Jewish Pole Regina Wender and German biophysicist Hans Fischer married in Moscow in 1933 and had baby Joan in 1937. But the marriage failed and in 1939, Regina and Joan moved to U.S. Hans never migrated
Bobby Fischer (1943-2008) was born in Chicago, his actual father being Jewish Hungarian mathematician-mechanical engineer Paul Nemenyi, who emigrated from Hungary in 1939. Regina met this top scientist in U.S in 1942.
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Bobby Fischer aged 15 vs Tigran Petrosian
Moscow Chess Club, 1958
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Regina and Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer (1943-2008) was born in Chicago, his actual father being Jewish Hungarian mathematician-mechanical engineer Paul Nemenyi, who emigrated from Hungary in 1939. Regina met this top scientist in U.S in 1942.
Moscow Chess Club, 1958
In 1943 Regina Fischer moved her family from Chicago to Wash where Nemenyi was then living, then to Idaho, Oregon, Los Angeles and into Arizona. Frank Brady's book Fischer: Profile of a Prodigy showed Regina was a registered nurse; in 1949 she got a Master's in nursing education.
When Bobby was 6, he enjoyed games so his sister bought him a plastic chess-set and learned the game together. Alas Fischer was expelled from a Manhattan public school, then he left his Brooklyn High School. He didn’t receive any counselling nor was he given psychotropic medication.
In 1951, Fischer connected with Chess Masters and later, in 1955, 12 year-old Fischer joined the famous Manhattan Chess Club. In 1956 he became the youngest junior champion of U.S.
Chess Grandmaster-psychoanalyst Dr Reuben Fine noted in his book, Bobby Fischer's Conquest of the World's Chess Championship, that Regina took her son to get care after the Junior Championship. But as soon as school was mentioned, Bobby screamed, stormed out and continued his paranoid fury. Regina consulted 3 other mental health professionals, men who were also chess masters, about curbing her son's chess obsession. None succeeded.
In 1957, nearly 15, Fischer was the youngest-ever U.S Champion and an international master. In 1958, having wowed masters throughout eastern-central Europe, he wrote his first book Bobby Fischer's Games of Chess, and left school permanently.
When Bobby was 6, he enjoyed games so his sister bought him a plastic chess-set and learned the game together. Alas Fischer was expelled from a Manhattan public school, then he left his Brooklyn High School. He didn’t receive any counselling nor was he given psychotropic medication.
In 1951, Fischer connected with Chess Masters and later, in 1955, 12 year-old Fischer joined the famous Manhattan Chess Club. In 1956 he became the youngest junior champion of U.S.
Chess Grandmaster-psychoanalyst Dr Reuben Fine noted in his book, Bobby Fischer's Conquest of the World's Chess Championship, that Regina took her son to get care after the Junior Championship. But as soon as school was mentioned, Bobby screamed, stormed out and continued his paranoid fury. Regina consulted 3 other mental health professionals, men who were also chess masters, about curbing her son's chess obsession. None succeeded.
In 1957, nearly 15, Fischer was the youngest-ever U.S Champion and an international master. In 1958, having wowed masters throughout eastern-central Europe, he wrote his first book Bobby Fischer's Games of Chess, and left school permanently.
lokalpatrioti
Regina originally encouraged Bobby to broaden his interests and friendships beyond chess. But as Bobby's genius for chess became more apparent, Regina did all she could to support his passion. But Bobby clashed with his mother so frequently that eventually they lived separately.
His battle with Boris Spassky began in 1960 and culminated in their 1972 match in Reykjavik: 24 games by the two best players in the world. As the planet watched, Fischer prevailed and as a reward, visited the White House to meet Pres. Richard Nixon.
Why did the FBI investigate Regina’s activities so closely? It was early in the Cold War; Bobby's mother and presumed father Hans Fischer had lived in Russia for years and both had high-level scientific training. Yet the ever-continuing FBI reports on Regina Fischer and her two husbands never revealed any espionage!
Bobby Fischer's mental illness developed thus: Bobby's mother's mental issues and financial hardships predisposed him to disturbance. Bobby didn’t know who his real father was; he was raised by a single mother experiencing horrid stress from FBI surveillance. This added to Bobby's own level of psychosocial stress and vulnerability to psychosis, magnified by endless media pressure.
Fischer relentlessly insisted on his special conditions: lighting, seating, silence etc. He complained opponents were trying to poison his food, his hotel rooms were bugged, opponents were colluding at tournaments and prearranging draws. He feared sabotage of his planes.
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Regina originally encouraged Bobby to broaden his interests and friendships beyond chess. But as Bobby's genius for chess became more apparent, Regina did all she could to support his passion. But Bobby clashed with his mother so frequently that eventually they lived separately.
His battle with Boris Spassky began in 1960 and culminated in their 1972 match in Reykjavik: 24 games by the two best players in the world. As the planet watched, Fischer prevailed and as a reward, visited the White House to meet Pres. Richard Nixon.
Why did the FBI investigate Regina’s activities so closely? It was early in the Cold War; Bobby's mother and presumed father Hans Fischer had lived in Russia for years and both had high-level scientific training. Yet the ever-continuing FBI reports on Regina Fischer and her two husbands never revealed any espionage!
Bobby Fischer's mental illness developed thus: Bobby's mother's mental issues and financial hardships predisposed him to disturbance. Bobby didn’t know who his real father was; he was raised by a single mother experiencing horrid stress from FBI surveillance. This added to Bobby's own level of psychosocial stress and vulnerability to psychosis, magnified by endless media pressure.
