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Chess legend Bobby Fischer is dead at the age of 64.

  1. Fischer was a schoolmate of singer Barbara Streisand when both attended Erasmus Hall High School in Brooklyn.
  2. Fischer later dropped out of school in 1959 when he turned 16.
  3. The movie Searching For Bobby Fischer is not about Bobby Fischer, but actually about the life of another chess prodigy, Joshua Waitzkin. Fischer only appears in the movie in the form of archival news footage.
  4. Fischer learned how to play chess from instructions found in a chess set that his sister bought at a candy store.
  5. Fischer remains the youngest ever United States Junior Chess Champion.
  6. Fischer played in eight United States Chess Championships, each held in New York City, winning every one. This string includes his 11-0 win in the 1963-1964 championship, the only perfect score in the history of the tournament, and one of only a handful of perfect scores in high-level chess tournaments ever. (more…)