George Halas

George Stanley Halas Sr. (February 2, 1895 – October 31, 1983), nicknamed "Papa Bear", was an American professional football end, coach, and executive. He was the founder and owner of the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL). 

Halas was also a player for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). The NFC Championship trophy is named after him.Davis, Jeff, Papa Bear, (McGraw-Hill Co., 2005), 32.Encyclopedia of ethnicity and sports in the United States, Ed. George B. Kirsch, Othello Harris and Claire Elaine Nolte, (Greenwood Publishing, 2000), 164.Elliott J. Gorn, Sports in Chicago, (University of Illinois Press, 2008), 7. 

Halas was one of the co-founders of the American Professional Football Association (now the NFL) in 1920, and in 1963 became one of the first 17 inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. 

Life
Halas was born in Chicago, Illinois. His parents, Barbara (Poledna), who ran a grocery store, and Frank Halas, a tailor, were migrants from Pilsen, Austria-Hungary.

In 1915, Halas worked for Western Electric, and was planning on being on the SS Eastland. He was running late, however, as he was trying to gain weight to play Big Ten football and missed the capsizing, which killed 844 passengers.

Halas died of pancreatic cancer in Chicago on October 31, 1983, at age 88.

References

Other websites

Coaching record at Pro-Football-Reference.com

George Halas Bio (Staley Museum)

Category:1895 births
Category:1983 deaths
Category:New York Yankees players
Category:Chicago Bears head coaches
Category:Chicago Bears players
Category:American military personnel of World War I
Category:American military personnel of World War II
Category:American football defensive ends
Category:Military people from Chicago
Category:Businesspeople from Chicago
Category:Sportspeople from Chicago
Category:Deaths from pancreatic cancer
Category:Cancer deaths in Chicago