As I mentioned before, back in the 70's and 80's America was still basking in the glow of the post Fischer era, USCF membership was well over 100,000. Now the USCF struggles to maintain 80,00 members (many of them children who drop out soon after joining) and I think I found out why. How can chess compete with this? DISCLAIMER: Any females exploring these links WILL be offended.

YouTube

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It looks like the gamer boys are playing with more than one joystick!

Originally posted by @mchill
As I mentioned before, back in the 70's and 80's America was still basking in the glow of the post Fischer era, USCF membership was well over 100,000. Now the USCF struggles to maintain 80,00 members (many of them children who drop out soon after joining) and I think I found out why. How can chess compete with this? DISCLAIMER: Any females exploring these li ...[text shortened]... com/watch?v=2E7H9QwBiss

It looks like the gamer boys are playing with more than one joystick!

But then, Fischer was one hell of a player.
The quality of his games stands out, even among world champions.
Crystal clear plans and implementation, something you will not see
in most WC collections.

Such games appear to me to be the extension-in-motion of Frank Frazetta's style of fantasy art, which influenced a generation of comic book readers.

http://frankfrazetta.net/Bio.html

Fischer, rock'n'roll listening loner single-handedly defeated SSSR state machinery in chess.

He was star like tal, but the average audience didn't grasp neither of them as chess players, people was (were? I'll never learn and am lazy to google now) fascinated by combinations and eyes (in Tal's case) and with the fact that an American can put Soviet domination in danger.

Perhaps good advertising gurus can help chess to come in public focus again.

Normally I avoid these kinds of threads, but when I see pictures of the Russian Ladies Team, I am inclined to think that one can have his cake and eat it, too.

When I was younger, there were only guys at tournaments, and even kids were somewhat rare. If a lady walked into the tournament hall, everyone turned and staired in surprise.

Nowadays, if I were younger, I would be more distracted. Heck, I'm still distracted, but it would have been worse...

on/in both junior high and senior high school chess clubs and there were female members (good ones, too) and this was in the mid sixties...
they just played chess...

"My God he plays so simply" -Suetin on Fischer during game 7 vs. Petrosian in the 1971 Candidates knock-out Match

You're all missing the obvious. THE INTERNET! Saying that chess isn't as popular as it was in the 80's because USCF membership is down is the equivalent of saying that music isn't as popular as it was in the 80's because record sales are down. Chess is vastly more popular than it ever was before and much more international as well. A lot more money is being put into prize funds too.

Originally posted by @vandervelde
Fischer, rock'n'roll listening loner single-handedly defeated SSSR state machinery in chess.

He was star like tal, but the average audience didn't grasp neither of them as chess players, people was (were? I'll never learn and am lazy to google now) fascinated by combinations and eyes (in Tal's case) and with the fact that an American can put Soviet ...[text shortened]... ation in danger.

Perhaps good advertising gurus can help chess to come in public focus again.

Of course, plural.
During sixties poets were popular like rock stars. And chess players. Around Reykiavik match, I remember in Belgrade were several outdoors marathon mega duels between Fischer's fans against Spassky's fans. Kids and old people together were playing, and there was a re-match and a re-re-match! Thousands! Tens of thousands.
Even for candidates final in 1978 between Spassky and Korchnoi it was impossible to get the ticket to watch games live. All radio stations covered the match and of course state TV station.

But poets are not stars any more. Now only some novelists are.