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There is a huge literature on chess, and given that the authors are only human, there are quite a few errors which appear and re-appear on the pages of chess books. There are even books which are nothing but
collections of other authors' mistakes! These tend to be mean-spirited, prejudiced, smarmy, and many people find them off-putting, to use the British term. Our intent here is to present some corrections to those books and
articles which unfairly malign and demean well-intentioned authors and chess personalities.
We begin with a defense of the great George Koltanowski, a man who has done it all in chess: brilliant play, fascinating story-telling, opening theoretician, and daily entertainer in the pages of the San
Francisco Chronicle. Even in his 90s, Kolty remains a vibrant and positive force in chess. So when Young Salieri (not his real name, but many will recognize the moniker) claimed that he knows more about the early days of the
century, when George was actually playing and eye-witnessing events, it behooved us to check the facts. The question is simple: did Lasker play one match against Tarrasch (as claimed by Young Salieri), or two, as Kolty stated.
Click here for the answer. Of course the second match was not a title match per se, but Kolty was certainly correct in his assertion that Tarrrasch *tried* to wrest the title from Lasker on more than one occasion.
As it turns out, Salieri does give the correct information elsewhere in his book, but anyone reading just the snide attack on the great Kolty would come to the conclusion, as the person who submitted the matter to
us, that Salieri just got it wrong. The faux pax was sloppiness, poor editing, which gives the reader the impression of ignorance, but not actual ignorance.
The real point, of course, is that George Koltanowski was, and continues to be, a far more valuable and knowledgable member of the chess community than Young Salieri. He has brought joy to tens of thousands,
revelling in the beauty of chess, a game he actually mastered (unlike Young Salieri, who has shown no indication that a Master title will ever be appended to his name. Koltanowski's books are sparkling gems of chess wit, from
one of the great writers on the game. He spreads joy, like Mozart. The world needs more Mozart, less Salieri.
We've put together a few of Kolty's more enjoyable games. Enjoy them and appreciate the artistry and fun while we try to obtain permission to retell
some of his tales on our site.
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