Vintage Rolex Hotness Ads...Through Time

...Rolex Hotness...

The Rolex Woman

What Kind Of Woman Wears A Rolex?

The Evolution Of The Female Rolex Archetype 

They say you can tell a lot about a man by observing what kind of watch he wears, as well as the by the kind of shoes he wears. But what about a woman? They say with a woman you can tell a lot about her by her handbag, as well as her shoes. What about her watch? Does that tell you anything?

I have noticed from many decades of observing women's watches, that women who wear Rolex watches have certain worldview characteristics: They are typically Well Educated, Ladylike, Timeless, Chic, Charismatic and relatively traditional. More like a Ralph Lauren model than punk rocker... When I think of women wearing Rolex, I think more Elle MacPherson than Cyndi Lauper. 

I realize beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and thus, highly subjective. When I think of the ultimate woman wearing a Rolex today, Ingrid Hoffman comes to mind. Ingrid is ambitious, outgoing, stylish, chic, feminine, wholesome, and naturally beautiful...

There are many other beautiful women that come to mind when I think of women wearing Rolex, including Sofia Vergara, and Jennifer Aniston.

It is fascinating to note, starting in the mid-1960s, women began wearing men's Rolex tool watches, like the Rolex Submariner, Daytona, Rolex GMT-Master, etc. Today I notice more women wearing men's Rolex models that are 40MM, than I do the smaller, more petite models. The supreme irony in this is the fact that up until the 1990s, Rolex was known for being "THE Big Watch Company", but today Rolex makes typically smaller watches!!?

Rolex ads have always fascinated me, so I thought it would be interesting to put together a story that chronicles Rolex ads that feature females in chronological order. Looking at these ads in chronological order is so interesting for so many different reason. First, from an anthropological perspective it is fascinating to see how social mores toward women have evolved over the last century. 

Secondly, to see how different generations of Rolex Leadership handled marketing material, and to see how Rolex branding evolved from typically including verbose language into taking a very simple approach.

You can't help but notice that in early Rolex ads, Rolex was ALWAYS trying to prove themselves, then in the 1990s, all of a sudden, they didn't seem like they had anything to prove any more.

So let's hop in the Rolex Time Machine and travel back to the mid 1920s...

1926

Ladies Rolex Oyster Ad

Rolex introduced the famous Rolex Oyster in 1926, and began a world-wide marketing campaign to familiarize the world with the many benefits of owning a truly waterproof watch. 

The following Rolex ad from 1926 is the earliest know Rolex Oyster magazine ad I am aware of, and of course you can always learn much more about The Complete History Of The Rolex Oyster on Jake's Rolex World.

In this article we will learn that the first Rolex brand ambassador was a woman, not a man, and that Rolex Founder, Hans Wilsdorf brilliantly marketed to females.

1926 
Italian Rolex Mermaid Oyster Poster

Hans came up with the idea of associating the fantasy of mermaids with the waterproof Rolex Oyster as seen in the 1926 Italian Rolex advertisement seen below.

1927 
Rolex Oyster Introduction Brochure 

This next illustration depicts Mercedes Gleitze as she emerges from the English Channel. In the past I wrote a detailed article about Mercedes Glietze swimming the English Channel titled, "The Oyster and The Mermaid."

1927 

Rolex Oyster Introduction Advertorial

The Rolex photo below from the late 1920s features actress Evelyn Laye, as she demonstrates the waterproof quality of her Rolex Oyster, by submerging it in a fishbowl.

1929
THE ROLEX OYSTER

Watch & Clock Maker

This is a fascinating art-deco style Rolex ad from 1929. In particular it is interesting they refer to what we refer to today as a wristwatch as a wristlet. This ad was obviously published after the advent of the Rolex Oyster, but before the Oyster Perpetual. Notice how similar the art-deco case in the bottom left looks to an early Panerai.

1930

1930

Rolex Princesse

1940

French Rolex Ad

1942 

Swiss Rolex Poster

Beyer, Zürich, Switzerland

The poster below was printed in Switzerland between 1942 and 1945, and this particular poster was published by Beyer, which was the only Rolex Authorized Dealer in Zürich, Switzerland at the time. Beyer is still in business today, and they have been in business for over 250 years, making them one of the oldest jewelry storers in the world!

The poster text is in German since Zürich's  primary language is German. Rolex is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, where the primary language is French.

1944

World War II 

Women In Service Rolex Ad

1951

1953

Ladies Rolex Chameleon Ad

1955

Rolex Golden Dream Series

1956

ALL IN GOOD TIME . . . Smart Women

1957 

Vogue Magazine

1957 

Rolex Advertising & Sales Promotion Guide

This 1950s Rolex Advertising and Sales Promotion guide cover is fascinating. The juxtaposition between the sturdy Rolex Submariner (No Crown Guard) diving watch and the beautiful woman is fascinating to me for some reason.

