Mike Barton: the Player, the President, the Teacher, the Captain

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The article below:
 by Dwight Weaver

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My first memory of Mike Barton was meeting him, around 1983, at the Memphis chess club.  I had started playing chess again after about a year or so of absence.  We first got to know each other as opponents, and at some point he asked if I would show him how to play the English opening.  Well, I was hesitant right then and there.  I was not about to show someone my favorite opening weapon.  I had just gotten back into chess and I figured Mike and I would meet again across the board from one another, and we did.  He won consistently without my sharing any opening secrets.  As time passed, Mike and I became the best of friends.

Personal Computers came along and Mike and I shared the same interest in them as well.  If I named an exciting computer program, he would go out and get a copy.  Once, I mentioned a turn-based, war game simulator, called Empire; he purchased one and we played it against each other for many afternoons, months on end, into the wee hours of the morning.  He and I were both Trekies.  Mike had a picture made in Las Vegas with himself matted in with the original crew of the Starship Enterprise.  For years, if I noticed his phone number come up on my caller ID, I would answer the phone with, "Yes Captain."  Mike would always reply, "Commander," and then we would carry on our conversation. 

From 1988 to 1991 we traveled to out-of-town chess tournaments.  One time we were at the Mississippi Open Chess Championship in 1988 and were paired against each other in the last round.  Mike did not know it during the match, but if I had won our game I would have tied for the Mississippi State Chess Championship title.  He was always landing a right hook with his jokes and personal jabs.  After informing Mike about my championship chance, he said to me, "Why didn't you say something?  I would have thrown the game."   Mike started playing chess at the Memphis Chess Club in 1979, where you find him mentioned for the first time in the January 1980 Mid-South Chess Advocate as winning the 20th Mid-South Open's amateur section with 5½ points out of 6.  As the years passed, he kept rising in the club in chess strength and rating while all the time losing physical agility.  Mike had a form of Muscular Dystrophy. 

In chess Mike was known as a "fish killer."  A "fish" is someone who does not quite grasp the chess game in some areas and loses most often to seasoned players.  At the risk of making myself sound like one of the fish, I recall winning only one tournament game against Mike, and that was back in the 1984 Memphis City Championship.  He would remind me of that game on occasion and wonder why, if I was going to win a game against him, it had to have been in the City Championship.

Mike ran for and won the Memphis Chess Club presidency for the year 1993 in which he fully devoted himself to the post.  It was during his term as president that the club moved to another location, changed the regular meeting days to Sunday afternoons, and had the greatest revival of the Mid-South Chess Advocate.  It was also in the 1990s that Mike gave time to Girls Inc., formerly known as Girls Club of Memphis, and taught chess classes there.  In appreciation of Mike's service, the Girls Inc. organization gave him a hand painted picture, thanking him for his support, in which he had framed and mounted on the wall of his room.

In 1985 Mike conquered Doug Eckert, rated 2370, at the Arkansas State Championship.  He also took down a 2412 rated player, by the name of Leonid Filatov, on February 18, 1995, in the second round of the Collierville Chess Club's Winter Open.  His last rated game was in that tournament in which he tied with Charles Herbers for first place.  Mike began to play more online chess and other computer games up until his death on June 4, 2002.  Mike was born on March 2, 1959.  He will always be missed by me as the Captain, and I hope to keep his memory alive for what he gave to the club as a player and as one of its former presidents. 

Even if you did not know Mike Barton, this annotated game by him below will give you a glimpse of his personality.  The game was published, with the notes, in the Mid-South Chess Advocate Vol. 9 No. 1 1991.


"One of my favorite things to do is beat Ed Boldt, in a nice game of chess,
and then tell everyone about it.  He and I have been doing this to each other
for the last 18 years.  At the moment we are playing a match with the score tied at 1.5 each; here is game three, where I crushed the fish."

