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Chess by Isaac Kashdan 05 Apr 1959, Sun The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Newspapers.com
Chess By Isaac Kashdan
International Grandmaster
FISCHER TURNS UP IN MAR DEL PLATA
A week ago there wan a report that the brilliant American chess champion, 15-year-old Bobby Fischer of Brooklyn, had mysteriously disappeared. He turned up calmly playing in the international master tournament at Mar del Plata, Argentina.
Bobby started off poorly. He drew his first two games against Emma of Argentina and L. Sanchez of Colombia. He was then set back by Ludek Pachman of Czechoslovakia. In the fourth round Fischer scored his first full point at the expense or Mendez of Brazil.
Pachman won his first three games to take the lead in the early stages. Others in the tournament are B. Ivkov of Yugoslavia, Letelier of Chile and an Argentine delegation including M. Najdorf, H. Pilnik, H. Rosetto and R. Sanguinetti.
FRESNO CLUB ACTIVE
The Fresno Chess Club, after 13 years in the Hart restaurant, has moved to the new Romain Recreation Center, 3030 E Harvey, where it will meet Monday evenings under the auspices of the Fresno Recreation Department.
New club officers were elected, with Robert E. Baker president, Phil D. Smith vice-president and tournament director and Keith Draughon secretary and treasurer.
The club will be the host for the Central California Chess League championship to be held at Hotel Californian in Fresno April 18 and 19. Entrants must be members of the U.S. Chess Federation as well at the local body. The entrance fee is $5.
The club also will stage the annual North-South match during the Memorial Day week end. This event is one of the highlights of California chess activity and promises to be bigger and better than ever this year.
BAKOS WINS AT MARSHALL
Nicholas Bakos of Forest Hills won the championship tournament of the strong Marshall Chess Club in New York, scoring 4½-½ in a field of six finalists.
Bakos defeated James T. Sherwin in the last round in the lively encounter recorded below. The only game he did not win was a draw against Jack W. Collins, a predecessor as club champion.
Raymond Weinstein placed second with 4-1, losing only to the champion. Collins took third place with 3-2. Sherwin scored only 2-3 for a relatively poor fourth. Veteran A. E. Santasiere finished with 1-4 and Nat Halper with ½-4½.
James T. Sherwin (white) vs. Nicholas Bakos (black)
English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense
TREASURY REPRINTED
Another of the excellent reprints by Dover Publications is THE TREASURY OF CHESS LORE, edited by Fred Reinfeld and issued in a sturdy paper back edition at $1.75.
Its 306 pages contain an absorbing collection of chess anecdotes, stories and poems, accounts of tournaments and players both modern and ancient and sidelights on every phase of the game.
Here are Maelzel's chess-playing automaton, the repeated attempts by chessmaster Janowski to break the bank at Monte Carlo, the glories of Paul Morphy, the feats and human failings of such players as Staunton, Euwe, Alekhine, Capablanca and a host of others.
Following are excerpts from the book of an article titled Unconventional Surrender, originally written for Chess Review by Hans Kmoch and Fred Reinfeld:
When this article was first published, Chess Review commented: Messrs. Kmoch and Reinfeld possess between them a great store of chess experience: curious classic episodes, amusing anecdotes, and reminiscences garnered from personal contact with the immortals of the game.
The following examples, all slanted to a certain end, seem designed to point a moral. As to what that moral may be, each reader will best form his own judgment. Our guess: You too can be a chessmaster! The need to score points and win tournaments seems highly overrated. What you really need is to be able to resign impressively.
There are many ways of resigning a game of chess. You can resign with an almost happy smile, congratulating the winner with a hearty handshake. This is the British style, best illustrated by the almost superhuman sportsmanship of Sir George Thomas.
You can resign with a poker face, registering undiminished calm (the Rubinstein manner) or undiminished friendliness (the Euwe manner).
A man mounting a table, however, and yelling at the top of his voice, “Why must I lose to this idiot!” would be following the example of Nimzowich, who thus vented his rage—after losing in the last round of a great rapid transit tournament in Berlin and so missing first prize.
