"Discovered: James Bond's Rolex" translated to German for publication in Chronos magazine

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Shortly after publication of my WatchTime feature article, "Discovered: James Bond's Rolex," we were approached by Chronos magazine to translate those findings into German for its highly discerning audience.

That issue is now available.

It's now estimated that in excess of 100,000 people (across three magazine circulations) have had the opportunity to read about the Rolex model 1016 Explorer that Ian Fleming had in mind when writing about the original, literary personal watch of choice for James Bond in the novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

That was Mr. Fleming's own wristwatch as well: The only Rolex he'd ever owned, according to his stepdaughter, Fionn Morgan, who was interviewed as part of my extensive research.

The Rolex documentation that I've reviewed dates the case manufacture to the fourth quarter of 1960. Its movement is the 1560 caliber and, right up until its display starting last year at the Imperial War Museum, this watch featured the same Radium dial that it had when worn by the creator of Agent 007.

See prior coverage on this Blog for further details.

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and information. [link]
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InSync covers James Bond watches a'la NAWCC Annual Convention

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Hot off the press!

InSync magazine was kind enough to send me an advance copy of its 2009 NAWCC convention coverage of my "Where would James Bond be without his wristwatch?" presentation.

Shown here is a page from its August 2009 issue.

The accompanying image they use features Pierce Brosnan as Agent 007 from the movie, Die Another Day. (The photograph is courtesy of Omega SA, I believe.)
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NAWCC 2009 and Bond Watches: Report 3

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"Where would James Bond be without his wristwatch?" provided me the opportunity to share for the first time a number of exclusive images related to my research and findings on the original, literary James Bond Rolex of Ian Fleming.

Among what only 2009 NAWCC conference attendees have seen in public so far: Photographs of original Rolex documentation dating the Ian Fleming Rolex Explorer 1016, as referenced in my February 2009 WatchTime article, "Discovered: James Bond's Rolex." I was also able to share a close-up image of the Fleming-Bond Rolex Explorer 1016 with its production dial intact, from prior to its replacement for display as part of the Ian Fleming Centenary exhibit at the Imperial War Museum in London.

Access to these is critical to proper identification of the watch.

In addition to the Saturday presentation, a virtually identical Rolex Explorer 1016 was displayed as part of the historical timepieces exhibit at the 64th Annual National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Convention in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

It is believed that this watch was produced by Rolex as little as just 7 hours before the Ian Fleming watch case.

The images shown here are of that "brother" Rolex Explorer 1016 shown last week in Grand Rapids.

Because this wristwatch retains its original dial, the configuration shown here is actually the closest representation of what 007 creator Ian Fleming referenced when writing about the original James Bond Rolex in his novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

The James Bond Watches website has added an evolving complilation of Rolex Explorer reference 1016 images in a variety of aspect ratios and resolutions. [link]

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and access to hi-res image downloads without watermarks. [link]

NAWCC Home Page [link]
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NAWCC 2009 and Bond Watches: Report 2

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Last Saturday, June 13, 2009, the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Convention ("NAWCC") was open to the public.

My contribution to that, of course, was the presentation titled, "Where would James Bond be without his wristwatch?" One of the neat opportunities I had because of the Grand Rapids venue was an opportunity to share some of the Michigan connections to this fascinating field of collecting.

This Blog and the James Bond Watches website are proudly located in the Great State of Michigan. My NAWCC exhibit also included the attendee card I've kept from my visit to The Henry Ford (Museum) when the "Bond, James Bond" international traveling exhibit was here in Dearborn.

It was also my priviledge to reference some truly original research related to the often-debated Rolex Submariner appearances on the wrist of actor Sean Connery as James Bond. In its October 2004 issue, WatchTime published a contribution by Robert Sprague, Member of the American Society of Master Projectionists, from Petoskey, Michigan, detailing his analysis of individual film frames by way of reaching conclusions.

Among other things, his reference to "radium indices" provided a common-ground segue into some revelations of my own that I was able to expand upon for the first time during my NAWCC presentation. More on that in this Blog with Report 3.

