1950

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February 26, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Sunday, February 26, 1950 - Page 1 — How to Play Chess — Do you use the Sicilian Defense when you should use the Queen's Gambit? Do you think Botvinnik is a type of drink made with vodka and watercress? How to Play Chess by George Koltanowski …

March 01, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Wednesday, March 01, 1950 - Page 1 — How to Play Chess — The game of chess has, of late years, become so popular in the United States that any statement about its fascinating qualities is almost superfluous…

March 02, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Thursday, March 02, 1950 - Page 18 — How to Play Chess — The Queen — A Vixen. When the game of chess was still in its infancy, just a few thousand years old, the Queen was really something else…

March 03, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Friday, March 03, 1950 - Page 2 — How to Play Chess — Rook to the Left and Right of You. These days a Rook represents a Castle…

March 04, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Saturday, March 04, 1950 - Page 7 — How to Play Chess — The Bishop Was An Animal. He must have been an elephant. In Sanskrit he was a Gaja, or Hasti. Both words mean “elephant” …

March 05, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Sunday, March 05, 1950 - Page 30 — How to Play Chess — Knightmare. The horse has never changed its manner of moving. It keeps on jumping all the time. It started with being called an Ashwa in Sanskrit, later Faras in Arabic. Both mean horse…

March 07, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Tuesday, March 07, 1950 - Page 3 — How to Play Chess — Pawn — The Foot Soldier — A non-commissioned man in the Army, that's what he is. But as Kipling said, he also forms the backbone …

March 09, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Thursday, March 09, 1950 - Page 7 — How to Play Chess — The game of chess is played between two players on a board of 64 squares. Every square may be used, each side having 16 pieces or “men” …

March 10, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Friday, March 10, 1950 - Page 22 — How to Play Chess — How the King Moves. The King may move in any direction, but one square only at a time. In the diagram we see that a King on a square in the center of the board can go to any of the eight squares indicated …

March 11, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Saturday, March 11, 1950 - Page 12 — How to Play Chess — How the Rook Moves. The Rook may move any number of squares in a straight line horizontally or vertically …

March 12, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Sunday, March 12, 1950 - Page 34 — How to Play Chess — How the Bishop Moves. The Bishop moves any number of squares diagonally and obeys the same general rules as the Rook …

March 15, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Wednesday, March 15, 1950 - Page 1 — How to Play Chess — The Knight. How the Knight moves. Careful now, here is your most difficult chess piece to master. The Knight leaps from a black square to a white …

March 16, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Thursday, March 16, 1950 - Page 20 — How to Play Chess — The Pawn moves forward only in a straight line. All other pieces you have seen so far are officers and can move forward and backward …

March 17, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Friday, March 17, 1950 - Page 8 — How to Play Chess — Chess Notation. In order to preserve a record of games it is necessary to have a method of recording moves. We start by abbreviating the names of the pieces—usually with capital letters …

March 18, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Saturday, March 18, 1950 - Page 9 — How to Play Chess — The Pawn. Taking 'en-passant'. The White Pawn is on the fifth rank and can take diagonally on the sixth rank nearest him, thus on Q6 or B6 …

March 19, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Sunday, March 19, 1950 - Page 30 — How to Play Chess — Checkmate. The above diagram shows you a checkmate (the King is attacked, no matter what he does he will not be able to get out of the check and thus the game is over, he is lost …

March 21, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Tuesday, March 21, 1950 - Page 5 — How to Play Chess — Checkmate: In Two Moves. Here we illustrate how a game can be over in two moves if White opens badly.

March 22, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Wednesday, March 22, 1950 - Page 18 — How to Play Chess — Stalemate. — Black to Move. If a King is not attacked but cannot move without going on a threatened square and if the player has no other piece which can be moved he is “stalemates” …

March 23, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Thursday, March 23, 1950 - Page 18 — How to Play Chess — Castling. This is the only move in chess in which more than one piece is moved by the player. When all the pieces between the King and one of the Rooks have been brought out, the player may move his King TWO squares towards the rook …

March 24, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Friday, March 24, 1950 - Page 7 — How to Play Chess — Object and Technical Terms. The ultimate object of each player at chess is to take or capture his opponent's King …

March 25, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Saturday, March 25, 1950 - Page 9 — How To Play Chess — Technical Terms. Double-Check, A King attacked by two pieces simultaneously is said to be in double check …

March 26, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Sunday, March 26, 1950 - Page 30 — How to Play Chess — Technical Terms. Passed Pawns. A Pawn which has no adverse Pawn before it, either on its own or the two adjoining files …

March 28, 1950

• The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, California Tuesday, March 28, 1950 - Page 16 — How To Play Chess — General Advice to Beginners — On beginning he study of chess, the student should first make himself thoroughly familiar with the board and men, with the name of each square, and with the move and position starting of each piece and Pawn.

