AThe Kingston Daily Freeman Kingston, New York Friday, January 24, 1964 - Page 13
“…One of my readers showed me an item in the Daily News, of Friday, Dec. 27, of an article by Sidney Fields about a young wizard of chess, Bobby Fischer. At 14, Bobby Fischer, won the U.S. chess championship, and at 16 he felt school was interfering with chess, so he dropped out, and is trying to prove that a man can live by chess alone. Many of our famous people, through the years were drop outs, which doesn't mean they stopped studying or learning. Formal education is not the answer, so it seems.
For those without talent, formal education, a diploma and degree are most important, for then they can be fitted by others into a financial if not exactly creative existence. Then many arrive at a respectable existence, and continue until retirement, taking their yearly vacation, and receiving their check on time. Others, like Bobby Fischer, who is now 20 is carving his own niche in life, which is a constant struggle. They would not allow him to teach in the school system, because he does not have the required hours in a school seat, and signed papers. Bobby is now defending his title for the sixth time, in the national tournament in New York with the country's top players, he being the youngest among them. Three are professional chess players, two are college professors, one is an engineer. He has so far won the first six of the 11 games each of them must play.
This six foot two, 185 pound, 20-year-old, who should be in college yet, was born in Chicago, and raised in Brooklyn, and was only two when his parents were divorced. His mother now lives in London and is remarried. His sister is a nurse, and first taught him chess when he was six. At 10 he was in his first tournament and ended up fifth. An observer took him in hand for 18 months, and at 13 Bobby was U.S. junior champ. Making a living at chess is not simple and there are not enough tournaments to keep you going. Still at 20 he has been to Europe seven times, to South America three times, and met and defeated some of the world's best chess champs, and he certainly loves his work.
Bobby Fischer now subscribes to 10 chess magazines, and buys another five. They are in English, German, French, Spanish, Russian, Polish and Bulgarian, and although he does not speak all those languages he has learned the limited chess vocabulary of each language, perhaps a 100 words or so, and so can follow the moves. He knows he's good at chess and perfectly happy in his three-room Brooklyn apartment which he shares with his chessmen.
