Spaceman watches inspired from Space Oddysey and Star Wars?

[Kasper]

superb find...a real beauty..congrats.

damn i need 48 hours a day to keep up reading all your interesting stories...thanks

[cybr]

Thanks Kasper for Your kind words and I am sorry for my late response, but I was quite busy these days... doing some real and advanced research on my daily/regular job...
As usual, You're too kind evaluating my posts...there is nothing more than a (sometimes documented) (hi)story of those watches ...
But what I've learned from You and other very knowledgeable people from this high quality forum is really priceless...
Thanks again and best regards,

[cybr]

no watches inspired by Star Trek?

Sorry for the late response. Of course that are a lot of Star Trek inspired watches. To name just a few (with a price ranging from 100 USD to more than 100 K) :
1. The Star Trek "NEXT GENERATION" era inspired Timex (c.1990):
https://www.etsy.com/listing/182869727/ ... ge-novelty
2. Some beautiful quite recent analog watches:
http://www.ablogtowatch.com/star-trek-luxury-watches/
http://www.bluemaize.net/watches/star-trek-watch
and my favourite design ... the Deep Space
http://www.bluemaize.net/im/watches/sta ... tch-10.jpg
3. Game watches from the '80s:
http://www.digital-watch.com/DWL/1work/ ... h_of_kahn/
etc etc
Regards,

[cybr]

Another rare Space Age watch from early '70s - The 1972 Year Citizen UFO/Space Age Automatic Parawater, Day-Date - 6501 caliber- Black PVD with exotic metals alloy (I don't know 'for sure the case alloy composition, but the case is very very light weight and light grey colored on the small ding/chip on the 3 o'çlock!). The strap is not original...
It's UFO/driver shape (e.g. upper part of the dial is higher than the lower part when it's on the wrist!) it is quite similar with the famous 1968/1969 Hamilton Odyssee (not Odyssey!) 2001 watch and to the less known and rare Pierre Balmain designer Space Age watch of 1971 (pls see the photos below)...
http://www.hamiltonchronicles.com/2016/ ... yssee.html
https://img0.etsystatic.com/141/0/10217 ... 0_83vo.jpg

PS. I have no idea about the (otherwise original!) Turkey inscription on the watch side, but an educated guess would be that - since Citizen 6501 watches were made mostly in some limited editions with exotic cases/dials and being quite expensive for that time (pls see the URLs/webpages below!), probably Citizen have tried in early 70's to made them also personalized for the market of some specific countries ...
http://www.thewatchsite.com/21-japanese ... 501-a.html
http://whichwatchtoday.blogspot.ro/2015 ... ement.html



Hamilton Odyssee 2001 - 1968/1969

Pierre Balmain -Space Age watch -cca 1971

Citizen 6501- Vey rare 1976 (diferent from 1972 UFO) Stone Case and "Space Age" Dial

Regards,

[cybr]

Since I've seen Kasper's Yema "Space Helmet" gold plated watch - cca 1976-1977, sporting a genuine Swiss ESA 9315 LCD module - a very expensive Yema watch at that time (about 1050 French Francs in 1976-1977 - please see the Yema advertising below), I knew that I want a similar one.
http://www.newdwf.com/viewtopic.php?f=67&t=7591
I even have found after some search time , an Yema Space Helmet with a "regular" Fairchild module, that was only the chrome-plated variant, as one may see in the 1976-1977 Yema advertising below (cca 990 FF in 1976 ).
So I cannot believed my eyes when I have found an ALL STAINLESS STEEL (SS) Yema "Space Helmet" CHRONOGRAPH watch which:
- has the much more advanced SWISS ESA 942711 Chronograph module - cca 1977, but this is in concordance to the CHRONOGRAPH mention on the watch dial, thus it is more than appropriate to consider it a genuine combination - watch+Swiss LCD Chrono module. Not to mention that the same ESA module was used in my favorite CATENA Spacesonic/Spaceman Chrono LCD watches
- it has a cool "QUARTZ" enameled label on the watch SS face
- it is a MODEL DEPOSE - registered design
- even better, it has an original Fairchild SS bracelet, sold together in that period with some of the more expensive YEMA-Fairchild LED/LCD cooperation watches
etc etc
I've never seen such an early "Space Helmet" Yema LCD Chronograph SS watch, nor I have suspected that it may exist, and even if it has its fair share of scratches, being ALL SS without any "brushed" surface on the watch case + having an acrylic crystal, I am sure that my skilled watchmaker will make it look like new, after a careful polish...
PS. Even in its current state, the watch looks much better than in these "macro"-like zoomed/detailed photos...
Regards,

[Kasper]

i'm eager to see your pictures

[cybr]

