3 US Presidents and Their Watches
Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States in January, causing a bit of a stir by wearing a Rolex. To mark the occasion, here are some of the other watches worn by past White House residents
1
JOHN F KENNEDY
35th president
The politician was given a square-shaped Omega, which he wore to his inauguration in 1961, by his businessman friend Grant Stockdale. The caseback reads: “President / Of The / United States / John F. Kennedy / From His Friend / Grant”, which was risky considering Stockdale gave the watch to Kennedy a year before he won the election. Kennedy also had watches by Cartier and Rolex—the most famous being a yellow gold Day-date, which Marilyn Monroe gave him on his 45th birthday. It was sold by leading auctioneer Alexander Autographs in 2005 for a hefty US$120,000.
2
BILL CLINTON
42nd president
Known to have owned numerous top-notch models by Jaeger-lecoultre, Roger Dubuis, Rolex, Audemars Piguet and Panerai, Clinton was given an
LIP to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Normandy landings. However, he evidently preferred a Timex Ironman digital watch while in office, which we have to say is pretty nerdy—in a good way. The politician wore it regularly throughout his presidential run, despite The Washington Post calling it “an unsightly blemish” and a “wrist gargoyle”. Ouch.
3
BARACK OBAMA
44th president
A sophisticated everyday watch that Obama wears with a black strap, Tag Heuer’s 1500 two-tone was this president’s watch of choice