Complete James Bond watch / early Rolex Submariner contribution by Robert Sprague, as published WatchTime, October 2004 [link]

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and information. [link]

NAWCC Home Page [link]
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NAWCC 2009 and Bond watches: Report 1

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Grand Rapids was the place to be last week for watch collectors here in the United States.

"James Bond watches" featured significantly in a number ways at the 64th Annual National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors Convention.

For my first post-event Report, I'll begin with the special exhibit room that featured historical timepieces. Security was provided, of course (although not to the status of any "license to kill," I was told; yes, I asked).

The images here are of James Bond watch models that I displayed from my private collection. Breitling, Hamilton (Pulsar), Omega, Rolex, and Seiko were all represented. Also included were some of the licensed product timekeepers that have been released over the years. Along with my first edition, first impression of On Her Majesty's Secret Service, by the creator of Agent 007, Ian Fleming.

An image of Timothy Dalton as James Bond from Licence to Kill provided visibility at a distance. His watch, of course, clearly visible up-close.

What at first was anticipated to be a static display took on a new direction for me after the NAWCC Awards Banquet. The exhibits manager asked if I'd be willing to give a private, VIP showing in the secured room after hours. After that ad hoc presentation, a number of subsequent requests followed. During move-out, security told me that the Bond case was opened more than any other at the convention.

At the risk of sounding cliché here, this really gets to the heart of why I collect James Bond watches: Sharing them with others, and seeing the joy the "theme" of this collection brings to folks.

It was also a nice barometer for what I anticipate will be a very popular exhibit at the National Watch and Clock Museum, "Bond Watches, James Bond Watches," June 2010 through May 2011.

More news to come--.

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and information. [link]

NAWCC Home Page [link]
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NAWCC "Bond" lecture starts at 11:00am today

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Grand Rapids--

Sorry for the late notice, friends (just got this information myself). My presentation titled "Where would James Bond be without his wristwatch?" will start at 11:00am on Saturday, June 13, and run until noon. Q&A will follow.

It's been a great National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors convention. And, particular to our interests, the display of James Bond watches and related materials has been very well received. Full reports from after the event, and photographs, to come.

Also look for an important NAWCC announcement around 12:00pm today that will be of great interest I'm sure to all who are interested in James Bond watches.

Looking forward to seeing some of you here!
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"How I Found the Original James Bond Watch"

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Further details on the literary James Bond watch have just been published by the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors ("NAWCC") in its journal, Bulletin.

As I wrote for the first paragraph: "Details related to my making this first definitive identification were published in the February 2009 issue of WatchTime magazine. So this is not an article about 'what' Agent 007 wore, but, rather ... 'How was it found?'"

Source documentation discussions include research involving the manuscripts and an Uncorrected Proof of On Her Majesty's Secret Service from the archives of the Lilly Library on the campus of Indiana University at Bloomington. Ian Fleming's 1962 letter to Playboy magazine.

And, of course, Rolex paperwork.

Never-before-released technical details take readers inside the original James Bond Rolex. Specific caseback markings are discussed, its movement caliber disclosed. Moreover, the June 2009 issue of the NAWCC Bulletin describes the Radium dial with which Mr. Fleming's Explorer was fitted at manufacture.

Look for a bit of controversy as well. For example, Ian Fleming obviously knew about the Rolex Submariner worn by Sean Connery during location filming for Dr. No in early 1962. James Bond's creator then went on to clearly reject that as his own intent for the 007 wristwatch: Repeatedly.

NAWCC members started receiving their copies of the June Bulletin last week. If you're not a member (you should be!), you can purchase this issue separately through their Gift Shop, and they'll mail it out to you.

NAWCC Contacts [link]
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Presenting: "James Bond Watches" at the 2009 NAWCC National Convention

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"Where would James Bond be without his wristwatch?"

