Thursday, September 18, 2025

Lord Norman Foster...


The Mozart of Modernism

Lord Norman Foster

Top International Architect 

One of my absolute favorite things to do on Jake's Rolex World is to explore Rolex testimonees who have been featured in vintage Rolex ads, as they are always a source of fascination and inspiration.

Hugh Austin, who is a regular reader of RolexMagazine.com recently sent in the image below of a 1980s Rolex Magazine ad featuring Sir Norman Foster, and said "A watch collector who also designed the Apple Headquarters." Norman Foster is now "Lord Norman Foster", and is considered to be one of the greatest living architects alive today.





Wednesday, September 17, 2025

Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day Yellow Gold Rolex Daytona


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

Yellow Gold Rolex Daytona

Tuesday, September 16, 2025

The Complete History Of The Robert Redford Submariner [Part 1 of 4]



...Academy Award Winning Director & Actor...

Robert Redford
Belongs To The Ages
1936-2025

Rolex Submariner: Reference 1680
The Complete History Of The Robert Redford Submariner
[Part 1 of 4]

This is really sad, as Robert Redford has stepped back into infinity...but he left behind so many of his memories for us to cherish...  Robert Redford was one of the most successful and iconic actors in Hollywood history. Robert Redford was an Academy Award winning Director and actor, and I thought it would be a good time to explore his amazing career achievements.


On Jake's Rolex World I created a series named Profiles In Coolness which covered The King Of Cool, Steve McQueen, and Paul Newman, today we are going to take a look at another super-cool guy with an amazing career—Robert Redford.


Robert Redford was born Charles Robert Redford Jr., on August 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, California and he has been in many famous classic films. When you think about it, Robert Redford is about as classic as it gets, and it should come as no surprise that he wears a Rolex Submariner.



Single Red Submariner 
[Reference 1680]

Robert Redford wears a Single-Red Submariner [Reference 1680] which was the first Rolex Submariner model to come with a date. It was COSC certified and essentially replaced the Reference 5512. Rolex made the Single Red Submariner from 1967 to 1976. The Single Red designation came from the Single Red SEA-DWELLER which was developed to be tested in prototype for early 1967.



Robert Redford
The Candidate
1972

Robert Redford starred in the 1972 political movie titled, The Candidate, in which he plays a lawyer who decides to run against an incumbent Senator. In the movie, Redford deals with the challenges of trying to be himself, while trying to satisfy his political party.






Justin Timberlake
The Candidate
2011

The photo below is from a W Magazine photo shoot in 2011 that Justin Timberlake posed for, in which he was paying homage to  Robert Redford, from the 1972 movie, The Candidate.



Somebody once offered Robert Redford a yellow gold Rolex Submariner as a gift and he refused it by responding, "I am not a gold kind of guy." This is kind of interesting because I think that a yellow-gold Submariner would have looked great on Robert Redford because it would match his hair.



One of the obvious questions, is why does it say ROLEX on the front of the newscaster desk that Robert Redford is sitting in front of in the picture below from the movie The Candidate? I have no idea. I assume it was obviously some kind of Rolex advertisement.






1972 Cannes Film Festival in France

In the photo below we see Robert Redford with fellow actor and director Sydney Pollack and Polish pianist Arthur Rubenstein and his wife Aniela Mlynarska to promote the movie Jeremiah Johnson in 1972 at the Cannes Film Festival. Sydney Pollack directed the movie Jeremiah Johnson which is considered to be one of his best films. Arthur Rubinstein is considered to be one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.



Three Days Of The Condor (1975)




All The President's Men (1976)

Robert Redford costarred with Dustin Hoffman in All The President's men which was about the Watergate conspiracy that ultimately forced U.S. President Nixon to resign.



It is interesting to note that Robert Redford's Rolex Submariner pictured above and in the next two photos from the movie, All The President's Men has the winding crown completely unscrewed and pulled out all the way!!! I have no idea why?
Update: Tim Parker-Chambers is a reader of Jake's Rolex World and he wrote in and said:

"Hi Jake,


I was reading your fantastic articles on the watches of Steve McQueen, Paul Newman and Robert Redford, and saw a comment you made about the crown of Robert Redford's Submariner being fully extended while filming a scene.

Something I have read elsewhere, which might be applicable to that situation, is that for continuity and editing ease, in some close up shots, or multiple takes, sometimes the director has the actor pull the crown on his watch, so the hands remain static and constant in all takes. 

Just thought I'd pass on what I'd heard, thanks for taking the time to put together such fantastic articles, they're a pleasure to read."


Best regards,
Tim

Tim's points make perfect sense!!!










1981


Next we see Robert Redford at the 33rd Annual Directors Guild Awards, which took place on March 14, 1981 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel located in Beverly Hills, California.








Table Of Contents


Monday, September 15, 2025

...Rolex Studio Shot Of The Day... Grahame's Rolex Milsub


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

Grahame's Rolex Milsub


Sunday, September 14, 2025

1970s Vintage Rolex Hotness

1970s Vintage Rolex Hotness

Rolex Lady-Date

I am pretty certain I recognize the model/actress in this vintage Rolex ad, but I can't seem to remember her name. She's rocking the Farah Fawcett Majors hairstyle, with her yellow gold Rolex Lady-Date, and he is gorgeous and has it going Bossa nova 4-Sure!!! It's so interesting how marketing messaging has changed and evolved over the past 50 years. I'm not certain, but I think the message this image is conveying is that the woman is professional, happy and on top of things as she is taking notes...


