Bears, in Their Own Words: Chicago Bear Greats Talk about the Team, the Game, the Coaches, and the Times of Their Lives

by Richard Whittingham

Probably no other team in the history of football has better represented the true nature of the game over the past seven decades than the Chicago Bears. Nor has there been such an illustrious slate of names - from the fabled Red Grange to the modern-day hero Dan Hampton - as those players who went on to become Bears legends and truly exemplify the glory of their times. Telling their stories, in their own words, are the revered and renowned, such as Gale Sayers, Johnny Morris, and Doug Buffone; the certified sports heroes, including Sid Luckman and George Blanda; and the uncontained and outrageous, personified by the likes of Doug Atkins and Jim McMahon. In Their Own Words reveals behind-the-scenes exploits in an otherwise closed Bears training camp, what it was like playing under Papa Bear George Halas, and insider details about the winning seasons and championship games of the past seventy years. Mike Ditka recalls his 1982 discussion with George Halas about their philosophies of football. Michael McCaskey tells what it was like growing up with the Bears and provides insight into where he hopes to take the team in the nineties. Sid Luckman recounts the memorable "Bingo Keep It" play. And the late Red Grange reminisces about the 1925 Bears promotional tour during which he pocketed over $200,000. Interspersed throughout the book are dozens of entertaining, often hilarious, anecdotes told by and about the Bears, including "Atkins Antics," "Butkus on Butkus," and "Notes and Quotes from a Super Bowl Team." In Their Own Words includes twenty-five rare photographs.

293 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1991

About the author

Richard Whittingham (1 Jan. 1939-21 Feb. 2005), was the author of 28 books including Boy wonder of Wall Street, Skokie, and The Chicago Bears.

Whittingham also wrote as:
Dick Whittingham
David Paige
Andrew David