The white dress offered a sculpted bodice, a tight waist and an unusually short skirt and...silk lace panties that were very much in evidence when she raced across the court or leaped high.
Wimbledon officials complained that she was “bringing vulgarity and sin into tennis," but the public and the press loved it. She was besieged with requests for personal appearances at everything from hospitals to beauty contests. Even the Marx Brothers who were in London at the time invited her to join their act. A racehorse, an aircraft and a restaurant’s special sauce were named after her.
If you lived in the Los Angeles area on January 11, 1949, when you woke up you got the shock of your life. During the middle of the night more than half an inch of sow had fallen. Snow accumulation in that area is rare; since 1930, there are only 7 recorded times snow has accumulated.
In 1949 the entire San Fernando Valley was pelted with snow for three days and it ended up being a foot deep in some areas.
It created havoc. Many motorists suffered frozen radiators and some were trapped in their cars in Laurel Canyon, a mountainous neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills region.
Three hundred miles to the north in the village of Castroville the engine of crooner Bing Crosby's green Cadillac froze and he had to hitch a ride into town.
In 1949 there was an international tournament in Heidelberg, West Germany that was almost unnoticed.
Today's game from that tournament features what was at the time an exciting theoretical duel involving the Botvinnik variation of the Semi-Slav, one of the most complicated of all openings. Theory goes over thirty moves in some variations.
Botvinnik introduced it in his game against Arnold Denker in the 1945 USSR vs. USA radio match, but it was actually Germany's Klaus Junge who is credited with being the actual inventor.
[Event "Heidelberg"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "1949.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "B.H. Wood"]
[Black "Paul Schmidt"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO ""]
[Annotator "Stockfish 15"]
[PlyCount "56"]
{Semi-Slav: Botvinnik System} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 {At the
time this was an unusual move as black normally played 4...Bf5 to get his B
into play.} 5. Bg5 {At the time this move was also debatable because black can
play 5...h6 forcing the exchange of the B for the N. Today 5.e3 is much more
popular, but there is little difference in the results.} dxc4 {This move, the
Botvinnjik Variatuion, also enables black to hold the gambit P, but only at
the cost of a disorganization of his K-side.It is one of the most complicated
of all openings, with theory reaching over 30 moves in some variations.
Botvinnik introduced it in his game against Denker in the 1945 USSR vs. USA
radio match. Historically, German master Klaus Junge is credited as the actual
inventor. The capture 4...dxc4 allows white to take control of the center with
6. e4 when black defends the extra P with ...b5.} 6. e4 {White gets good
possibilities on the K-side and in the center with this move, but at the time
of this game most masters viewed the whole line with suspicion based on some
games played in 1946.} b5 {This is almost always played. If black does not
play this move white would be able to establish a strong center unchallenged.}
(6... h6 {is the only other real option.} 7. Bh4 g5 8. Bg3 b5) 7. e5 h6 8. Bh4
(8. Bxf6 gxf6 9. a4 Bb7 (9... a6 10. axb5 cxb5 11. Nxb5 {white is winning.})
10. axb5 cxb5 11. Nxb5 fxe5 12. Nxe5 Nc6 13. Bxc4 Bb4+ {is better for black.})
8... g5 {This save the piece, but white has some tactical resources.} 9. Nxg5 {
With this move temporary piece sacrifice white destroys black's K-side, but
gives him open lines.} hxg5 10. Bxg5 Nbd7 11. exf6 {This is the move with
which Denker lost to Botvinnik. The best move is 11.g3 which provides shelter
for white's K.} (11. g3 Bb7 12. exf6 c5 13. d5 Qb6 14. Bg2 {and white stands
very well.}) 11... Nxf6 {Schmidt had evidently had prepared opening analysis.}
(11... Bh6 {did not work out well for black.} 12. Bxh6 Rxh6 13. g3 Bb7 14. Bg2
Qc7 15. Qd2 Rxf6 16. a4 O-O-O 17. O-O Nc5 18. axb5 Nb3 19. Qe2 Nxd4 20. Qxc4
Kb8 21. Qc5 cxb5 22. Qxa7+ Kc8 23. Bxb7+ Qxb7 24. Qa8+ Kc7 25. Nxb5+ {1-0 (25)
Jussupow,A (2555)-Kuijf,M (2370) Amsterdam 1982}) (11... Bb7 {was Botvinnik's
move which is the correct one.} 12. Be2 Qb6 13. O-O O-O-O 14. a4 b4 15. Ne4 c5
16. Qb1 Qc7 17. Ng3 cxd4 18. Bxc4 Qc6 19. f3 d3 20. Qc1 Bc5+ 21. Kh1 Qd6 22.
Qf4 Rxh2+ 23. Kxh2 Rh8+ 24. Qh4 Rxh4+ 25. Bxh4 Qf4 {[%emt 0:00:00] 0-1
Denker-Botvinnik USA vs USSR Radio Match 1945}) 12. Qf3 {The double attack on
the N and P on c3 forces black to surrender material, but in doing so black is
able to develop while white is not...a dangerous situation for white!} (12. g3
{keeps the advantage.} b4 13. Ne4 Be7 14. Nxf6+ Bxf6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Bg2 {
and white is better.}) 12... Be7 {This position is equal and white can
continue with just about any reasonable move: 13.g3, 13.Be2, 13.h4, etc.} 13.
