Legacy Panel - 100 Years in the Making

George McCaskey, everybody, good morning. I asked Jeff and Tom for a few minutes just to tell you how much we appreciate all of us support and enthusiasm of these Great Bears fans Friday night. It was unbelievable. At opening ceremonies all day Saturday, the police told us that the line to get in was all the way down to Lawrence Avenue on River Road. Everyone has been so excited and polite and welcoming. We're just so grateful, so humbled by the support that you give to your Bears, and

we're very, very appreciative of it. And I also want to thank our terrific staff for putting on this event, and our players, current and former for participating as much as they have. And finally, and I'll shut up for a while, I want to compliment Tom and Jeff for the great job they have done all week. Fantastic research, great questions, and you're eliciting some great responses from your panelists. And I hope that it's true of this next panel

right now. Well, George, are those of the nineteen thirty six socks you're wearing? I gotta go there. I They're not They're not regulation height for an NFL game. However, Yeah, so everybody's seen our new classic uniform from nineteen thirty six, and of course we had to get the approval of the owner of the team to to put this project into fruition. And I showed Mom the artists rendering, and the first thing out of her mouth and this is a quote reporters, Well those socks don't turn me on.

I agree, and I said, Mom, the socks are the best part. But how do you like that uniform? Is it sharp? Or what? Virginia? Isn't it amazing? Well, as usual, George has taken all the things that I was going to say, But that is a quote, and I thank you Tom for agreeing with me. Do you remember that uniform? It's a throwback from nineteen thirty six, correct, that's that's what they say. Yes, I was in first or second year of high school at that point, and I wasn't

really paying that much attention to the uniforms. I was more interested in the players who were wearing them. Your talk about elictening great responses. Thank you you know that is such a great response, because missus mccam asking, you've been a daughter, a sister, a mother to the generations of players throughout the history of the Bears. Was there any one time in your life it was more unique to the other or was it just part of the

growth process of your life through the NFL? These days here in the Rosemond Center for the stend Deal celebration, I'm still trying to find words for what they've meant to me, and I hope to all of you. It has made me even more grateful for what my life has been. In the position that I'm in, there are so many privileges and perks and blessings. I just can't believe that I'm here and I'm enjoying life at my

age the way I am. So before we get to Don and Dan about this and their time with Missus McCaskey, Virginia had all started because of your mom honestly collecting scrapbooks. Explain what that was like for her, why she did it, and how that just carried on through the generations. My mother and dad were married in February of nineteen twenty two, but before that, she and my dad had known each

other since. There are days in different high schools in the city of Chicago, and when the Bears started in Wrigley Field, it was a labor of love for my mother to save whatever minimum coverage Dad was able to obtain in the Chicago papers, and over the years in our family it has grown until now we have this outstanding book, which they lovingly called the scrap Book, and it's just a beautiful thing. I hope everybody eventually will be able to get a copy. And I can warn

you it's a very heavy book. You it's not something you can carry around under your arm, but it is worth every bit of it. And I did have a copy for a weekend to look over, and then I had to sign it and return it. So I'm waiting for my own copy, and there was just I don't know how you got all your sources, but it was wonderful.

And there's just one story that was new to me, and that was the one about Bronco Nagurski after he retired people had a gas station, not as an investment for his own employment, and he always had a lot of repeat business because when Bronco put on the gas cap on your gas tank, it stayed on until Bronco took it off. So Dan and Dan and Don Our Dick McCann Hall of Fame writers and the Pro Football Hall of Fame and deserving indeed Don cover the team for a very long time, a presence at Hallius, all

the old Hollis Hall and Dan Pompeii. We grew up in the business together around the same time and all about football. So they have great perspective, outstanding writers that capture moments. How did you guys capture one hundred years