1958

1959

 Commander Whitehead 

& Pauline Trigere Ad

The 1959 Rolex Magazine ad pictured below showcases two really successful and iconic celebrities. The first is Commander Whitehead, who built the Schweppes brand, and the second is fashion designer, Pauline Trigere.

1960

Shelia Scott

Sheila Scott broke over 100 aviation records in her lifetime of flying airplanes. She was the first person to fly over the North Pole in a small aircraft.

Sheila Scott is pictured in the Rolex ad two images above, and in the photo above, we see her sporting her Rolex GMT-Master. I think it is very likely that Sheila Scott was the archetype for the Pussy Galore character in the 1964 James Bond movie, Goldfinger. The image below is a screen grab taken from the end of Goldfinger and is shows Honor Blackman, who plays Pussy Galore, sporting a Coke GMT-Master.

1962

Pauline Trigère

1962

French Rolex Ad

Mercedes 300SL Gullwing

How cool is this totally mod French Rolex Ad from the early 1960s, which features a beautiful woman with her distinguished man sitting on the hood of his Mercedes 300SL Gullwing. Very La Dolce Vita & Mad Men.

"She Knows what a watch means for a man."

1962

Breakfast At Tiffany's
Ladies Rolex Catalog 

The following images come from a 1962 Rolex catalog, and if you read the poetry, it is just amazing!!! It is so DIFFERENT than the Rolex of today...so interesting...

The images in this set are from a ladies Rolex catalog from the early 1960s. My best guess is this theme was inspired by the Audrey Hepburn's character she played in the 1961 movie titled, "Breakfast At Tiffany's"

The next image below is in Spanish and originally appeared in a Mexican Rolex catalog in the early 1960s.

Pepsi GMT-Master

It's Fashion On The Front Page

It's All The Rage

Vogue Magazine Cover 

October 1, 1963

The Vouge Magazine cover below from October 1, 1964 pictured below features Vouge model and actress, Tania Mallet who played Tilly Masterson in Goldfinger wearing a Rolex Pepsi GMT-Master [Reference 6542] and it fascinatingly predates the Honor Blackman poster by less than three months as Goldfinger was released in theaters on January 9, 1965. Nick Gould was responsible for discovering the identity of Tania Mallet on this cover and he pointed out Tania was in Goldfinger.

This Vogue Magazine cover fascinatingly pre-dates Honor Blackman in her role as Pussy Galore in the James Bond film, Goldfinger wearing her GMT-Master, which ads a whole new Rolex History Puzzle piece...It’s fascinating if you think about it to consider JFK was President of the United States when this Rolex Vouge cover was published!?!! Below we see a publicity photo from Goldfinger of Tania Mallet playing Tilly Masterson.

1965

Rolex Submariner

Astrid Heeren in Vouge Magazine

1965

Vogue Magazine

Early Rolex Daytona

This is a great photo of a model rocking a Rolex Daytona [Reference 6239] in Vogue Magazine in 1965, with some crazy long eyelashes...

1965

Rolex Ladies Datejust

Rudi Gernreich Ad

1965

Rolex GMT-Master ad

Rudi Gernreich Ad

This newly discovered information really does beg the question of what inspired women to start wearing men's professional Rolex watches back in the mid 1960s. The first known women I have documented that wore a Rolex GMT-Master was Shelia Scott who is pictured below in a 1966 Rolex GMT-Master Ad.

This newly discovered information really does beg the question of what inspired women to start wearing men's professional Rolex models? The photo below shows Shelia Scott rocking her Rolex GMT on her wrist back in 1966 as she was in the process of breaking over 100 aviation records.

Women wearing professional men's Rolex models is the epitome of style and refined elegance and femininity.

Speaking of How Women Began Wearing Men's Rolex Watches, we see Vanessa Redgrave pictured below back in 1965 from the film Blow Up (Released: January 1, 1966) rocking a Rolex Submariner.

In the photo below we see Vanessa Redgrave rocking her Rolex Submariner on a leather strap on the outside of her shirt cuff, which was another trendsetting style.

1966

Rolex Ladies Magazine Ad

1966

Lady-Date Rolex Ad

Some People Want More Than Just A Pretty Face

1966

The photo below of a model wearing a yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master appeared in Vogue Magazine in November of 1966, which at the time would have been considered to be very avant-garde. 

This newly discovered information really does beg the question of what inspired women to start wearing men's professional Rolex watches back in the mid 1960s. 

