Cat Stevens was one of the most amazingly talented singer, songwriter guitarists of his time, and when I was a kid growing up in the 1970s his songs were on the radio all the time. Born in Great Britain, Cat Stevens specialized in folk music as well as rock and pop. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014.
"We must not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time." —T.S. Elliot We are in for a real treat today on Jake's Rolex World with the AMAZING full-length Cat Stevens concert below. Enjoy!:
Cat Stevens is famous for hits like "The First Cut is the Deepest", "Father and Son", "Wild World", "Moon Shadow", "Morning Has Broken" and "Peace Train." Cat Stevens was born in a household with strict Christian parents, and in a move that shocked the world, in 1977 he converted to Islam and in 1978 changed his name to Yusuf Islam. The next year, in 1979, Cat put up all his guitars for auction and donated all the proceeds to charity and walked away from his ultra-successful music career. Being a huge music fan, I always though it was totally bizarre and sad that he retired so early from music. Once again, in 2006 he shocked the world as he returned (28 years after he retired) to his music career! The video above was shot in 2015, and as we see he sounds better than ever!!! Cat Stevens' voice and overall musical vibe is like Billy Holiday in the sense he has a unique sound signature that sounds like nobody else. Frank Sinatra once said "There is something to be said for things that endure", and just like Rolex, Cat Steven's is beyond timeless!!! On a side note, I always thought Cat Stevens was American, as he sings with what appears to be an American accent—but when he speaks he has a British Accent!?!! I have noticed that basically all people with a British accent sound like they are singing in American English!?!! Think about it for a second. Listen to ANY Beatles or Rolling Stones song, and they sound American. I don't know why this is, but it's fascinating to me :-) I have a close friend who grew up outside the U.S. and she once made an interesting observation about the British accent and said: "People with a British Accent sound like they are chewing gum with their nose plugged up!?!!" :-0
Rolex Coolness Peter Fonda Belongs To The Ages 1940-2019
The Easy Rider Rolex
Easy Rider Movie [1969]
"Born To Be Wild"
Peter Fonda passed away today at age 79 and left behind quite a legacy. Peter Fonda co-starred with Dennis Hopper in Easy Rider, and Peter Fonda wore a yellow gold Rolex GMT Master in the movie. Easy Rider is considered to be one of the seminal films that defined a generation.
Below is a screen grab of Peter Fonda's Rolex GMT-Master that appeared in the 1969 movie, Easy Rider.
"I'm Hip About Time. I Just Gotta Go." – Peter Fonda
In the photo above and below you see Peter Fonda in Easy Rider rolling his own and you see clear shots of his yellow gold Rolex GMT Master.
"Dude means nice guy. Dude means regular sort of person." –Peter Fonda
Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda are pictured below on the set of Easy Rider and in this shot you again see Peter Fonda's GMT Master on his wrist.
You can actually see the yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master pictured above on Peter Fonda's wrist in the famous 1969 Easy Rider opening scene it appears briefly on-screen 47 seconds in to the video below.
The Hippy movement, which stemmed from the 1968 San Francisco Summer Of Love was blossoming across America, and the world. For better or worse, things would never be the same again...
Peter Fonda Tells The Story of
The Origins Of The Easy Rider Rolex
"Every Rolex Tells A Story"
Interesting video of Peter Fonda discussing the origins of his Yellow Gold Rolex Prototype GMT he wore in Easy Rider.
Born To Be Wild
Here is the scene that Peter talks about where he throws away his watch that is not the Rolex
The photo below is of Peter Fonda's actual yellow gold Rolex GMT Master he wore in Easy Rider.
Nick Gould discovered the photo below taken in 1992 that shows Peter Fonda wearing his yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master, and we see his famous sister, Jane Fonda standing next to him.
Sister Jane Fonda
As Barbarella
It is ironic, at the time Peter Fonda was filming Easy Rider, his sister Jane Fonda was filming Barbaralla which was also considered to be a slightly rebellious, counter-culture movie. Jane and Peter's father was the extremely famous movie star, Henry Fonda.