of moments with fifteen hours of conversation with Missus McCaskey. Well, I think everybody here can see what a privilege it was for us to be able to sit down with Missus McCaskey for as long as we did, and she certainly was our primary source and has been around almost as long as the Bears herself, and it hasn't I don't think she's forgotten anything about anything she ever knew about them, and so it was just great to be able to sit down with her and listen to her

stories and respond to our questions. And one of the things that was interesting for us in writing the book was that it was such a parallel to the National Football League history. The Bear's history is the National Football League history. So I would say, at the risk of sounding like a salesperson as well as an author, that if you're a Bear fan or you know a Bear fan, you have to have this book. But I would even

extend it. If you're an NFL fan, I think you have to have this book because it really gives some insight on the whole history of the National Football League. And it was a privilege to work on it and

to do research, and I kipt George. I think he asked me to do it because, like his mother, I've been around for most of those one hundred years as well, and I do remember, I do remember watching the Bears for the last of watching him very closely for over sixty years, so I felt that I knew a little bit about it, but there were all there was a lot in the early years that I had to remind myself of and it was really a pleasure to to to research and to go back over the old the

old clips and the scrap books. And you know, Virginia's right, they saved those early scrap books because in the beginning her father had to pay can you imagine this, He had to pay sports writers to write about the Bears. How about that? That that doesn't happen anymore. So it was it was really a pleasure to do it. Thank

you God, those days are in the distant path. Uh. Great honor, as Don said, to be chosen for this project by the Bears, and also great out of work with Don, who is one of my heroes in the business. And what a privilege to interview missus mc caskey for We spent more than fifteen hours with her. I don't know if she signed up for that initially, but we eked it out of her little at a time, and she was so gracious with her time and her stories and her memory. A lot of people don't know she

was actually on the Red Grange Tour. So I don't think there's anyone in the alive who has seen as much of the history of pro football as Missus mc caskey has, and her recall of it is tremendous. And you know, for for many years she was reticent. I think I would say, to to talk publicly very much. You kind of like to stay in the background. But it's been wonderful to see her come out and share some of her stories in recent years. So what was this What was the starting point? Like, I know what

we talk about the Bears in the nineteen twenties. What was your initial idea that you said, Okay, this is going to be the opening chapter, this is gonna be the foreward of the book. What was the initial idea? I think that's a good question because the easy way to do a book like this would be chronological. But I think also, with all due respect, it might be boring for some people to read it from beginning to end.

And so what we did was separated into five different sections, five categories, and they are ownership, which would would include management and coaching, and then the players, the great players and the plays and the championships would be a third area. The innovations that they've had, and the rivalries, and the reason we did this. You could you could do the history on any team in the National Football League and divided into those five sections. But in this case, the

Bears were unique in every single section. They've No team in the National Football League has ownership like the Bears had with George Hallis founding the league, founding the team and his family still being involved in ownership. No team has as many Hall of Fame players as the Bears. Championships, the championships, they have nine championships, and there is I've heard there's a team that has more than that, but

we won't mention that. But but the team, no team in the National Football League has ever won a championship game seventy three to nothing. And we make the case, We make the case that the nineteen eighty five season is the most memorable season in NFL history. We made that case. So so that's unique. And then as far as the innovations are could earn, No, there's no other team.

There's no other thing in sport like the Grange Tour, which really put pro football on the map, as well as another innovation would be the T formation with the man in motion, which is still the basic peoplemation. So as far as innovations are, there's no other team that can compare to the Bears. And then the rivalries speak for themselves. There's no other team the National Football League which have the rivalries that the Bears have, starting of

course with the team up North Soul. That's the reason we put the book into that kind of format, and I think it works pretty well because there is a little bit of overlap. But those sections I think are very interesting and revealing and as I say, unique, and I think in the entire National Football League. Missus mccaski, what are your recollections of that barnstorming tour? Because it was completely unorthodox to even a manage and that many games in a short period of time, traveling all over

the country, seventeen games in sixty one days. But it was vital, wasn't it. I don't really have any direct memories of that tour because I was it was just before and after my third birthday, but it was some It was such a milestone for the Chicago Bears and the National Football League in terms of crowd acceptance and recognition. I think it will always be a part of the Bears history and the history of the National Football League.

