loan from  Yankees Stadium in the Bronx, New York. NY Yankees owner  George M. Steinbrenner III (qv) loaned them out in 1975 with the  assumption that Saturday Night Live wouldnt stay on the air long  (they were expected back upon cancellation of the show). Partly out  of both tradition and superstition, the seats are still in use to  this day. Since then, NBC has had to pay out annual fines to the  city of New York (a relatively minor business expense, all things  considered). In addition, any time repair work is needed, repair  people are sent directly to the studio to do work there, which is  more expensive than taking seats to a repair shop.