Searching for Bobby Fischer [SEP] screenwriter
Searching for Bobby Fischer


page." Screenwriter and playwright Tom Stoppard called the book "well written" and "captivating". The film currently has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 42 reviews, with a weighted average of 8.13/10. The site's consensus reads: "As sensitive as the young man at its center, "Searching for Bobby Fischer" uses a prodigy's struggle to find personal balance as the background for a powerfully moving drama". Roger Ebert gave the film a score of four stars (out of four)
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William Horberg


Searching for Bobby Fischer", the directorial debut of Oscar-winning screenwriter ("Schindler's List") Steven Zaillian. During that time, he also created and produced the Showtime anthology series "Fallen Angels" which featured Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, Steven Soderbergh and Alfonso Cuaron. He also produced the HBO film "Poodle Springs" based on the unfinished novel by Raymond Chandler and adapted by Tom Stoppard, along with Charlie Countryman. In 2005, Horberg became President of Production at Sidney Kimmel Entertainment where he produced or
3048179
Conrad Hall


up his old pace, making "Class Action" (1991), "Jennifer 8" (1992), "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993) and "Love Affair" (1994) one after the other. "Searching for Bobby Fischer" received an Oscar nomination for cinematography, his seventh. In 1994, Hall was honored with the lifetime achievement award from the American Society of Cinematographers. In 1998 he shot "Without Limits" and was Oscar nominated for "A Civil Action", followed by his
4636488
Searching for Bobby Fischer


Searching for Bobby Fischer, released in the United Kingdom as Innocent Moves, is a 1993 American drama film written and directed by Steven Zaillian. The film was Zaillian's directorial debut, and stars Max Pomeranc, Joe Mantegna, Joan Allen, Ben Kingsley and Laurence Fishburne. It is based on the life of prodigy chess player Joshua Waitzkin, played by Pomeranc, and adapted from the book of the same name by Joshua's father Fred. Josh Waitzkin's family discovers that he possesses a gift for chess and they seek to
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


nurture it. They hire a strict instructor, Bruce Pandolfini (played by Ben Kingsley), who aims to teach the boy to be as aggressive as chess legend Bobby Fischer. The title of the film is a metaphor about the character's quest to adopt the ideal of Fischer and his determination to win at any price. Josh is also heavily influenced by Vinnie (Laurence Fishburne), a speed chess hustler whom he meets in Washington Square Park. The two coaches differ greatly in their approaches to chess, and Pandolfini is
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


, calling it "a film of remarkable sensitivity and insight", adding, "by the end of [the film], we have learned […] a great deal about human nature." James Berardinelli gave the film three stars (out of four), calling it "an intensely fascinating movie capable of involving those who are ignorant about chess as well as those who love it." Bobby Fischer never saw the film and strongly complained that it was an invasion of his privacy by using his name without his
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Asa Hoffmann


Asa Hoffmann (born February 25, 1943 in New York City) is a FIDE Master in chess, chess teacher and author from the United States of America. He is known as "the sparring partner of champions". His peak regular USCF rating is 2471, his peak quick rating is 2515 and his peak blitz rating is 2414. He was portrayed in the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer" by actor Austin Pendleton. Hoffmann is interviewed in the documentary "Bobby Fischer Against the World" along with Anthony Saidy,
17647837
Jeff Sarwer


Jeff Sarwer (born May 14, 1978) is a Canadian Finnish (dual citizenship) former child chess prodigy whose charismatic personality and chess talent made him a well-known media figure. His chess career and his family's unconventional lifestyle were the subjects of many articles and TV shows. Sarwer's attacking playing style was often compared to Bobby Fischer, and a tournament game drawn against him by another young chess player, Joshua Waitzkin, was the inspiration for the climax in the film "Searching for Bobby Fischer". Sarwer
14245431
Bobby Fischer Center


The Bobby Fischer Center (Icelandic: "Fischersetur") is a small non-profit biographical museum housing memorabilia of the 1972 World Chess Champion, Bobby Fischer. The museum is located in Selfoss, Iceland. The Bobby Fischer Center have on display photos, the scoresheets, a printout for the radiation measurements demanded by Boris Spassky´s delegation after the 17th game and a replica of the chessboard used during the World Chess Championship 1972. The museum includes interesting artifacts related to Fischer's stay in Iceland from 2005 to 2008, including Fischer
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Donald Byrne


during the Game of the Century between Byrne and Bobby Fischer. Fischer was winning the game decisively and Byrne asked some of the other players if it would be a good "tip of the hat" to Fischer's superb play to let young Fischer play the game to a checkmate instead of Byrne resigning, which would normally happen between masters. When the other players agreed, Byrne played the game out until Fischer checkmated him. Byrne added "You have to remember, Bobby wasn't yet "Bobby Fischer" at that time
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Bobby Fischer


to reach diagnoses of schizophrenia or Asperger syndrome. The evidence is stronger for paranoid personality disorder." Magnús Skúlason, a chess player, psychiatrist and head doctor of Sogn Mental Asylum for the Criminally Insane, befriended Fischer towards the end of Fischer's life. From "Endgame", Fischer's 2011 biography by Frank Brady: [...] Skulason was not "Bobby's psychiatrist", as has been implied in the general press, nor did he offer Bobby any analysis or psychotherapy. He was at Bobby's bedside as
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Bobby Fischer


games. That year, Fischer released his first book of collected games: "Bobby Fischer's Games of Chess", published by Simon & Schuster. Fischer's interest in chess became more important than schoolwork, to the point that "by the time he reached the fourth grade, he'd been in and out of six schools." In 1952, Regina got Bobby a scholarship (based on his chess talent and "astronomically high IQ") to Brooklyn Community Woodward. Fischer later attended Erasmus Hall High School at the
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William Nack