Resignation in the style of David Janowski is suitable for the more modest man who contents himself with describing his opponent as the greatest patzer in chess history and then denounces the committee for inviting people whose chess is so wretched that it sickens a real master.
When Spielmann reached the point of resigning, he never uttered a word—certainly not the fatal word. Instead, he indicated his overwhelming disgust by grimacing distastefully, closing his eyes, shaking his head violently, turning aside, and pushing the chessmen away from him as if they were poisoned.
Resigning a la Capablanca calls the hauteur of a millionaire giving a dime to a beggar. Gruenfeld's method is to stop the clock and leave the table without even looking at the winner.
Departing from the tournament room and absenting oneself until the game is officially scored as a forfeit is still another way of resigning. The most famous instance is that of Bardeleben at the Hastings tournament of 1895.
Just as Steinitz was approaching the crucial point of one of the grand combinations of chess history, Bardeleben found it convenient to retire. This was the situation on the board:
Wilhelm Steinitz vs Curt von Bardeleben
Hastings (1895), Hastings ENG, rd 10, Aug-17
Italian Game: Classical Variation. Greco Gambit Traditional Line (C54)
Once Bardleben's departure had been recorded in the score table, 60-year-old Steinitz rattled off the following famous win after Black's virtually forced reply:
1. … K-R 2. RxPch! K-N 3. R-N7ch! K-R 4. Q-R4ch! KxR 5. Q-R7ch K-B 6. Q-R8ch K-K2 7. Q-N7ch K-K 8. Q-N8ch K-K2 9. Q-B7ch K-Q 10. Q-B8ch Q-K 11. N-B7ch K-Q2 12. Q-Q6 mate
The Los Angeles Times, Chess by Isaac Kashdan, Sunday, April 05, 1959, Los Angeles, California Times Problem 3055 by J....
Posted by Bobby Fischer's True History on Friday, May 27, 2022
Times Problem 3055 by J. Haring
Black 9
White 9
White mates in two.
FEN 3R4/8/2p1p2n/3b3B/5pq1/pQK5/NpP2B2/3k2NR w - - 0 1
Solution: 1. Kd3 Bxb3 2. Nh3#
The Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California, Sunday, April 05, 1959 Times Problem 3055. J. Haring. White mates in...
Posted by Bobby Fischer's True History on Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Times Problem 3055. J. Haring. White mates in two.
FEN 3R4/8/2p1p2n/3b3B/5pq1/pQK5/NpP2B2/3k2NR w - - 0 1
In 3055 it is just one check after another. Black's rook tries to wriggle out in 3056, but never gets very far.
The Los Angeles Times, Chess by Isaac Kashdan, Sunday, April 05, 1959, Los Angeles, California Times Problem 3056 by H....
Posted by Bobby Fischer's True History on Friday, May 27, 2022
Times Problem 3056 by H. P. Rehm
Black 5
White 14
White mates in three.
FEN B7/1R6/3Pn3/2PrP2N/2nPk1P1/2B1b2P/2P1R2N/4K3 w - - 0 1
Solution: 1. Nf3 Kxf3 2. Rf7+ Ke4 3. Ng3#
In 3055 it is just one check after another. Black's rook tries to wriggle out of 3056, but never gets very far.
The Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, California, Sunday, April 05, 1959 Times Problem 3056. H.P. Rehm. White mates in...
Posted by Bobby Fischer's True History on Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Times Problem 3056. H.P. Rehm. White mates in three.
FEN B7/1R6/3Pn3/2PrP2N/2nPk1P1/2B1b2P/2P1R2N/4K3 w - - 0 1
SOLVERS' LIST
Five points— W. S. Aaron, F. Aks, M. Chutorian, C. Cresswell, P. B. Geltner, J. Gotta, E. E. Penter, W. L. Rankel, S. Simcoe, Maj. H. Triwush.
Three points— J. D. Frierson, A. E. Wood.
Two points— W. H. Griffith, J. Kaufman, N. Lesser, M. Morris, M. Rosen.
One point— P. C. Carton, W. W. Cotnam, Dr. C. M. Dobson, J. P. Foley, A. P. Hickling, R. W. Maas, F. R. Ruehl II.
Entertainment 05 Apr 1959, Sun The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) Newspapers.com
