Watches in Series: America’s Next Top Model, CSI: Miami, CSI: New York, Dr. House, Heroes and Grey’s Anatomy.

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America’s Next Top Model

America’s Next Top Model (known as well as Top Model or ANTM) is a reality television show in which a number of women compete for the title of America’s Next Top Model and a chance to start their career in the modelling industry.

Nigel Barker – Rolex DateJust – America’s Next Top Model.

J. Alexander - Rolex - America’s Next Top Model.

CSI: Miami

CSI: Miami (Crime Scene Investigation: Miami) is a spin-off of the CBS network series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The series is an American crime drama television series that trails the investigations of a team of Miami-Dade forensic scientists as they unveil the circumstances behind mysterious and unusual deaths and other crimes.

Lieutenant Horatio Caine (David Caruso) – Ritmo Mundo Ponce.

CSI: New York

CSI: NY (Crime Scene Investigation: New York) is an American police procedural television series premiered on September 22, 2004. It was the second spin-off, indirectly, from the popular CBS show CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and directly from CSI: Miami, during an episode of which several of the CSI: NY characters made their first appearance.

Dr. Sheldon Hawkes (Hill Harper) – Kobold – CSI: NY.

House

Gregory House, M.D., is a fictional character and protagonist of the American medical drama House. Portrayed by Hugh Laurie, the character is a maverick medical genius with two specializations, in infectious diseases and nephrology. He works as the Chief of Diagnostic Medicine at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital heading a team of diagnosticians.

Hamilton Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) – Hamilton Khaki King

Heroes

Heroes is an American science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring. The series begins by telling the stories of apparently ordinary individuals who mysteriously develop superhuman abilities and who then seek to use them to prevent the end of the world as foreseen in images produced by a precognitive painter.

Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar) – Rolex Submariner

Grey’s Anatomy

Grey’s Anatomy is an American medical drama television series that follows the lives of five surgical interns, later residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital. Besides their careers the series also follows their personal lives.


Panerai196Dr. Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington) – Panerai PAM 196 Chronograph.












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Steve McQueen's former Tag Heuer Monaco, his Scott super Squirrel Bike and a Rolex Submariner will be auctioned during next New York Auction

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(Steve McQueen)

Terrence Steven "Steve" McQueen was born on March 24, 1930 in Beech Grove, Indiana (Marion County). Steve was an American movie actor nicknamed “The King of Cool”.

McQueen is known as the highest paid movie star of the sixties and seventies. He is also known as one of the best actors in film history and his films are considered classics. Even though he participated in 26 movies, some of his greatest films are The Great Escape, The Sand Pebbles (Academy award nomination), Bullitt (exciting car chase), The Getaway, Papillion or Le Mans.

(Steve McQueen Rolex Explorer II (1965))
[Available at Interwatches.com]

The real Steve McQueen, not the one in the movies, wore a Rolex. He wore a Rolex known as the "steve McQueen Rolex", the Rolex Explorer II, model 1955, with an orange 24hour hand.

(Steve McQueen)

He was an enthusiastic racer of both motorcycles and cars. While he studied acting, he supported himself partly by competing in weekend motorcycle races and bought his first motorcycle with his winnings. He is recognized for performing many of his own aerial tricks, especially the mainstream of the stunt driving during the high-speed chase scene in Bullitt. In addition, McQueen also designed and patented a bucket seat for race cars.

(Steve McQueen riding his Scott super Squirrel Bike )

He found out he had lung cancer, and with only two months to live he and his wife went to Mexico for treatment. At the Mexican clinic, he underwent an agonizing three-month regimen of animal cell injections and was taking over 100 vitamins a day. Still, his body continued to weaken. He had surgery to remove an abdominal tumor and soon after that it was all over for the celebrated actor.

(Patek Philippe Geneve Ref. 1463 - 18K Pink Gold)

McQueen died on November 7, 1980 at age 50, in Juarez, Mexico. An open Bible lay across his chest and Steve McQueen lay in death with a smile on his face. It is said that his body remains in ashes, as he was cremated and scattered over the Pacific Ocean.

(Steve McQueen's Rolex Submariner Ref 5512 )

Steve McQueen’s TAG Heuer Monaco, his Scott super Squirrel Bike (1929) the historically one he shared with Von Dutch and, last but not least, a Rolex Submariner (Ref 5512) will all be available to buy during next New York Aintiquorum’s Auction.

(Steve McQueens historical Scott Super Squirrel Bike)

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Rolex Movements

MOVEMENTS

Since the beginning, Rolex used Aegler’s movements , so the firsts ones were powered by jewelled lever movements from Jean Aegler’s factory placed on Rebberg street which later gave the name to the movement. Rebberg movement was introduced in the early years of this century and was initially available with both lever and cylinder escapements.

