Just some reminisces of a few GM’s I’ve met. Most of these are players that you'll only read about in a book these days, but they are/were real people.
Max Euwe. I was about 12 when he was giving a simul and my dad took me to watch him play. He was an imposing figure not only physically but had once beaten Alekhine for the world championship…that impressed me as a 12 year old. He was also very friendly and I still cherish the book he autographed.
Samuel Reshevsky. I was a young player when I obtained a book of his best games and his style always impressed me. I finally met him for the first time at a US Championship some time in the early 70’s and found him to be quite friendly if somewhat aloof. The big thrill came a few years later when I actually got to play him and held him to a draw.
In the 1975 US Championship he was playing IM Milan Vukcevich. To the annoyance of all the participants Reshevsky kept clearing his throat, coughing and rattling gum wrappers…but only when it was Vukcevich’s move. At one point Vukcevich, who was a real class guy, came out to the coffee machine where I was standing and was laughing saying “I don’t believe it! Reshevsky just coughed and it was his turn to move.” During the last round vs. Benko the game reached a drawn ending and Reshevsky kept offering a draw and Benko refusing. Reshevsky was getting frustrated and asked the TD to tell Benko it was a draw. Benko explained he needed to try and win to avoid last place so wanted to keep playing. Soon Benko was in his customary time pressure so whenever he tried to punch his clock, Reshevsky was holding his finger on the button making it difficult for Benko to push the button. Benko never said anything but kept shooting Reshevsky dirty looks and pounding the clock. Eventually he had to agree to the draw.
Nicholas Rossolimo. He owned a chess studio in New York City. Aside from Euwe he was the first GM I ever met. I particularly remember his wife as being a very elegant lady. Anyway I was the only one in the studio one day and we played a skittles game. I was White and after about 15 moves into a Nimzo Indian I had a pretty good game. All of a sudden he grabbed a board off the shelf and set it on the table right in the sunlight. Then he started grabbing pieces off our board and setting them up on the new one (I think he got the position right). Now this new board looked like it was made out of blue butterfly wings under glass and it’s sitting right in the sun so it was very distracting. I asked him what he was doing and he replied, “I want to play on this board.” Naturally with the distraction and the glare off the glass board I lost quickly. He would probably have won anyway but that’s the excuse I use for losing.
Bobby Fischer. I was in a well-known used chess book store in New York City one afternoon in the early or mid-60’s chatting with the owner when Bobby Fischer walked in. That ended my conversation with the owner because he was more interested in Fischer than me (imagine that!). I was too awe struck to do more than stare at the legend himself. They disappeared into a back room and I left. I witnessed several US Championships but Fischer was never playing so I never saw him again.
William Lombardy and Arthur Bisguier. Two of the friendliest GM’s I ever met. I first met them at the 1975 US Championship. Before the tmt. started all the participants except Lombardy and Bisguier were standing around in a knot talking to each other. Bisguier and Lombardy were milling around with the spectators chatting, posing for pictures and signing autographs. Bisguier asked a couple local players where the nearest liquor store was. Upon being informed that the college town where the event was being held was dry and the nearest store was in a nearby city, Bisguier immediately pulled out his wallet and handed the two players some money and told them to go bring him a bottle of Jack Daniels. Every time I’ve seen Bisguier at any tmt. he was always the most gregarious of all the GM’s and was always willing to take a look at people’s games.
Tony Miles. I saw him playing and analyzing during one of the US Championships and just meeting a super GM was impressive. I’ve heard it said he could be quite grumpy, but I found him friendly enough. I was the only spectator at a PM he was having with a certain IM who kept asking Miles what he thought of this move or that move. All Miles would say is, “It’s no good.” When asked why all he would say was, “It just isn’t.” I don’t think he was being condescending. I think he just couldn’t say why the moves were bad…he just “knew.”
Walter Browne. My impression of Browne was that he always appeared extremely nervous and klutzy. I always expected he was about to have a nervous breakdown at any moment.
Andy Soltis. Another gregarious and friendly person. His Chess Life column is a good indication of his personality.
James Tarjan. At an international tmt. he was playing in I was in the analysis room watching a veteran master explaining to a group of players why, if Black played a certain move, White was lost. He kept asking, “What can White do? He’s lost.” Tarjan walked by on the way to the coffee machine and casually glanced at the position. After getting his coffee and on the way back to his game, he pointed out that the master’s move was a bad one and pointed out the refutation. It left the master staring dumbfounded at the position. Tarjan had seen more in a casual glance than the master had in 10 minutes of analysis. GM’s have incredible sight of the board.
Norman T. Whitaker. I was playing in a tmt. in North Carolina when the infamous Whitaker showed up and spent the evening spinning yarns about his career and helping with some analysis. He was a fascinating character. What he was really there for was to peddle an endgame book he had written, claiming, “If you learn everything in this book you’ll be a master.” It was really a book written in English & German of endgame problems and trick positions with the solutions. Totally useless. Yes, I bought one. No, it didn’t make me a master. It was another Whitaker scam.
Memorable Players
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