. About the mining towns. About the day he beat Willard in the roaring Ohio heat. And always the one about the Long Count, under the lights at Soldier Field, and the night he lost but won." Nack's story on the imprisoned middleweight boxer Rubin Carter inspired The Hurricane (1999 film). Nack's pursuit of reclusive chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer spanned two years. He eventually tracked Fischer down, in 1985, in California. The final months of this search found Nack dressed up like a hobo,
21855363
Bobby Fischer Against the World


Bobby Fischer Against the World is a documentary feature film that explores the life of chess Grandmaster and 11th World Champion Bobby Fischer. It incorporates interviews with chess players Anthony Saidy, Larry Evans, Sam Sloan, Susan Polgar, Garry Kasparov, Asa Hoffmann, Friðrik Ólafsson, Lothar Schmid and others. It includes rare archive footage from the World Chess Championship 1972. Liz Garbus began her work on the film after Fischer's death in 2008 at the age of 64. She said of Fischer: "It's hard to imagine that
21675057
Carmine Nigro


Carmine Nigro ( ; January 2, 1910 – August 16, 2001) was former World Champion Bobby Fischer's first chess teacher, from 1951–1956. "Mr. Nigro was possibly not the best player in the world, but he was a very good teacher." – Bobby Fischer Nigro was an American chess expert of near master strength and an instructor. Nigro was President of the Brooklyn Chess Club. This is where he met Bobby Fischer and in 1951 became his first chess teacher. Nigro (rated 2028) hosted Fischer's
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Bobby Fischer


Fischer decided to participate. With Evans as his second, Fischer flew to Belgrade with the intention of playing board one for the rest of the world. Danish grandmaster Bent Larsen, however, due to his recent tournament victories, demanded to play instead of Fischer, even though Fischer had the higher Elo rating. To the surprise of everyone, Fischer agreed. Although the USSR team eked out a 20½–19½ victory, "On the top four boards, the Soviets managed to win only one game out of a possible sixteen. Bobby
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Bobby Fischer


Bush, asking "For mercy, charity", and, if that was not possible, "to put [him] in the same cell with Bobby Fischer" and "to give [them] a chess set". It was reported that Fischer and Miyoko Watai, the President of the Japanese Chess Association (with whom he had reportedly been living since 2000) wanted to become legally married. (It was also reported that Fischer had been living in the Philippines with Marilyn Young during the same period.) Fischer
4459139
Pawn Sacrifice


. The film starts in 1972, as an adult Bobby Fischer tears apart his hotel room in a paranoid delusional state, believing that he is being spied upon by the Soviet KGB. The film flashes back to Brooklyn in 1951 when Fischer is only 6 years old. Frightened to see a strange vehicle parked outside, Bobby tells his mother. Mrs. Fischer, a Soviet Jewish immigrant, tells Bobby that the FBI has her under surveillance because she supports Marxist revolution in the U.S. She coaches Bobby on what to say to the FBI
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Bobby Fischer


speed games with Fischer, winning the majority. "When Bobby discovered that he wasn't going to play any formal games... he went into a not-so-silent rage", saying he was fed up "with these Russian pigs", which angered the Soviets who saw Fischer as their honored guest. It was then that the Yugoslavian chess officials offered to take in Fischer and Joan as early guests to the Interzonal. Fischer took them up on the offer, arriving in Yugoslavia to play two short training matches against
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Bobby Fischer


–September 1963, Fischer won the New York State Championship at Poughkeepsie, with 7/7, his first perfect score, ahead of Arthur Bisguier and James Sherwin. In the 1963/64 US Championship, Fischer achieved his second perfect score, this time against the top-ranked chess players in the country. This result brought Fischer heightened fame, including a profile in "Life" magazine. "Sports Illustrated" diagrammed each of the 11 games in its article, "The Amazing Victory Streak of Bobby Fischer". Such extensive chess coverage
4459067
Joshua Waitzkin


K. Karanja were the only two children to draw with World Champion Garry Kasparov in an exhibition game where Kasparov played simultaneously against 59 youngsters. Five years later, he earned the title of National Master, and at age 16 became an International Master. Waitzkin has not played in a US Chess Federation tournament since 1999, and his last FIDE tournament was before 2000. The script for Paramount Pictures' 1993 film "Searching for Bobby Fischer" was based on a 1988 book by Waitzkin's father, Fred Waitzkin: "Searching for
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Bobby Fischer


After September 23 [1992], I threw most of what I'd ever read about Bobby out of my head. Sheer garbage. Bobby is the most misunderstood, misquoted celebrity walking the face of the earth." He added that Fischer was not camera shy, smiled and laughed easily, was "a fine wit" and "wholly enjoyable conversationalist". The US Department of the Treasury warned Fischer before the start of the match that his participation was illegal, that it would violate President George H. W. Bush's imposing
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Children's film


), Steve Zaillian's "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993), "Super Mario Bros" (1993), "Mrs. Doubtfire" (1993), "The Flintstones" (1994), "Babe" (1995), "Jumanji" (1995), "101 Dalmatians" (1996), "Fly Away Home" (1996), "Vegas Vacation" (1997), and "October Sky" (1999). Films such as "A Little Princess" (1995) were
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Bobby Fischer


passport was still valid. The authorities held Fischer at a custody center for 16 days before transferring him to another facility. Fischer claimed that his cell was windowless and he had not seen the light of day during that period, and that the staff had ignored his complaints about constant tobacco smoke in his cell. Tokyo-based Canadian journalist and consultant John Bosnitch set up the "Committee to Free Bobby Fischer" after meeting Fischer at Narita Airport and offering to assist him. Boris Spassky wrote a letter to US President George W.
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John Bosnitch


the US. Shortly before Fischer's departure for Iceland, on March 23, 2005, Bosnitch and Fischer appeared on the BBC World Service, via a voice link to Bosnitch's mobile telephone at the Tokyo airport. Bosnitch stated that Fischer would never play traditional chess again. Igor Stevanovic made a documentary film about chess legend Bobby Fischer through the eyes of his Serbian friends, chess opponents and acquaintances titled "Requiem for Bobby Fischer" ("Opelo za Bobija Fisera", 2009) featuring John Bosnitch. John Bosnitch also appears
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Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess


Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess is a chess puzzle book written by Bobby Fischer and co-authored by Stuart Margulies and Don Mosenfelder, originally published in 1966. It is one of the best-selling chess books of all time, with over one million copies sold. The book is intended for beginners and uses a programmed learning approach, permitting readers to go back and retry each question if they give a wrong answer. Unusually for a modern chess book, it requires no knowledge of chess notation, using only diagrams with arrows and
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Bobby Fischer


too late for him to go." Regina did not have the money to pay the airfare, but in the following year Fischer was invited onto the game show "I've Got a Secret", where, thanks to Regina's efforts, the producers of the show arranged two round-trip tickets to the Soviet Union. Once in Russia, Fischer was invited by the Soviet Union to Moscow, where International Master Lev Abramov would serve as a guide to Bobby and his sister, Joan. Upon arrival, Fischer immediately
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Bobby Fischer


subsidized by the state – had dominated for the previous quarter-century. Kasparov remarked, "Fischer fits ideologically into the context of the Cold War era: a lone American genius challenges the Soviet chess machine and defeats it". Dutch grandmaster Jan Timman calls Fischer's victory "the story of a lonely hero who overcomes an entire empire". Fischer's sister observed, "Bobby did all this in a country almost totally without a chess culture. It was as if an Eskimo had cleared a tennis court in the snow
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Bobby Fischer


and gone on to win the world championship". Upon Fischer's return to New York, a Bobby Fischer Day was held. He was offered numerous product endorsement offers worth "at least $5 million" ($ million today), all of which he declined. He appeared on the cover of "Sports Illustrated" with American Olympic swimming champion Mark Spitz. Fischer also made an appearance on a Bob Hope TV special. Membership in the US Chess Federation doubled in 1972, and peaked in 1974; in American chess
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Bobby Fischer


, 5 losses, and 15 draws. Kasparov stated, "Bobby is playing OK, nothing more. Maybe his strength is 2600 or 2650. It wouldn't be close between us". Yasser Seirawan believed that the match proved that Fischer's playing strength was "somewhere in the top ten in the world". Fischer and Spassky gave ten press conferences during the match. Seirawan attended the match and met with Fischer on several occasions; the two analyzed some match games and had personal discourse. Seirawan later wrote: "
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Bobby Fischer


, now a standard practice in top tournament and match play. He also invented Fischerandom, a new variant of chess known today as Chess960. Bobby Fischer was born at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago, Illinois, on March 9, 1943. His birth certificate listed his father as Hans-Gerhardt Fischer, also known as Gerardo Liebscher, a German biophysicist. His mother, Regina Wender Fischer, was a US citizen, born in Switzerland; her parents were Polish Jews. Raised in St. Louis, Missouri, Regina became a
4459020
David Paymer


David Emmanuel Paymer (born August 30, 1954) is an American character actor, comedian, and television director. He has been in films such as "Mr. Saturday Night", "Quiz Show", "Searching for Bobby Fischer", "City Slickers", "Crazy People", "State and Main", "Payback", "Get Shorty", "Carpool", "The American President", "Ocean's Thirteen", and "Drag Me to Hell". Paymer was nominated for
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Bobby Fischer


unlimited number of games and if nine wins to nine match is drawn with champion regaining title and prize fund split equally were rejected by the FIDE delegates. By so doing FIDE has decided against my participation in the 1975 World Chess Championship. Therefore, I resign my FIDE World Chess Championship title. Sincerely, Bobby Fischer. The delegates responded by reaffirming their prior decisions, but did not accept Fischer's resignation and requested that he reconsider. Many observers considered Fischer's requested 9–9 clause unfair because it would require the challenger to win
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Peter Hudecki


storyboard artist for the live action films "Cocktail", "The Freshman", "Searching for Bobby Fischer", "A Simple Wish" and "Bless the Child". In television, he was also a storyboard artist for Nickelodeon's "Animorphs" and Nick Jr.'s "The Backyardigans". He also had the same job for Showtime's original movies "Deacons for Defense", "Soldier's Girl" and "Jasper, Texas". He was Chief Modelmaker for Gemini Award- and Emmy Award-winning
2399434
Jenna Fischer


her "The Office" co-star Rainn Wilson in Gunn's film "Super". In June 2009, Fischer's engagement to screenwriter Lee Kirk was announced, and they married on July 3, 2010. Fischer and Kirk announced her pregnancy with their first child in May 2011; the pregnancy coincided with her character's second pregnancy on "The Office"s eighth season. In September 2011, Fischer gave birth to their son. Fischer gave birth to their second child, a daughter, in May 2014. Fischer is passionate
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Bobby Fischer


. Not only were Regina and Nemenyi reported to have had an affair in 1942, but Nemenyi made monthly child support payments to Regina and paid for Bobby's schooling until his own death in 1952. In addition, Nicholas and Benson found letters by Nemenyi's first son, Peter, identifying Bobby Fischer as his brother. In March 1949, 6-year-old Bobby and his sister Joan learned how to play chess using the instructions from a set bought at a candy store. When Joan lost interest in chess and Regina did not
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Bobby Fischer


have time to play, Fischer was left to play many of his first games against himself. When the family vacationed at Patchogue, Long Island, New York, that summer, Bobby found a book of old chess games and studied it intensely. In 1950, the family moved to Brooklyn, first to an apartment at the corner of Union Street and Franklin Avenue, and later to a two-bedroom apartment at 560 Lincoln Place. It was there that "Fischer soon became so engrossed in the game that Regina feared he
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Bobby Fischer