And I'd like to back up a little bit, and I don't want to enco accuse anyone of deception, but the way this book was presented to me and my participation is that I was the only one available to talk about the twenties and the thirties. So I figured, well, I'll do this time with Don and Dan, and then they'll find other people for the other decades. And it

just didn't happen. And we're very grateful that it didn't happen, and I think you will be if you buy the book as well, because she's got great antidotes that she shared with us throughout the book. Dan, what is something that you learned about the Bears before your time with the Bears? Don says, it's been around for sixty years.

You and I have been around for less time than that, And in preparation for these events, I've learned so much about the Bears looking at footage from the forties, from the sixty three A couple of weeks before the seventy three to nothing game, they got beat by the Redskins and the owner called him cry babies, and quitters. What did you learn about the Bears that kind of shocked you? Well, this is quite a bit. I mean, I'll share one story about Sid Luckman that I found out that I

wasn't aware of. Sid, of course, the greatest quarterback in Bears history, one of the greatest players ever. Sid, We've got the Sid Luckman and cheering section. Good good to see. During World War Two, he was a war hero of sorts. He made seven trips over to England and France, including that you know, we just celebrated the seventy fifth anniversary of D Day and he was actually a part of

that movement, which I never knew. He was on a ship that delivered oil and brought back wounded soldiers during during the D Day uh invasion period. So in addition to being this incredible quarterback, he also was a great American hero. And I'd like to I'd like to answer that question too, Tim, because people ask me, what was the most surprising thing you found out when you're writing the book. And it wasn't really surprised, but it was

a reminder and maybe it was a surprise. It was a reminder of the enormous, enormous influence George Hallis had on the National Football League. I mean we talk about him being the founder, but he his fingerprints were on everything from the shape of the ball, to the rules to expansion, I mean everything about the National Football League. Somehow you could trace back to George Hallis. It was really fascinating to to UH to sort of review them, and I'll tell you a good story about it. You know.

We talked to miss Trubisky and Ryan Pace and UH Matt Naggie, and one of the questions we asked him was when when was your first UH encounter with the Bears, And all of them mentioned somehow the eighty five Super Bowl, by the way, and UH we asked what were the what was your favorite team growing up? And of course Ryan is from Dalla, from Texas, so he liked the Dallas Cowboys. And Matt was from Pennsylvania and somehow he got onto the Vikings. I think it was a college

player that he followed. And of course Mitch's from Ohio and he grew up right outside of Cleveland, so his favorite team was the Browns. And what they didn't know though I looked, I thought about the Vikings and the Cowboys and and the Browns. All three of those teams came into existence at least partly because of George Hallis. He was the not so he not only founded the Bears, he was the He was the chairman of the expansion team when the Vikings and the and the Cowboys came in.

And the reason the Browns came into existence is because George Hallis, because Archward was the was the sports editor of the Chicago Tribune. He wanted to buy the Buffalo Bills. George Allis said, we're saving h and he wanted to He wanted to move the Buffalo Bills to the West Coast. This is getting to be a longer story than I had imagined. But they were going to move the Buffalo Bills to the West Coast, and George Allis said, no, We're saving the West Coast for somebody else. So Archwards

started the All America Conference, which was the Browns. So all three of these teams that Payson, Trubisky and Naggie grew up liking were because of George. It was just amazing. So, mister the Casky, in the whole idea of the inception of the NFL, was there ever an era that you thought the NFL might not make it. I didn't realize it when I was growing up, but there were difficult years in the late twenties and early thirties, and my dad had the Chicago Bears, but he was also part

owner of a commercial laundry company. He worked in real estate. He even tried selling cars. I often used the word survival because that's what was involved, and fortunately for us and for so many people now, it all worked out. Your piggiebank had something to do with the survival of the Bears too. Could you tell that story? I said, your piggiebank had something to do with survival of the