In 1912, Hans Wilsdorf convinced of the imminent arrival of the wristwatch, gave Hermann Aegler the largest order the firm had ever received. The Rebberg was produced in two different grades, 15 and 7 jewels. The “Rolex 15 Jewels” model featured an all over machined finished to the plates and featured a main winding wheel.

Later, the Rebberg movement was replaced for the Hunter one which production would run almost twice as long. It was first introduced in 1923 in a 10 – ½” size not being recognizable to most of the people because the center wheel bridge is completely different from the later, a more common version. All Hunter movements have a polished rhodium finish. The initial version of the 10 – ½” Hunter was made in 3 different grades: Prima, Extra Prima and Ultra Prima; all of them with 15 jewel movements. The Hunter was the first Rolex movement capable of being timed to chronometer precision. These, were 16, 17 or 18 jewel movements with capped escape jewels, and always had a “Chronometer” sign on its dial.






In 1935 a new Rolex came up with a new patent, the 188077 model: the Superbalance in which timing adjustment screws were recessed from the external surfaces of the balance wheel. The introduction of the Superbalance produce the abandonment of the three grades previously used. The differences were now in the quality of the jewelling.

A visible way of judging the quality of the movement was by looking at the number of adjustments engraved on the main plate. The simplest movements had only two adjustments while better grade movements could have between five to seven adjustments.

From 1935 to 1969, the company produced two iterations of the same 10 – ½” Hunter Calibre: the first one has a much simplified balance wheel and the movements are usually 17 jewels and, the second one, also used this simplified balance wheel and is signed “Rolex 15 jewels Swiss made” on the winding wheel.

The earliest Perpetual models had three immediate factors: the engraving, the rotor and a small slot in the top plate of the frame in order to facilitate the adjustment of the regulator without removing the rotor and its accompanying plate. It was replaced by the “Swiss Made”, engraved around the center retaining screw.
The last original movement was replaced by one that reaches to the edge of the case and it has no longer a movement ring: the Chronometer. By 1944, it changed again adding the signature “oyster Perpetual” for the first time. Then, it changed again from being based on the 9 – ¾” Hunter to the 10 – ½” Hunter. This last version was launched as the calibre 720 and it continued till 1950 when it was changed for the calibre 1030. This last one had a flat rotor, two angled cuts ending in circles and a Rolex coronet engraved on the rotor with the legend “Rolex Perpetual”. The model 1030 wasn’t based on a Hunter movement and it was also the first to wind in both rotor directions. Even though the calibre 1030 was a very successful model for Rolex, because of technology developments, it was replaced in 1957 by the new calibre 1530.

The calibre 1530 featured a flatter rotor with five complete annular cuts and two open cuts. The movement was equipped with a free sprung balance produced by Stella for Rolex and it was timed by screws on the wheel rather than the traditional regulator.




Between 1957 and 1977 the 1500 series was introduced. The first one was the calibre 1535 with a progressive calendar mechanism. This model was followed by the 1555 calibre launched which was then followed by the 1565 GMT. In 1964, with the introduction of the faster beat train, meant the rename of the all the previous ones. The new Milgauss featured the calibre 1580. In 1977, the Datejust was introduced; calibre 3035, capable of improving the exactness of the watches. The calibre 3035 was the first one to be fitted with a “quick set” date wheel.












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Rolex Lady's Watches

THE LADY’S ROLEX

At the very beginning, when Wilsdorf and Davis established the original company, the wristwatches they produced were exclusively for ladies. All of these watches used Aegler movements signed “Rebberg” below the dial. The simple early lady’s watches are classic “transitional” pieces and were tonneau, baguette and rectangular models introduced around 1920. The first ones to incorporate the movement made exclusively for Rolex by Aegler.


During the war years Rolex focused on the production of man’s steel Oyster and the lady’s one were ignored till the Rolex Jubilee in November, 1945, when Rolex introduced two Jubilee models in which was included the lady’s version of the Perpetual, model 4487. Ten years later, at Basel Spring Fair, an Oyster Perpetual Chronometer lady’s version was introduced.














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Rolex Quartz Watches

QUARTZ

(Rolex Oyster Quartz 19018)

Even though Quartz watches are much more accurate than mechanical movements, strangly Rolex produced a few. Strangely, Rolex was one of the first companies to develop quartz movement.
The Quartz Rolex was launched on June 5, 1970 as model 5100, It was the first Rolex production to have a Sapphire crystal and it featured hacking seconds and quick date change. It was an angular shaped and not and Oyster one. It was available in 18 kt gold, both yellow and white.
It is the only model that Rolex ever signed their name on as Rolex was not involved in the construction of the movement.