United States and in the Western hemisphere, but worldwide. Teaching chess or playing chess as a career had truly become a respectable profession. After Bobby, the game was simply not the same. Fischer won the Chess Oscar (an award, started in 1967, given to the best chess player, determined through votes from chess media and leading players) for 1970, 1971, and 1972. Fischer was a charter inductee into the US Chess Hall of Fame in Washington, D.C. in 1985. After routing Taimanov, Larsen,
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Frank Brady (writer)


, the international writers' organization. He is a writer, editor and publisher of international renown. He wrote one of the best-selling chess books in history, "Profile of a Prodigy", the biography of Bobby Fischer, as well as countless other books and articles on chess and other subjects. A new biography of Fischer entitled "Endgame: The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Bobby Fischer" was published in 2011. He has been involved with radio and film projects. His wife, Maxine, also writes books
5224656
William Lombardy


to Fischer. Lombardy says of the event:Suffice to say, I was the only person on the intimate inside during that Match of the Century...let me point out that there were 14 adjourned games. Bobby [Fischer] and I worked together on those adjourned positions without making a single technical error!... For little remuneration, I dedicated my services in the Icelandic capital to guarantee that Bobby followed through and finished the match victoriously. The assertion that Lombardy was essential to keeping Fischer in the match seems to be confirmed
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Chess


is featured in films like Ingmar Bergman's "The Seventh Seal" and Satyajit Ray's "The Chess Players". Chess is also present in contemporary popular culture. For example, the characters in "Star Trek" play a futuristic version of the game called "Tri-Dimensional Chess". "Wizard's Chess" is featured in J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" plays. The hero of "Searching for Bobby Fischer" struggles against adopting the aggressive and misanthropic views of a world chess champion. Chess is used
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Jenna Fischer


30 to September 18, 2016. Fischer worked alongside actor Greg Germann, Alexandra Henrikson, and Josh Stamberg. After Fischer moved to Los Angeles, her childhood friend Sean Gunn helped her get a part in a showcase and then introduced her to his brother, screenwriter James Gunn. That small part in a showcase also led to Fischer getting her first manager. Fischer married James Gunn on October 7, 2000. They announced their separation in September 2007, and they divorced in 2008. In 2010, Fischer helped Gunn with casting
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Miyoko Watai


In 1973 she met then world chess champion Bobby Fischer, and visited him several times for the next three decades. Starting in 2000 they reportedly lived together in a "de facto" marriage at her home. After Bobby Fischer's detention on July 13, 2004 for trying to travel with a revoked U.S. passport, she campaigned for his release. They were reportedly married in August 2004. According to an attorney representing a competing claim to Fischer's estate, the Supreme Court of Iceland ruled in December 2009 that Watai's claim
10047199
King's Indian Defence, Sämisch Variation


The Sämisch Variation of the King's Indian Defence is a chess opening that begins with the moves: The Sämisch is a subtle blockading system and a critical challenge to the King's Indian. It is named after the German grandmaster Friedrich Sämisch. The Sämisch has been played by numerous grandmasters, including world champions Mikhail Botvinnik, Mikhail Tal, Tigran Petrosian, Boris Spassky, Anatoly Karpov, and Garry Kasparov. Bobby Fischer had trouble against the Sämisch. Mednis' "How to Beat Bobby Fischer" showed that five of Fischer's
10796148
Johann Erhard Fischer


mentioned fondly by Frau Oberin Therese Stählin who was the head of Löhe's Deaconess House. On 23 Sep 1851 the Kulmbach Conference presented a view of the Lutheran church's relationship with the Kingdom of Bavaria that advocated for a government controlled Oberconsistorium to lead all churches in Bavaria regardless of their confession of faith. Borrowing from the position of the freechurch in Breslau ("Breslauer Freikirche", later known as the Lutheran Church in Prussia ("lutherische Kirche in Preußen")), this view was challenged by Rev. Fischer and Wilhelm
20986334
Hal Scardino


Hal Scardino (born Albert Henry Hugh Scardino; December 25, 1984) is an American actor and producer best known for having played the leading role in the movie "The Indian in the Cupboard". He also starred in "Searching for Bobby Fischer", "Marvin's Room", and "The Show" (2015). Born in the United States of America in Savannah, Georgia, Scardino grew up in the London neighborhood of Knightsbridge. He is the youngest of three children born to Marjorie Morris Scardino,
18356330
Washington Square Park


eye of the Fagin-like Williams. The park scene in the 1995 film "Kids" took place at Washington Square Park. Built-in outdoor chess tables on the southwest corner encourage outdoor playing along with throngs of watchers (in his youth, Stanley Kubrick was a frequent player). These tables were featured in the films "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993) and "Fresh" (1994). The Washington Square tables form the cornerstone of what is called Manhattan's "chess district", as the
20546712
Ben Kingsley


, "Searching for Bobby Fischer", "Schindler's List", "Silas Marner", "Death and the Maiden", "Sexy Beast", for which he received another Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, and "House of Sand and Fog", which led to an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. He won a Crystal Globe award for outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in 2001. In 1997, he provided a voice in the video game "Ceremony of
6216608
Bobby Fischer


Fischer's patented clock was made for, and used in, the 1992 rematch between Fischer and Spassky. Clocks based on the "Fischer clock" soon became standard in major chess tournaments. Fischer would later complain that he was cheated out of the royalties for this invention. Fischer heavily disparaged chess as it was currently being played (at the highest levels). As a result, on June 19, 1996, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Fischer announced and advocated a variant of chess called Fischerandom Chess (later known as
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Hermann Helms


. Helms assisted Bobby Fischer in 1951 with his move into organized chess, when he responded to a letter from Bobby's mother Regina Fischer, who was seeking opponents in Brooklyn for her eight-year-old son. Helms encouraged and stimulated the young Fischer, who would develop very rapidly, and become U.S. Champion by age 14 in 1957, later going on to win the World Chess Championship in 1972. There is a small file of ten of his games at chessgames.com. This includes several wins over Frank Marshall, one
14039857
Pawn Sacrifice


