The Stories
Watches and & the Adventurers that Wore them
Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood:
the Inspirations for Cliff Booth & His Atypical Watch
In 1972, after years of research and work, Citizen launched its unique vertical-clutch column wheel Ref. 8110 automatic chronograph as a direct challenge to the world’s first automatic chronograph, Seiko's legendary 6139. Decades later, in Quentin Tarantino's 2019 ode to Hollywood, "Once Upon A Time...in Hollywood," Brad Pitt – playing the stunt double to Leonardo DiCaprio’s fading film star character, Rick Dalton – would wear this Citizen chronograph throughout the film on a leather bund strap, making the small watch look, much like Cliff Booth, larger than life while bringing considerable attention to a once seemingly obscure watch...
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Sonya Lim and her husband Christopher Turner didn’t intend to join the CIA, but both – akin to a larger number than you would expect – happened onto a career spanning multiple decades of running foreign assets and leading clandestine operations by chance. Sonya, a first-generation Korean-speaking immigrant, was a PhD student when, “two gentlemen showed up and said they were from the CIA. So, my first response was, ‘I never applied.’ They said, ‘We understand’…and they chuckled.” But the Agency had read Sonya correctly – she had an appetite for adventure and wanted to serve her country. After a three-hour interview with numerous “How would you react in this situation?” queries the two provided Sonya cash (untraceable, naturally) to cover her travel expenses...
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The world of horology is filled with highly unusual watch collabs, and some that just fit - Heuer and Japanese racing company Racing Mate for the latter, the oddly paired KITH clothing company and TAG Heuer for the former. Some work, some decidedly do not. Readers of our articles here have most likely surmised that we love unusual Seiko collabs, in particular when it involves the iconic first automatic chronograph in the world, the legendary Seiko 6139. Like an atypical Seiko and Isuzu Motor Corporation team up...
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Watches of Espionage: A Second Seiko 6139 Chronograph In Outer Space
NASA Astronaut and US Air Force Colonel Richard Covey recalls the first time he glimpsed the sunrise over the curvature of the Earth from 150 miles up in space, “I thought two things: First, ‘Holy Cow!’ This was followed by wonder at the thin protective film of the Earth’s atmosphere, the only thing differentiating it from millions of lifeless rocks floating throughout the universe.” On Covey’s wrist was not his NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster Professional, but a 1970s Seiko 6139 chronograph, serving as the second now-confirmed instance of one of the world’s first automatic chronographs being used as a tool by NASA astronauts in space...
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It’s been more than half a century since the debut of the world’s first automatic chronograph, Seiko’s Ref. 6139, in early 1969. With its dozens of variants, it’s inevitable the watch would find its way onto the wrists of numerous adventurers – Formula 1 (François Cevert) and Japanese racers Le Mans (Tetsu Ikuzawa), NASA astronauts (William Pogue and Richard O'Covey), sailing innovators (Bram Dally), actors (Al Pacino, Daniel Dae Kim, Bruce Lee, Ronny Chieng, Sung Kang, and a slew of others), military worldwide, and more. For years, I’ve devoted skills learned from previous intelligence and diplomat careers to unearth relationships between the 6139 and intriguing icons, past and present. Nearly a decade ago, I heard rumors one Seiko 6139 variant, the 6139-7010 SpeedTimer, had been issued to Japanese Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) jet fighter pilots during the 1970s. At the time, I was able to find a few saliant details on the watch, but information was scant...
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Unless you've been living under a rock (or in a...bunker?), you've no doubt heard of the hit Amazon Prime series, Fallout. A rather popular live-action adoption of the hit post-apocalyptic role-playing video game of the same name, Fallout is set during the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd centuries, and its atomic-punk retro-futuristic setting is influenced by the post-war culture of 1950s United States, with its combination of hope for the promises of technology and the lurking fear of nuclear annihilation. But, dear reader, it's not all fiction - during the Cold War, fears of the same annihilation in a fiery nuclear blast were ever present - and the United States Government (USG) established the Office of Civilian Defense...
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The "True Bruce Lee" - A Black Dial 1969/70 Seiko 6139-6010 Proof/Proof, Likely with Hong Kong Day Wheel
After months of research - to include outreach to Shannon Lee, Bruce Lee’s daughter - we assess there exists sufficient evidence to name this as the Seiko 6139 legendary martial artist Bruce Lee - yes that Bruce Lee - wore. We feel confident this Seiko 6139 variant is worthy of the name “True Bruce Lee” - a black dial 1969/70 Seiko 6139-6010 Proof/Proof, and with slightly less confidence, that it featured a Hong Kong day wheel. We base this assessment on numerous photographs, a constructed timeline, interweb sleuthing, and some excellent research done in various watch forums...
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Watches of espionage:
SOG Seikos - Vietnam MACV-SOG Watches, Part II
Watches of Espionage previously covered a trio of vintage Seiko dive watches worn by the U.S. Military’s ultra-secretive Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG, aka SOG). All three of these watches were used during the 1960/70’s Vietnam conflict. But now, a fourth reference has emerged. We’ve since spoken with a respected SOG operator, Michael “Magnet” O’Byrne, and we’ve uncovered a SOG-issued Seiko previously unknown to the watch community, the 1960’s Seiko 6106-8100. As likely the sole HUMINT Case Officer in SOG - and later combat pilot - O’Byrne earned three Bronze Stars (and five Purple Hearts) during his Vietnam tours. During our chats, he shared a wealth of stories about his tours and, of course, his time with his USMIL-issued Seiko...