1966

1967

1968

1968

The late 1960s add below features Twiggy, who was a super-famous model during that era. Twiggy was know for her tomboy look that was slightly androgynous. All I can say is "Groovy, Baby! Yeah!!!!"

1969

1970

Rolex Lady-Datejust

1970

1970

Hong Kong Rolex President Ad In Chinese

1973

Mrs. Jackie Stewart

1974

This is one of my favorite Rolex Magazine ads feature ing a woman back in 1974 that kind of has a Princess Diana, kind of vibe:

1970s Rolex Brochure

Strange as it may or may not sound, I think many Rolex watch designs and brochures are high-art and these images from the 1970 Rolex USA catalog are no exception. I really like this first vintage Rolex Hotness image. It is remarkable how timeless the photo, watch, clothing and hairstyle is, and I love those beautiful light pink nails.

I am not certain what year this vintage Rolex Magazine ad is from, that features a beautiful woman rocking her Rolex Lady-Date on a President Bracelet. I would guesstimate it to be from around 1979, as she is rocking the Farah Fawcett Majors Hairstyle.

Speaking of beautiful women wearing a Rolex Lady-Date on a President bracelet, Farah Fawcett Majors is widely regarded as being the most beautiful women during the late 1970s.

Or course, Farah Fawcett Majors was one of Charlie's Angels, and she is pictured below on the set of Charlies Angels, racking her Rolex, as is Cheryl Ladd.

Jaclyn Smith also famously wore a two-tone Rolex Datejust as pictured above and below.

Kate Jackson also rocked a two-tone Rolex Datejsut which is pictured on her wrist below.

Let's not forget my personal favorite, Charlies Angel, and that is Cheryl Ladd who is pictured below rocking her yellow gold Rolex Lady-Date on a President bracelet.

1977

Cheryl Tiegs

Cheryl Tiegs was the first Supermodel in history, and she wore several different Rolex watch models.

1978

Sophia Loren

1978

Pauline Trigère

The New Rolex Standard

My best analysis is Rolex tried to make it a trend for women to wear men's Rolex watches from 1960 to 1966 which apparently did NOT catch on. I say this as I have NEVER seen a non Rolex related female voluntarily wear a Rolex men's professional model until the trend seemed to pick back up a decade and a half later in the early 1980s when super-leggy-model, Elle Macpherson began wearing Rolex professional watches, as we see in this first photo with a GMT-Master on her wrist. 

Today it's common to see women wearing Rolex Professional watches, but like many things Rolex, they often take a long time to catch-on, but then they become a Permanent trend. I imagine when a trend persists and becomes permanent we would refer to it as the new standard...

1985

Christie Brinkley

Rolex Daytona Big Red

Speaking of Supermodels rocking Rolex Men's watches, below we see Christie Brinkley back in 1985 rocking a Rolex Daytona [Reference 6263]. I can't figure out if it was Christie Brinkley who started this trend or Elle Macpherson?

1991

Chris Evert

1993

Lyn St. James

1997

Adrienne Vittadini

1999

Ekaterina Gordee

2002

Picabo Street

Sophie Mautner

Award Winning Pianist

2005

2007

2008

Riyo Mori

2009

Ana Ivanovic

2011

Caroline Wozniacki

2014

Sophia Loren

1986 Rolex Dolphin Submariner Ad

1986 Rolex Dolphin Submariner Ad

Rolex Lume Shot of the Month!!! Michael's Espresso GMT Master...

Rolex Lume Shot of the Month!!!

Michael's Espresso GMT Master

[Reference 1675]

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

A reader from Washington D.C. named Chris has been a reader of Jake's Rolex World for many years and recently shared this amazing Rolex story with me.

 Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

My first watch was a gift from my grandfather. In 1976 I was six years old, and I was spending some weeks with my grandparents during the summer. It wasn’t my birthday, but my grandfather must have thought, the boy needed a watch, so he and I drove to the jeweler in the next town, and – in the middle of the quartz crisis – he bought me a hand-wound dive watch with a black bezel, a small second, and the most gorgeous metallic green dial. I loved this watch and wore it throughout my childhood. This watch started my love of watches.

Then I saw Roger Moore in Moonraker save the day, the lady, and himself by means of a digital watch, and quartz caught up with me. I had to wait a bit, and I did not get that Seiko, but something that looked similar. Boy, it felt cool, wearing that watch!

Then Magnum, P.I. happened. It is hard to overstate the effect this show had on the 80s, the perception of the war in Vietnam and its veterans, and on pop culture in America and beyond. As a teenager, it also had an effect on me. I learned about values, friendship, sacrifice, and life in the military.

