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Joseph Richman vs Robert James Fischer
"If I Were A Fischer" (game of the day Jul-22-2020)
New York State Open (1963), Poughkeepsie, NY USA, rd 6, Sep-01
Spanish Game: Exchange Variation. General (C68)  ·  0-1

ANALYSIS [x]

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Kibitzer's Corner
Feb-05-06  Autoreparaturwerkbau: Ok white's early mid-game was as patzer-ish as it gets.
Apr-20-06  DrJekyll: Welcome patzers to this rather sheepish attempt to play The Ruy exchange vs The Master of The Ruy Lopez, Fischer!!! Hahahahaha!!!!! Would one attempt Kung Fu vs Bruce Lee? Would someone try to race against Secretariat!? Hahahah!!!! Would one tug on Supermans cape! LOL!!!!!! Gary Weinstein and whats the other Russians name oh karpov, wouldnt have stood a chance against Bobby!!!!! Ahhhh Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!! Good day you pathetic patzers with fritz's plugged in!! Mr. Hyde
Apr-20-06  technical draw: Even a Rich man can't buy a win from Fischer. Somehow this rather normal game shows Fischer's genius. His moves look simple yet precise. This game is a good example of how deep Fischer's knowledge of the openings is.
Jul-16-06  NotABanker: 26. Kd1 makes it too easy for Fischer. How can you let someone just take your Knight?
Aug-24-06  Jmauler17: This is one of the few games Fischer actually played 1.e4 e5 as black. And what a great performance it was by him.
Aug-24-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  Phony Benoni: Fischer didn't start playing the Exchange Ruy until after this game. Perhaps Richman gave him a little idea.
Aug-25-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <26. Kd1 makes it too easy for Fischer. How can you let someone just take your Knight?> Because otherwise he just takes both your rooks: 26. axb3 Bxd2+ 27. Kd1 Bxe1.
Sep-06-06  RookFile: Well, Richman played the opening like Lasker did, so no, Richman didn't give Fischer any ideas. Fischer's refinement was 5. 0-0! - he had worked out that the ...Bg4 lines are not as dangerous for white as previously thought.
Sep-06-06  CreamyGoodness: <keypusher>: why not 26. axb3 Bxd2+ 27. Kxd2 ? Why wouldn't you take back the bishop? After the dust settles white will be a pawn down, so it's not a winning maneuver, but you seem to be suggesting that the only alternative to suicide is... suicide.
Sep-06-06
Premium Chessgames Member
  keypusher: <creamygoodness> you're right. i thought fischer's rook was at d8 for some reason.
Jan-16-09  Peter Nemenyi: <Jmauler17: This is one of the few games Fischer actually played 1.e4 e5 as black.>

Fischer's decision to play in a weekend Swiss-system tournament when he was already one of the five best players in the world was distinctly peculiar, and he seems to have felt that it would be pointless to reveal any of his ideas in his usual openings against this level of opposition. Thus he played the Two Knights twice as White, the Gruenfeld twice as Black, and the Black side of the Ruy Lopez here.

Jun-13-10  BobbyDigital80: Hey Peter, are you related to Paul Nemenyi, Fischer's biological father?
Jun-13-10  ckeckmate: Well, Fischer did not attend the first Piatigorsky cup that was going on at the same time in US (his appearance fees were not accepted). Thus, he did need some entertainment and financial support to overcome this.
Nov-25-10  technical draw: <keypusher>: <26. Kd1 makes it too easy for Fischer. How can you let someone just take your Knight?> Because otherwise he just takes both your rooks: 26. axb3 Bxd2+ 27. Kd1 Bxe1.>

That doesn't make sense. if..26..Bxd2+ then 27. Kxd2, not 27.Kd1....

Sep-26-14
Premium Chessgames Member
  HeMateMe: This makes for pretty good theater...

<Welcome patzers to this rather sheepish attempt to play The Ruy exchange vs The Master of The Ruy Lopez, Fischer!!!>

Well, let's not be too hard on the upstate native son. white seemed to have drawing chances until 1...e5.

Aug-23-16  zanzibar: Follows E Pettersson vs Alekhine, 1935 till Black's 13th, where Fischer presumably makes an improvement over Alekhine with 13...Nh4 instead of 13...f5.

(Fine gives Alekhine's opponent as Petterson, dropping an "s").

Jul-01-19
Premium Chessgames Member
  FSR: 26.Kb1 was a better try, but no doubt Fischer would have found (and had likely foreseen) 26...Bc4! 27.b3 Bxd2! 28.Rxe8+ Kd7 with a winning advantage for Black.
Jul-22-20
Premium Chessgames Member
  HeMateMe: "Ya ha dee a dee a/

ya ha dee a dee a dee a dah/!"

I think I read in a book about Fischer that he felt he owed some loyalty to the New York chess scene, the state tournament, maybe for letting him play when he was a teenage unknown, happy memories. Or, maybe he just wanted to bust some heads that weren't world class players, take a weekend off (for him).

Jul-22-20  nalinw: "If I Were a Carpenter" .... for those of us who remember Bobby Darin, Joan Baez etc.
Jul-22-20
Premium Chessgames Member
  Phony Benoni: <nalinw> Er, not quite:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBH...

Jul-22-20  nalinw: Oh dear PB - I didn't notice White's name .... should have remembered the quality of your puns ...
Jul-31-20
Premium Chessgames Member
  HeMateMe: Zero Mostel owned that role. He was quite good in The Producers too!

<Springtime for Hitler>, the musical that was designed to lose money. What could go wrong...?

Jun-12-23  dbronstein: This is very cool - Joseph Richman is my grandfather! I will clarify that he was not an "upstate native son", he was a Hungarian immigrant to NYC.
Jun-13-23
Premium Chessgames Member
  fredthebear: Your grandfather played some legendary New York City heavyweights. Please submit more of his games if available.
Jun-13-23  thegoodanarchist: Great pun.

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