Fischer relentlessly insisted on his special conditions: lighting, seating, silence etc. He complained opponents were trying to poison his food, his hotel rooms were bugged, opponents were colluding at tournaments and prearranging draws. He feared sabotage of his planes.
Spassky and Fischer
National Theatre Reykjavik, July 1972
dw
In Aug 1972 Fischer played Russian Grand-master Spassky for the world title, becoming the 11th World Chess Champion. Fischer unbelievably ended a 24-year streak of Russian domination. But 3 years later, he refused to defend his crown under rules proposed by the World Chess Federation. His competitive chess career ended.
Why did he represent the U.S, given his own nasty view of American culture? I want to see the U.S wiped out. Death to the U.S. . After the terror attacks of Sept 2001, Fischer loved the Twin Towers news, applauding the act. “The US and Israel have been slaughtering the Palestinians, just slaughtering them for years. Robbing them and slaughtering them. Nobody gave a shit. I want to see the US wiped out .
He had 2 Jewish parents, yet Fischer’s gross anti-Semitism emerged: the U.S is a farce controlled by dirty, hook-nosed, circumcised Jew bastards. These rants could be heard in broadcasts Bobby made on radio. Russian Grand-master and world chess champion Garry Kasparov suggested Bobby's anti-Semitism was related to his conflicts with Jewish-American Grand-master Samuel Reshevsky. Apparently Bobby also disliked other Jews involved in, and around the chess community, especially the clever Soviet-Jewish players who were all united against him. Because of his fearsome anti-Semitism and his horrid praise for the 2001 attack on the World Trade Centre, Fischer was seen as vicious
Valery Krylov, specialist in psycho-physiological rehabilitation of sportsmen, worked with world chess champion Anatoly Karpov for decades. Krylov arrived at a schizophrenia diagnosis for Fischer, after examining his correspondence. A more recent diagnosis suggested that Bobby suffered from Asperger's Disorder (and/or paranoid schizophrenia, paranoid personality disorder and delusions). The evidence was strong for paranoid personality disorder which was apparent in Bobby’s youth with solitariness, poor peer relationships, social anxiety, school failure, hypersensitivity and idiosyncratic fantasies.
As Bobby isolated himself in the 1970s, the psychosocial stressors intensified. The State Dept issued an arrest warrant in connection with his Yugoslavia rematch with Spassky in 1992; he suffered the loss of his mother and sister; he was arrested in Japan in 2004 in connection with the 1992 warrant; and he struggled for years to find a safe haven from U.S arrest. Icelandic citizenship arrived in 2005!
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Bobby Fischer's lonely grave, Reykjavik
Duskbeforethedawn
Regina's death in 1997 and Joan’s death in 1998 were devastating losses, particularly because Bobby couldn’t attend the two funeral because he’d be arrested on arrival in the U.S for violating U.S 1992 sanctions. Fischer died at 64 in Jan 2008 of kidney failure, in Reykjavik Iceland.
National Theatre Reykjavik, July 1972
dw
In Aug 1972 Fischer played Russian Grand-master Spassky for the world title, becoming the 11th World Chess Champion. Fischer unbelievably ended a 24-year streak of Russian domination. But 3 years later, he refused to defend his crown under rules proposed by the World Chess Federation. His competitive chess career ended.
Why did he represent the U.S, given his own nasty view of American culture? I want to see the U.S wiped out. Death to the U.S. . After the terror attacks of Sept 2001, Fischer loved the Twin Towers news, applauding the act. “The US and Israel have been slaughtering the Palestinians, just slaughtering them for years. Robbing them and slaughtering them. Nobody gave a shit. I want to see the US wiped out .
He had 2 Jewish parents, yet Fischer’s gross anti-Semitism emerged: the U.S is a farce controlled by dirty, hook-nosed, circumcised Jew bastards. These rants could be heard in broadcasts Bobby made on radio. Russian Grand-master and world chess champion Garry Kasparov suggested Bobby's anti-Semitism was related to his conflicts with Jewish-American Grand-master Samuel Reshevsky. Apparently Bobby also disliked other Jews involved in, and around the chess community, especially the clever Soviet-Jewish players who were all united against him. Because of his fearsome anti-Semitism and his horrid praise for the 2001 attack on the World Trade Centre, Fischer was seen as vicious
Valery Krylov, specialist in psycho-physiological rehabilitation of sportsmen, worked with world chess champion Anatoly Karpov for decades. Krylov arrived at a schizophrenia diagnosis for Fischer, after examining his correspondence. A more recent diagnosis suggested that Bobby suffered from Asperger's Disorder (and/or paranoid schizophrenia, paranoid personality disorder and delusions). The evidence was strong for paranoid personality disorder which was apparent in Bobby’s youth with solitariness, poor peer relationships, social anxiety, school failure, hypersensitivity and idiosyncratic fantasies.
As Bobby isolated himself in the 1970s, the psychosocial stressors intensified. The State Dept issued an arrest warrant in connection with his Yugoslavia rematch with Spassky in 1992; he suffered the loss of his mother and sister; he was arrested in Japan in 2004 in connection with the 1992 warrant; and he struggled for years to find a safe haven from U.S arrest. Icelandic citizenship arrived in 2005!
Duskbeforethedawn
Regina's death in 1997 and Joan’s death in 1998 were devastating losses, particularly because Bobby couldn’t attend the two funeral because he’d be arrested on arrival in the U.S for violating U.S 1992 sanctions. Fischer died at 64 in Jan 2008 of kidney failure, in Reykjavik Iceland.