Henry Fonda is pictured below with his son Peter Fonda, and his daughter, Jane Fonda
Eleonora Incardona is an Italian model, actress and social media star, and as we see she wears different Rolex Daytona models. Eleonora has been posting on her Instagram account since 2012 and has 218,000 followers. She travels all over the world and post pics of her adventures.
It never ceases to amaze me, how absolutely timeless Rolex watch design is. Take for instance this vintage Rolex Submariner from the 1950s. In particular, I was tripping on how much modern Rolex watches have been inspired by past design. Notice this 1950s Rolex Submariner, essentially has a Supercase, which Rolex brought back when then they introduced the ceramic Submariner.
Including ALL Watches Worn In All James Bond Movies
The Definitive Guide
Chapter 1 Genesis–Ian Fleming's Dream
Today marks the 55th Anniversary of Ian Fleming's Passing so I thought it would be a good time to reflect back on many of his lifetime achievements that shaped our perception of the archetypical alpha male.
Genesis
I originally set out to create a definitive list of all the watches worn in all the James Bond movies and tell the complete James Bond Rolex story, then I realized it would make sense to add all the movie posters. Then I thought it would make sense to include photos of the watches in the movies.
Then I started realizing I should–to the best of my ability–try to shed light on the story behind the James Bond films–so this article has really evolved into a history of the James Bond movies, with an emphasis on watches.
We must start at the beginning of the James Bond construct and examine who James Bond is and what he represents. You really have to go back to the beginning of moving pictures. Back before Television existed. Back to the original silent films.
Silent films changed the world forever. Human beings are basically vicarious creatures, meaning we often get as much of a thrill from observation and spectating as we do from playing or participating. This is why television and the world-wide-web are so popular. This is also because humans typically reason by analogy. When the original silent moving pictures first began, people were rumored to get up out of their seat and run out the door in horror because they could not understand the difference between a moving picture and the real thing!?!
King Kong [1933]
When sound came to movie theaters it changed everything. In order to understand James Bond you really have to understand the original King Kong from 1933. King Kong created the genre of an action, adventure, thriller, mystery. Of course there was the conflict between good and bad, as well as the love story between beauty and the beast.
The Power of Perception
The James Bond movie franchise is the most successful in history, and many of the stories behind the stories are as fascinating as the James Bond character. The James Bond character has not only become a cultural icon, but has captured the imagination of generations of viewers and readers across the globe, and in doing so James Bond became a true cultural phenomenon.
My uncle Christopher who is 57 years old put it best recently in a conversation when he said "When I was a kid, my father took me to see Sean Connery as James Bond and he said 'Son, James Bond is the ultimate man. Hopefully one day you will grow up to be like James Bond.'" This stuck with my uncle and had a huge affect on him.
As a matter of fact, I could not help but notice that my uncle owns two watches that he always wears. He owns the Omega Seamaster and the Omega Speedmaster Moon watch. I could not help but ask him if he bought the Seamaster and Speedmaster because it made him feel like he was James Bond and a NASA astronaut. My uncle looked at me and paused for a long moment and almost reluctantly replied "yes."
Ian Fleming
Let's begin by taking a look at the man who wrote the James Bond novels, British author, Ian Lancaster Fleming. Ian Fleming was born in Mayfair, London, England on May 28, 1908 and died on August 12, 1964. We see young Ian Fleming pictured below, long before he wrote his James Bond series of books.
Ian's father was a member of the English Parliament. Ian Fleming served in the British military during World War II in Naval Intelligence, and he is pictured below in his British Naval Uniform at the Admiralty in Room 39.
Ian Fleming wrote fourteen James Bond novels and nine short stories, and to a large extent, his James Bond character was based upon his own life experiences. Ian Fleming also wrote Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which became another cultural icon.
Ian Fleming based James Bond in many ways on his own career and it could be argued that James Bond was Ian Fleming's alter-ego.
