Rolex Holiday Shot of the Season: Santa's Got A New Sled

Santa's Got A Cool Red Sleigh...

It looks like Santa dropped a few pounds and traded in his sleigh for a Ferrari F430 Spyder convertible. Of course he is wearing a Rolex Submariner ;-)

John Denver: The Kings of Country Music Wearing Rolex Series

The Kings of Country Music Wearing Rolex Series

...Rolex Super Coolness...

John Denver

1943-1997

Yellow Gold Rolex GMT-Master

Since we are in coming up on celebrating the Christmas holiday and New Years I thought it would be great to enjoy some amazing music history with the legendary John Denver.

This is the fourth installment in my series named, "The Kings Of Country Music Wearing Rolex." I realize that John Denver not only sang many country hits, like "Thank God I'm A Country Boy", "Take Me Home, Country Roads", and "Rocky Mountain High", but he also crossed-over into many other genres including Folk singing.

John Denver had many other popular songs like "Annie's Song", "Leaving On A Jet Plane", and "Sunshine On My Shoulders." He was born Henry John Deutschendorf Jr.in Roswell, New Mexico on December 31, 1943.

When I was a kid growing up in Northern California, I some of my fondest memories are of summer camp, listening to John Denver songs, like Take Me Home, Country Roads. 

When I think about John Denver's music, I think it's really ideal for listening to around Thanksgiving, along with other artists like Simon and Garfunkel. Something about this genre of music is heartwarming and kind of folksy...

In several of the images in this story we see photos of John Denver wearing a yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master, which I think suited him perfectly. It never ceases to amaze me how many guitarists wear Rolex watches.

John Denver was not only a recording and live performance superstar, but he was also an activist and humanitarian who dedicated much of his time and money to trying to take care of issues that effect earth. In my opinion, John Denver was the living embodiment and true symbol of Thanksgiving...

Aye, Calypso, I Sing To Your Spirit

John Denver was one of Jacques Cousteau's biggest fans. Not only did he write the fantastic song "Calypso" but he donated all the proceeds from the song to the Cousteau Society. John also performed concerts and donated the proceeds to the Cousteau Society.

The photo below of Jacques Cousteau was taken on-board the Calypso in 1953, an we see him wearing a prototype Rolex Submariner. Jacques Cousteau, in my opinion, is the greatest explorer that ever lived, and is the living embodiment of the Rolex Submariner.

By the way, John Denver wrote a beautiful song in the 1970s about Jacques Cousteau's Calypso ship and I thought I would share the profound words:

Calypso

By John Denver

To sail on a dream on a crystal clear ocean

To ride on the crest of a wild raging storm

To work in the service of life and the living

In search of the answers to questions unknown

To be part of the movement and part of the growing

Part of beginning to understand

Aye, Calypso, the places you've been to

The things that you've shown us

The stories you tell

Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit

The men who have served you

So long and so well

Like the dolphin who guides you

You bring us beside you

To light up the darkness and show us the way

For though we are strangers in your silent world

To live on the land we must learn from the sea

To be true as the tide

And free as the wind-swell

Joyful and loving in letting it be

Aye, Calypso, the places you've been to

The things that you've shown us

The stories you tell

Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit

The men who have served you

So long and so well

Aye, Calypso, the places you've been to

The things that you've shown us

The stories you tell

Aye, Calypso, I sing to your spirit

The men who have served you

So long and so well

John Denver is pictured below on-board the Calypso with Jacques Cousteau and they are talking with media mogul, Ted Turner. This photos was taken on the occasion of Jacques Cousteau's 75th birthday party in Washington D.C., which took place in 1985. In an ironic twist of fate, both John Denver and Jacques Cousteau both passed away twelve years later in 1997.

In the photo below we see John Denver (giving the thumbs-up!) diving on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Connie Reeder is pictured on the far left, and she sang with John Denver on "Fly Away", which can be viewed below this image.

“To Live on the Land We Must Learn from the Sea” 

–John Denver (Calypso)

Richard Hyman took the photo below onboard the Calypso when they were filming in the Belize Barrier Reef and John Denver gave an impromptu concert for Captain Cousteau and his wife Simone.

Vintage Coca Cola Ads...

Vintage Coca-Cola Christmas

Rolex and Coca Cola have many attributes in common. They are both classic, timeless and iconic. Many of the Rolex Professional Sport watches have nicknames that have become associated with them over the years, and the Rolex GMT-Master with a Black and Red bezel insert is typically referred to as "The Coke GMT". The photo below shows a Rolex "Coke" with Christmas ornaments, and it was taken by Dan Pierce. (BTW: The GMT-Master with a Red and Blue bezel insert is typical referred to as a "Rolex Pepsi GMT."

I love these vintage Coca-Cola Christmas ads from way back when. They remind me of my childhood. Yes, I actually used to put together an old electric train set from the 1950s when I was a kid ;-) Now that I think about it, Coca-Cola as a brand has much in common with Rolex in the sense they are both timeless and classic...

1938 Coca Cola Christmas Ad

1941 Coca Cola Christmas Ad

1945 Coca Cola Ad

Have A Coke

1952 Coca Cola Ad

1967 Coca Cola Holidays Ad

1970 Coca Cola Ad

It's The Real Thing. Coke.

As they say, "There's nothing like the real thing" and this vintage Coca Cola Ad from 1970 brings back many great memories!!!

A Christmas Present From James Bond...

A Christmas Present 

from James Bond

1974

James Bond and Christmas...If we hop in the Rolex time machine and travel back to Christmas of 1974 we would see this movie poster for "The Man With The Golden Gun" which starred Roger Moore as 007.