Bears too. Well. At one point, my dad was so desperate that he actually spoke to my brother and me about borrowing the money that was in our savings account. And that savings account had been established by Grandma Hallis, who sent us a Birthday check and a Christmas check each year, and I think there was probably a couple of hundred dollars, but even that was borrowed because it was a case of buying groceries and there were late

payments on the rent of the apartment. It's hard to imagine these days with all the millions and billions of dollars that people are talking about. And Kyle Fuller mentioned how he feels about going to work at Hollis Hall, and that resonated with me because each time I go up there, I think, does this really belong to us? Is this really part of our organization? I'm just amazed at the expansion of Hallis Hall and can't imagine what they're going to think of next to what's going to

happen in the next hundred years. George So, being a former reporter, I can feel compelled to clarify the record when coach Hellis borrowed money from Moms and Mugs's piggybangs, he promised them, I'll pay you back, so which you did.

So from your perspective as a grandson and living through this journey as well, how staggering is it that had one hundred dollars put on the table to start professional sport called football has grown into billions for every team in the league and generations and generations of fans that their families are together in many respects on Sundays because of Bears football and seeing George Hallis in that statue every day at Barrett Hollis Hall How staggering is it

for you to think about it that way? Well, every day when I enter Hollis Hall, I pass that statue and I try to think about Coach Hallis and all he's meant to all of us, all he's meant to the great game of football and Bears fans, and it's

very much a family operation for us. This morning, We've got my favorite brother in law, my Catine, my favorite niece, Natalie, my favorite niece, Molly, my favorite brother Pat, my favorite sister Anne, my favorite sister Mary, my favorite sister in law, Gretchen, my favorite niece, Julie, my favorite sister in law, Kathy, my favorite brother, Ned, my favorite nephew, Daniel, anybody my

favorite niece, Margaret, my favorite niece Michelle. And all of us are passionate about the Bears, and all of us feel a tremendous responsibility for carrying on George Hallis's legacy, and that's what we intend to do, you know, Jeff, Jeff, Another story about that hundred dollars that they started out with, George Hallis admitted there wasn't a hundred. The idea was that each of the new franchises would put up a hundred dollars. That was just to make it look legitimate.

He said, there wasn't a hundred dollars among them in the whole room, you know, in the In the last few months, I've never heard more conversation about the Bears, about the list of the top one hundred, and just talking about number one, because both of you guys have had great experiences and your life as a writer to talk to number one, and I'm talking about Walter Payton. What you know? For me, there is no other consideration. Before I ever came to the Bears, he was my hero.

When I got to stand in a huddle with him, I was in such awe of him it was hard to stare away from him. How did that discussion begin and end when you started filtering through all of the generations of greatness of the Bears players. Well, I think number one was kind of a no brainer for us. There wasn't any discussion about number one, in part because both Missus McCaskey and Mike Ditka believe that Peyton was the greatest Bear, and those are two pretty powerful voices.

But in terms of the rest of the list, uh Down and I were very happy that nobody disagreed with any of the or the order of any of the one hundred players. But you know, it was it's a

highly subjective exercise. It's very difficult to exercise because we're comparing so many players in different eras, players who whose positions no longer exist, or whose positions were invented at some point during the hundred years, players who played a long time and had an impact over time, versus players who had short term contribution, current players whose legacies really aren't complete or close to complete in some cases. So

it was very difficult time from that standpoint. We tried to have fun with it, uh we we We kind of went back and forth on a number of guys at the end down and I were just talking about this in the blue room in the back that you know, if we had another week or another month, we probably would have changed the list another ten or fifteen times. It was one of those deals. You know, there are a number of players we left off that you could you could second guests and question yourself about, and we

have been second guests in questioned a few times. Actually, we wanted to make it easier than it was by arguing that we wanted to really make three lists. We wanted to make an offensive list, a defensive list, and a two way player list, because there are really three different areas of expertise in football. But I want to say that it wasn't that we didn't have any discussion about number one. Because the Bears have so many great players. We could have made other players number one, but Walter