Ed Boldt (white)  vs Mike Barton (black) Game 3 June 1991

1. e4? (He knows I play the French which refutes e4.) e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Nf6
4. e5 Nfd7 5. f4 c5 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Be3 Qb6 8. Na4 Qa5+ 9. c3 cxd4 10. b4 Nxb4
11. cxb4 Bxb4+ 12. Bd2 Bxd2+ 13. Nxd2 b6 14. Qc2 Bb7 15. Qc7 Ba6 (At this point
in the game I remember thinking, "I hope he drops his Queen, or something.")
16. Bxa6 Qxa6 17. Qc6 Rc8 18. Nc5 Rxc6 19. Nxa6 g5 20. g3? (According to Suetin this
was wrong and I hoped he was right.) gxf4 21. gxf4 Rg8 22. Nb4 Rc3 23. Kf2 Rg4
24. Rhg1 Rxf4+ 25. Ke2 Nxe5 26. Rac1 Re3+ 27. Kd1 Rc3 28. Ke2 Rh4 29. Nb1 Rxh2+
30. Kd1 Rxc1+ 31. Kxc1 Ke7 32. Nd2 h5 33. Re1 Nc4 34. Nf3 Rf2 35. Nxd4 Kd6 36. Nb5+ Kd7
37. Nc3 h4 38. Nd3 Rf3 39. Kc2 h3 40. Rh1 f6 41. Nd1 Ne3+ 42. Nxe3 Rxe3 43. Nf4 Rg3
44. Nxh3 Rg2+ 45. Kb3 e5 46. Ng1 Ke6 47. Nf3 (Oh yeah, give me that horse!) Rg3 48. Rf1 e4
49. Kc3 Rxf3+ 0-1 (After the game I craved a cigarette, but then I remembered I quit years ago.) [Barton]

Here is another highlight tale from Mike's chess career:


Tennessee Chess News November-December 1987

"LAZARUS AWARD"

by P. Linxwiler

W: J. P. Davis (1657)
B: M. D. Barton (1967)

The winner of the 1987 "Lazarus Award" goes to Mike Barton, who comes back from the dead so many times in this game that it defies belief!!  Faced with umpteen mate threats, Barton elects not to resign the seemingly hopeless position and with an assist from his opponent, (21. Kd3??), Mike pulls off the most scandalous swindle of the whole tournament!  (Game Below:)

Click "Read more" to see the game.

The Simultaneous Exhibition and the Memphis Chess Champion

Memphis simultaneous exhibitions encouraged the city's club players and helped the general public become aware of the the local chess club.  Harry Nelson Pillsbury's visit in 1901 inspired the original founders of the Memphis Chess Club to reorganize and to make the club better known and thereby generating more public participation.  When John Hurt started playing chess in Memphis he captured the city championship and had to run the gauntlet of a club tradition, the simultaneous.  It gave a chance of revenge for the defeated city championship's candidates, and to the city's amateurs a moment of honor.  John and others, through the years, also promoted chess by many more selfless acts and sacrifices.

Tennessee Chess News May–June 1962

John Hurt Again Memphis Champ

Click Here to Read Chess Central's Blog:

For the second straight year John Hurt captured the Memphis City title by a score of 12–2.
The event was an 8 player double round robin and USCF rated.  Hunter Weaks took second followed by James Wright for third.  Surprising was Eddie Middleton's failure to score higher than fifth behind Mark Gilley.  John Hurt as city champ gave a simul against all comers.  Despite heavy odds he won by 10–9, and yielding three draws.

Tennessee Chess News March 1963

News In Brief

John Hurt gave several simultaneous exhibitions, winning at Greenwood without a loss, and at Jackson with 8 wins, 2 draws, and 3 losses.  He barely won at Memphis as Hunter Weaks, Mark Gilley, and Eddie Middleton were coaching weaker opponents.

Tennessee Chess News September 1963

News In Brief

John Hurt has taken it upon himself to instruct thirty youngsters ranging in ages from six to sixteen at the Optimist Club in Memphis.  A very commendable thing and we hope rewarding experience and a challenge.

Tennessee Chess News May 1966

Chess In High Schools

That chess in high schools is taking place in two major cities of Tennessee was probably unheard of only a few years ago.  But since promoters of chess in Memphis and Nashville have taken an interest this has become a reality.


Under the sponsorship of John Hurt, TCA proxy, the Memphis High School Chess League began on November 20, 1965.  Some ten high schools, each having five members on a team, met for nine consecutive weeks at the Memphis Public Library to determine the best team.  As winner, the Catholic High School of Memphis emerged.  The organization sponsoring this event was the Optimist Club.

MEMPHIS HIGH SCHOOL CHESS LEAGUE 1966

November 20 – February 26

Placed:

1. Catholic H.S.

2. Overton H.S.

3. Christian Brother H.S.

4. White Station

5. East High School

6. Central H.S.

7. Whitehaven

8. West Memphis

9. Kingsbury

10. Tech


Below are qualification articles used in the old, now defunct, Memphis & Shelby County Chess League: