Art Haley was born October 17, 1895, in Beaver Falls, PA. His family moved to Ohio, where he graduated from Cuyahoga Falls High School in 1915.

A multi-talented athlete who starred in baseball, basketball, football, and track and field, Art was a four-sport letterman. As a quarterback, he helped popularize the forward pass. Legalized in 1906, the forward pass was rarely seen. However, Art perfected the forward pass in the Akron, OH area.

During World War I, Art enlisted in the Naval Officers Training School and played for their football squad. Although there were many college All-Americans on the team, Art was considered the star.

At Akron University, Art earned twelve letters across four sports and, in his senior year in 1919, was named captain of the football team. As Akron's star quarterback, Art was considered among the best forward passers in the Ohio Conference, if not in the entire state. Akron finished 6-1-1 that season.

In 1919, Art quarterbacked the Akron Indians, a semi-pro football team in the Ohio League's final year before joining the American Professional Football Association (APFA) as the Akron Pros. That year, he was named first-team All-Ohio-Conference in football and played on the Ohio Conference championship basketball team.

In 1920, Art played for the Akron Goodyear Wingfoots, an independent professional basketball team. Art was so talented that he was recruited by legendary coach Jim Thorpe to play professional football for the APFA's Canton Bulldogs in 1920. In 1921, Art played for the APFA's Dayton Triangles. Then, in 1923, Art returned to the Akron Pros of the newly established National Football League. Overall, Art played in six professional football games for three different teams in three different years.

A 1920 graduate of Akron University, Art was inducted into the Akron University Athletics Hall of Fame in 1979. Art was inducted into the Cuyahoga Falls High School Football Hall of Fame in 1997.

Arthur "Art" Read Haley died February 14, 1946, at age 50, in Zanesville, OH.