He may play chess, but according to veteran Chicago Sun-Times political writer Lynn Sweet, Sen. Barack Obama doesn’t read blogs.
Not even Susan? Not even Mig? How does he keep up on all the USCF dirt? And being from Illinois, how could be possibly not read chessdad64?
America’s top chess celebrity shows you the moves 
Here in the U.S. most people call her Susan, but back in her native Hungary the grandmaster and four-time women’s world champion is known as Zsuzsa Polgar.
Whatever name she goes by, though, Ms. Polgar is certainly on a roll. She’s just been elected chairman of the U.S. Chess Federation, she has the top chess blog in the galaxy, and she is the most famous chess personality in the country.
It’s a delicious paradox, is it not, that in a game dominated by men, America’s top chess celebrity is a woman?
As popular as she is, Susan does have her critics, of course. Some people think she’s too self-promoting, and others don’t like her because . . . well, they don’t really say; they just don’t. Such is the nature of fame, nez-pah?
Despite everything, however, Susan and her husband/second/business partner/sidekick FM Paul Truong together manage to sustain a veritable putty factory of chess “content,” as it is called today, churning out columns, blog posts, puzzles and events, etc. They’re everywhere.
One of the many places Susan’s writing regularly appears is in Chess Life for Kids, the magazine for junior members of the USCF. In the most recent issue she focuses on zwischenzug, that wonderful tactic involving surprising “in between” moves that interrupt a sequence of seemingly natural captures and recaptures to win material for the attacker. Though she avoids using the tongue-torturing German word itself in this particular article—an act of mercy, perhaps, given that her audience is kids—this is clearly the tactic she is talking about. Here’s a sample.
It's Black to move. The White knight has just captured on c6, and you might expect Black to recapture with the b-pawn: 1. … bxc6. But no. Here’s the sequence:
1. … Qxc3! 2. Qxe2 Qxc6.
And Black wins a piece.
Want to see more? Join the U.S. Chess Federation and get Chess Life for Kids six times a year, with Susan’s column and a lot more.
So, what's next: Zsuzsa on zugzwang? Stay tuned.
Ever since Ron Weasley’s self-propelled queen clobbered Harry’s knight in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the bond between chess and J.K. Rowling’s epic series has been unbreakable. After all, was it not their chess skills, in the end, that enabled Harry, Hermione, and Ron to reach the Stone and save the day?
Given the connection, then, it was natural for chess to be included in last Friday’s Harry Potter festival in Oak Park, a celebration of the seventh and final volume in the series. Included it was, and in a big way: a live chess game in which the pieces were played by real people who moved around the board at the direction of the players.
The players in this case were Forest Park Mayor Anthony Calderone and Oak Park Village President David Pope, who joined forces in a friendly exhibition game against International Master Stan Smiatankin. As they played, the costumed kids and adults acted out the moves for the assembled crowd on a big board stenciled onto the grass. In pooling their chess talents against the formidable IM, our West Suburban noblemen were as the Duke of Brunswick and Count Isouard to Stan’s Paul Morphy. It was a courageous act for the mayors to take him on, but alas, like that famous game in Paris almost 150 years ago, victory again went to the lone master.
Oak Park's Village President David Pope (left) and Forest ParkMayor Anthony Calderone play against IM Stan Smiatankin
Fortunately, the politicians were politic about the results. “They were good sports,” said National Master William Aramil, who served as commentator for the event. “Neither used their influence with the local police to have Stan removed from park.” Nor did the Duke and the Count have Morphy clapped in irons and dragged off to the Bastille. Chess people are civilized, right? “Win with grace, lose with dignity,” as Susan is always reminding us.
And speaking of Susan Polgar, her chess über-blog covered the event, giving it national exposure. (Not that our humble weblog is chopped liver, mind you.) Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg was on hand as well.
Normal-size chess was available at a nearby tent for those not playing pieces in the main event. The whole thing was organized by the Renaissance Knights Foundation. More photos here.