If this photo were taken today, she would be on her iPhone, wearing AirPods...I just love the super feminine vibe with the 28MM Lady Date, which has always been considered a major status symbol as the female Rolex President model...I had a girlfriend I dated several decades ago who wore this model and it always mesmerized and bedazzled me...

Saturday, September 13, 2025

Rolex Crown Logo Collage...


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

Rolex Crown Logo Collage

@Stockegsix from Instagram created this AMAZING Rolex Crown collage comprised of six Rolex models and I almost fell out of my chair when I first saw it!?!! I have to say in my opinion this is one of the coolest looking Rolex Studio Shots I have ever seen!!! Just AMAZING!!!! 


Friday, September 12, 2025

Nicholas Foulkes New Book Oyster Perpetual DATEJUST


Nicholas Foulkes New Book

Oyster Perpetual DATEJUST

"Renowned watch expert, Nickolas Foulkes explores the evolution of an icon, a supremely elegant status symbol for both men and woman, the success of which continues to endure after eight decades." This quote comes from the Editor and Chief of Wallpaper, Bill Prince, and sums up Foulkes new book on the Rolex Datejust, which I am certain will be a fascinating read. You can pre-order and learn more on Wallpaper's microsite for this book.



Foulkes upcoming Rolex Datejust book would appear to include many fascinating never before documented revelations about the history of the Datejust including his apparent discoveries of Princess Grace rocking her Lady Datejust (pictured above), as well as Andy Warhol, President Eisenhower, and Tom Cruise. Nicholas once mentioned to me he is a big fan of my work product, which is clearly evident...

Thursday, September 11, 2025

September 11, 2001: Todd Beamer's Rolex


...Commemorating Sept. 11, 2001...

The 9/11 Rolex
Let's Roll!


"Rolex is the international mark of success," is a phrase famously said by Jake in these pages and even requoted in The New York Times. For Todd Beamer, passenger of Flight United 93, his mark of success came when he was promoted from salesman to account manager at Oracle. 


Todd's father, David Beamer, agrees. "Todd's watch was a fine watch," he said. "He was a successful guy."






We can easily recall where we were on Sept. 11, 2001. I was putting my uniform on that morning, grabbing my flight bags and headed to my '65 convertible Mustang as an airline Captain based in Washington, D.C. My neighbor saw me outside and she called me. "Have you seen the news? I don't think you'll be flying anywhere today." I immediately went back inside and followed the horrific events on live TV. 

Todd Beamer


For Todd Beamer, it was a different story. He and his wife had traveled through Italy on a trip paid for by Oracle. The couple returned to the U.S. on Sept. 10, and Todd rose early the following morning to catch Flight 93 out of Newark airport for San Francisco.


Todd's story on that fateful flight is well known. "Let's roll!" were his last recorded words as he and other passengers attempted to storm the cockpit and retake the plane from the hijackers. The slogan subsequently became a battle cry for American forces during the War on Terror. 



In a Nov. 8 address from the World Congress Center in Atlanta, President George W. Bush invoked Todd's words: "Some of our greatest moments have been acts of courage for which no one could have been prepared. But we have our marching orders. My fellow Americans, let's roll!" He used them again in the 2002 State of the Union address: "For too long our culture has said, 'If it feels good, do it.' Now America is embracing a new ethic and a new creed: 'Let's roll.'"


Todd's watch is frozen in time, the date window permanently stuck on "11." It is a two-tone Rolex Datejust Turn-O-Graph with a champagne dial on Jubilee bracelet. The Turn-O-Graph is essentially a Datejust with a rotating bezel. Unfortunately, the model is no longer sold by Rolex; in fact, it hasn’t been since 2011.

Todd's Rolex is charred, smashed, fragmented, missing the crystal, the second hand, and what would appear to be the minute hand and also the bracelet. The Rolex has been through hell, there is no other way to put it. But the coronet logo is unmistakable. Every Rolex tells a story and, in a sense, this one still tells the story of one day, one date. Still displayed in the window.


After the hijackers took over the plane, Todd saw the dead co-pilot laying in the aisle near the cockpit with his throat slit. He reached for the phone on the seat back in front of him and tried to call his wife, but could not get through. 

Screenshot from the movie "United 93"

He instead got a G.T.E. operator. He told her what was happening, and she connected the call to F.B.I. agents. The phone remained connected for fifteen minutes while Beamer and several others organized to overtake the terrorists. 

Moments after Flight 93 crashed in Pennsylvania

He had the flight attendants boil water and assemble whatever could be used as a weapon. He said the Lord's prayer and the Psalm 23 with the G.T.E. operator, others joined in. He then told her to call his wife and kids and tell them he loved them. The last words the operator heard Todd Beamer say were, “Are you guys ready? Let’s roll.” 


We know that Flight 93 was destined for Washington D.C., near where I lived, making this story extra personal. According to the 9/11 Commission Report, at 9:55 am—as I was getting ready for work—the terrorist pilot Ziad Jarrah dialed in the frequency for the navigational aid at Washington Reagan National Airport, clearly indicating that the attack was planned for the nation's capital.

And Todd Beamer, a Rolex on his wrist, said, "Let's roll!" He helped stop the hijackers' plan from unfurling while saving countless lives on the ground.