Paul Newman is widely recognized as being a high priest in Rolex history and folklore. Not only was he an extremely charismatic and handsome man, but also an extremely talented actor, philanthropist and motorsport racer and enthusiast. Paul Newman was born 100 years ago today, on January 26, 1925 in Shaker Heights, Ohio and he went on to leave an amazing legacy of achievement.
As part of the 100 year celebration of Paul Newman's life and times, I will be sharing a great deal of invaluable insight into both his career and his Rolex watches.
Sometime in the next few weeks, I plan to share an amazing brand new story with some fascinating Paul Newman content so be sure to stay tuned...
If you are a regular reader of Jake's Rolex World you likely saw my extensive coverage recently of President Trump's inauguration earlier this week, and suffice it to say, my head is still spinning just trying to keep up to date on the all the amazing progress that has been made in such a short period of time. The article I published on Monday of this past week, was all about Rolex watches as I showcased a great deal of modern Rolex watch history. This story is also about Rolex watches, but as you will soon read, on a different level.
Trump gave a stunning speech on Trade at Davos in Switzerland a few days ago, and seems to have completely freaked out everybody with his amazingly aggressive trajectory toward his complete overhaul of the United States. In his speech he said some shocking things like:
"We have accomplished more in the past 4 days...than other administrations have accomplish in 4 years—and we're just getting started."
Regardless of ones political leaning, and I personally am politically agnostic, in the sense I have no political affiliation. My ONLY criteria throughout my life has been to ask what is best for my fellow human beings and Mother Earth. Yes, I have always been proud to be an American, but I consider having been highly fortunate to have been born in the United States to be more akin to winning the lottery than some kind of manifest destiny.
Boy, that was a mouthful to lead up to what I am about to say, but it appears clear to me that President Trump is on a hardcore tear, and is hellbent on leaving behind a world-class legacy. Think about it for a moment. He can't run again, so he really has nothing to lose, and he is going petal-to-the-metal, full speed ahead.
It's a trip to watch Air Force One touching down in Switzerland at the Zurich Airport (@4:50). What's most interesting is to see the fleet of U.S. Military helicopters in the air, escorting Marine One, which looks like a scene out ofApocolypse Now (@1:40). Later in the video, we see the fleet of helicopters taking-off to escort Marine One to Davos.
If you are a regular reader of Jake's Rolex World, you might also be aware that I publish another online magazine named, "Jake's Presidential World", since I have always been fascinated with the trappings of the U.S. Presidency. Below is a video of President Trump Meeting with some of the most successful business leaders in the world.
The video below is of President Trump's speech that addressed the World Economic Forum.
If You Were Negotiating Here Tomorrow
You'd Wear A Rolex
Geneva's Palais des Nations
This vintage Rolex ad showcases what is now referred to as UNOG, which stands for The United Nations Office At Geneva. The "Palace Of Nations" was built in Geneva between 1929 and 1936 as the headquarters for the League of Nations, which later evolved into the Geneva headquarters for the United Nations in 1946. Today, The United Nations In Geneva is busier than ever with international diplomats, and it primarily deals with social issues around the world.
Vintage Rolex Ad Appears Courtesy of The Concannon Collection
Conclusion
What Does President Trump's 2025 Davos Speech Have To Do With Rolex?
The answer is simple: Everything and nothing. The fact the World Economic Forum is headquartered in Switzerland is—of course—fascinating, but most importantly, Rolex is a shining example of a company that has always endured and prospered through-thick-and-thin. The United States market has always been Rolex's bread-and-butter market in the sense, to the best of my knowledge, it has always remained Rolex's largest most stable marketplace. Rolex prospered and has been the ultimate beneficiary over the past decade on many fronts, from the advent of the Apple Watch, through the COVID-19 Crisis.
Let me be specific, for the sake of clarity: To the best of my knowledge, Rolex and Apple are the two largest watch companies on earth today by gross sales. Apple owns the lower price-point of the watch market based upon their much lower average selling price of somewhere around $1000 per watch (having sold somewhere around 37 million watches in 2024 for around $37 Billion at the retail price point).
NOTE: I have no inside information for actual watch sales number or financial information for Apple or Rolex. I simply used Grok AI, and asked it for answers, (which I included in parentheses above and below for Frame-of-reference).
Rolex is the opposite in the sense they don't sell nearly as many watches in quantity, but have an average price-point of around $14,000 per watch. (having sold somewhere around 1.25 million watches in 2024 for around $17.2 Billion at the retail price point).