Nxb5 {But this is not one of them. Superfieially this looks promising for
white because he either wins a P or the exchange and prevents black from
castling. It would have been netter to tend to his own development as
mentioned in the previous note.} cxb5 {With thi move black fails to take
advantage of white's last move.} (13... Rb8 14. Nc3 Rxb2 15. Rd1 Qa5 {and
black has plenty of play.}) 14. Qxa8 Bb4+ {This position is technically equal,
it's here that white's troubles begin because he moves his K to an exposed
square and he is unable to develop his K-side pieces. Either 15.Bd2 or even 15.
Kd1 were satisfactory.} 15. Ke2 {[%mdl 8192] For some reason, at the time
annotators thought this was the only move at white's disposal...no doubt they
were guilty of annotating based on the result.} (15. Bd2 Bxd2+ 16. Kxd2 Qxd4+
17. Ke1 O-O 18. Qf3 Qxb2 19. Qg3+ Kh7 20. Qh4+ {draws}) (15. Kd1 Qxd4+ 16. Kc1
O-O 17. Be3 Qd6 18. Qf3 e5 19. Qg3+ Bg4 20. Kc2 {and with careful play white
can keep the chances even.}) 15... O-O {Black castling is surprising because
he has no P wall behind which his K can hide, white has no way of attacking
because his pieces are not in a position to do so.} 16. Rd1 {White has to try
to hold his d-Pawn and this is the only way to do it.} (16. Qxa7 Qd5 17. Be3
Bb7 $16 18. a3 Ra8 19. Qb6 Qe4 {black is winning.} 20. Kd1 c3 21. Kc1 cxb2+ 22.
Kxb2 Bc3+ 23. Kxc3 Nd5+) (16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Qe4 e5 18. dxe5 Re8 19. exf6 Rxe4+
20. Kf3 Bb7 21. Kg3 Bd6+ 22. f4 Rxf4 23. Be2 Rxf6+ {black is winning.}) 16...
e5 {Threatening to win the Q with ...Bg4+ and leaving white little choice of
replies.} 17. Qc6 {At last white appears to have gained a breathing space by
threatening the N and the b-Pawn simultaneously.} (17. Qxa7 exd4 18. Qxd4 Re8+
{Materially speaking white has a R+2 Ps vs a N, but a B and a R are useless
against black's active pieces and so here black is winning.}) 17... exd4 {
However, the exposed state of the white K enables black to embark on a winning
sacrificial attack.} 18. Qxf6 (18. Bxf6 {won't do either.} d3+ 19. Ke3 Re8+ 20.
Kf3 Bb7 21. Qxb7 (21. Bxd8 Bxc6+ 22. Kg3 {wins} Rxd8) 21... Qxf6+ 22. Kg4 Qg6+
23. Kh3 Qh6+ 24. Kg3 Bd6+ {mates in 5 moves at most.}) 18... Re8+ 19. Kf3 Be7 {
Annotators of the day said that this enables black to recover his piece, but
only by accepting some exchanges which makes his attack more difficult to
bring to a decisive conclusion. It is, in fact, a blunder that throws away all
of his advantage.} (19... Qd5+ {is the only move that keeps the advantage.} 20.
Kg3 Be7 {should prove decisive, but the game is far from over and black must
play precisely (i.e. find the only move at every turn!) or white will gain the
advantage.} 21. Rxd4 Qc5 {and black loses material.} (21... Qxg5+ {is bad.} 22.
Qxg5+ Bxg5 23. Rd5 Bd8 24. Rxb5 Bc7+ 25. f4 {White is better.}) 22. Be3 Bxf6
23. Rg4+ Bxg4 24. Bxc5 Bd7 25. h4 (25. Bxa7 Ra8 26. Be3 Rxa2 {wins rather
easily.}) 25... Bxb2 26. Bxa7 Ra8 27. Bc5 Rxa2 28. h5 {Material is equal, but
white's h-Pawn poses no real threat. The same cannot be said of black's b- and
c-Pawns.}) 20. Rxd4 {White plans to reach an ending in which he will be a P
ahead, but it will not be enough to give him any advantage. Equally good was
20.Qxd4} Bxf6 21. Rxd8 Bxd8 {[%mdl 32]} 22. Be3 {Giving black the advantage.} (
22. Bxd8 {and White is OK.} Rxd8 23. Be2 Rd2 24. a4 a6 25. axb5 axb5 {is equal.
}) 22... Bb7+ {White's K is caught in a crossfire of black's pieces.} 23. Kg3
Bc7+ 24. Kh3 (24. Kg4 Re4+ 25. Kf5 Re6 26. Bxa7 Bc8 {is fatal.}) 24... f5 {
Black is thinking of a mating attack of a mating attack.} 25. Bxa7 Kf7 26. Bd4
Kg6 {The idea is ...Re7-h7} 27. f4 {White is curiously helpless. He finally
gets his K-side pieces into play, but too late to prevent black's decisive
attack.} Bxf4 28. g3 Be3 {White resigned. A fine attacking game by Schmidt,
but he received considerable assistance from Wood!} (28... Be3 29. Bg2 (29.
Bxe3 Rh8+ 30. Bh6 Rxh6#) 29... Bxg2+ 30. Kxg2 Bxd4 {wins easily.}) 0-1
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