August 22, 1950

• The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Tuesday, August 22, 1950 - Page 13 — Chess Masters Tie — London, Aug. 21, (Reuter's) — Soviet chess master Isaak Boleslavsky today tied up his match against David Bronstein at 5½ points each, the Soviet news agency reported. The winner in the 12-game duel will earn the right to challenge world champion Mikhail Botvinnik, another Soviet Master. Read More

August 30, 1950

• Citizen-News Hollywood, California Wednesday, August 30, 1950 - Page 13 — Educator Testifies: Weinbaum's Criticism of Russia Told at Trial — A government witness in Dr. Sidney Weinbaum's perjury trial testified today that although the former California Institute of Technology scientist recruited him for the Communist Party, Dr. Weinbaum denied he was a member. "Dr. Weinbaum said that if he had been a member of the Communist Party it might jeopardize his chances of going to Russia," testified Dr. Gustave A. Albrecht, Chapman College physicist. "He said he had been offered a position at the University of Kiev." Even though Dr. Sidney Weinbaum was a sort of recruiting agent for the Communist Party, he occasionally was critical of Russia, Dr. Gustave A. Albrecht declared today at the perjury trial of the California Institute of Technology physicist.
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November 21, 1950

• Spokane Chronicle Spokane, Washington Tuesday, November 21, 1950 - Page 29 — Chess “Cheating” Charged To Reds — New York, Nov. 21 (AP) — The Russians now are charged with lack of sportsmanship at chess. Dr. Edward Lasker, president of the Association of American Chess Masters, says of chess tournament play: “In communist countries the open practice of analyzing adjourned positions (that is, games on which a recess has been called) with others, unless adopted because somebody else is doing the same thing, seems to indicate a curious perversion of the most fundamental concept of sportsmanship by introducing the idea of mass cooperation into a contest between two individuals.” Friends Gave Help. He goes on to cite an instance in which a Russian apparently got help from friends during a recess. No object lesson of current Russian practice is available because the Russians are not taking part in the Grand Masters' tournament being held now in Amsterdam. In a new book, “The Adventure of Chess,” to be published Wednesday by Doubleday, Dr. Lasker scorns the “increasing laxity of chess morals” generally. Another evidence of this, he says, is the habit of paired tournament players to agree to a draw if it doesn't affect their own standing, regardless of the effect of their action on other players. While world champion Mikhail Botvinnik of Russia unquestionably deserved his crown because of superiority in tournament play, says Dr. Lasker, the United States master Samuel Reshevsky might beat him in match play. Read More

November 24, 1950

• News-Press Fort Myers, Florida Friday, November 24, 1950 - Page 5 — Russians Sorry Sports at Chess, American Thinks “…Dr. Lasker's chief concern however is not with criticism, but with chess anecdotes and sidelights. Ever wonder how a chess master can play “blindfolded” against one or more opponents? (The American Pillsbury once played 16 blindfold chess games and two checker games simultaneously, while engaging in a rubber of whist.) “The most important faculty is a clear visualization of the geometric relations of the squares of the board,” comments Dr. Lasker, a blindfold player himself.
  “One never sees the whole board clearly. Rarely more than eight or nine squares appear to be ‘focused.’ The rest of the board seems blurred and can be seen clearly only by shifting one's vision to the desired area. The black and white pieces, and also the squares, all look gray in the mind's eye, distinguished only by a faint contrast in shade.
  “In Russia blindfold exhibitions are altogether prohibited, on the same grounds as the use of drugs. Both are considered inimical to health.” Read More

• Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, the Evening News, Wilkes-Barre Record Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania Friday, November 24, 1950 - Page 9 — Soviet's Chess Playing Scored — American Master Says Reds Get Aid at Recess

December 04, 1950

• Clarion-Ledger Jackson, Mississippi Monday, December 04, 1950 - Page 8 — Communist The Same Even in Games of Fun — The New Orleans Item shows another side of the Russians' character. The lighter side seems to be just as deceitful, even in games of skill and fun the article shows that: “Through the ages chess has been looked upon as the game of the intellectuals.
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