The movie star sported the timepiece in the 1971 action movie set in Monaco about the 24 hours of Le Mans car race.

The Tag Heuer Monaco has a black alligator skin strap and a stylish retro 60s style blue face. It was the first ever automatic and square cased chronograph watch.

The star wearing the wristwatch helped the brand to become a favourite of motor racing drivers and fans around the world

Auctioneers had been expecting it to fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars but the sale surpassed expectations when the hammer came down at a staggering $799,500.

McQueen starred in Le Mans eight years after his most famous movie, The Great Escape.

He was arguably at the height of his fame and appeal when he appeared in the film. It is considered by some fans to be one of the greatest motor sports movies of all time for its portrayal of the iconic 24 hours race around the streets of Le Mans in Monaco, France. However, it did relatively badly in the U.S. as audiences were unfamiliar with the race.

Tag Heuer was founded in 1860 but after McQueen wore the watch in the film the brand became even more popular among motor sports fans and drivers.

The watch is one of several automatic Heuer chronographs that run on the Caliber 11 series of movements.

They were introduced in 1969 as a series of wrist watches made in honour of the Monaco Grand Prix.

Limited Edition ‘Bremont P-51’, a chronograph chronometer built with original parts from the famous 1944 Mustang WWII aircraft P-51K-10 (serial number 44-12016), a Pacific war veteran also known as ‘Fragile but Agile’. The Original aluminum metal from the aircraft fuselage is integrated into both the dial and the movement of the timepiece; with the dial itself inspired by the clocks found in the P-51 aircraft. The 43mm hardened steel Trip-Tick® case, using Bremont’s B-EBE2000 technology, integrates the new rotating ‘Roto-Click®’ inner bezel that houses four ball bearings inside the case. As with many of Bremont’s latest watch designs, the P-51 is assembled the company’s atelier in England rather than their workshop in Biel-Bienne in Switzerland, and houses a modified Swiss BE-54A automatic chronometer movement that also shows UTC time. The watch will be limited to only 251 pieces and will retail at $11,558.57.

A Brief History Of The P-51K-10 MustangThe P-51K-10 aircrafts were (serial number 44-12016) rolled off the North American Aviation assembly line in Dallas, Texas, on, December 18th 1944 and was then loaded on to a ship on January 15th 1945 for an assignment in the Far East. It was to take part in the American campaign to retake the Islands from the Japanese. On arrival in the Pacific Theatre of Operations, the Philippine aircraft was assigned to the 342nd Fighter Squadron of the 348th Fighter Group, which was stationed at the San Marcelino airbase, just north of Manila Bay.

Lt. Bert Lee Jr. was assigned to fly the aircraft and was credited with two confirmed victories during the war, which accounts for the two Japanese flags painted below his name on the plane. One was a Japanese A6M “Zero” fighter near Manila and the other a twin-engine “Betty” bomber. A lot of Lt. Lee’s missions in the P-51 were ground support in what was then Indochina.

Lee and his Mustang both survived the war. Following its time in the US Air Force, ‘Fragile but Agile’ then spent timeserving with both the Swedish and Israeli military before eventually being restored by pilot and collector Stephen Grey and The Fighter Collection based at Duxford in the UK. In 2009 another collector and good friend of Stephen’s, ‘Dan Friedkin’, based in Houston, Texas, acquired the Mustang.

The Bremont P-51 should be ready to be delivered within the next 3 weeks and out of 251 that are being made, we have less than 40 still available! Please pre-order to guarantee your collection upgrade.

Derek Jeter established the Turn 2 Foundation in 1996, his rookie year, and has been actively involved in its inspiring and successful youth programs since its inception.

The ‘BOLD’ collection has additional styles that are readily available in all black, with just a luminescent dot at 12 o’clock, with  the men’s 3600011 created in all white.  The clever white design has a 43.5mm white dial with silver hands, three white sub-dials and the signature “soleil” dot, all atop a case that is made from hi-tech composite material with stainless steel inside.  The white leather strap has a purple lining, and the metalized scratch resistant crystal has an anti-reflective coating.   Each of the Movado Bold watches has a Swiss Quartz movement.