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Rolex: THE GMT-MASTER

(Rolex: THE GMT-MASTER)

Pan American Airways was the first airline to make intercontinental flights with the 707 aircraft. Pan- American was worried about the effect of “Jet-Lag” on its pilots to commission a research and as a result, the company asked Rolex to develop a watch that could keep their pilots knowing their home time and the local time to which they had reached. In remarkably short order the task force produced the “G.M.T. Master” (model 6542), named after Greenwich Mean Time, the world’s standard time. The GMT Master featured a 1035 calibre movement upgraded with the addition of a supplementary 24 hour driving wheel. This new movement was called calibre 1065 powered now four hands where the new hand was complemented by a rotable 24 hour bezel. In 1976, approximately, the GMT Master started featuring the hacking second’s movement and a few years later the “quickset” attribute was also added. Finally, the sapphire crystal was added.
The second and newest model was the GMT-Master II, model 16710, featuring the new calibre 3085 movement which allowed the hour hand to be moved forward and backwards in precise one hour jumps without losing the precise accuracy which was usually the reason the watch was bought in the first place.












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ROLEX: THE KEW “A”

In the 50s Rolex undertook the challenge of submitting its watches to the Royal Observatory at Kew for chronometer testing. Almost all of the tested watches passed and received the coveted Kew “A” certificates and the distinction of “especially good results” meaning that they produced rating in the top 20% of the accuracy needed to obtain a Kew “A” certificate. It was confirmed that the daily variation was less than half a second.

After obtaining their certificates, the movements were returned to Switzerland and cased prior to sale. Some of them required multiple testing so it was quite common for watches with sequential movement numbers to have case numbers all over the place

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Rolex Sea Dweller Watch

THE SEA DWELLER

While the Submariner was capable of working at the depths the divers did, the long exposure to high pressures had not been anticipated by its designers. The Subamriner was designed to be waterproof and airtight and to survive the pressures of the deep water.

Rolex and Comex (COmpagnie Maritime d’EXpertise) started working together in order to design a watch that would be efficient enough to work properly under the conditions the industrial deep-sea diving as Comex is the world leader in sub-sea engineering and in manned and unmanned sub-sea interventions, scoured all the seas on earth and worked at depths of over 300 meters. Although both companies working together first took one normal Submariner and modified it till they reached the perfect model: “The Submariner 2000 Sea Dweller”. The divers require the best equipment that is available because precision and perfection according to watch quality can mean the difference between life and death. The Sea Dweller differs from a regular Submariner by being much thicker and heavier. It has no “Cyclops” date lens because the glass because of the glass thickness placing the lens at a greater distance from the date disc. According to its bracelet it is machined from solid metal.

The advantage of the Sea Dweller over a Submariner is its ability to undergo repeated compression/decompression cycles in a helium-oxygen atmosphere.

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Rolex Submariner Watch

THE SUBMARINER

In 1954 Basel, Rolex presented the Submariner model, Rolex pride. The model number 6204 watch was waterproof to a more realistic 200 meters (or 660 feet). It was sold as the watch that was the diver’s friend. When the development of the SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving as a sport really began to take off toward the end of the fifties, a reliable watch was needed as much as a reliable oxygen tank. Rolex developed the Submariner 6204, which had simple parallel hands and it had no protective shoulders by the winding crown and the rotating bezel had only five minute markers. Two years later, this model was replaced by two Submariner models. Theses ones were: the 6538 model (waterproof to 660 feet) and the 6536 model (waterproof only to 330 feet), commonly known by collectors as the “James Bond” models. Then, although the model was redefined it kept the same model number and it introduced a more robust case with bezel markings for the first 15 minutes and a red triangle at the 12 position. Besides, it featured a larger “Triplock” style crown which had the “Brevette” sign under the crown or patented around the circumference. The watch had an officially certified chronometer powered by the new 1030 movement.
When model 5512 was launched in 1959, the new case featured the protective shoulders which defended the weakest part of the watch from inadvertent knocks and harms underwater. The new Submariner was launched on the back of Jacques Piccard’s latest adventure where he dove into a new record depth of 25, 798 feet (10.916 meters). The watch was exposed to pressures of over seven tons per square inch, the watch was found in perfect conditions with no evidence of moisture inside the case.
In 1965, when the 1565 calibre movement was fitted to the Submariner divers had the joy of combining the benefits of both chronometers movements and date function in one watch. The new model’s number was: 1680.












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