Season 4, Episode 1 came on, “Home from the Sea”. In that episode we learn about Magnum’s father, a Naval Aviator. And we see that man’s watch up close: It is a Rolex GMT-Master Pepsi. 

He tells young Magnum that he will get him a watch, the same he has. Later in the episode, we learn that Magnum’s father did not return from the Korean War, and we see young Magnum at his father’s funeral. 

He honors his father with a military salute, and we see his father’s watch dangling on Magnum’s child-sized wrist.

I was mesmerized. I had never seen a watch like that. The red, white, and blue bezel, showing the American colors, captured my attention and imagination, and to this day never let go. Some watches can trigger an emotional reaction in us. They pull on our heart strings in ways that are hard to explain. The GMT-Master does that for me. Over the years, I read and learned more about this watch: Its popularity among pilots and astronauts, its journeys to the moon. 

Whenever I spotted one on someone’s wrist, I sighed quietly, sometimes audibly. My fascination with the GMT-Master consistently grew over the years. As a young Air Force Lieutenant in the early 90s, I came close to buying one once, but ultimately shied away from the expense. A friend of mine was smarter and bought his. He wears it to this day. As time went by, I bought, wore, and sold other watches, but the GMT-Master was always in the back of my mind and always just out of reach. 

One day I visited my friend John in Pennsylvania. I wore my Tudor Black Bay GMT that day, and John commented on how similar it looked to his watch. What? My ears perked up. He shared with me that as a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs in 1969, he purchased a GMT-Master at the Academy’s cadet store. He said he wore it during training, during his year in Vietnam, and after. At some point he stored it and wore other watches. I asked, if I could see it. He walked to a metal lock box, opened it, but the watch was not in it. He was certain, it was somewhere in the house, although he had not seen it in years. On and off, for the next two years, we kept talking about the missing watch. 

Then one afternoon we sat together in his living room, and I said: “John, should we go to the basement and look for the Rolex?” He said: “Sure, let’s do it.” In the vast basement, there were about 100 cardboard boxes, filled with mementos of John’s and his wife’s life, after several moves. If you know about the Catholic faith, you may know that we are invited to call on certain Saints, asking for their prayers for certain causes. Saint Anthony of Padua has a long track record when it comes to lost items. So, I am asking for Saint Anthony’s intercession, and pull the first box from a shelf. John starts on the other end of the shelf. In that first box, I see a smaller box that contains all of John’s military decorations, including his Vietnam Service Ribbon. I’m thinking: “We could be close.” I pull the second box from the shelf, and immediately see a green cardboard box with a golden crown on top. My heart skips a beat. I open it, and I see the inner box, also proudly bearing the golden crown. I open it, and there it is, the GMT-Master Pepsi, Reference 1675, Mark 1, long E. The hands and hour markers are cream-colored, the red of the bezel has turned into a solid fuchsia, and the case is covered with dings, dents, and scratches. It is on an aftermarket bracelet. The Plexiglas crystal also has a lot of scratches and a big dent at 10 o’clock. This is what a GMT-Master should look like after a year of service in a war zone. Battle scars? You bet! I imagine what John and this watch must have been through. The watch is lying on the soft inner case material, with the hang tag lying next to it. And it is, as if it talks to me: “Finally! It’s about time, someone brings me back to life!” I turn to John and say: “John, I found it.” He smiles and says the words I can still hear in my head: “It’s yours.”

[Pause. Time stands still.]

After I regain my composure, I ask him: “Are you sure?” He says: “Yes, of course. It’s yours.” An Airman is handing a GMT-Master down to a fellow Airman of another generation, and that Airman is me. Pinch me, I must be dreaming. 

After a big bear hug, we climb up the stairs. I need a chair, and maybe a drink. I take a few photos of the watch in its box, with the hang tag and Chronometer certificate arranged around it. What a happy day! I wind it, and it immediately starts running. John says, it has never been serviced. After years of wear, followed by decades in a box, it just runs, consistently off by about 5 seconds a day. Rolex, you truly deserve the crown! 

I have wanted this watch for 40 years. Sometimes good things do come to those who wait. As I write these lines, my GMT-Master is being serviced for the first time. 

When I receive it back, I will have an engraving put on the back: “Thank you, John and Saint Anthony!”

Rolex Studio Shot of the Day: Eye of the Tiger Bejeweled Cosmograph Daytona

...Rolex Studio Shot of the Day...

Eye of the Tiger

Bejeweled Cosmograph Daytona

Rolex released this magnificent bejeweled at Basel World 2019 and I have to say it is a really stunning work of art. The level of detail and craftsmanship is awe-inspiring!!!