Chess Master Bobby Fischer Dead at 64

I taught myself how to play chess with a paperback copy of his book. It's sad that he's gone.

I had seen his personality several times, but missed his rants. Why an individual would be detained by the US for nine months in a foreign country for violating sanctions is beyond me. How young he was at the time of his death is shocking.

In 1972, Fischer had rock star power. His games were televised, many live if I remember correctly. His every move was photographed, and his every word quoted. I well remember when he returned and trounced Spaasky. Everyone thought that Spaasky would win because Fischer was not tournament hardened.

The political commentary about the first match greatly exaggerates the political importance of the game. As a regular player for years, particularly with a close friend at the time of the first match, I cannot remember once thinking that this was the US against the USSR. Well, maybe once!

I had seen his personality several times, but missed his rants. Why an individual would be detained by the US for nine months in a foreign country for violating sanctions is beyond me. How young he was at the time of his death is shocking.

Must have been for political reasons. This quote says it all:

"The United States is evil. There's this axis of evil. What about the allies of evil — the United States, England, Japan, Australia? These are the evildoers," Fischer said.

This is truly a sad and unfortunate announcement. Regardless of what one thinks of Fischer's political, social and religious views it cannot be argued that he was one of the most talented chess players in the world. He was a brilliant mind who continually inspired others to not only learn and play chess but to create and achieve personal goals.

"Chess is life."

Indeed it is. And yours was an incredible one.

Bobby Fischer and Charles Lindbergh were two reclusive, non-social people who were thrust into the limelight, something for which they both were fully unprepared and unable to cope with. I've always been struck by the parallels in their lives. They both wanted to just do their thing and then fade back into the woodwork, and when that didn't happen they both, in time, became more and more unglued. Bobby was a breathtaking player but simply never had a public personna that could sustain him away from the chessboard.

What can you say? He was a genius in his time and in his way, and I'm sorry to see him go.

I always wish he'd lived up to that initial early promise. Some of his later games were quite disappointing. Still his life was one of note as he inspired a lot of young people in the game.

Fisher died in a Reykjavik hospital on Thursday of kidney failure after a long illness, his spokesman, Gardar Sverrisson, said Friday.

Hmmm...64 is relatively young to pass away... I wonder if he was on dialysis or simply chose not to have treatment. This is article doesn't really specify that. I can't imagine choosing not to go on dialysis, speaking from a dialysis/kidney failure patient PoV.

Anyhow, this is pretty sad. The man was a genius. Rest in Peace, Fischer

Ah, Bobby. Rest in peace....the peace you found so elusive in life.

Very sad. A real character.

Fischer was too young to die, and I never heard Japan abusing his rights in our name.

I was on the chess club in junior high school and I think high school and attended tournaments. I was in the top ten for a while in junior high at least, remember being beaten by a geeky girl who later became hot in high school, LOL! Anyway, it's just memory and I could be wrong about being beaten, but it advertises chess.

I also taught myself to play Chess, in the School Library when I should have been doing P.E.

He was a criminal of the US for playing chess? Man if that isn't an eye-opener I can't imagine what would be.

He looked far older than his 64 years. I wonder if it was the stressful life that did that to him or some other illness?

Bobby Fischer inspired me to learn to play chess when I was a teen and which has become one of my passions in life. He was a character that's for sure. Sad to see him go to that great checkmate of life!
RIP

Bobby Fisher added spice and flavor to the buffet of life, and like at a buffet; we can look, or sample, or eat with gusto, or choose to move on to the next item.

replytoj001

Checkmate…!

====

Bobby Fisher... so much to say about him. Genius chess player, vile anti-Semite and hater of America. How he went from representing America to hating it is anyone's guess.

I have a Love-Hate relationship with my country, as well. I love what Great Britain used to be like, I hate what it's become now.

If I remember rightly I think there was a lot of 'Vauderville' when the game itself was being played in 1972; About the lighting, the chess-board the chess- pieces that sort of thing...

I was living in Japan while Fischer was being detained there. 9 months in Japanese detention has to be pretty rough, as the conditions are purportedly far worse than what we have in the US or Europe.

It's a great pity for Bobby that he didn't have family background, lived lonely as a teenage guy. That really must mark his behaviour. He was a real genius, I admire him. I read a brochure about his match against Spasskij. His chess is amazing, inspirating. I hope that there would be one nice movie about him as a memory of him as a master.

Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, president of the World Chess Federation, called Fischer "a phenomenon and an epoch in chess history, and an intellectual giant I would rank next to Newton and Einstein."

will you get real, Kirsan? Chess is a very interesting game that takes a high degree of skill of a certain sort. But it's still a game. Newton? Einstein? Bobby Fischer??????? What an absurd comment.

BOBBY FISCHER

The son of two pacifists: his dad was a biochemist atheist German national and his mom was a secular atheist Jew physician from New York; the couple met at an international peace conference. Two children before the split, a girl and a boy. The mom had trouble keeping a job, she did things like chaining herself to the White House fence to protest the *Korean* War. If winning in life means winning and sharing approval, Bobby was a loser from the start compared to his sister. As products of outmarriage, Sis married a doctor and became a successful Republican wife while Bobby had fags set on him by polite society and was isolated. Bobby tried quitting in 1963 and again in 1968 but he kept getting roped into competing with the Soviets at chess; he couldn't hold a job, kept getting robbed and needed the money. The Soviets knew the game beyond the game, they cooperated on outcomes when playing each other. If you was ever asked who should win Fischer-Spassky 1972, the *only* correct answer were to say, "I love Dr. Zhivago, Fischer is the best chess player but the worst of both worlds in the East/West Cold War split. Spassky is devastated by his divorce yet has found a new love with a female French diplomat and he wants to flee with her thru the snow in a sled and escape the wolves. Tho he is no Pasternak, Spassky is no Omar neither, and Fischer is so wrapped up in achievement with no thought of what goal and always out to prove some point when the point of it all is winning approval and sharing approval." The media put out many hit pieces on Fischer then the featherweight candyasses ABBA had the Final Word with the hit musical "Chess." Tim Rice collaborated on "Chess" and he's the moral philosopher who mandated Judas be an N-word in "Jesus Christ Superstar"

Bobby Fischer said pawn to K4 (e4) is the best move to open a chess game because it leads to sharper tactics and more decisive outcomes. Bobby Fischer valued the lowly pawn, some say too much.