Ludek Pachman RIP

Hardly breaking news, but now we can put up some links to the various obituaries that have come out on the German-based Czech Grandmaster. He reached many more people through his prodigious writings than with his tournament successes. Perhaps his death will inspire a reprinting of his much-sought-after series "Modern Chess." I believe it's the third book that is almost impossible to find. I've heard offers of hundreds of dollars from collectors. Pachman's political activism and time in a Communist prison cell are why the NY Times has an obituary. (Free registration required.) His countryman Lubomir Kavalek has an obit in his Washington Post column. Note that the newspaper pieces will be archived and the links eventually won't work anymore. ChessBase has this piece by Frederic Friedel to which I contributed a few paragraphs from my copy of his biography, "Checkmate in Prague."