Pawn Sacrifice is a 2014 American biographical drama film. It is based on the true story of Bobby Fischer's challenge against top Soviet chess grandmasters during the Cold War and culminating in the World Chess Championship 1972 match versus Boris Spassky in Reykjavík, Iceland. It was directed by Edward Zwick and written by Steven Knight. The film stars Tobey Maguire as Bobby Fischer, Liev Schreiber as Boris Spassky, Lily Rabe as Joan Fischer, and Peter Sarsgaard as William Lombardy. It was released in the United States on September 16, 2015
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Bobby Fischer


a friend, to try to do anything he could for him. Because of his training, however, he couldn't fail to take note of Bobby's mental condition. "He definitely was not schizophrenic", Skulason said. "He had problems, possibly certain childhood traumas that had affected him. He was misunderstood. Underneath I think he was a caring sensitive person." Fischer's opening repertoire was narrow in some ways. As White, Fischer almost exclusively played 1.e4 throughout his career. He played 1.d4 with White
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Nicole Dubuc


appeared in all 96 episodes during the show's run between 1989 and 1993. Dubuc worked as a child actress for 11 years, including background voices for the movies "Prince of Tides", and "Searching for Bobby Fischer". She continues to act as an adult, and voiced Iris West-Allen in the "Young Justice" cartoon. After attending Yale University and graduating pre-med with a degree in English, Dubuc got her first work as an apprentice staff writer on the hit Disney series, "Kim
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


in 1952, and during most of the 1980s was homeless and regarded as one of the top players in Washington Square Park. Waitzkin's main chess foil character in the film, Jonathan Poe (played by Michael Nirenberg), is based on chess prodigy Jeff Sarwer. When Sarwer was asked what he felt about his portrayal in the film, he stated: At the end of the day it was a Hollywood film, a work of fiction, and it helped popularize chess more so that's always a good thing. But
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


I have a lot of distance to the actual book and film, the way I was portrayed was nothing at all like how I was in real life so what's the point in comparing myself to it? At the end of the film in the final tournament, Josh is seen playing a tough opponent named Jonathan Poe. The character Jonathan Poe was not the actual name of Josh's opponent; his real name was Jeff Sarwer (a boy younger than Josh). In September 1985, Josh first played and was defeated
12964586
Scholastic chess in the United States


far as parents are concernced). The tournament scenes from the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer", while an exaggeration of the truth, do a fairly accurate job of capturing the intensity and even slight insanity of parents, family members, and coaches when it comes to such huge events. At the 2018 US Chess Delegate's Meeting, in Middleton, Wisconsin, Dewain Barber was named "Dean of Scholastic Chess" in National Delegates' Motion 18-07, authored by Sean J. Manross (CA-S) with
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Max Pomeranc


Max Pomeranc (pronounced "Pomerantz"; born March 21, 1984) is an American former child actor. Pomeranc was born in New York City, New York. His mother, Marion Hess Pomeranc, is an author, and his father, Abe Pomeranc, is a stock broker. He made his acting debut at the age of eight, playing the lead in the film "Searching for Bobby Fischer", based on the childhood of International Master Josh Waitzkin. At the time he appeared in the film, he was
14091507
Jeff Sarwer


to living an anonymous lifestyle. In 1993 the film "Searching for Bobby Fischer" was released and Jeff Sarwer's character was portrayed as "Jonathan Poe". In the film's final game, Poe declined the offer of a draw and eventually lost. In reality, Sarwer declined the draw offer by Josh Waitzkin, but the game ended in a draw (because of insufficient material) a few moves later. Under tournament tie-breaking rules, Waitzkin was determined to have played more challenging opponents during the overall competition and
14245437
Fred Waitzkin


Fred Waitzkin (born 1943 in Massachusetts) is an American novelist and writer for "The New York Times" "Sunday Magazine", "New York", and "Esquire". He was educated at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, and lives in New York City and Martha's Vineyard. He is the father of former chess prodigy Joshua Waitzkin. Waitzkin's book about his son, "Searching for Bobby Fischer" was praised by Grandmaster Nigel Short, as well as chess journalist Edward Winter, who called it
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Bruce Pandolfini


has been associated with various private institutions, including long-time relationships with Trinity, Browning, Dalton, and Berkeley Carroll. In 2011 Pandolfini was elected to the American Chess Journalist’s Hall of Fame, and in 2012, he was named as Chess Educator of the Year by University of Texas at Dallas. Pandolfini’s list of successful students is impressive, including Fabiano Caruana, one of the highest ranked chess players in history; Josh Waitzkin, subject of the film "Searching for Bobby Fischer"); Rachel Crotto,
20626646
Joseph G. Ponterotto


. Ponterotto is also the author of a psychobiography (his first) on Bobby Fischer, titled "A Psychobiography of Bobby Fisher: Understanding the Genius, Mystery, and Psychological Decline of a World Chess Champion". Being an avid chess player himself, Ponterotto decided to perform a detailed psychological evaluation on the trajectory of Bobby Fischer's life from his fame as a chess grandmaster at 15, which turned him into an international star and his being recognized as a prodigal genius, to his pitfalls and bizarre behaviors over time that ultimately
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Bobby Fischer


the country to support her family. She engaged in political activism, and raised both Bobby and Joan as a single parent. In 1949, the family moved to Manhattan and the following year to Brooklyn, New York City, where she studied for her master's degree in nursing and subsequently began working in that field. In 2002, Peter Nicholas and Clea Benson of The Philadelphia Inquirer published an investigative report backed by detailed and compelling evidence that indicated that Bobby Fischer's biological father was actually Paul Nemenyi. Nemenyi, a Hungarian
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Bobby Fischer


