What Bears They Were: Chicago Bears Greats Talk About Their Teams, Their Coaches, and the Times of Their Lives

For decades the Bears have been known as the Monsters of the Midway, with valid reason. Since their inception in 1920 they have been the roughest, toughest franchise around. It was bred into them during the forty years George Halas stalked the sideline, cursing, cajoling, inspiring, taunting, and forever showing a fearlessness that proved rabidly contagious to his players.

To have built such a reputation, one that has withstood more than eighty years of contentious, raucous, free-spirited competition in that gladiatorial arena known as the National Football League, the Bears had to have a unique cast of characters, spirited on one hand and capable of terrifying Attila’s Huns on the other.

The Bears have had more than their share of certified legends: George Halas, Red Grange, Bronco Nagurski, Sid Luckman, Gale Sayers, Mike Ditka, Dick Butkus, Walter Payton and Mike Singletary to name just a few. Their stories are told through their own words, the words of their teammates and archival photographs throughout.

And these stories tell of the escapades, the pranks, the feuds, the personal whims and superstitions, and the agonies and ecstasies, all the crazy, happy, sad things that transpired in the locker room, at the training camp, during the games and after them; this is Bear lore from those who helped shape it.