of Tampa.

Emergency crews responded to the philanthropist's South Tampa home Monday night and transported him to St. Joseph's Hospital. He reportedly died at 6:30 a.m. Steinbrenner, who had been in declining health in recent years, had been keeping a very low profile, making very few public appearances.

"He was a visionary and a giant in the world of sports," his family said in a statement released by Major League Baseball. "He took a great but struggling franchise and turned it into a champion again."

Flags were at half-staff at state-owned buildings, courthouses and city halls in the Tampa Bay area, as well as at New York City Hall.

"Our community has lost a grand and generous person who made a difference in ways large and small," Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio said in a statement. "With a larger-than-life personality, he leaves a lasting legacy in sports, business, and philanthropy. Many times he worked behind the scenes to help individuals and institutions - all to make Tampa a better place to live. He was a true community leader."

He was honored by family and staff members on July 2, two days before his birthday, with a surprise party at Steinbrenner Field, spring home of the Yankees. The stadium was named after him after the city council and Hillsborough County Commission passed resolutions endorsing the change from the original Legends Field. The stadium was built in the 1990s after Steinbrenner moved the Yankees' training facilities from Fort Lauderdale.

On May 16, he and his family appeared at the dedication of George M. Steinbrenner High School in northwest Hillsborough County. Steinbrenner smiled as he received a standing ovation from students and school officials. He was presented a copy of the school's first yearbook and a crystal heart inscribed with "heart of a warrior."

It's not a coincidence that Steinbrenner High's athletic teams have the "Warrior" nickname. Steinbrenner has been relentless as he carved out a legacy in Tampa as unique as the franchise he swore to uphold.

"I know of no one who has moved here from somewhere else who has done more for this community than he did," said Tom McEwen, former Tribune sports editor and columnist who has known Steinbrenner for decades.

"We wouldn't be the vibrant place we are today and not have the great future we have without him."

A Yankee Doodle Dandy

Steinbrenner, born on July 4, 1930, was admittedly difficult to work for, earning a nickname that stuck throughout his Yankees ownership tenure:

The Boss.

Steinbrenner and a group of partners purchased the Yankees for $10 million from CBS in 1973. Soon he was resurrecting the Yankees dynasty by spending lavishly, frustrating millions of small-market baseball fans in the process.

By signing free-agent players Catfish Hunter, Don Gullett, Reggie Jackson and Goose Gossage, Steinbrenner changed the way a baseball team was developed. Reaching the World Series in 1976 and winning back-to-back titles in '77 and '78, he showed signing free agents could be just as effective in building a baseball powerhouse as developing young players through the minor leagues.

Steinbrenner's Yankees won 11 American League pennants and seven World Series titles, the last being just this past season. On the way, he employed 15 different managers and 13 different general managers.

Steinbrenner's penchant for making headlines was priceless for New York's competing tabloids, which gleefully turned over their back pages to chronicle the latest fired manager or free-agent signing.

Billy Martin was hired on five separate occasions, including the infamous Old-Timer's Day announcement in 1978 that Martin would return to the dugout in 1980.

"He's done some crazy things, like we all have," former Yankees pitcher David Wells said. "But most of all, George wants to win."

That attitude carried over into everything that Steinbrenner did.

In 1974, Steinbrenner pleaded guilty on a felony charge for making illegal campaign contributions to Richard Nixon's presidential campaign. He was suspended for two years by Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, but the suspension was lifted after 15 months. Steinbrenner was pardoned in 1989 by President Reagan in one of his final official acts in office.

Steinbrenner ran afoul of the commissioner's office again in 1990 when he was suspended once again, this time for paying $40,000 for damaging information on Dave Winfield, one of Steinbrenner's players.

After returning to the helm in 1993, the Yankees enjoyed success on and off the field. The team won the World Series in four of the five years from 1996-2000. Along the way, the Yankees formed their own cable network, YES, to broadcast games and related programming. In 2008, Forbes estimated the network was worth $3 billion and the magazine ranked Steinbrenner No. 377 among the 400 richest Americans with an estimated net worth of $1.3 billion.

"George was a giant of the game and his devotion to baseball was surpassed only by his devotion to his family and his beloved New York Yankees," said current Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, the former Milwaukee Brewers owner. "He was and always will be as much of a New York Yankee as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford and all of the other Yankee legends.

"I have known George ever since he entered the game. He was my dear friend for nearly four decades. Although we would have disagreements over the years, they never interfered with our friendship and commitment to each other."

In recent times, Steinbrenner let sons Hal and Hank run more of the family businesses.

After graduating from Williams College and a three-year stint in the Air Force, Steinbrenner was an assistant football coach at first Northwestern, then Purdue before joining his father in the shipbuilding business.

He owned Tampa's AmShip

He was part of a group that purchased The American Shipbuilding Co. in 1972. The Tampa-based shipyard eventually filed for bankruptcy court protection in 1993.

Baseball and ships were not his only passions. He developed a successful horse farm in Ocala and owned Tampa Bay Downs from 1980-86, was vice president of the United States Olympic Committee from 1989-96 and promoted Broadway plays.

Although proud of his versatility, Steinbrenner knew it was his stewardship of a storied franchise that forged his legend.

"I judge sports figures based on individual achievement, team achievement and contributions to the game," Al Davis, owner of the NFL's Oakland Raiders, said in 2002 from his California office. "George is right up there with me at No. 1.

He's bright, he's aggressive and, most of all, he's not afraid."

The return of Yankees glory prompted Steinbrenner to branch out and rediscover his family tree. "Family means just about everything to me," he said. "Sometimes you get a little away from it and when you do, you have to stop. That's what my wife, Joan, is very good at - helping me reassess my priorities. Guys that are involved in sports can get carried away."

In September, 2003, the Steinbrenners moved in to a home in the Golf View Estates neighborhood near Palma Ceia Golf and Country Club.

"We love Tampa," he said. "I don't think we would ever give any thought to moving away. Tampa is my home."

Steinbrenner is survived by his wife, Joan, sons Hal and Hank, daughters Jennifer Steinbrenner Swindal and Jessica Steinbrenner, sisters Susan Norpell and Judy Kamm and several grandchildren.

Funeral arrangements will be private. There will be an additional public service with details to be announced later.