Just to break this data down a step further, would be to recognize that Apple sells 37 million watches per year at retail, whereas Rolex sells 1.25 Million watches at retail. So Apple sells close to 30 times more watches that Rolex, but Rolex is likely more profitable on a per unit basis. This is speculation on my behalf, but either way, the numbers tell a fascinating story. Also, it is important to consider Apple Watches are really computers on the wrist, where Rolex watches are actual highly mechanical masterpieces.
It's profoundly ironic to consider that when Apple originally launched the Apple Watch they offered a $10,000 yellow gold variant, which was almost immediately discontinued as nobody wanted to invest that much money in watch that could not stand the test of time, and maintain it's value proposition.
I would argue the Apple Watch is probably one of the best things that ever happened to Rolex because it caused a whole new generation of people to pay attention to the wrist, which is highly ironic as Apple was the one that was initially caused people to stop wearing watches, as they would just use their omnipresent iPhone to tell time.
So through the COVID crisis, many people were stuck at home and paid a lot of attention to the watch market, and many people grew weary of the Apple Watch as it was relatively high-maintenance in the sense it has to be charged every night, or it wouldn't work. In other words, many people wanted something more, and it a world were suddenly Apple Watches were omnipresent, customers wanted to differentiate themselves with a different wrist watch, but in particular one that ideally would potentially appreciate as an asset, as apposed to depreciate as Apple Watches regularly do as Apple introduces new models every year that do and offer more.
For the record, I am a fan of both the Apple Watch and I have long self-declared myself as the President of the Rolex fan club. This is a little bit unusual, as most people prefer one or the other. When I wear an Apple Watch, ironically I wear it like a Rolex in the sense that I wear it for at a glance timekeeping only. In other words, I keep all the highly annoying notifications turned off, and I don't use it for keeping track of my health, as I highly agree with Roger Federer that I don't need a watch or phone to tell me if I am getting enough exercise or not.
So what does my stroll down memory lane in the Rolex Time Machine and all my watch psychoanalysis have to do with President Tump's Davos Speech??? If Trump makes it halfway, or even a quarter of the way to where he is trying to take the U.S. economy, we are going to witness potentially the single largest economic boom in history!!! Regardless of whether you like or dislike President Trump, you cannot help but notice his leadership is providing a stone-cold-sober, supercharged upper financial trajectory, and that, as previously mentioned, if it succeeds only partway, could radically benefit future Rolex sale in the United State and abroad.
Below is a fascinating short video interview of David Sacks, which President Trump appointed as his AI and Crypto Czar, and David is not only extremely intelligent and charismatic, but wicked-smart and insightful. If what has occurred in less than a week is any kind of indication of what is to come, they I say watch out for flying brick!!!!!
Throughout its history, Rolex has experimented like crazy with different models that were not long-lived, like the mysterious Rolex Space-Dweller. The Rolex Commando was 33MM and featured a manual movement and a Rolex Reference of 6429.
Rolex Oyster Commando Appears Courtesy of Rolex Passion Report
Abercrombie & Fitch
I recently saw a thread on VintageRolex Forums asking if the Rolex Commando was an actual model, and as we see here Abercrombie & Fitch offered it in 1972.
I heard from @Watches2.8 who said: Hi Jake, I think the correct date is actually 1969 as the only serial I came across for all the correct Rolex COMMANDO models is around the 2075xxx range. As far as I know the Abercrombie & Fitch sale was to get rid of the inventory that did not sell on U.S. Military bases in 1969/70. I actually own two of these Rolex models and I only know of 2 others in the world of the same quality. Ironically it went from a budget-priced $108 to being worth around $50K today! Probably rarer than a Paul Newman Daytona! Best, Teddy
The United States is just a few years away from celebrating its 250th birthday as a nation. Today is a very interesting day, as it's both Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Inauguration Day in the United States of America. What's the significance of this? Both, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and President Biden both wore Rolex Datejust models on Jubilee bracelets, and as I mention later in this story, Rolex Day-Date models and Rolex Datejust have long been the tool watches of politicians...
The image above which shows Donald Trump Jr. hugging his father, President Trump at his inauguration today, while rocking his GMT-Master appears in an amazing CNN photo gallery titled "In Pictures: The inauguration of Donald Trump." Both outgoing President Biden and returning President Trump are Rolex Presidents, in that they both wear Rolex watches. Thus, I thought I would take this opportunity to take a look back and forward at the pomp and circumstance that surrounds the U.S. Presidency.
President Joe Biden walks with President-elect Donald Trump to the Oval Office Nov. 13, 2024. Credit: Adam Schultz/White House
'Welcome Back'
President Biden welcomes
President Trump Back to White House
I live blogged the 2024 Presidential Election, which was fascinating, as both President Biden and President Trump both own and wear Rolex watches. First, let's take a look at President Trump rocking his Rolex Day-Date model, which has long been nicknamed "The Rolex President". The Rolex President has long been the tool watch of political leaders.
