Le blog de la Batgirl
* * * Please Note * * *
This blog, like most of what I write, focuses on the historical and cultural aspects of chess - with a few rants thrown in for good measure.
I don't accept friend requests; I don't play chess here; and I don't generally respond to notes, but I will respond to messages if they seem to have a purpose other than meaningless chat. I'm only mentioning this so everyone knows there's nothing personal in my lack of response to any of the above.
Submitted by
on Sun Nov 1, 2009 7:35pm.
Lisa Lane won her first US Woman's Chess Championship in 1959, amazingly only two years after being introduced to chess.
Although most authorities agree that by today's standards, she would be around an expert level, women's competitive chess... Read more »
Submitted by
on Thu Oct 29, 2009 6:42pm.
(originally published on my website in Aug. 2007)
A dear friend of mine sent me a scan of a page from a WWII era issue of Chess Review depicting an article called Skeletons in the Chess Closet by Clyde Hall. Normally, I prefer text to a scan, ... Read more »
Submitted by
on Tue Oct 27, 2009 8:40am.
I was looking up something about Ignatz Kolisch, which led me to Wiki, which led me to the Wiki discussion page on Kolisch, the type of page I read quite often. Much of the page dealt with the proper spelling or form of his first name (is it Ig... Read more »
Submitted by
on Sun Oct 25, 2009 7:57am.
In 1974 The Righteous Brothers, Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield, recorded a song called "Rock and Roll Heaven" (written by Alan O'Day) that imagines the kind of band Heaven might host comprised of the great musicians who dwell there. While the... Read more »
Submitted by
on Thu Oct 22, 2009 8:43pm.
No, this posting is not about Ben Franklin's famous essay on the values of chess, but rather about a recent minor confrontation I had with fellow chess.com member, shannz, who took exception to the idea that I published 19th century public domain ... Read more »
Submitted by
on Tue Oct 20, 2009 6:24am.
Sir William Jones (image from wiki) was an eighteenth century intellectual and founder of the Asiatic Society in Calcutta. He was a lawyer, a judge and a noted philologist who specialized in ancient India. He was also an amateur ch... Read more »
Submitted by
on Sun Oct 18, 2009 5:32am.
CHESS RESORTS "Simpson's."By Charles Tomlinson, F. R. S., &c. The lights extinguished, closed is the Divan And weary Simpson and his wearier man Seek home and smili... Read more »
Submitted by
on Thu Oct 15, 2009 2:26pm.
I like 4/0 time control, I really do. But I wonder if liking it and having a knack for it are in any way related. I miss so many things I shouldn't miss - and usually, though not always, see them right after I move and I almost always end a gam... Read more »
Submitted by
on Tue Oct 13, 2009 6:35pm.
Everyone who knows me is aware that I only play blitz. So, it should be apparent that the re-introduction of Live Chess would be a feature in which I take personal interest.
After the long 20 hours downtime we experienced recently, I was very ... Read more »
Submitted by
on Mon Oct 12, 2009 12:17pm.
My friend, Deb, found this great article on Rosa Bradford Jefferson and Luella Mackenzie. Even after many months of searching, this is the first time I've seen Rosa Jefferson clearly.
American Chess Bulletin, January 1908
Woman's Sphere in t... Read more »