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THE ART OF BISGUIER
Authors: Arthur Bisguier and Newton Berry
208 pages
$22.95
3rd Millennium Press (2003)
Reviewed by John Watson
THE ART OF BISGUIER, Vol 1, 1945-1960 is another example of publication by a non-mainstream book company, 3rd Millennium Press (a self-publishing firm?). There’s a pun in the title: Bisguier’s first name is Arthur, and he is called “Art.” This volume deals with the years 1945-60. Bisguier won or tied first at five U.S. Opens and captured the U.S. Championship in 1954. He was a leading U.S. player for decades, and in the 1950s one could argue that he and Larry Evans were the best of the active American players for a brief period between Reshevsky and Fischer. Bisguier is still a fixture on the U.S. chess scene, loved and appreciated for his friendly and gentlemanly behavior.
As we find emblazoned on the back cover, featured on the second page of the Introduction, and quoted again several paragraphs later, Larry Evans called Bisguier “the greatest natural player” who appeared in the 1962-3 U.S. Championship, which was won by Fischer. For the record, Bisguier had an excellent record against Evans, who was one of the greatest post-WWII American players and won several U.S. Championships. Co-author Berry explains that Evans was well aware of Fischer’s skill but thought that Fischer was only the better player whereas Bisguier had the greater talent. Fischer’s superior results, he says, derived from his monomaniacal study and hard work. Unfortunately we aren’t told whether Evans later changed his mind. I don’t think many modern observers would agree with that picture. In my main database, Bisguier beat Fischer once, drew him once (both of these games are included in the book) and lost to him thirteen times. The finish of Bisguier’s lone victory is displayed on the front cover and must have been satisfying for him:
In this position, Bisguier played 33.Qxe8+! and Fischer resigned. Although Bobby looks about twenty and sports a white shirt and dark tie in the sloppy cover drawing, he was thirteen years old at the time of this their first encounter. To be fair, this is a collection of Bisguier’s wins and best games, not of his losses.
Bisguier himself continues the theme: “Unlike Reshevsky, who played strong, winning chess from age six, Bobby was a comparatively late-blooming prodigy. It wasn’t until his teens that Fischer singled himself out as a player of extraordinary ability. The secret to his success seemed to be less raw talent than hard work. He played a tremendous number of games and read chess literature voraciously and exclusively. Bobby’s ability to absorb incredible amounts of information, opening variations, subvariations, etc. and store it away for future use was absolutely astounding.”
The book’s main section consists of 82 of Bisguier’s games, which are almost always fun and instructive. Bisguier’s analytical notes are interspersed with useful verbal explanation. He features his attacking games, which are very dynamic and tend to include sacrifices, whether by him or his opponent or both. He is at home in chaotic positions with creative possibilities, and certainly could hold his own with anyone in that realm. Sometimes Bisguier cheats a bit and characterizes what is really a pseudo-sacrifice as a sacrifice, as if to emphasize his attacking style. But in fact, his play in the more positional games (or parts of games) is extremely impressive; and my feeling from being in later tournaments with him is that his style has evolved in that direction through the years. That observation doesn’t come from a large sample space, however, and Bisguier himself might disagree. Whatever the case, those who haven’t appreciated how strong a player Bisguier has been will have their eyes opened by these excellent games.
To this day Bisguier specializes in certain systems. His sophisticated use of the Berlin Defense to the Spanish Game goes back decades (it must interest him to see the top fellows finally discovering its advantages). As White, the Worrall Variation versus the Ruy Lopez (3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Be7 6.Qe2 was a favorite, and against the King’s Indian he has played both the Four Pawns attack and his specialty 4.e4 d6 5.Bg5, often followed by f4. The “Bisguier System” versus the Najdorf didn’t catch on, but he won plenty of games with it: 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Be3 followed by 10.f3. His opponent’s probably underestimated its possibilities, but it’s also a fact that Bisguier simply outplayed them.
For many, the best thing about the book will be its span across American chess history. Bisguier plays against an array of players whose names are familiar to those long in the U.S. chess scene, but many of whom are beginning to fade from the common memory. Each game against an American is preceded with a short description of his opponent. I wish that there had been a few more stories about these players, but you can’t have everything. Just a few names that bring back memories: Weaver Adams, Karl Burger, Arthur Feuerstein, Eliot Hearst, Charles Kalme, Alex Kevitz, Lee Magee, Albert Simonson, Ken Smith, Tony Santasiere. Many of his other opponents were mainstays of American chess.
This is an excellent book with entertaining and instructive games. It could have used a better “look” (especially the cover, but also the layout) and in some cases the text could have been more modest, but those are minor faults. We need more such books so that great players like Bisguier leave a record of their thoughts and play. I would recommend THE ART OF BISGUIER to anyone, but all the more so for those of us who enjoy American chess history and have watched this first-rank player’s games through the years.
Click to see Silman’s review of THE ART of BISGUIER.
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