Hope that You can see them now.
Sorry, it was not my fault. Photobucket.com have suddenly choose to not let anymore the regular users to directly share their photos on third party websites/forums.
Unfortunately they did it also for already published photos, which is not fair, since those users published the photos month or even years ago -when such a non-sharing policy was not in place - and shared them already on various forums for some time now...
Thus, many of my photos presented on this forum and other locations were suddenly not available!
Anyway, I was prepared to migrate that photo collection to other photo-sharing sites.
But also suddenly, it seems that they may have changed their minds
Regards,

[cybr]

Wow...in the picture below You may see the caseback photo of probably one of the FIRST "true precursors" of SpaceMan related watches, released on the market in 1966-1967, well before the apparition of Hamilton Odyssee 2001 watch: e.g. cca 1969 - the first version and 1970-1973 - the second version :))
http://www.hamiltonchronicles.com/2016/ ... yssee.html
It has on the caseback of the watch a goldplated engraved copy of a famous image related to Space Exploration missions in early-mid 60's.

I already have documented the (hi)story of this watch, BUT - just for fun and to encourage some nice debates here - I will kindly ask You:
1. Which MAJOR Space Exploration event is presented in the engraved photo of this watch? - and this is the easy question!
and the much more difficult one:
2. Which (otherwise quite old - at that time) Watch Company do you think that have produced this watch?
Thanks in advance for Your kind answers,

[cybr]

Since nobody seems interested about the above "challenge" , I will present some more data about the watch displayed above:
It was made by an USA Watch company - with a Swiss Made movement - to celebrate the first NASA/USA Astronaut Space walk in history, on the Gemini 4 Mission - June 3, 1965, by astronaut Edward H. White - The highlight of the mission was the first space walk by an American:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemini_4
In the photo below, one may see also the similarities of the gold-plated engraving on the watch caseback with the FAMOUS original image, that was published on the cover of LIFE Magazine in June 18, 1965:

[cybr]

And also a funy moment of the first NASA/USA astronaut on a Space Walk (Edward H. White) - 1965, claiming that coming back from outer space was "the saddest moment of my life"
http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/87 ... -astronaut
If one cannot believe this as being true, he/she may read the entire (now unclassified) NASA records at:
https://www.jsc.nasa.gov/history/missio ... 04_PAO.PDF

[cybr]

Since nobody seem interested in my above posts , I will solve the "mystery" of the watch presented above:
It is an USA Ingraham Watch Company watch - the company was founded in 1912(!) and became bankrupt in early 1968 - pls see the watch in the photo below, sporting now a genuine Roberto Cavalli python watch strap! :
https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/guide/c ... ngraham-co
The Ingraham Watch company was famous for their Pocket watches (including the cheap "1 Dollar" pocket watches made during 1933 financial crisis ), but they made also some other interesting and "thematic" wrist watches, e.g. based on comic books published in USA in 1940-1950 - quite similar with the vintage USA Bradley/Disney Mickey Mouse watches - made famous now by Prof. Robert Langdon's watch in the Dan Brown's books and related movies , such as:
- Superman watch, cca 1948
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VERY-RARE-1948- ... Swa81ZdQdd
- Wonder Woman watch (cca 1950)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VIntage-Ingraha ... SwvZZZdnLd
- TOM CORBETT SPACE CADET watch, cca 1955
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Corbett,_Space_Cadet
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VERY-RARE-1955- ... SwDmBY3Qec
also including some interesting Explorer watches (cca 1950), with a compass
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1950s-Space-Exp ... SwxEpYxZei

So, here is the dial's photo of my Space Age related watch and I will post later also why this watch may be considered (one of) the first watches (but I believe that it is THE FIRST !!!), strictly related to the early (REAL-LIFE, not SF movies!!!) Space Exploration quests of NASA in early-mid 60's:

[767Geoff]

Did Ingraham reproduce the Omega speed master found on his wrist in the photo

Nice case back! Is a lever movement or a pin pallet?

Cheers, Geoff

[cybr]

Thanks Geoff,

Did Ingraham reproduce the Omega speed master found on his wrist in the photo

This is really a very very good question! ...Nice sense of humor You have, hmmm...Master Yoda said!
Even if we are talking here about Space Age/SF inspired/related watches, not about the real astronauts watches...