International Master. Fischer's victory in the US Championship sent his rating up to 2626, making him the second highest rated player in the United States, behind only Reshevsky (2713), and qualified him to participate in the 1958 Portorož Interzonal, the next step toward challenging the World Champion. Bobby wanted to go to Moscow. At his pleading, "Regina wrote directly to the Soviet leader, Nikita Khrushchev, requesting an invitation for Bobby to participate in the World Youth and Student Festival. The reply—affirmative—came
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Bobby Fischer


said that "Some of Bobby's behavior is so strange, unpredictable, odd and bizarre that even his most ardent apologists have had a hard time explaining what makes him tick" and described him as "a troubled human being" with "obvious personal problems". Valery Krylov, advisor to Anatoly Karpov and a specialist in the "psycho-physiological rehabilitation of sportsmen", believed Fischer suffered from schizophrenia. Psychologist Joseph G. Ponterotto, from second-hand sources, concludes that "Bobby did not meet all the necessary criteria
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Bobby Fischer


Fischer had ended his formal education at age 16, dropping out of Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn, he subsequently taught himself several foreign languages so he could read foreign chess periodicals. According to Latvian chess master Alexander Koblencs, even he and Tal could not match the commitment that Fischer had made to chess. Recalling a conversation from the tournament: Tell me, Bobby,' Tal continued, 'what do you think of the playing style of Larissa Volpert?' 'She's too cautious. But you have another girl
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Bobby Fischer


claiming unpaid taxes). Marilyn Young claimed that Jinky was Fischer's daughter, citing as evidence Jinky's birth and baptismal certificates, photographs, a transaction record dated December 4, 2007, of a bank remittance by Fischer to Jinky, and Jinky's DNA through her blood samples. On the other hand, Magnús Skúlason, a friend of Fischer's, said that he was certain that Fischer was not the girl's father. In addition, the validity of Miyoko Watai's marriage to Fischer was challenged. On June 16
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Bobby Fischer


Spassky. Right after the Olympiad, Fischer defeated Ulf Andersson in an exhibition game for the Swedish newspaper "Expressen". Fischer had taken his game to a new level. Fischer won the Interzonal (held in Palma de Mallorca in November and December 1970) with 18½/23 (+15−1=7), far ahead of Larsen, Efim Geller, and Robert Hübner, with 15/23. Fischer finished the tournament with seven consecutive wins. Setting aside the Sousse Interzonal (which Fischer withdrew from while leading), Fischer's victory gave him a string
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Bobby Fischer


Watai and Fischer had married on September 6, 2004, and that, as Fischer's widow and heir, Watai was therefore entitled to inherit Fischer's estate. Fischer's nephews were ordered to pay Watai's legal costs, amounting to ISK 6.6 million (approximately $57,000). While as far as is known Fischer was never formally diagnosed, there has been widespread comment and speculation concerning his psychological condition based on his extreme views and unusual behavior. Reuben Fine, psychologist and chess player, who met Fischer many times,
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


was portrayed. Chess expert Poe McClinton, still a park regular, is seen throughout the film. Pal Benko was supposed to be in the film but his part was cut out. Waitzkin's real mother and sister also have cameos. The Russian player in the park (played by Vasek Simek) who holds up the sign "GAME OR PHOTOGRAF OF MAN WHO BEET TAL 1953 • FIVE DOLLARS", was based on the real life of Israel Zilber. Zilber, Latvian Chess Champion in 1958, defeated the teenage Mikhail Tal
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


by Jeff at the Manhattan Chess Club. In November of the same year, Josh returned to the Manhattan Chess Club and beat him in a rematch. The film depicts their third match in the 1986 US Primary Championship. Near the end of the game, where Josh offers Poe a draw, Poe rejects the offer, the play continues and Poe loses. Sarwer rejected the draw offer in the real-world game as well, but the play continued to a draw due to bare kings. Under tournament tie-breaking rules
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


and Pandolfini for the film. The following moves are executed: In the October 1995 issue of "Chess Life", Grandmaster Larry Evans stated that the position and sequence were : Poe (playing White) could still have drawn the game by playing 7.h5 instead. White resigned. An alternate endgame position had been composed by Pal Benko. It was supposed to have been used in the film, but was rejected on the day before the scene was filmed because it did not use the theme that Josh overused his queen. br
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


In this position, Black should play: after which White is in zugzwang; he must play either 2.Bg3, losing the bishop to 2...Nxg3+, or 2.Bg1, allowing 2...Ng3. The book and the film have each received positive reviews from critics. Waitzkin's book was praised by grandmaster Nigel Short, as well as chess journalist Edward Winter, who called it "a delightful book" in which "the topics [are] treated with an acuity and grace that offer the reviewer something quotable on almost every
12964590
Kamran Shirazi


Qxd5 5.axb4?? Qe5+ 0-1. He subsequently made an appearance in the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer". He is introduced as "Grandmaster Shirazi" but his actual title is International Master, awarded in 1978. As of 2006, Shirazi had been living in France for several years. He is still an active tournament player and also gives lessons. He changed his FIDE federation from the USA to France in 2006. On the September 2009 FIDE list, he has an Elo rating of 2410. In
14526933
Roman Dzindzichashvili


title with two other players each time. He briefly took up residence in Washington Square Park in New York City, and hustled chess during the 1980s, making a living playing blitz for stakes, as is popular there. He had a cameo in the 1993 film "Searching for Bobby Fischer". He also had a brief appearance in "Men Who Would Be Kings", a documentary about chess in Washington Square Park set in the 1980s. He is a well-known theoretician and a chess coach. Among his students
16469890
Morgan Pehme


Morgan Pehme (born May 5, 1978 in New York City) is an American journalist, filmmaker, and political commentator. The son of journalist Kalev Pehme, Pehme achieved renown as a child for his success as a chess player. Pehme attended The Dalton School in Manhattan with Josh Waitzkin, the subject of the book and film "Searching for Bobby Fischer". Pehme is a former Sort of United States National Scholastic Chess Champion (1993 National Junior High School Championship)[1] and represented the United States in the Boys Under 12
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Bruce Pandolfini


has provided free chess instruction to thousands of New York City school children. Several years later, Pandolfini was featured in Fred Waitzkin’s book "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1988), a perceptive narrative on his talented son Josh and Josh’s successes in the world of children’s chess. The book would later become a Paramount film (1992) of the same title, in which Pandolfini, Josh’s real-life teacher, was portrayed by award winning actor Ben Kingsley. Pandolfini was the film’s chief chess consultant
20626644
Trinity College, Toronto


