oldhollywoodfilms: We recently read that chess is having a resurgence in popularity, so I decided to write a Film Noir Friday thread about old Hollywood’s premier chess player, Humphrey Bogart. Bogart learned to play chess as a boy. He became so proficient in the game that he played for money during his early days working as a theater actor in New York. Bogie brought his love of chess to Hollywood. He often played between takes - during World War II, Bogart played correspondence games with GIs - and even onscreen in Casablanca. Bogie played on movie sets throughout the years (the third photo shows Bogie, Claude Rains, and Paul Henreid while making Casablanca) Bogart’s famous opponents through the years included friend and fellow actor Theodore Bikel (they tried playing a blindfolded game) and chess master Samuel Reshevsky (Bogart played him to a draw). There’s even a chess move, the Humphrey Bogart gambit, named after the star. The Internet describes this move as a single piece (most times a pawn) being sacrificed at the beginning of the game for strategic purposes (just like Rick and Ilsa’s relationship in Casablanca 😉). Here’s what Bogart had to say about his favorite game: “Chess is an intellectual exercise. Also a companionable game. I play it very well.”

oldhollywoodfilms: We recently read that chess is having a resurgence in popularity, so I decided to write a Film Noir Friday thread about old Hollywood’s premier chess player, Humphrey Bogart. Bogart learned to play chess as a boy. He became so proficient in the game that he played for money during his early days working as a theater actor in New York. Bogie brought his love of chess to Hollywood. He often played between takes - during World War II, Bogart played correspondence games with GIs - and even onscreen in Casablanca. Bogie played on movie sets throughout the years (the third photo shows Bogie, Claude Rains, and Paul Henreid while making Casablanca) Bogart’s famous opponents through the years included friend and fellow actor Theodore Bikel (they tried playing a blindfolded game) and chess master Samuel Reshevsky (Bogart played him to a draw). There’s even a chess move, the Humphrey Bogart gambit, named after the star. The Internet describes this move as a single piece (most times a pawn) being sacrificed at the beginning of the game for strategic purposes (just like Rick and Ilsa’s relationship in Casablanca 😉). Here’s what Bogart had to say about his favorite game: “Chess is an intellectual exercise. Also a companionable game. I play it very well.” https://ift.tt/3gE9QEO