Ten models of the Movado Bold collection are available at Maddaloni Jewelers located in Huntington, NY. Call for further information 888.999.4038

but this year watch brands are bringing it on BIG! As we are all looking forward to Basel in March, we have been hearing the color ‘brown’ in many different hues is the notable trend in timepiece design.  The standout look is weathered brown, complementing a strap and case, which transcends military chic and of course fierce functionality!

New comer to the watch industry is ‘Bremont’. The collections are making big noise and has the quality and design to back them up. Many celebrities have been spotted wearing the fashionable timepieces around the globe. Ryan Secrest will be sporting the Alt1-C on the 2011 season of American Idol. We are so excited to see the P-51 Limited Edition watch which

Tom Cruise Wearing U-Boat's Alt1-C

will be unveiled on May 5, 2011 with there NY retailor Maddaloni Jewelers.  The collection will be limited to 251 pieces and will be built with original parts from the famous 1944 Mustang WWII aircraft. Tag Heuer is keeping their rise into the more complicated timepieces with their Carrera collection.  Alpina is coming out with an Aviator collection to round out the brand. Ladies pieces are all the rage for Fredique Constant adding another ladies collection to the brand. The most exciting news comes from Christian Dior, with the launch of the highly secretive new ladies timepiece constructed in sapphire crystal.

]]> http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/02/timepieces-the-most-distinguished-accessory-has-many-surprises-for-2011/feed/ 0 http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/01/905/ http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/01/905/#comments Tue, 18 Jan 2011 02:53:46 +0000 maddaloni http://www.longislandjeweler.info/?p=905 By Jennifer Heebner

This story appears in the JCK Magazine.

Retail Details: Maddaloni Jewelers’ Lou Maddaloni

The watch man on Swiss tourbillons, Florida sushi, and Long Island guys’ nights out

1. What’s your most memorable sale and why?

A few months back, a client of mine expressed interest in buying a very special timepiece by Ulysse Nardin. So I arranged a visit to its U.S. head quarters in Boca Raton, Fla. The customer suggested we fly down on his private jet. Then, Ulysse Nardin was nice enough to welcome us with a sushi lunch and a private viewing of their spectacular timepieces. It was during that visit that my client purchased a limited edition royal blue tourbillon set with round diamonds and blue baguette-cut sapphires for $400,000, as well as a few others.

2. What’s the best idea you’ve come up with for your store?

We recently instituted a watch collectors club that meets two to three times per year. At the meetings, we host a five-course dinner in the store—with tablecloths and silverware—and have [representatives of ] a featured watch brand come and speak, bring in their newest products, and talk about limited editions and introductions for the year ahead. It’s kind of a guys’ night (we have cigars). The club fosters the interests of watch collectors and connects them to others who share their passion.

3. When you walk through your front door, what do you like most about your store?

I have to say that when I come into the store every morning, I look forward to the people I work with. The Mad daloni team is dedicated to giving each customer a positive experience. Customer retention has been a key to the success of my business.

4. How do you differentiate your store from the competition?

We are passionate about watches. Maddaloni can converse about the finer points—like swan-neck gaskets underneath screw heads—of models we don’t even stock. Sometimes we know more about models than the brand representatives or stores that do carry them. We also write down everything—any and all information the customer gives, from their pets to the type of car they drive—on a job envelope. Even the most mundane information can be a tool to use in a future sale.

5. What was your finest hour in customer service?

We had a customer buying a particularly complicated platinum limited-edition perpetual-calendar pocket watch, which also happened to be the last one available in the world! In the midst of the sale, it became evident there was a screw loose inside the watch; the head of the screw had actually broken off inside. Since we have a Swiss-trained timepiece technician on premises, we were able—in the span of a few short hours—to disassemble the watch, remove the screw, and fabricate a new one from scratch, right there in the store. The watchmaker then reassembled the watch, and Maddaloni delivered the piece, a $102,000 sale, in time for the owner’s dinner plans that night. If that watch had had to go back to the manufacturer, it would have been sent back to Switzerland and would have taken four to six months to repair.

Maintenance of a fine timepiece will ensure the integrity and precision intended for watch.