This presentation will be made during the 64th Annual NAWCC National Convention on Saturday, June 13, 2009, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

As noted in a press release from the sponsoring organization, "The talk will be given by Dell Deaton, author of the February 2009 WatchTime feature that details his discovery of the original literary-Bond wristwatch....

"Dell Deaton is also creator of the www.jamesbondwatches.com website."

For additional details and information on James Bond-related watches to be displayed throughout the three-day event, see the James Bond Watches website. [link]

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and information. [link]

The National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors, Inc. ("NAWCC"), is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) association with approximately 23,000 members, representing 55 countries. Complete conference information, including registration and hotel details, can be found on the NAWCC website. [link]
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"Discovered: James Bond's Rolex" now online

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This news just in-- "Discovered: James Bond's Rolex - James Bond, like his creator Ian Fleming, wore a Rolex Explorer I," by Dell Deaton (WatchTime magazine, February 2009, pages 84 - 93).

This is the original article that first definitively identified the literary James Bond watch. It's now available for reading online in its entirety online through a limited rights agreement granted to WatchTime for its website.

Copyright is retained by Dell Deaton, further distribution not permitted without prior written agreement.

The historical significance of the research detailed in this feature article, along with the exceptional credibility associated with its WatchTime print publication, motivated James Bond Watches to make this agreement. WatchTime has a circulation of 60,000 readers, but the history of the 007 character and legacy of Ian Fleming suggest an ongoing interest in this discovery.

As noted on the James Bond Watches Home Page, the watch Mr. Fleming referenced for Bond in his novel, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, was a Rolex model 1016 Explorer on a fixed-link 7206 bracelet with deployant clasp.

A virtually identical Rolex Explorer 1016, produced during the very same quarter of 1960 as the Fleming-Bond watch, will be displayed and discussed in a James Bond wristwatches presentation at the NAWCC National Convention (National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors) next month in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Saturday, June 13, 2009.

Media inquiries are welcome for additional rights and information. [link]

"Discovered: James Bond's Rolex," by Dell Deaton, from February 2009 issue of WatchTime, in *.pdf [link]

WatchTime magazine Home Page [link]
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Is there another smoking gun in the Bond watch info trade offer expose?

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Further evidence suggests that attempts to shut down this Blog on Sunday were tied to my recent revelation that proprietary information from Omega SA had been inappropriately offered to induce replica Bond shirt sales.

At 9:11 pm this past May 24, Markus Hartmaier, Posting under the screen name "Bondtoys," completed an update to the Absolute James Bond Forum.

He wrote that my website had been shut down, implied that he knew the reason, and punctuated his comments with a big smiling emoticon. Nothing about libel, attempts to alter historical records, and the potential amount of money involved in watch sales influence strikes me as appropriately humorous.

Would shutting down my "webpage" be "funny" in a Rose Mary Woods, 18½-minute-gap sorta way?

As it turns out, that was only the beginning

Just over two hours later, Jonathan Deval, a/k/a "Asp9mm," revised a Post he'd made way back on November 7, 2007. Yes, 2007. The original appears above; the altered version is here at right.

What had suddenly moved Mr. Deval to search out that particular Post? And what did he have an interest in changing?

Personally, I noticed that he's removed his offered incentive to prospects willing to help get his replica shirt-making venture off the ground.

"Plus if you buy in, I'll let you know what Omega are doing in the next film too (and it will be a surprize)," he originally wrote with a wink and a smile. That line has since been purged.

A few minutes later, he was digging even deeper into the history of ajb007 to make revisions. This time, going much further back, to December 17, 2006: Two-and-a-half years ago.

The image to the right and above is how it originally looked. The image immediately following it, as Jonathan would now like the world to view it.

Unlike what appears largely limited to text redaction in the Madgascar replica shirt offer incentive, the re-write in this case seems intended not just to cover up his offer of insider information a'la girlfriend Samantha, but to actually suggest some entirely different discussion took place.

"Rose Mary Stretch"

Did he think that the efforts of Markus Hartmaier, a/k/a Bondtoys, had effectively destroyed all evidence of those Posts as they originally appeared?