Roger Moore wore his Rolex Submariner The 1974 James Bond movie, "The Man With The Golden Gun", as we see in the photo below with gorgeous Britt Ekland...If you want to learn much more about the history of James Bond and Rolex, check out my 13 Part Series titled: "The Complete History of James Bond Watches."

In The Man With The Golden Gun Britt Ekland wore a stainless steel Rolex Lady Datejust on an Oyster bracelet as seen below.

Roger Moore's portrayal of James Bond was interesting in the sense he played the ultimate cad. A Cad is a trashy version of a gentleman who has the appearance of a gentleman, but doesn't follow the moral code of gentlemen. A Cad might be tan year round. Bond is the perfect example of a Cad as he has no friends, kills people on a regular basis and will sleep with your wife—but foreigners and vulnerable women think he's related to the Queen :-)

The photo below shows Roger Moore checking the time on his Rolex single red Submariner [Reference 1680] on the set of The Man With The Golden Gun.

A Paul Newman Exotic Dial Daytona [Reference 6239]

A Paul Newman Exotic Dial Daytona

From Sotheby's Auction

[1964 Model on a Jubilee Bracelet: Reference 6239]

This vintage Paul Newman Daytona with its red, white and black exotic dial, along with the green Rolex box definitely has a Christmas vibe, so I thought I would share it with you. It is also unusual to see a Paul Newman on a Rolex Jubilee bracelet, which is awesome!!!

Rolex Hologram Photo Of The Day: Christmas Colors

Rolex Hologram Photo Of The Day

Christmas Colors

Ralph took these amazing photos of the Rolex Hologram sticker on the back of his Rolex which reminds me of Christmas Tree lights...

Thomas Kinkade Painter Of Light

...Rolex Super-Coolness...

Thomas Kinkade

Painter of Light

1958-2012

Pepsi GMT-Master & King Tut Submariner

Thomas Kinkade was an American painter, who is one of the most commercially successful artists of the 21st Century. How successful is his artwork today? Apparently, at least 5% of American homes have a copy of one of his paintings hanging in their home. Thomas Kinkade is pictured below sporting a yellow gold Rolex (King Tut: Gold and Cobalt Blue) Submariner.

Thomas Kinkade wore a yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master as seen above, and also wore a Pepsi Rolex GMT-Master as seen in the photos below.

Thomas Kinkade is to the 21st Century, what Pablo Picasso was to the 20th century, as far a being prolific, popular and commercially successful, and ironically they both wore the exact same Rolex model, which was a Pepsi Rolex GMT-Master!

Classic Christmas Paintings
Making Spirits Bright

"Every painting is a journey." –Thomas Kinkade

I decided to publish this story today, as a way to get into the Christmas spirit, since Thomas Kinkade's paintings are some of the greatest Christmas themed paintings. Thomas Kinkade's Christmas paintings are extremely ideal and heartwarming, and capture the essence of this most wonderful time of the year.

One could argue that Thomas Kinkade's paintings are similar to Norman Rockwell's in the sense that he is constantly attempting to capture this highly idyllic state of Americana. Thomas Kinkade grew up in Placerville, California, in the U.S.A., which is a city that you would pass through if you were traveling from the San Francisco Bay Area on you way to Lake Tahoe.

Sidney Mobell Designer and Creator of Fine Jewelry

Sidney Mobell

Designer and Creator of Fine Jewelry

1989 Fairmont Hotel, San Francisco

It's funny how life works. I seem to have this uncanny ability to recall and remember vintage Rolex ads from many decades ago, and the one below is one of my favorites. I grew up in San Francisco, and in the 1980s Rolex was all the rage. I remember seeing this vintage Rolex Ad back in 1989 for Sidney Mobell which was located in the Fairmont Hotel on Nob Hill in San Francisco. 

I have many fond memories of The Fairmont Hotel, especially around the holiday Christmas season, as I can still recall how magnificently elegant the Fairmont Hotel Lobby was and how it positively smelled of pine Christmas trees. I also remember dining late night at the hyper elegant Brasserie Restaurant which was located in the bottom of the Fairmont on California Street after many evenings of partying. 

This Sydney Mobell Rolex ad completely Deja Vu's me out in a positive way...and reminds me of Barbara Streisand's song, "The Way We Were", which has the great line "Can it be that it was all so simple then, or has time re-written every line?"

Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day—GV Milgauss

...Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day...

GV Milgauss

Rolex Desk Clock In The Oval Office

Rolex Desk Clock

In The Oval Office 

Featured on 60 Minutes

"Time Flies, and waits for no one,

 and once lost, is never found. 

Yet still we try to keep time and measure it."

I originally published this story back on December 4th, and am bringing it back up as the top story, as CBS's 60 Minutes TV Magazine show not only ran this fascinating story on the Swiss Watch industry, but also featured a close-up of the Rolex desk clock Rolex gifted to the American people though President Trump."

Back on November 6, I published a story about how the CEO of Rolex visited President Trump along with other members of a Swiss Delegation in the Oval Office. 

Then, on November 10th I published a follow-up story about how Rolex had apparently given President Trump a Rolex Desk Clock that was on display in the Oval Office. This led to a mystery as there was not a high enough resolution photo that showed the actual engraving, until now.

Nick Gould brought this image to my attention which gives us a clear image of what Rolex engraved on the back of the Rolex table clock that they gifted to the American people on behalf of President Trump. This image was originally published on Woz.ch, and shows in great detail what the engraving said exactly as pictured below. 

Nick Gould originally claimed he could read the engraving on the back of the clock, and it turns out "Eagle Eyes" was correct, which is fascinating as I could NOT make it out originally, even when I blew up the text super large, but Nick got it right, and here is what it said:

ROLEX

PRESIDENT OF THE UNTED STATES

DONALD J. TRUMP

45-47

WITH APPRECIATION FROM ROLEX