In the photo below of President Trump, we see his super iconic Rolex "President" bracelet which is easily distinguishable while remaining unmistakably popping from any distance.
Back on November 13, 2024, President Biden invited former President Trump back to the White House for a visit, as we seen in the photos below.
President Trump with President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden in front of White House Nov. 13, 2024. Credit: Adam Schultz/White House
Rolex has been worn on the wrists of many American Presidents going back to Dwight D. Eisenhower as pictured below.
Speaking of Rolex President's rocking Rolex watches, President Biden showed up at his inauguration four years ago rocking a stainless steel Rolex Datejust that his wife gave him as a congratulatory gift, as seen below on his wrist during his inauguration swearing in ceremony and speech.
Image above of Joe Biden's inaugural address. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images.
Also, speaking of President Biden rocking Rolex, the photo below of him, taken in the Oval Office in the White House, is definitively the most presidential looking Rolex image I have seen to date.
Nick Gould discovered the amazing photo below that shows President Biden watching the time on his Rolex Datejust as he sits at the Resolute Desk on Tuesday, February 23, 2021, in the Oval Office in the White House. (Official White House photo by Adam Shultz). After I originally posted this story Nick quipped to me "Still the best photo ever".
Image above of Joe Biden's first day in Oval Office. Photo: Jim Watson/Getty Images.
Like Father,
Like Son
In a bizarre, but not surprising twist of fate, both President Trump, and President Biden's sons both wear Rolex GMT-Master watches. In the first photo below we see Hunter Biden rocking his Batman, Rolex GMT-Master on a Rolex Oyster Bracelet.
In this next photo we seen Donald Trump Jr. rocking his GMT-Master recently, on a Rolex Jubilee bracelet.
"The Golden Age of America Begins Today"
—President Trump
Below we see full video coverage of President Trump's 2025 Inauguration:
Below we see just President Trump's full inauguration speech:
"Americas decline is over...For American citizens, January 25 is liberation day..."
—President Trump
If you missed Inauguration Day in it's entirety, I'm including a complete live broadcast of the days events as they unfolded:
Below we see now former President Biden rocking his Rolex Datejust at President Trump's Inauguration.
Conclusion
What if anything does this all mean for Rolex? There seems to be a complete and radical sea-change in American politics that just took place—perhaps the greatest in U.S. history! The United States market has long been Rolex's bread-and-butter, as it has historically remained its largest and most successful marketplace. If President Trump delivers on his promise of restoring the American dream so it comes back stronger than ever before, which seems like a realistic outcome, it probably means Rolex watches will be selling better than ever in the years to come!!!
Marc Andreessen is one of the great pioneers of Silicon Valley, and he offers fascinating insight into the future plans for the United States. In this interview, which is extremely insightful and filled with amazing truths and anecdotes, he is rocking a vintage COKE Rolex GMT-Master on an Oyster Bracelet.
Somebody once described planning as the art of preparing for change, and this is a profound truism, and really kind of the cornerstone of what is likely to occur next week as the new administration prepares to rebuild the American government. Marc Andreessen is close with Elon Musk, David Saks and has been living at Trump's Mar-A-Lago resort since the election concluded.
If you are a regular reader of Jake's Rolex World you know I am fasciated with vintage Rolex ads, and the story in this one is superb as it tells the story of a Rolex Watchmaker who worked for 50 years...
So I just watched Air America to get these screen grabs and it was a weird movie in the sense that it was supposed to take place in 1969 and the soundtrack was great, but the clothing, wardrobe and haircuts were totally 1990!?! Mel Gibson wore a Pepsi Rolex GMT-Master throughout the movie and many of the other actors were wearing Rolex watches in the movie.
It's Pepsi Time
Tequila Sunrise (1988)
Yellow Gold Rolex Submariner
Kurt Russell also wore a Rolex Datejust in Air American as pictured below next to Mel Gibson.
Including ALL Watches Worn In All James Bond Movies
The Definitive Guide
Chapter 1 Genesis–Ian Fleming's Dream
As 2025 unfolds we are headed into a new chapter in the world we all share. It's hard to believe Daniel Craig made his last James Bond film back in 2021, which was titled, "No Time To Die!" While the future is always uncertain, I think it's a great idea to hop in the Rolex Time Machine and go back to the beginning of the James Bond movie franchise...
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
26. 2015 Spectre [Daniel Craig] 4rd 27. 2021 No Time to Die [Daniel Craig] 5th
List of All James Bond Actors
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: 5 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 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.
