Jimmy Adams, a Fide master and former editor of Chess magazine, has died at the age of 79. He was the third-highest ranking chess title behind international master and grandmaster, a title he earned at age 67. Known for his witty personality and encyclopedic knowledge, Adams brought every game and player to life with his enthusiastic, almost tabloid-like style during his tenure as editor from 1991 to 2010.
Early Life and Introduction to Chess
Born in Islington, north London, to James, a delivery driver, and Ivy (née Soule), a shopkeeper, Adams attended Highbury County Grammar School for Boys. As a youngster, he discovered the children's novel John and the Chess Men in his local library and quickly progressed to borrowing adult books on the game, teaching himself chess.
His early successes caught the attention of leading figures on the English chess scene, including Leonard Barden, Bob Wade, and Harry Golombek. As a teenager, he appeared on a radio chess programme and was invited to meet Estonian grandmaster Paul Keres.
Career Before Chess Journalism
After leaving school, Adams worked as a sales assistant in the cushion department of John Lewis throughout the 1960s. He later worked at a Post Office sorting office in the 1970s and as a welfare officer with the London Borough of Haringey in the 1980s.
Parallel Career in Chess Journalism
Having taught himself Russian to read Soviet chess publications, Adams launched a parallel career as a chess journalist. His first freelance job was with the BBC, transmitting the moves of the Fischer-Spassky world chess championship match in 1972.
By the early 1990s, he was working full-time as editor of Chess magazine at Pergamon Press, where he also edited many chess books. He authored several books himself, including biographies of Keres, Gyula Breyer, Mikhail Chigorin, and Salo Flohr.
Later Work and Personal Life
After leaving Chess magazine, Adams worked as a freelance journalist for other publications, including British Chess Magazine, American Chess, and New in Chess.
In 1982, he married Sharon Boyer. She survives him, along with their daughter, Charlotte, and his sister, Brenda.
A friend recalled: 'I first met him when he asked me to write an article for him. Subsequently we often met in a cafe near the Chess & Bridge shop in north London, where he always bought himself two coffees because he knew he was going to talk for such a long time.'
