The Chess Great You've Never Heard Of: Paul Morphy

I've heard of Murphy's law.

We all have things go wrong, and Murphy is the unfortunate person who cops the blame.

Fate, thy name has been taken by Murphy.

Reclaim it, and let Murphy rest in peace.

Fait' and all, Murphy!

I have read the Keyes book, and I suppose it has some interest as a novel, but for Morphy's life, one should turn to Lawson's biography.

I agree that Morphy's games are great. Just by looking into a few of those games, my own game improved! And you don't even have to go to YouTube to see those games. Most bookstores carry books with Morphy's games. Also many websites, including chess.com have databases with Morphy's games. 

http://www.edochess.ca/batgirl/vieuxcaree3.html

Being a historical fiction, much of the book is nonsense, but it's actually quite well-researched and contains some worthwhile copies of original documents.  Keyes was a decent writer, but not a very reliable source for learning about Paul Morphy's life. There's nothing to indicate Morphy ever worked for the Confederacy (and certain things actually indicate he was both a pacifist and an anti-secessionist) nor are there any indications that Paul ever had a childhood love interest or even an adult love interest.  If you clinck the link above, you'll learn that Keyes lived in the house in which Paul was born.

Thanks, batgirl.

She is amazing. A true researcher, and seeker after truth. I detect little of bias in her as she has no axes to grind.

I think that Věra Menčíková is a far more unknown player than Murphy could ever be, and she is worth looking into, although the game has changed since last century, she was a great influence to me. 

We're in the now clara.

For Euwe, one can try:

https://web.archive.org/web/20140708093233/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review283.pdf

I have been looking for Euwe for a book about the 5 named greats of Chess.

Magnus is the only great, and not necessarily Carlsen. Surnames only confuse the issue.

I played chess randomly with a family friend as a child while learning. When I couldn't win, I decided to study chess. My method for everything in life was going to books for the answer. 

The first day I studied chess, this was the first game I studied. I remember everything changed on that day. It was like I walked through a door and closed it behind me. Chess became a serious part of my life from that day on. I never looked at it the same way.

"A night at the Opera" should be the first game every school child studies after learning the moves and playing a few games. 

Yeah, I would go so far as to say everyone who plays or studies chess moderately seriously, not only knows about the game but most can probably play through it from memory. I doubt there has been a game more commonly shown to beginners and more often used as an introduction than "A Night at the Opera."

Now or then never stops me from exploring players of past, why should it. They paved the path to tutorials and guides for waaaay easier learning.

Back when Paul Morphy played there was no such thing as an ELO rating. 

What do you think Morphy's ELO would have been if he played in the modern era of Chess. Would he be as good as Peter Svidler? 

Probably not. But, he would have mangled Magnus.

How so?