Is Jonathan Deval, a/k/a Asp9mm, only trying to fool you and me?

Or are these revisions related to some other anticipated review of his claims and offers?

Perhaps by parties potentially damaged by leaks of proprietary corporate information? Was Omega SA and/or its Authorized Dealer network damaged by a leak or leaks of contract specifics a year before Quantum of Solace premiered? In addition to actual sales transactions that might be related to this, what of the impact on its reputation and management?

Don't panic if you see more attempts to shut down James Bond Watches.

The legal folks are back from holiday and know what's going on here.
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Was James Bond Watches shut down for exposing a watch info trade offer?

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In Tomorrow Never Dies, James Bond taunts Elliot Carver with oblique references to his having been involved in the crisis 007 is deployed to investigate.

He's promptly taken to a soundproof room, and-- well, you know the rest.

Author David J. Lieberman, Ph.D.,* recommends this as a powerful and accurate means of truth-detection. "Don't Accuse," he wrote, "Allude." The non-involved will respond to your oblique references with bemusement; those with their "fingers in the jam," as Markus, a/k/a Bondtoys has said, will react differently.

Seeking validation from colleagues on ajb007?

A curious Post went up on the Absolute James Bond Forum this past Sunday, about mid-day here in the United States. Markus reported that my "webpage has been suspended," and punctuated his Post with emoticons depicting a cutesy blush and a big smile.

Um, yeah-- that "webpage" would be what you're looking at here, thank you very much.

The Bondtoys sales site owner went on to say this was because I had referred to folks by their real names.

As my readers already know, countless examples can be found on the Internet of individuals who stand accountable for what they write. John E. Brozek. James M. Dowling. John B. Holbrook, II. Their credibility and authority is in their names, which must be among the reasons they use their real names for accountability.

It's why you'll find me Posting under my own name.

But why the big smile from Markus in his report back to the Absolute James Bond, a/k/a AJB, a/k/a ajb007 Forum?

My Omega / replica James Bond shirts expose

The "name" concern may have been Markus' créneau, but the timing doesn't add up. Markus' full name originally appeared in this Blog last Tuesday, May 19. He watches my Blog daily; he's done programming for the Bondtoys website. If he was worried about the association with his name, why not move on it Wednesday? Thursday? Friday?

What reason could he have, then, to wait until Sunday to try and shut down James Bond Watches?

Here in the United States, of course, yesterday was Memorial Day. Any move accomplished (and bragged about) on Sunday could well have meant an inaccessibility throughout Monday, where businesses were closed here in the U.S. No big deal? What about companies that were open, looking into our Thursday afternoon story, after their own holiday last Friday? For example, in, say, Switzerland?

What else could have been on Markus' mind related to this Blog, long after Tuesday, and important enough to seek having our information flow here silenced going into Monday?

Well, my last Post before the holiday was titled, "Was Omega SA insider information used to sell replica James Bond shirts?" [link] That's the expose we broke last Thursday, where Jonathan Deval, a/k/a Asp9mm, was noted as having stated, in 2007, well-before Quantum of Solace production began in earnest:

"... if you buy in, I'll let you know what Omega are doing in the next film too (and it will be a surprize)," referencing a deal in which he was involved to sell replica Casino Royale shirts.

Quick review of an AJB Thread titled, "The Madagascar Shirt - the deal," shows Bondtoys weighing in just this past January to flank against alternative offerings to "the deal."

"Wasn't it, that Magnoli stopped his first production due some inaccuracies or eventually copyright issues?" Markus taunted. I have no idea who "Magnoli" is; but it looks like he crossed-paths with the entrepreneurial efforts of others, and, well--.

Wait a minute. Does anyone see a pattern?

Jonathan Deval, a/k/a Asp9mm, may claim to have a girlfriend named Samantha who works in marketing at Omega SA. But it's Bondtoys who's proclaimed his devotion to Jonathan for the watch collecting community:

"I am a good friend of the mentioned 'Jonathan,' infact [sic], if he cooked better, I would have married him a long time ago." [link]

Conclusion

Keep your eyes open and it shouldn't take long to see what's behind things.
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*Never Be Lied to Again (St. Martin's Griffin: New York, 1998)
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Was Omega SA insider information used to sell replica James Bond shirts?