Payton checked the most boxes. That is, we tried to use as much objective criteria as we could for a really highly subjective process, and longevity and durability were one. Production was one, honors or one. Impact was one. And if you go down the list, if it were just longevity and durability, Gaelo. Sayers might not have made the list. So you had to weigh these different criteria and Walder

just checked more boxes than really anybody else. How did you two feel about the one hundred and have your opinions? And I'll tell you one thing that sticks out to me, and going back all the way to the twenties, thirties and forties and reading about the legendary Bears that we obviously could not see at our age now was a

simple word for me that is riveted. My whole focus moving forward, and I know it has years as well, missus McCaskey, But toughness, I mean, so many of these old Bears were viewed like we view Dick Butkus right now, or we view you know, any number of guys that played with a vengeance on the field, with some un believable fury, and we're recognized as such an and viewed

as such throughout their careers. I didn't notice the back inside cover of the book until just before I returned it, so I paid attention, of course to number one and noticed that Pat Manniley made it at one hundred and UM. The book was on its way back to Hollis Hall, so I'm one of the things I'm looking forward to is seeing the complete list. And I'm sure you did a very difficult and outstanding job, you know, miss McCaskey. One thing that I've taken away from this weekend and

in studying for this event, Jeff mentioned it. It's across the board. The word is always toughness, whether it's George Hallis saying it or someone saying it from another team about the Bears. Yesterday we had Mike Brown up here and brought the tears because of his love for the Bears. You gotta I'm sure you've had to see that before

in your life. But the respect that a lot of these alumni have for the Bears, have for their existence with being the Bears, having the opportunity to play for fans like this and stadiums across the landscape, that's got to be a great reflection to you and your family that it means so much to players years after the fact that they have been retired. This weekend has been like a happy dream that just keeps going on and on. You wonder how many more wonderful people will be showing

up and how many people are saying thank you. I am so grateful to all of our staff who have worked so hard to prepare for this time. And I just want to say to Tom and Jeff. Known them both for a long time, I've always been comfortable with them and considered them friends. But watching you and listening to you yesterday, panel after panel, you were so prepared for all of your individual relationships and questions. I'm amazed

and thank you. Thank you. Hey, We're humbled, We're honored to be here, and thank you for your trusting us honestly choking me up here. Don't make me cry on stage. Please stop. Yeah, I'll never stop. I'm an emotional guy. Um well, I was gonna ask a different question, but I'll feed off of those panels. I don't think I've been around. I mean we used to do Bears fan

conventions and had, you know, great conversations as well. But the raw emotion yesterday Missus, mccasky, George, and I don't know if you guys were here, especially in that defensive line discuss I mean it was, it was. It's all about nineteen now. It's these ex Bears are It's in their heart, it's in their soul. They are Bears to the core, and they want the best for these guys. They want a championship. And I mean that Keem Hicks comment yesterday, I accept your challenge. Wow, I gave me

goose bumps. And I'll tell you it had to you did it? What did you think of that? Both of you guys. The reaction to a chem Hicks is saying we accept your challenge. From Edel Bradovitch, from Dan Hapton, Chris Orts, Tommy Harris that sat up here, there was a lot of pressure put on a chem Hicks about

the desire for success for the two thousand and nineteen team. Well, after my first mini tour of expanded Hollis Hall, I spoke to Coach about all of these all of this great facility, and how are you going to help the players realize that now is the time to understand that all of this is here for their benefit, for their utilization. But they're the ones who have to use everything that's available to them now, and there's just so much that

technology can do. And then it's back to the human effort, determination, perseverance and all those good words. And Coach's response was, I'm working on it. Don't worry. You know, it's almost It's no longer Hallis Hall. It's Hallis Campus because when we used to go to old Hallis Hall, to fifty North Washington, the other ones you've seen before, they were like a hall. Nowadays it's one of the most impressive growths of the Chicago Bears. Is what you've provided for

