Why is it that people desire timepieces solely for the reason that some notable figure here or there owned the same in the past? This is something I don’t understand, I’m more interested in events than people when it comes to watch history or history in general. I do agree, however, that there is something insightful about understanding what someone might choose as a timepiece. And in that lens, I certainly understand what the allure of the stories behind famous figures' watches may be.
Personally, I find the early days of Hollywood to be fascinating, like something out of a dystopian world. It’s almost as if with all the death and devastation that is often linked with the first half of the 20th century, we still managed to have a good time, or at least it seemed so in one corner of California.
The early days of Hollywood in the 1920s and 1930s were one thing, but by the time the 1950s rolled around the movie business had changed immensely. This is where James Dean comes in. Dean was born in 1931 in Marion, Indiana. In his youth he moved back and forth between Indiana and California before going to UCLA to study theatre. His first major role was in 1951, in an Easter special that contrasted the experiences of soldiers in the Korean War to those of Jesus’ followers before his crucifixion, called Hill Number One: A Story of Faith and Inspiration. After some more minor roles Dean moved to New York City where he starred in Broadway productions before getting a role in East of Eden in 1955. That same year Dean also starred in Rebel Without a Cause, the movie that made him the symbol of a generation, and Giant. Unfortunately, however, he died in a car accident that same year – and was the first person to receive an Academy Award posthumously.
Despite the bitter end, there were a few watches along the way worth mentioning. First, there was what is believed to be a Westclox Wrist Ben, that he is pictured wearing on the set of Rebel Without a Cause.
James Deans wearing what is believed to be a Westclox Wrist Ben, circa 1955
1952 Westclox advertisement featuring the Wrist Ben / Credit: ClockHistory.com
Westclox was an American watchmaker popular in the mid-20th century, with the Wrist Ben model said to have been released in the 1930s. Dean is pictured wearing a watch that looks very close to the Westclox, hence the speculation.
James Dean’s Elgin pocket watch / Credit: Antiquorum
Another James Dean watch was also American, 8 years ago Antiquorum auctioned an Elgin pocket watch owned by Dean for about $42,000. James is said to have purchased this watch when he had just moved to New York in the early 1950s as a struggling actor, it was known as his ‘lucky watch’. He gifted it to Tillie Starriet with whom he had a close relationship over her years of working at Warner Brothers.
The third and final watch connected to James Dean is speculated to have been a Jaeger-LeCoultre Powermatic Nautilus. This is another timepiece that Dean was pictured wearing in relation to Rebel Without a Cause and according to the Fairmount Historical Museum also in Giant. Dean is said to have been wearing this watch at the time of his death in the fatal car crash, the very same watch that is kept by the Fairmont Historical Museum in Indiana.
Dean’s Jaeger-LeCoultre Powermatic pictured at the Fairmont Historical Museum in Indiana. / Credit: Timezone user
1950 Jaeger-LeCoultre Powermatic Cal. 480 / Credit: Itsawindup
While his tragic death was a sorry end to a career that was just getting started, he left behind quite a legacy as an actor with only three major films to his name. The mystery behind his two timepieces is even more fitting from our perspective. Despite the short story, it does give at least insight into his character - for example, understanding how proud he was of his modest Elgin pocket watch. A sentiment we can all relate to in regards to our own first ‘big’ watch purchases.
By: Andres Ibarguen
Nicholas Ray and James Dean on the set of Rebel Without a Cause, 1955
Read more:
“James Dean.” Encyclopedia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/biography/James-Dean-American-actor.
“The History of Westclox Wrist Watches.” ClockHistory.com, https://clockhistory.com/westclox/products/wristwatch/index.html.
“James Dean’s Elgin Pocket Watch.” Antiquorum, June 22nd, 2013, https://catalog.antiquorum.swiss/en/lots/james-dean-s-elgin-pocket-watch-lot-273-521.
A vintage Vulcain currently for sale by Toronto Vintage Watches. Click here.