's first edition. The Trinity College campus has served as the filming set for scenes in many movies and television series, including "Searching for Bobby Fischer", "The Skulls", "Tommy Boy", "Moonlight and Valentino", "Class of '96", "TekWar", and "Ararat" and also "Relic Hunter". Trinity has graduated notable academics including theologian William Robinson Clark, Michael Ignatieff and former Trinity provost Margaret MacMillan, numerous politicians including the aforementioned Michael Ignatieff, his father George
21131721
Joshua Waitzkin


Joshua Waitzkin (born December 4, 1976) is an American chess player, martial arts competitor, and author. As a child, he was recognized as a prodigy, and won the U.S. Junior Chess championship in 1993 and 1994. The film "Searching for Bobby Fischer" is based on his early life. Waitzkin first noticed the game of chess being played while walking with his mother in New York City's Washington Square Park at the age of six. At age seven, Waitzkin began studying the game with his first
2272401
Alejandro Ramírez (chess player)


Alejandro Tadeo Ramírez Álvarez (born 21 June 1988 in San José, Costa Rica) is a Costa Rican-born American chess grandmaster. At the age of 15, he became the first Central American to achieve the grandmaster title and the second youngest chess grandmaster in the world at the time. He graduated from the University of Texas in Dallas with a master's degree in arts and technology, video game design. Ramírez started playing chess at the age of four after watching the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer" and was
6456182
Brooklyn Castle


challenges and triumphs both on and off the chessboard. Remake rights have been acquired by Sony Pictures and producer Scott Rudin. Rudin's other works include co-producing the acclaimed film "Searching for Bobby Fischer" (1993). "Brooklyn Castle" premiered at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival on March 11, 2012. Over the next several months it was shown during at least eleven other film festivals winning a total of three festival awards to date. The film was released to a limited number of U.S.
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Robert Byrne (chess player)


to Paul Keres). Byrne placed shared 4–7th at the 1957 U.S. Open Chess Championship in Cleveland with 9/12, a point behind joint winners Bobby Fischer and Arthur Bisguier. Byrne did not play in his first U.S. Chess Championship until age 30 in 1958–59, placing tied 9–10th with 4/11; the winner was Bobby Fischer. But Byrne improved dramatically the next year in the same event to place 2nd with 8/11, ahead of Reshevsky and Pal Benko, as Fischer won again. In 1960, Byrne increased his serious play, winning the
2888886
King's Gambit, Fischer Defense


The Fischer Defense to the King's Gambit is a chess opening variation that begins with the moves: Although 3...d6 was previously known, it did not become a major variation until Fischer advocated it in a famous 1961 article in the first issue of the "American Chess Quarterly". In the "Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings", the Fischer Defense is given the code C34. After Bobby Fischer lost a 1960 game at Mar del Plata to Boris Spassky, in which Spassky played the Kieseritzky Gambit, Fischer left in tears
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Bobby Fischer


him during the tournament. Pal Benko says that Fischer did horribly in the tournament "because he got caught up in women and sex. Afterwards, Fischer said he'd never mix women and chess together, and kept the promise." Fischer concluded 1960 by winning a small tournament in Reykjavík with 4½/5, and defeating Klaus Darga in an exhibition game in West Berlin. In 1961, Fischer started a 16-game match with Reshevsky, split between New York and Los Angeles. Reshevsky, 32 years Fischer's senior, was considered the
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Bobby Fischer


+12−2=3). In the Philippines, Fischer played nine exhibition games against master opponents, scoring 8½/9. Fischer's win in the 1966/67 US Championship qualified him for the next World Championship cycle. At the 1967 Interzonal, held at Sousse, Tunisia, Fischer scored 8½ points in the first 10 games, to lead the field. His observance of the Worldwide Church of God's seventh-day Sabbath was honored by the organizers, but deprived Fischer of several rest days, which led to a scheduling dispute, causing Fischer to forfeit
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Bobby Fischer


, gaining the advantage, but Fischer eventually won the game after Petrosian faltered. This gave Fischer a run of 20 consecutive wins against the world's top players (in the Interzonal and Candidates matches), a winning streak topped only by Steinitz's 25 straight wins in 1873–1882. Petrosian won the second game, finally snapping Fischer's streak. After three consecutive draws, Fischer swept the next four games to win the match 6½–2½ (+5−1=3). "Sports Illustrated" ran an article on the match, highlighting Fischer's domination
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Bobby Fischer


of eight consecutive first prizes in tournaments. Former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik was not, however, impressed by Fischer's results, stating: "Fischer has been declared a genius. I do not agree with this... In order to rightly be declared a genius in chess, you have to defeat equal opponents by a big margin. As yet he has not done this". Despite Botvinnik's remarks, "Fischer began a miraculous year in the history of chess". In the 1971 Candidates matches, Fischer was set to
4459087
Paul Cartledge (music producer)


Dead or Alive; his highest profile engineering credits being on two records, produced by Phil Ramone, for Frank Sinatra. He pioneered ISDN recording techniques and used this in work on film soundtracks, including Steven Zaillian's 'Searching For Bobby Fischer' and Henry Selick's 'James and the Giant Peach' produced by Tim Burton. Notable actors he has recorded include James Coburn, Sir Robert Stephens, Sir Ben Kingsley, Pete Postlethwaite, and David Thewlis. At the beginning of the 21st century, Cartledge teamed up with Harrison
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


upset that Josh continues to adopt the methods of Vinnie. The main conflict in the film arises when Josh refuses to accept Pandolfini's misanthropic frame of reference. Josh then goes on to win on his own terms. Some famous chess players have brief cameos in the film: Anjelina Belakovskaia, Joel Benjamin, Roman Dzindzichashvili, Kamran Shirazi, along with the real Joshua Waitzkin, Bruce Pandolfini, Vincent Livermore, and Russell Garber. Chess master Asa Hoffmann is played by Austin Pendleton; the real Hoffmann did not like the way he
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Searching for Bobby Fischer