Ian Fleming wrote his James Bond books on his small Caribbean island home in Jamaica, which is pictured below. Ian Fleming's island paradise is 15 acres in size and his refuge was said to be the inspiration for hidden island lairs of the sinister madmen James Bond regularly encountered. Ian Fleming first discovered Jamaica during World War II, while attending a U-Boat Conference. The tropical environment of Jamaica was completely antithetical to England where he grew up in, and Fleming became enchanted with Jamaica. He was so impressed with the tropical beauty, he decided to build a house there, so in 1946, after the war ended, he purchased land in Oracabessa, Jamaica, which is located on the northern tip of the island, and built a large bungalow style house and named it Goldeneye. Ian Fleming came up with the name "Goldeneye" which was a name he used for a covert project he worked on during World War II.
Ian Fleming's Tropical Goldeneye Jamaican Home Pictured Above (Where He Wrote 14 James Bond Novels)
Ian Fleming wrote all fourteen of his James Bond books at Goldeneye home, and once said: "I wrote every one of the Bond thrillers here with the jalousies closed around me so that I would not be distracted by the birds and the flowers and the sunshine outside… Would these books have been born if I had not been living in the gorgeous vacuum of a Jamaican holiday? I doubt it." Ian Fleming's Golden Eye was perched above a coral reef, and Fleming loved snorkeling. He first discovered the beauty of diving when he covered a Jacques Cousteau diving expedition for the Sunday Times. A half-decade after Ian Fleming built Goldeneye, he decided to sit down to write his first spy novel, and he began writing Casino Royale, which featured James Bond. It took Ian Fleming two months to write Casino Royal, and every year thereafter, he would return from England at the beginning of each calendar year and write a new book.
The Literary James Bond
Ian Fleming wrote a total of Fourteen James Bond novels, as follows in date of manuscript completion (Not Movie Completion Dates): 1. Casino Royale (1953) 2. Live and Let Die (1954) 3. Moonraker (1955) 4. Diamonds Are Forever (1956) 5. From Russia with Love (1957) 6. Dr. No (1958) 7. Goldfinger (1959) 8. For Your Eyes Only (1960) 9. Thunderball (1961) 10. The Spy Who Loved Me (1962) 11. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1963) 12. You Only Live Twice (1964) 13. The Man With The Golden Gun (1965) 14. Octopussy and The Living Daylights (1966) Ian Fleming also wrote Nine James Bond Short Stories: 1. From A View To A Kill (1959) 2. Quantum Of Solace (1959) 3. The Hildebrand Rarity (1960) 4. For Your Eyes Only (1960) 5. Risico (1960) 6. The Living Daylights (1962) 7. 007 in New York (1963) 8. The Property Of A Lady (1963) 9. Octopussy (1965)
List of All James Bond Films
To date there have been a total of 24 or 25 James Bond movies, depending on who you talk to. It is argued that the 1967 Casino Royale movie starring Peter Sellers was a spoof so some argue it doesn't count.
01. 1962 Dr. No [Sean Connery] 1st
02. 1963 From Russia with Love [Sean Connery] 2nd
03. 1964 Goldfinger [Sean Connery] 3rd
04. 1965 Thunderball [Sean Connery] 4th
05. 1967 You Only Live Twice [Sean Connery] 5th
06. 1967 Casino Royale [Peter Sellers] 1st
07. 1969 On Her Majesty's Secret Service [George Lazenby] 1st
08. 1971 Diamonds Are Forever [Sean Connery] 6th
09. 1973 Live and Let Die [Roger Moore] 1st
10. 1974 The Man with the Golden Gun [Roger Moore] 2nd
11. 1977 The Spy Who Loved Me [Roger Moore] 3rd
12. 1979 Moonraker [Roger Moore] 4th
13. 1981 For Your Eyes Only [Roger Moore] 5th
14. 1983 Octopussy [Roger Moore] 6th
15. 1984 Never Say Never Again [Sean Connery] 7th
16. 1985 A View To A Kill [Roger Moore] 7th
17. 1987 The Living Daylights [Timothy Dalton] 1st
18. 1989 License to Kill [Timothy Dalton] 2nd
19. 1995 GoldenEye [Pierce Brosnan] 1st
20. 1997 Tomorrow Never Dies [Pierce Brosnan] 2nd
21. 1999 The World Is Not Enough [Pierce Brosnan] 3rd
It is fascinating to note that both Sean Connery and Roger Moore both played James Bond seven times each...
