enotSgnilloR wrote:
RIP Mama Cass, the Alekhine of Music.
Everyone's gettin' fat, 'cept Mama Cass
Was Alekhine assassinated?
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Feb 12, 2016
0
#43
newengland7 wrote:
Well like I said, get me the peer-reviewed work which says he was assassinated and I'll believe it. Judging on the man's alocohol intake, the cause of death was very likely highly uninteresting.
Have you lost your sense of adventure? We have a mystery on our hands!
"Have you lost your sense of adventure? We have a mystery on our hands!"
Certainly not! And certainly we do have a mystery on our hands--Was it the alcohol he drank too much of that night or perhaps it was the fat that clogged his arteries from his dinner he ate that night that caused the poor man's heart to stop beating?
Feb 12, 2016
0
#45
Every party has a pooper.
Alekhine had an enlarged, cirrhotic liver, discovered by a doctor earlier in the year. Somehow, that was "missed" in the autopsy by the top forensic pathologist in the country.
Conclusion: the "Alekhine autopsy" report was not that of Alekhine. What was the real cause of death; and where did he die?
"Somehow, that was "missed" in the autopsy"
Precisely, what did the autopsy say and what did it need to say in order for you to be convinced there's no assassination cover-up and that you are just simply stirring up conspiratorial nonsense?
Feb 12, 2016
0
#49
One step at a time ...
Let's consider the circumstances and the timing. Spraggett writes:
In London, on the evening of the Saturday 23rd of March 1946, the British Chess Federation (BCF) held an extraordinary reunion where, after much heated debate, it was decided to go ahead and organize (in England, probably Nottingham) a World Title match between the title holder, Alexander Alekhine, and the young Soviet superstar, and heirapparent, Mikhail Botvinnik. A 10,000 dollar purse was guaranteed by the Moscow Chess Club.
Immediately after this historic decision was taken, the BCF sent a telegram to Alexander Alekhine, informing him of the good news. It was expected that Alekhine, who was staying in room 43 of the Parque Hotel in Estoril, Portugal, would receive the telegram the very next day (Sunday), and in all likelyhood leave for England soon afterwards.
By the time the telegram reached its destination, however, Alekhine was already dead: the World Chess Champion had unexpectedly died within hours of the telegram being sent! Just when his career was about to be resurrected from the ashes of World War II, Alekhine’s life vanished in a moment as brief as a flick of the eye.
Coincidence or not, Alekhine’s sudden demise has been the source of much speculation from chess players through out the world for the past 63 years, and has given rise to numerous conspiracy theories.
The Portuguese state security apparatus monitored communcations coming into and going out of the country. In all likelihood, they saw the telegram before it was supposed to be delivered to Alekhine.
The PIDE had monitored these sorts of communications during WWII, in which Portugal was officially neutral, and which was a center for espionage.
This is the beginning of the journey.
NE7, compared to today, autopsys from the 40's were pretty vague.
From Spraggett's blog,
"This site is mostly about chess. Chess players–past and present–chess politics, chess humour, chess nonsense and whatever else I can think of!"
From RJC--
"NE7, compared to today, autopsys from the 40's were pretty vague."
Thanks for proving that the insufficient autopsy is not proof enough for a conspiracy theory. Did you get that Jamie?
Feb 12, 2016
0
#52
I don't draw the same conclusion. The lead pathologist for the Alekhine autopsy, Dr. Asdrubal d’Aguiar, was a university professor and medical doctor, who actually wrote the textbook on the subject.
It is not plausible that he would have missed, on 27 March 1946, aspects of Alekhine's health which were already known.
The autopsy report of record does little more than confirm what Luis Lupi had told Robert Brunnell in the 24th.
Spraggett writes:
Questions of the competence of the autopsy have been raised ever since the results were made public: asphyxia, provoked by a piece of meat that had lodged itself into the larynx. Looking at the peaceful position of Alekhine’s body in the photos, surely there must have been more. Perhaps this provoked a heart attack? The obit mentions that the body showed signs of arteriosclerosis, chronic gastritis and duodenitis, but just in passing.
What about Alekhine’s liver? Alekhine is reported to have had a serious drinking problem all of his adult life, some saying between 3 and 4 litres of conhaque [cognac/brandy] each day. But nothing is mentioned in the autopsy report about his liver. Surely a serious omission!
Feb 12, 2016
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#53
Winter, citing a book by Pablo Moran, adds this information:
[A] statement by Antonio J. Ferreira M.D.:
‘I was present at Alexander Alekhine’s autopsy, which took place in the Department of Legal Medicine, of the Medical School of the University of Lisbon. Alekhine had been found dead in his room in [an] Estoril hotel under conditions that were regarded as suspicious and indicated the need of an autopsy to ascertain the cause of death.
The autopsy revealed that Alekhine’s case of death [was] asphyxia due to a piece of meat, obviously part of a meal, which lodged itself in the larynx. There was no evidence whatsoever that foul play had taken place, neither suicide nor homicide. There were no other diseases to which his sudden and unexpected death could be attributed.’
Feb 12, 2016
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#54
A. Alekhine Agony of a Chess Genius by Pabl Morán [English language edition]
Poor Alekhine. The photo is creepy btw
The conspiracy could still exist. I was just pointing out that the technology for autopsyies was a lot different in the 40's than today
The AFIES fingerprint data base didn't exist. The human genome hadn't been mapped out. No such thing as DNA then. 
Feb 12, 2016
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#57
That is true, RJC, which is why they cut the dead bodies open and examined the viscera. Even a simple county coroner, not to mention a highly respected university professor, would have looked for the effects of poisoning, heart attack, stroke, cancers, internal bleeding, wounds, bruising, etc.
To my knowedge, the actual notes and report from the autopsy have gone missing. Only the death certificate still exists. A certificate is easy enough to fake.
Medicine back then was what we would call questionable today.
Obviously assassinated.