If you could meet ANY world chess champion which one would it be and why?

Bobby Fischer,

    At the time he demolished contender after contender. At the time he was at his <<take no prisoners>> best.  Feared by all the GMs of that era.

Garry Kasparov! The best player who ever lived!

One of the other posters gave me a thought.

I'd like to meet and play Capa when he was four. I saw a game he played at that age and think he was probably my better even at that tender age.

It would be cool to get whooped by a kid so young playing better chess than I do as an adult.

My favorite GM of all time is Judit Polgar, I wouldn't mind having lunch with her on a weekend. Just her courage, and determination to keep up with the best of her time and fighting to get the respect of getting onto the mens rating list is extraordinary.

The World Champion I'd like to meet would be Gary Kasparov, for reasons known to everybody.

Capablanca - The best and the game came so natural to him.

If Sam Reshevsky had been World Champion I would have said him. Paul Morphy is who I would pick just because so much has been written about him. It would be interesting to meet the man to see what he was really like.

Of the should-have-been champions, I'd pick Korchnoi. Of the champions, definitely Smyslov. From what I've read by Botvinnik, Smyslov seemed like a pretty friendly and decent man. Also, I think he's way too under-rated. Sure, he was only Champ for 1 year, but he was always innovative nonetheless. 

I think it would be Most Fascinating to meet any deceased WC if they are resurrected for the meeting. On the otherhand, if I have to die to meet them, well I suppose I can wait and meet them all someday if I have an eternity to spend doing it.

So sticking with live Champions, I think Anand. Because he may be the most personable WC ever it seems. Tho I've heard good things about Kramnick and Tal that way too.

I'd be very much interested to meet a number of GM types tho. Pillsbury, Marshall, Bronstein for the deceased.

For the LIve: D.Velimirovic~! Perhaps the most interesting to me tho for a long talk might be GM Larry Evans. A great player & multiple U.S. Champ, fantastic theorist, teacher, writer, Chess political savvy & a lot of insider info on some of the most interesting times & players in America. We corresponded a bit in the later 80's on Leisure Linc online Chess site (aka USA Today Sport Center, later) & it was Fascinating, of course. As you'd think. But limited to a couple matters of Chess politics for the most part. Mostly some "problems", as you may have noticed happen, of USCF & FIDE, which he has had great insight into.

Didn't get any revolutionary Chess moves ...darn~! (if funny how GM's just never say something like "Hey, you want to see my new bust of the Taimanov Benoni on move 18?!" )

And of course, everyone should get to meet their favorite Polgar sister! I would have liked to be there to see Sophia win her record setting Rome tournament.

lasker for the intellectual stimulation. alekhine for alcoholic intoxications.  tal to go pick up chics. euwe seems like a good guy.  capa in cuba would be neat.  but most of all i would like to meet the great boris spassky.  ive heard he is very kind, humorous, and interesting person.we also share a birthday.  plus he was about the only person who stood any chance against fischer in '71-'72, he was familiar with fischer before during and after fischers mental decomposition and might have some insight into bobbys psychological machinations.

Fischer, no hesitation. I started playing tournament chess due to the 1972 Fischer/Spassky match.

First of all, if I'm going to spend time with any of these guys it had better be personal and fun. So, Tal, as he was just about all you could want in a chess player but also who could spend time with a nobody like us and have no ego.

Spassky would be good too but I get the impression he wouldn't kick off his shoes like Tal.