The World Chess Champion in 1988 was American Bobby Fischer.
Fischer was born in 1943 in Chicago, and developed an interest in chess as a child, that rapidly became a consuming passion. By the time he was seven, Fischer's mother was worried because he only wanted to play with other children who could play chess.
By the time Fischer became World Champion, beating Russian Grand Master Boris Spassky, he had elevated interest in the game almost single handedly, from a stuffy parlour game played by academics, to a passion absorbed by all ages and cultures world-wide.
Acknowledged as an eccentric, Fischer brightened the otherwise tedious spectacle of the live televised Championship by frequently leaving his seat, talking loudly, and even accusing Spassky of having planted psychics in the audience to interfere with his brainwaves!
Today, Fischer's whereabouts are unknown, although he is rumoured to be living in Budapest, and no doubt still playing chess, although he refuses any contact with outsiders who try to tempt him back onto the world chess stage.