Fred Waitzkin (born in 1943 in Massachusetts) is an American novelist and writer for The New York Times Sunday Magazine,
New York, and
Esquire. Educated at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, and lives in New York City and Martha's Vineyard.
He is the father of chess prodigy Joshua Waitzkin.
His book
Searching for Bobby Fischer was made into a film of the same name (but also called
Innocent Moves) starring Ben Kingsley, Laurence Fishburne and Joan Allen.
Major works:
- Searching for Bobby Fischer: The Father of a Prodigy Observes the World of Chess
- The Last Marlin: The Story of a Family at Sea
- Mortal Games: The Turbulent Garry Kasparov