Kotov

I have a couple of questions about Alexander Kotov,author of Think Like a Grandmaster, was he ever married if so did he have any children ? Well I was looking up his games on the chessgames.com, Victor Kotov name came up as well (he played 4 games lost 3 and drew 1 during 2001-2003, rating over 2000) is he related to Alexander ?

Alexander Alexandrovich Kotov - b.12 August 1913 – d. January 8, 1981

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Kotov

"A number of questions remain.  For example, although it has been determined (via an obscure, indirect reference unearthed by Bernard Cafferty) that Kotov was indeed married, beyond this colorless statement, we know nothing."  http://www.chessville.com/misc/History/PastPawns/KotovUnderAnalysis.htm

 Viktor Kotov - b. 7 Mar 1986   - In terms of age, Viktor could conceivably be a great grandson. However, Kotov seems a common name.

Thank you artfizz, well, I did my research too and I came up excatly what you got...hmm interesting articles to read there.

Like this, for instance ...

Kotov's books also included frequent praise for the Soviet system in general. For example, the 1958 book The Soviet School of Chess (which he co-wrote with Mikhail Yudovich) stated that "The rise of the Soviet school to the summit of world chess is a logical result of socialist cultural development." At the time, statements such as this were sufficiently controversial that Western publishers felt compelled to include disclaimers in versions of his books that were translated for distribution to English-speaking countries. Dover Publications, Inc.'s 1961 paperback version of The Soviet School of Chess was distributed primarily to Western countries and included an introduction that stated "...literature of this type, though helpful in our ultimate understanding of the game, is very often riddled with distortion. The publishers of this Dover edition are very much concerned that readers be aware of the propaganda techniques employed, even in the history of chess, by the Soviet Union."

They could have been talking about the forums!

Eugeny Gik in his book "Little Chess Stories" gives a following story about Kotov.

Kotov and Alberic O'Kelly de Galway were good friends. In the summer 1980, the Belgian GM invited his friend's family to his home. But the arrangements took too long, and in October 1980, O'Kelly died. Kotov didn't tell the authorities about this unfortunate event and went to Belgium together with his family. In December, they got back to Moscow. And two weeks later, on 7th January 1981, Kotov died too.

Smyslov, known for his mysticism, said when he heard that story, "And O'Kelly called him again..."

Another, largely unknown facet of Kotov's life was that he was a military engineer. He designed the 120-PM-43 mortar that was used by Soviet Army late in the WWII.

Concerning the propaganda techniques... this was some sort of a rule to get published in the Soviet era. No matter what the book (especially non-fiction) was concerned with, the author should have written something like, "In full accordance with the decisions made at the 19th Party Congress, the Soviet people are encouraged to...", at least in the preface.

P.S. Kotov was indeed married, it was explicitly stated in the preface of Soviet edition of "Play like a Grandmaster".

Sorry to revive an old thread...but how did Kotov die?  He wasn't that old.

While recording an episode of a chess TV show he hosted, Kotov felt ill, but after taking a rest, finished recording. In the evening of the same day, he died of a stroke.

That last episode he recorded aired two days after his funeral.