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According to James Bond fan Forum ajb007 ("Absolute James Bond"), replicas of the so-called "Madagascar" shirt worn by Daniel Craig as Agent 007 in Casino Royale are available for individual purchase via an initiative on that website.

"What price would you pay for this authentic shirt...?" the original pitch line asked.

On behalf of a selling team that included Jonathan Deval, a/k/a "Asp9mm" (discussed at length on this Blog recently), claims were made of having "located the actual company who made the original," and offering the option of a shirt "made to measure to exactly fit your own DC-torso...."

Notwithstanding apparent issues with buttons on these replica shirts, the project looks like it's reached fruition. A May 11, 2009, contribution to ajb007 shows one of the sellers saying: "I already have a couple of new orders, but I'd like to get some more so please give it serious thought...."

But that was Post number 1233 for an effort that seems to have required quite a bit of pump-priming to get things off top-dead-center after it was announced on November 13, 2007.

Back then, lending help to the sales push on their launch day, Jonathan Deval added the following, using his Asp9mm screen name: "This shirt will be made in a very small number and will never ever be repeated. ... these will be sought after in the future."

Folks had balked at the anticipated price point of $450.00 per copy.

So, just one day and 20 comments later on that Thread, Jonathan Deval, himself, weighed in a second time. The prospects of making this work were "seriously looking bad," he counseled.

"If you could just give us a YES or NO definite answer in the next couple of days and PM or email all of your contacts here on AJB to do the same, [then] we can either form another plan or knock it on the head. It's all or nothing...."

What do replica shirt sales have to do with Omega SA?

Incredibly, Jonathan Deval closed his November 14, 2007, appeal with the following inducement added.

(See screen capture from Absolute James Bond Forum, right.)

"Plus if you buy in, I'll let you know what Omega are doing in the next film too (and it will be a surprize)"

Asp9mm had positioned himself to make such a bold claim with apparent credibility, as noted previously on this Blog. [link]

On September 22, 2006, for example, Jonathan Deval wrote, "My gf [girlfriend] works for Omega in marketing...."

On December 17, 2006, he made the following offer to Absolute James Bond Forum participants: "If you want to put together a few questions concerning CR [Casino Royale] and Omega, I will get her to answer them."

In between, Jonathan Deval made a Post ostensibly from his girlfriend, who he identified as "Samantha," to address Bond-associated Omega bracelet failure issues alleged by Markus Hartmaier, a/k/a Bondtoys. [link]

As I clearly stated in my May 6, 2009, Blog entry, I don't know if there is such a girlfriend at all. If so, does she work for Omega? And if with Omega, in what true capacity?

But an offer to exchange Omega SA insider information in return for pre-production commitments to purchase replica James Bond shirts is certainly something to be investigated. Remember, this offer to disclose Omega watch information was made almost a year before Quantum of Solace was released.

Authorized Dealers contacted by James Bond Watches here in the United States had no idea what Omega model would be featured in that upcoming 007 film release, no information on what was to be promoted and stocked for anticipated sales.

No information would have meant no opportunity that I can think of for any grey market seller or unscrupulous private interest to "'corner the market' on a James Bond watch" before filming ever began on Quantum of Solace. [link]

Was any proprietary information from Omega SA actually disclosed in support of the ad hoc Madagascar shirt project?

Or, for that matter, was any customer or prospect induced to buy based on the implied promise that Jonathan Deval appears to have made on November 14, 2007? Was the Post by Asp9mm meant to associate an entrepreneurial venture with the earned credibility of Omega SA and its formal relationship with the 007 films?

Concurrent with this Blog entry, James Bond Watches is offering Omega SA, Bienne Switzerland, the chance to formally comment.

I'll let you know what they say.
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