the players in their opportunity to succeed. No excuses, sadly, because we haven't even scratched the surface, obviously, but time is dwindling. We do have questions from the crowd. If somebody want to bring those out to me, that'd be great. Do you have any comments or any favorite moments of the championships that you got to witness in Bears history. I was thinking on the way here this morning of our present day coach and how he relates to our

history and the Chicago Bears. My dad, George hallis certainly celebrated every championship, but all through the season it was very serious work and very concentrated situations. There are pictures of him in the locker room after the various championships, and I love them. But our present day coach has made each game and each week a possible celebration, and I think that is a very excellent difference. The season is so much longer, it's so much harder to get

to the final game and win the final game. But we're hoping for a lot of those club dub pictures and they're welcome to it. All right, A couple of questions as we have time. This is from Hannah in our Ly to Heights. Missus McCaskey. What was your favorite

game ever to watch at Wrigley Field. I think the sixty three championship game, even though it wasn't against the Packers, it was the culmination of a championship season and my dad's final championship and we had beaten the Packers previously in Green Bay and in Wrigley Field that season, so that was good too. And then from Jessica and Vernon Hills, who was your favorite player to wear a Bears uniform? The crowd already gave the answer, because that's a tough one, Walter, I,

you know it's ingrained in every Bears fans rememory. Can you remember the first time the Bear you heard the first Bears fight song and when it was played, when it was introduced, and how well was it accepted Initially? Well, there was a an earlier Bears song before Bear Down Chicago Bears, and then that was replaced, and my dad was smart enough. I don't know how he knew about the music business, but he actually purchased the song so that all the performance rights and the money came to

the Bears instead of the writer of the song. And one of my favorite memories the championship game against the Saints was that it seemed like everybody had Soldier Field finally knew the words that everybody was saying so practice for the season. What did you think of nineteen eighty five? What did you think of nineteen eighty five? That was a very unusual team and a very a very unusual season because so much of the normal stress of game day seemed to be disappearing. We could go to the

game and not be completely knotted up inside. There was so much confidence in everyone, and except for the game in Miami, everything turned out very well. And lastly for me, and I think everybody here would like to know, I never had that fortunate experience to meet mister Hallis. How would you describe him? What was he like? And what's your fondest memory? Um, there are so many, and I

really couldn't. That's why I don't do this. Very odden. Oh, I'm sorry, no worries, but this way, he was a great man, and he was the innovating and motivating force. While we're all here today, George, let me jump in and that'll give mom time to compose her answer. But all of my brothers and sisters and I remember waiting for Grandpa outside the Cubs locker room at Wrigley Field after the games, and one of the things that amazed

me was win or lose. When he came out of that dressing room and saw us, he was just Grandpa, you know how you doing, champion? Hey kid, how are you? You You know? And making sure that that moment was special for us. And that's one of my fondest memories of them, just coming out of the locker room. All right, Well, we could spend many, many, many hours. We could spend

fifteen to twenty hours with you, just like these guys did. Uh. It's it's been an incredible journey, incredible weekend, and thank you for allowing us to share it with you and your family. Thank you so much for being here. And may I say one last thing. Tom was talking about the socks of the look at those shoes, and I have read the book cover to cover. It's amazing. So these two gentlemen did a very difficult job. They made

it read easy. So enjoy it. Enjoy the scrap book, Enjoy all them artifacts, the scotting reports of players, all the stories, the other reflection of that book that these guys captured as well. Yes, it was about sporting, about the NFL, but it's about life in each of those decades and the Bears had an impact in that too, related to what was going on at that time in place, whether it be the depression, the assassination of President Kennedy. It's historical, it's great. Get it, enjoy it. One more

seminar Togo, big hand for everybody up here. Thank you so much