HALAS, GEORGE STANLEY

born Feb. 2, 1895, Chicago, Ill., U.S. died Oct. 31, 1983, Chicago founder, owner, and head coach of the Chicago Bears football team in the professional National Football League (NFL). Halas revolutionized American football strategy in the late 1930s when he revived the T formation and added to it the man in motion. After graduation from the University of Illinois in 1918, Halas served in the U.S. Navy and, in 1919, played major league baseball with the New York Yankees. In 1920 he organized the Bears (originally the Decatur [Illinois] Staleys) and helped to found the NFL. He moved the team to Chicago in 1921. As a Bears' player he was an exceptional defensive end and set a league record by running 98 yards with a recovered fumble. In 1930 he retired both as a player and as a coach, but he returned as a full-time coach in 1933. From 1943 to 1945 he served in the Navy once more. He returned to coach the Bears from 1946 through 1955 and from 1958 through 1967. Under his coaching the Bears won seven league championships and four divisional titles. He again retired as coach in 1968, but he remained the chief executive officer of the Bears until his death. Halas was a charter member of the National Professional Football Hall of Fame.