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Soldier of Fortune: The MACV-SOG Issue
Soldier of Fortune penetrates secrecy surrounding Special Operations Group in Southeast Asia - before the U.S. Government declassified the existence of MACV-SOG
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The "True Cevert"
A 1970 Seiko 6139-6009 Resist Automatic Chronograph
Within the Road Rat automotive magazine Autumn/Winter 2018 debut edition, an article was included on the Seiko 6139 automatic chronograph – the first automatic chronograph in the world – and its connection to Formula One (F1) racing legend, François Cevert, marking the first widely(ish) publicized link between the dark blue-dialed 6139 and Cevert. Following our research into the “true” variant of the 6139 Bruce Lee, we endeavored to do similar to discover the “true” variant Cevert wore – after research, we assess the “True Cevert” to be a 6139-6009, most likely dating to 1970...
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A Sailing Innovator's Seiko Chronograph:
A Seiko 6139 "Deep Blue" Owned by Bram Dally
Every watch – in particular vintage – has a story to tell; some are short tales, and some long. This mid-1970 Seiko 6139 "Deep Blue" here has a great story to tell, and the journey begins with a case back inscription. I sourced this May 1970 Seiko 6139-6019 “Deep Blue” from an estate sale in mid-2021. I was immediately drawn to the case back inscription – “Bram Dally, My Captain - July 5, 1971” – but the 6139 was quite beat up, with a heavily scarred crystal, dirty case, and decidedly not in working order. After I acquired it, the 6139 sat ignored for months awaiting its turn in the watchmaker queue. Once our watchmakers worked their magic on the Deep Blue, my curiosity was once more piqued – so I started researching...
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A Japanese Newspaper's
100th Anniversary watch - the 1974 Seiko 7005-7001 "Yomiuri Shimbun" Emerald Automatic
More evidence the 1960’s and 1970’s were a golden era for Seiko is evident in its long-running 700X line - such as the example from 1974 here, with its uniquely-designed spectacular emerald dial celebrating the 100th anniversary of Tokyo-based newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun...all with links to Cold War espionage and an alleged WWII war criminal. But first, some history...
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A United States Navy Diver and His Tested 1971 Seiko 6105-8110 "Captain Willard" Dive Watch
Seiko’s dive watch history is, well, legendary – and among them, few of its divers are better known than the 1970s Seiko 6105-8010/8019 “Captain Willard.” The 6105 has swiftly become the vintage dive watch to own among those "in the know." It’s quite easy to see why (even before the nickname and its USMIL heritage, which I will get to) – the build quality and finishing is exceptional, on par with other high end divers of the same period (aside from that pesky 6105 crown lock design). This pristine and all original May 1971 Seiko 6105-8110 here is a one-owner watch for the last 50 years, purchased in 1971 in a U.S. Navy PX in Puerto Rico by a U.S. Navy diver we will call “Augie,” who has engraved his initials and nom de guerre on the back of the 6105 case and case back. And he has an interesting story to tell...
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America's Outer-Space Spy Program, Its First Black Astronaut, and his Watch
On December 8th 1967, a specially modified supersonic Lockheed F-104D Starfighter – part of a United States Air Force (USAF) then-classified Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program – taxied down the runway at Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) in California. The weather, a chill 50 degrees, was accompanied by a wind speed of eight miles an hour with 20-mile visibility, perfect for flying. Strapped to the wrists of the two F-104 pilots were most likely Benrus GG-W-113's. All ideal for testing secret aircraft part of a USAF black project to place USMIL officers into outer space for 30-day reconnaissance spy missions. That chill day in late 1967, Lawrence was engaged in what he enjoyed most, mentoring another pilot and imparting hard-won flying knowledge. But one of the two F-104 pilots had only minutes to live…
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A Cold War U.S. Navy Sailor's Watch - A 1940s Seeland Mechanical
Seeland Watch Company (SWC), formed in 1873, has a rather unique and controversial past. Although its start was one of pocket watches, it evolved to wristwatches during the 20th century - such as this example here. The Seeland Watch Company was a brand name for the Swiss company Les Fils de R. Picard, better known as the Invicta Watch Company – or IWC – founded in 1837. IWC was declared bankrupt albeit commercially viable in 1877 when Frederic Seeland assumed management of the factory. But after fraud allegations, where did Frederick Seeland flee to?
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A Cold War USAF Fighter Pilot, His Career & His Watches
Albert Schultz, my grandfather, retired in the 1970s from the United States Air Force as a full bird Colonel in command of a USAF base in Ohio. Throughout his career, he cut a dashing figure in photographs and throughout his life he was a man you respected. He coupled his tough love with a great sense of humor and a love of practical jokes. He loved serving his country in the USAF and accumulated a few watches throughout this career and travels. Albert was another in a long line of soldiers – his great-grandfather had been a soldier in the Prussian army, emigrating to Virginia in 1852, and he had numerous distant relatives that had served in the American Revolution. Albert attended Ohio State, but his education was interrupted by WWII – in mid-1942, not long after Pearl Harbor, he enlisted and completed basic training in Los Angeles, California. Newly married to my grandmother following basic, he embarked on a series of air force flight schools throughout California and Arizona on single, multi-engine, transport, and bomber aircraft – fellow cadets would fail out and a few died in training accidents. What followed was the adventure of a lifetime...