Professional Football Player. After growing up in Tacoma, Washington, he was recruited by Santa Clara University in California. After about a year, he got married. This was against the rules at the Jesuit institution and he was asked to leave. He became an All-American at the University of California at Berkeley, despite being too busy working in the oilfields to attend practice. He impressed NFL scouts, including Chicago Bears coach George Halas, in a collegiate all-star game in Chicago in 1939. He was drafted in the 9th round in 1940 by the Bears. He played offense and defense, as a tackle and kicker for them from 1940-42 and 1945, garnering unanimous All Pro honors prior to entering the service. He was on an underwater demolition crew in the U.S. Navy, in which he served as a lieutenant in the Pacific theater. He was a great drop kicker and no Chicago Bears kicker ever drop-kicked a field goal farther than Lee Artoe did. He held the team record for longest field goal, at 52 yards, for about 35 years. He was a key member of the ’41 Bears, heralded by many as one of the most dominant pro football teams of all time. He was on the field in 1940 in the Bears’ 73-0 NFL championship drubbing of the Washington Redskins. His frequent fights and penchant for expletives made him a regular visitor to the office of Elmer Layden, then president of the NFL. He criticized the league for scheduling the 1946 Pro Bowl too close to Christmas, railed against referees and received a number of fines from the front office. He was the first established NFL star to jump to the rival All American Football Conference. He signed with the Los Angeles Dons in 1946 for $15,000. He played with them in 1946-47 and was a player-coach with the Baltimore Colts in 1948. Following football, he went into business selling carbon arc lighting, used in projectors, to movie theaters. Having obtained a degree in chemistry, he spent his career as an engineer in Chicago. He was selected to Santa Clara’s Athletic Hall of Fame. (bio by: Mel Bashore)  Family links:  Spouse:  Elaine Strauschild Artoe (____ – 2012)* *Calculated relationship