Roger Moore: 7 Movies Appointed Knight Commander of the British Empire.
Sean Connery: 7 Movies Appointed Knight Commander of the British Empire.
Pierce Brosnan: 4 Movies
Timothy Dalton: 2 Movies
Daniel Craig: 3 Movies
George Lazenby: 1 Movie
Peter Sellers: 1 Movie
Ian Fleming's Rolex
Stainless Steel Rolex Explorer
Ian Fleming not only wrote that his James Bond Character wore a Rolex, but Ian himself actually wore a stainless steel Rolex Explorer as seen in the images below.
The images of Ian Fleming sporting his stainless steel Rolex Datejust above and below were taken at his home in the West Indies on Jamaica.
"A gentleman's choice of timepiece says as much about him as does his Saville Row suit." –Ian Fleming
In this next painting from The National Portrait Gallery in London we see a portrait of Ian Fleming wearing his Rolex Explorer.
Ian Fleming is pictured below with Sean Connery, and Albert R. 'Cubby' Broccoli, and Henry Saltzman. Although Dr. No was the first James Bond book made into a full-length movie, Ian Fleming had already written ten James Bond novels, which were very successful in print.
Even U.S. President John F. Kennedy was a big fan of Ian Flemings writing. As a matter of fact, in a Life magazine article by Hugh Sidey in March of 1961, titled, "The President's Voracious Reading Habits", it claimed that JFK read news and books at 1,200 words per minute. In that article, it listed Ian Flemming's "From Russia With Love" as one of JFK's top ten favorite books.
It's a bit ironic that neither of the two producers of James Bond were British. Cubby Broccoli was American, and Harry Saltzman was Canadian.
Dr. No (1962)
Ian Fleming spent much time consulting on the set of the first three James Bond films, including Dr. No (1962), From Russia With Love (1963), and Goldfinger (1964). In these first two photos, we see Ian Fleming and Sean Connery on the beach in Jamaica on the set of Dr. No in 1962. Dr. No was Ian Flemming's sixth James Bond book.
It is interesting to note that when Sean Connery was first signed to play James Bond, Ian Fleming could not stand him, but once he saw how great a job Sean Connery did, he quickly became his biggest fan.
From Russia With Love (1963)
We see Ian Fleming pictured below on the set of From Russia With Love with Sean Connery.
Goldfinger (1964)
In the next photo (below) we see Sean Connery chatting with Ian Fleming on the set of Goldfinger with Shirley Eaton between them. If you click on the image for better detail, you notice Ian Fleming sporting his trademark Rolex Explorer (Reference 1016).
These next three images of Sean Connery consulting with Ian Fleming were taken on the set of Goldfinger.
Ian Fleming is pictured below on the set of Goldfinger with James Bond producers, Harry Saltzman (center) and Albert "Cubby" Broccoli (right).
Ian Fleming suffered from a heart attack and passed away in 1964. Ironically, he was in the prime of his life at the young age of 56. Some could argue it was sad he did not live to see the rest of his novels turned into movies, but one could argue the opposite. Ian Fleming summed it all up perfectly when he said:
"I have always smoked and drank too much. In fact, I have lived not too long, but too much. One day the Iron Crab will get me. Then I shall have died of living too much." –Ian Fleming
Historically Rolex has always been extremely secretive and discreet, and no journalists in the past have ever been invited "INSIDE ROLEX" to explore and report on all four Rolex Manufacturing faclities in Switzerland.
In November 2013, this changed when Rolex invited Jake to take an unprecdented journey into the heart of Rolex to learn and report on everything he witnessed and learned.
This Super-Detailed 3 Part Story is a "MUST READ" story for anybody who wants to understand what really makes Rolex tick.
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