, Waitzkin was determined to have played more challenging opponents during the overall competition and was awarded first place, but they were declared US Primary School co-champions. Sarwer went on to win the 1986 World Championship Under-10 (Boys), with his sister Julia winning the World Championship Under-10 (Girls). The diagram depicts the game position in the film, with Waitzkin playing the black pieces, before Waitzkin offers Poe the draw. This position did not occur in the real Sarwer–Waitzkin game; it was contrived by Waitzkin
12964588
Anjelina Belakovskaia


job in the United States was slicing watermelons and winning money from the chess hustlers at Washington Square Park. She won $35 the first day, and soon the hustlers would no longer play her because they had lost too much money. Belakovskaia had a brief cameo in the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer" in 1993. Belakovskaia became a naturalized U.S. citizen on November 24, 1999. Later that year, she began graduate work at New York University, and in 2001 earned a Master's Degree in Mathematics in Finance.
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Jordy Mont-Reynaud


Jordy Mont-Reynaud (born August 16, 1983) became the youngest ever chess master in the United States when he became a master at the age of 10 years 209 days in 1994 (a record surpassed by Vinay Bhat, and presently held by Samuel Sevian). For his successful early career, he was asked to play the starring role of Josh Waitzkin in the 1993 movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer", but declined the offer. Mont-Reynaud attended Stanford University, where he played a leading role in Stanford
7506168
King's Gambit


loses by force." – R. Fischer, "A Bust to the King's Gambit" The Fischer Defense (3.Nf3 d6), although previously known, was advocated by Bobby Fischer after he was defeated by Boris Spassky in a Kieseritzky Gambit at the 1960 Mar del Plata tournament. Fischer then decided to refute the King's Gambit, and the next year the "American Chess Quarterly" published Fischer's analysis of 3...d6, which he called "a high-class waiting move". The point is that after
18788757
Bobby Fischer


play against Soviet grandmaster and concert pianist Mark Taimanov in the quarter-finals. The match began in mid-May in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Fischer was generally favored to win. Taimanov had reason to be confident. He was backed by the firm guidance of Botvinnik, who "had thoroughly analysed Fischer's record and put together a 'dossier' on him", from when he was in talks to play Fischer in a match "a couple of years earlier". After Fischer defeated Taimanov in the second
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Bobby Fischer


stronger in spirit. Before the match, Botvinnik had told a Soviet television audience: It is hard to say how their match will end, but it is clear that such an easy victory as in Vancouver [against Taimanov] will not be given to Fischer. I think Larsen has unpleasant surprises in store for [Fischer], all the more since having dealt with Taimanov thus, Fischer will want to do just the same to Larsen and this is impossible. Fischer beat Larsen by the identical score of 6–0. Robert Byrne
4459093
Bobby Fischer


against Spassky, Fischer had won a training match against Svetozar Gligorić in Sveti Stefan with six wins, one loss and three draws. Although Fischer's mother was Jewish, Fischer rejected attempts to label him as Jewish. In a 1984 letter to the editor of the "Encyclopaedia Judaica", Fischer demanded that they correct their mistake and remove his name from future editions. In an interview in the January 1962 issue of "Harper's", he was quoted as saying, "I read a book lately by Nietzsche and he
4459125
Bobby Fischer


Fischer a "master of bishop endings". The endgame of a rook, bishop, and pawns against a rook, knight, and pawns has sometimes been called the "Fischer Endgame" because of several instructive wins by Fischer (with the bishop), including three against Mark Taimanov in 1970 and 1971. In 1988, Fischer filed for for a new type of chess clock, which gave each player a fixed period at the start of the game and then added a small increment after each completed move. An example of
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Bobby Fischer


ahead of Fischer, and had handed Fischer his only loss at the Interzonal. Garry Kasparov later wrote that no player had ever shown a superiority over his rivals comparable to Fischer's "incredible" 12–0 score in the two matches. Chess statistician Jeff Sonas concludes that the victory over Larsen gave Fischer the "highest single-match performance rating ever". On August 8, 1971, while preparing for his last Candidates match with former World Champion Tigran Petrosian, Fischer played in the Manhattan Chess Club Rapid Tournament, winning with 21½/22
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Bobby Fischer


the world, but he was a very good teacher. Meeting him was probably a decisive factor in my going ahead with chess." Nigro hosted Fischer's first chess tournament at his home in 1952. In the summer of 1955, Fischer, then 12 years old, joined the Manhattan Chess Club. Fischer's relationship with Nigro lasted until 1956, when Nigro moved away. In June 1956, Fischer began attending the Hawthorne Chess Club, based in master John "Jack" W. Collins' home. Collins taught chess to
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Bobby Fischer


children, and has been described as Fischer's teacher, but Collins himself suggested that he did not actually teach Fischer, and the relationship might be more accurately described as one of mentorship. Fischer played thousands of blitz and offhand games with Collins and other strong players, studied the books in Collins' large chess library, and ate almost as many dinners at Collins' home as his own. On the tenth national rating list of the United States Chess Federation (USCF), published on May 20, 1956, Fischer's
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Bobby Fischer


named after him: the Sicilian Najdorf. Fischer had planned to play for the US at the 1968 Lugano Olympiad, but backed out when he saw the poor playing conditions. Both former World Champion Tigran Petrosian and Belgian-American International Master George Koltanowski, the leader of the American team that year, felt that Fischer was justified in not participating in the Olympiad. According to Lombardy, Fischer's non-participation was due to Reshevsky's refusal to yield first board. In 1960, Fischer tied for first place with Soviet star
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