László Szabó (chess player)
A resilient Hungarian grandmaster who battled the world's best for three decades, surviving a war prison camp to become a national chess hero.
1917–1998 (age 81)·Hungarian chess grandmaster·Birthday: March 19·The Greatest Generation
Biography
László Szabó's chess career was a testament to both brilliance and resilience. Emerging as a teenage prodigy, his ascent was brutally interrupted when, as a Jewish labor serviceman in World War II, he was captured and sent to a Nazi concentration camp. He survived, and chess became his vehicle for reclamation. A fierce and imaginative attacker, he was among the world's elite for the next twenty years, famously defeating every world champion from Botvinnik to Fischer. Szabó was a fixture in the Candidates tournaments, the gateway to the world championship, and led the Hungarian team to a silver medal at the 1956 Olympiad. For Hungarians, he was more than a player; he was a symbol of recovery and intellectual strength, his dynamic games providing a source of national pride during the Cold War era.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
László was born in 1917, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When László Was Born
The biggest hits of 1917
#1 Movie
Cleopatra
László's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1917Born
Russian Revolution overthrows the tsar; US enters WWI
President: Woodrow Wilson
1922Started school
King Tut's tomb discovered in Egypt
President: Warren G. Harding"April Showers" — Al Jolson
1930Became a teenager
Pluto discovered
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $3,510President: Herbert Hoover"Body and Soul" — Paul WhitemanBest Picture: All Quiet on the Western Front
1933Could drive
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1935Could vote
Social Security Act signed into law
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,450President: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Cheek to Cheek" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: Mutiny on the Bounty
1938Turned 21
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
1947Turned 30
India gains independence; the Dead Sea Scrolls found
Gas: $0.23/galHome: $6,600Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Near You" — Francis CraigBest Picture: Gentleman's Agreement
1957Turned 40
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1967Turned 50
Summer of Love in San Francisco; first Super Bowl
Gas: $0.33/galHome: $14,250Min wage: $1.40/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"To Sir, with Love" — LuluBest Picture: In the Heat of the Night
1977Turned 60
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1987Turned 70
Black Monday stock market crash
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $72,400Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Walk Like an Egyptian" — The BanglesBest Picture: The Last Emperor
1997Turned 80
Princess Diana dies in Paris car crash; Harry Potter published
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $104,100Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Candle in the Wind 1997" — Elton JohnBest Picture: Titanic
1998Died at 81
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
Key Achievements
- Awarded the title of International Grandmaster in 1950, in the inaugural list by FIDE.
- Won the Hungarian Chess Championship a record ten times between 1935 and 1967.
- Qualified for the prestigious Candidates Tournament multiple times, in 1948 and 1953.
- Played first board for Hungary, leading the team to a silver medal at the 1956 Chess Olympiad.
Did You Know?
He learned chess at age 13 and won the Hungarian championship just four years later.
During World War II, he was imprisoned in a Nazi forced labor camp but survived.
He defeated nine different world champions in tournament or match play throughout his career.
A sharp opening theoretician, the 'Szabó Variation' in the Sicilian Defense is named for him.
“A chess game is a dialogue between two minds, and I prefer to speak with my pieces.”
