Bart Starr dies at age 85 in Alabama

Posted at 1 p.m. on May 26, 2019

The Brillion News

GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Packers on Sunday reported the death of legendary Lombardi-era quarterback Bart Starr.

The first quarterback in history to win five National Football League championships and hero of the most memorable game in the history of the Green Bay Packers, Starr died Sunday in Birmingham, Ala. He had been in failing health since suffering a serious stroke in 2014.

Starr, 85, played for the Packers from 1956 to 1971, and was beloved by fans of not only his generation, but also succeeding ones. Along with being a Pro Football Hall of Famer and among a small pantheon of Packers’ all-time greats, he was the franchise’s nonpareil role model in the eyes of many.

Maybe the most popular player in Packers history, Starr will be eulogized for being a consummate professional, a Good Samaritan and an exemplary role model, said Packers’ team historian Cliff Cristl in a story posted at packers.com

“The Packers Family was saddened today to learn of the passing of Bart Starr,” said Packers President/CEO Mark Murphy. “A champion on and off the field, Bart epitomized class and was beloved by generations of Packers fans. A clutch player who led his team to five NFL titles, Bart could still fill Lambeau Field with electricity decades later during his many visits. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Cherry and the entire Starr family.”

Starr played 16 years for the Packers, a club record for service that he shares with Brett Favre. He was MVP of Super Bowls I and II. He was MVP of the NFL in 1966.

He was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1977, his first year of eligibility. He had his No. 15 jersey retired by the Packers on Nov. 11, 1973, two years after he retired.

He also served as head coach of the Packers from 1975-’83, compiling a 52-76-3 record.

He is also remembered for his role in helping to start the Rawhide Boys’ Ranch near New London, which still takes in troubled young people as an alternative to prison. Bret Starr, one of two sons of Bart and Cherry Starr, died at age 24, in 1988, of a cocaine overdose, after a long history of drug abuse than began as a teenager growing up in De Pere.

After Bret’s death, the Starrs went public about Bret’s drug problems, reaching out to other parents facing similar situations.