R
obert James (Bobby) Fischer passed away of kidney failure at the age of 64 on January 17, 2008 in his adopted home of Reykjavik, Iceland, where, 36 years earlier, he had captivated the world with his stunning defeat of Boris Spassky, the reigning World Chess Champion from Russia. Bobby’s 1972 victory in Reykjavik ignited in Americans a nationalistic pride perhaps not seen since Apollo 11 landed success- fully on the moon in 1969, and not to be seen again until the under- dog U.S. men’s hockey team captured the gold medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York.Bobby’s genius at the game of chess, and his ascendency to the World Championship title in 1972, is well chronicled in various books (e.g., Brady, 1973; 2011) and documentary films (e.g., Anything to Win:
11
When he was at the board playing, it was like God was playing. The purity of his thought, the search for truth, the ability to go to the core of the problem. Bobby never looked for an easy move that would blow away his opponent. He looked for the truth in chess. (Shelby Lyman as shared with Nicholas and Benson, 2003, p. 8) Fischer demolished the Soviet machine but could build nothing in its place. He was an ideal challenger—but a disastrous champion.
The Mad Genius of Bobby Fischer, 2004; Bobby Fischer Against the World,
2011). Appendix A of this book (see page 161) outlines a few mile- stones and major achievements in Bobby’s chess career. Among the highlights likely already familiar to most chess fans worldwide is that Bobby started playing chess around the age of six, got really good around the age of eleven, was the U.S. Junior Champion at thirteen, and by fourteen years of age was the U.S. Chess Champion. Impres - sively, he won the U.S. Chess Champion eight times between 1958 and 1967 (see Brady, 1973). At the age of fifteen, after placing fifth in the Interzonal Tournament in Portoroz (formerly of Yugoslavia, and now part of Croatia), Bobby was awarded the title of International Grandmaster, the youngest person until that time, to be so honored.
In his final march toward the world chess title Fischer came in first in the Interzonal Tournament in 1970 in Palma de Majorca, Spain. Then Bobby had to play three 10-game candidate’s matches against the world’s top players to decide Spassky’s 1972 challenger. First he dispatched the Russian Grandmaster Mark Taimanov by the score of 6–0. The Danish Grandmaster, Bent Larsen was next, and Fischer steamrolled him as well, again winning 6 games, while recording no losses or draws (6–0). The last hurdle before a world title match was the Armenian Grandmaster (representing the Soviet Union) and for- mer World Champion, Tigran Petrosian. Fischer dominated this match, winning by a wide margin, 61/
2–21/2(see Brady, 1973). Bobby Fischer
had now earned the right to challenge Boris Spassky for the World Chess Championship.
Finally, in the summer of 1972 and in the midst of the Cold War period, Bobby at age 29, convincingly defeated (121/
2—81/2) Boris
Spassky in Reykjavik, Iceland to become the United States’ first offi- cial World Champion.1 Almost single-handedly Bobby Fischer broke
what had been three decades of Soviet domination of the World Chess title. By September, 1972, Bobby Fischer was an international celebri- ty and superstar. Bobby now had the world at his feet—worldwide ado- ration, potentially millions of dollars in product endorsements, as much companionship (romantic or plutonic) as he desired—how would he now manage his genius, success, and fame?
Unfortunately, Bobby’s life and story since his momentous 1972 triumph was sad if not tragic. While at the peak of his chess genius, Bobby lapsed into deeper and deeper states of anger, isolation, and
paranoia that lasted until his death. After his riveting play in the 1972 championship match, the chess world was excited to follow his pro- fessional development and await his next display of “genius” at the board. Fans were soon sorely disappointed as Bobby withdrew from competitive chess and forfeited his world title in 1975 to Russian Grandmaster Anatoly Karpov. There would be no more stunning, in - no vative play by North America’s first official world champion. And there would be no more brilliant Fischer games for chess players of all skill levels to replay across the chess clubs, coffee shops, schools, and living rooms of the world.
Bobby Fischer’s ingenious play and unique personality had elevat- ed the popularity of chess in the mid 1970s to an all-time high. Many high schools throughout the United States established chess clubs and strong chess players were finding employment teaching and tutoring chess. Membership in the United States Chess Federation (USCF) reached its all time high (up until that point in its history) of 60,000 members in 1972.2 With Bobby’s departure from active chess compe-
tition, America’s new passion for the game subsided and leveled off. Bobby Fischer was, to many Americans, the face of chess, and in the 1970s there was no American superstar to assume the mantle.3
Bobby Fischer engenders strong emotive reactions in people. Some focus on his open hatred of Jews and his anti-American sentiments and wonder why he is still a topic of discussion. His anti-Semitism was sim- ply unacceptable and his celebrating the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States infuriated millions of people worldwide. At the other end of the spectrum there are those who, while not con- doning his behavior and attitudes towards fellow humans, feel that Bobby should be honored for his chess accomplishments, and that his anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism should not detract from his place in chess history.
I witnessed firsthand the wide range of emotional reactions to Bobby Fischer. Last year, when I published my first article on Bobby Fischer (Ponterotto, 2011) in Miller-McCune Magazine, the responses and reactions from readers were strong and varied. There was one partic- ular reaction to the article that caught my attention: an original poem written by Dr. Alfredo Pasin in Italy. Initially written by Dr. Pasin in Italian, he also translated the poem into English. With his permission I present the poem on the next pages. Furthermore, to acknowledge
and honor the multilingual talent (and memory) of Bobby Fischer, his mother Regina Fischer, and his niece Elisabeth Targ, I present the poem, first in the original Italian, then in the English translation.
Il Giocatore Bobby Vi prego non relegate me Bobby, il giocatore di scacchi, il piu’ grande che il mondo conobbe
al solo ruolo
di pazzo paranoico alienato fui questa la verita
un genio un artista un scienziato vincitore feroce ma cortese perdente raro cupo ma dignitoso
privo di lusinghe ed inganni un artista guerriero
che viveva ancora second le leggi dei samurai in quell gioco piu ti tutto cercai
belezza armonia e verita lo innalzai a vette infinite
ma non trovai mai quiete e ristoro alle mie pene di uomo
forse non fu la pazzia e portarmi via ma il vento nero e gelido
dell’Islanda e delle sua malinconia
Bobby the Chess Player I beseech you, do not confine me,
Bobby, the chess player,
the greatest one the world could ever know to the only role
of alienated crazy paranoid. This was indeed the truth: I was a genius, an artist and a scientist;
a winner ruthless but chivalrous a rare loser, somber but still stout;
a warrior artist
free from flattery and cheats, a warrior still living
according to the laws of Samurai. In that game, what I have sought at most
‘twas Beauty, Harmony and Truth: I raised it to almost boundless heights
but I never encountered quiet and replenishment. Maybe it was not Madness
to bring me away from my human sufferings; ‘twas rather the dark and icy wind
of Iceland and its melancholy. Dr. Alfredo Pasin, M.D.
Dr. Pasin believes Bobby is the greatest chess player “the world could ever know” (“il piu’ grande che il mondo conobbe”). How did Bobby Fischer get so good at the game of chess? How does Bobby’s chess genius, talent, and accomplishments compare to other world champions? For my readers who may be a bit unfamiliar with chess history and its legacy of great champions, I end this chapter with first, a brief historical review of the origins of chess; second, I explore how Bobby Fischer got so damned good and, third, I evaluate Bobby’s place and ranking among the world’s chess champions.
BRIEF NOTE ON THE ORIGINS