Professional Hockey Player. A native of Grand Forks, North Dakota, Purpur played for teams in the CHL, NHL, USHL, AHA, USHL, and the NCAA hockey leagues. At 5’5″, and 157lbs, Purpur played for the Grand Forks Falcons from 1931 to 1932, Minneapolis Millers from 1933 to 1935, St. Louis Eagles from 1934 to 1935, St. Louis Flyers from 1934 to 1941, 1945 to 1946, Kansas City Americans from 1941 to 1942, Chicago Blackhawks from 1941 to 1945, Indianapolis Capitals from 1944 to 1945, Detroit Red Wings from 1944 to 1945, and the St. Paul Saints from 1946 to 1947. Also from 1949 to 1950, Purpur was Head Coach of the University of North Dakota hockey team. Purpur, the first native son of North Dakota to play in the NHL, retired from hockey in 1947. In 1974 he was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1974, and was awarded the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award in 1981, the highest honour in North Dakota. He passed away at the age of 88 in February 2001, in a retirement home in Grand Forks, from a seizure. (bio by: K)  Family links:  Spouse:  Mary Lowene Schmid Purpur (1929 – 2011)* *Calculated relationship