Lisbon, 1946. An end of his tether Alexander Alekhine watching in his mind’s eye Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray playing chess on a Parisian rooftop in René Clair’s Entr’acte. Presently the film unreels to reveal a Thinker-like figure, Duchamp himself, at an elaborate chessboard of his own design, absurdly out of place in Alekhine’s shabby rooms. Alekhine joins him.

Alekhine: (Hardly knows I’m here.)

Duchamp, absorbed in the game, never looking up, finally moves.

Alekhine: (Saw that one coming.) (Moves)

Duchamp: ‘O Captain! My Captain! Our fearful trip is done.’

Alekhine: What?

Duchamp: How would I know you’re here if I’m only a figment of your imagination?

Alekhine: Hm. Metaphysics.

Duchamp: Cartesian. By the way, if my wife calls, I’m not here.

Alekhine: You’ve married?

Duchamp: Not for long.

Alekhine: Never marry anyone you wouldn’t be proud to divorce, that’s what I always say.

Duchamp: Come again?

Alekhine: (Didn’t come enough was your problem.) Your Queen’s en prise, Marcel.

Duchamp: Oh. Yes. Wasn’t thinking. (Moves)

Alekhine: (Moves) (Woeful second-board, Duchamp, wholly lacking in imagination, cumbersome in play, so unlike him otherwise, at his day job for instance, which was designing water closets. If ‘all chess players are artists’, Duchamp was a philistine.)

Duchamp: Let’s see how you deal with this, captain. (Moves) Prepared move.

Alekhine: (For latecomers, M. Duchamp was second board on the teams I led in the Olympiads from 1928 to 1933. Then he finally came to his senses and returned to ‘art’.)

Duchamp: Thoughts?

Alekhine: A book move, Marcel, a dubious one.

Duchamp: Is it?  . . . But it’s in the book.

Alekhine: ‘Book’ isn’t always best, Marcel.

Duchamp: This is the ‘new’ book, captain. Hypermodern.

Alekhine: (Moves) Checkmate, Marcel.

Duchamp: I didn’t see that.

Alekhine: It’s not in any book.

Duchamp: Ah.

Alekhine: Don’t believe all the hype.

Alexander Alekhine vs Pierre Biscay, Marcel Berman and Marcel Duchamp Paris 1935, simultaneous display against 36 teams, Sicilian Defence 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 Nf3 Nc6 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 d6 6 Bg5 Qb6 7 Bxf6 gxf6 8 Nb3 e6 9 Qf3 Be7 10 O-O-O a6 11 Qg3 Bd7 12 Qg7 O-O-O 13 Qxf7 Qxf2 14 Qh5 Rdg8 15 h4 Ne5 16 Kb1 Be8 17 Qh6 Rg6 18 Qc1 Rhg8 19 Nd4 Bf8 20 b3 Rg3 21 Nce2 Re3 22 g3 Bh5 23 Rh2 Qxh2 24 Qxe3 Bg4 25 Rd2 Qh1 26 Qf2 Nf3 27 Nxf3 Qxf3 28 Qg1 Qxe4 29 Qa7 Bxe2 30 Bxe2 Bh6 31 Rd4 Qh1+ 32 Rd1 Qe4 33 Qa8+ Kc7 34 Qxg8 Qxe2 35 Qxh7+ Kc6 36 Qd3 Qe5 37 g4 Bg7 38 Qd4 f5 39 Qxe5 dxe5 40 g5 e4 41 h5 e3 42 h6 Bf8 43 Rh1 f4 44 Kc1 f3 45 Kd1 Bb4 46 c3 Bxc3 47 Kc2 e2 48 Kxc3 f2 49 White resigns.