Chess in Old Time Radio

More than a millennia and a half ago, during the Golden Age of India, a handsome prince led his army on the field. Alas, his enemies outmaneuvered the prince and he was killed in the battle. It fell to his older brother, who was also at the battle, to explain to their grieving mother how her darling son was lost. To help her understand, the elder prince took some pieces from a board game and moved them to demonstrate how the younger prince was defeated.

This is just one of several mythical origins of the game of Chess. Chaturanga, which means the four divisions of the army, was played in the seventh century. The four divisions were the infantry, the cavalry, the elephantry, and the charioteers. These would evolve into pawns, knights, bishops, and rooks, all of whom were meant to protect the King.

The game spread from India to Persia, where the rule was added that a player must declare "shah mat" (Checkmate) when that piece was captured. Traders along the Silk Road brought the pastime to Muslim Arabia. The Arabs changed the pieces to abstract figures because the Koran discouraged carven idols. Chess eventually came to the court of Charlemagne, the Holy Roman Emperor.

The European form of Chess is now accepted as nearly universal, although the names of some of the pieces have local derivations. For example, the bishop on English boards is known as the fool in France. Chess is considered more than a game or a means to develop strategic thinking. It is seen as a test of intellect as well as an exercise in creativity.

The chessboard was even a battlefield of the Cold War. Russian players dominated international Chess competitions for most of the Twentieth Century, however, in 1997 Russian Grand Master Gary Kasparov was defeated by an IBM chess computer named Deep Blue.

• Murder at Midnight, September 27, 1946, "Death Across the Board". Dr. Strand stops at a shop and spots an interesting chess set with a game in progress. The shop owner refuses to sell the set but sends the Doctor to see an even more significant chess set. Instead of ivory pieces, Strand is met by a man with a gun. Someone is playing the maddest chess game ever.
• Counterspy, September 15, 1949, "The Case of the Hot Car Killer". Racing driver Joe Stacey is banned from the tracks. He gets involved with an interstate stolen car ring run by the nefarious Mr. Brewster. Brewster directs the cars and the drivers like a chess master, but is he as good a chess player as David Harding of the Counterspies?
• The Whistler, September 10, 1950, "The Golden Penny". Rodney Tremont is a "fortune hunter who found his fortune, and married it". He needs someone to run his yacht and interviews Bertram Lowen, who wins the job in a chess game. Lowen has already planted Delia in the Tremont household as Mrs. Tremont's secretary. Delia is willing to consider murder to get their hands on the Tremont fortune, but Bert has a subtler plan involving more chess. Will he get away with it? The Whistler knows many things…
• Suspense, July 31, 1960, "End Game". While driving through a blinding rainstorm on his way to a chess tournament, Charles Ross-Victor runs down an indigent man. The accident happens in front of the sheriff's house, and the lawman sees the whole thing. The sheriff is willing to forget the entire incident, as long as Victor remains in town to play chess with him, possibly for the rest of his life.