BTW, do You know that the ABOVE MENTIONED Gemini 4 NASA Outer Space Mission was THE FIRST NASA mission where Omega SpeedMaster have became standard issued equipment for all astronauts

Until Gemini 4 mission, while NASA had hard tests to watches from Rolex, Longines, Omega and Hamilton, astronauts were wearing various chronographs of their choices: e.g during their Mercury missions John Glenn wore a Heuer stopwatch, Scott Carpenter wore a Breitling, and Wally Schirra preferred his Omega Speedmaster etc... One can read more about early NASA astronauts watches at:
http://www.spaceartifactsarchive.com/20 ... pollo.html

I did not open it yet, but I expect probably a cheap lever escapement ...
Regards,

[cybr]

Because Geoff asked such a good question and made such a good joke above , it seems that I will have to write someday another (hi)story of watches USED in space exploration VERSUS watches RELATED to space exploration VERSUS watches INSPIRED from space exploration versus watches INSPIRED FROM SF literature/movies etc etc...
Contrary to what many watch collectors may have believed , Omega Was Not The First Watch In (outer) Space!!!
https://www.gentlemansgazette.com/omega ... tch-guide/
So, prior to the Omega's Speedmaster official NASA designation (mentioned above), there have been other watches worn in space. Thus, despite the Omega being chosen by Schirra in 1962 in an inside module mission (n.r. pls read the above posts!), the first watch to be worn in OUTER space/spacewalk was a STRELA, which is also known as a POLJOT brand or a Sekonda for export :)). It was worn on March 18, 1965, by Russian Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov - who became the first astronaut ever to make a space walk.
http://wornandwound.com/watches-in-space-alexey-leonov/
The watch, a mechanical two register chrono with a 45-minute totalizer and a continuously running second hand would become the official watch of the Russian space program for almost 20 years.


Regards,

[cybr]

To fulfill some of my promises about some documented (hi)stories concerning the Space Age RELATED/INSPIRED/"WORN IN SPACE" watches ,
I will try to start here with the early history of the first watches RELATED/INSPIRED from REAL-LIFE Space Exploration's KEY moments.
So this is EPISODE 1 - "The Revenge of the Communist Sith"

1. As many of us may know already, on 4 October 1957 USSR launched the first artificial Earth satellite, into an elliptical low Earth orbit . It was only a 58 cm diameter polished metal sphere, with four external radio antennas to broadcast radio pulses, but it was visible all around the Earth and its radio pulses were detectable. :grin1:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1
2. This surprising success may have precipitated the American Sputnik crisis and triggered the Space Race, a part of the larger Cold War. The launch ushered in new political, military, technological, and scientific developments
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_crisis

Of course, such a success and also such a public humiliation for the nation considered until then as the most technologically advanced nation on Earth at that time (aka USA - who was the first country able to develop a working Electronic Computer - ENIAC and the first Atomic Bomb!), was celebrated in many ways in Communist Russia, including some especially designed watches - just to celebrate that major achievement of the major communist USA's rival:

Thus, it is safe to say that the FIRST series of watches STRICTLY RELATED/INSPIRED from REAL-LIFE Space Exploration events, have appeared in USSR in late 50's-early 60's (so before Gagarin's Space Trip - 12 April 1961!), in the form of a series of watches made with a watch mechanism/movement "Pobeda/ZIM" K-26 - containing 15 jewels, balance without shock-proof performance and a dial with a side second hand, probably produced at the Second Moscow Watch Factory, Chistopol "ZIM" (please see the below photos).

But it seems that the watch movement WAS NOT an USSR achievement/design, because that particular K-26 "Pobeda/ZIM" 15 jewels movement is based on the well known FRENCH "Lip" R26 movement:
http://www.horology.ru/en/articles/pobeda.htm
https://theinvisibleagent.wordpress.com ... atch-1956/

HERE are some images from various sites (I will not put also the URLs for the images, because it is already contained in the image source - I ONLY have inserted/shared here the REMOTE images URL, I DID NOT COPIED them here):

The first generation "SPUTNIK" watches, cca 1957-1960:, with
i)The dial with the "Sputnik Satellite" moving instead of the side second hand


ii) Probably, also the first generation "SPUTNIK" watches, cca 1957-1960:[/b], with a more colored dial and a ""Sputnik Satellite" moving instead a sweep second hand - in some sort of a "mystery dial" watch


The ORIGINAL watch case back:

And the K-26 "Pobeda/ZIM" with its 15 jewels movement, inherited probably from the French LIP R26 design:


Regards,

[cybr]

And now
EPISODE 2 - "A New (Western) Hope"

In the middle of the '60s, it seemed that USA/NASA was already outperformed by USSR/CCCR in the "Space Race" on 3 major events:
1. 4 October 1957 - USSR launched the first artificial Earth satellite, into an elliptical low Earth orbit
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1
2. The first human to journey into outer space - Vostok 1/Vostok 3KA-3 spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on 12 April 1961 with cosmonaut/astronaut Yuri Gagarin onboard of the Vostok
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Gagarin
3. March 18, 1965 -the Russian Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov - who became the first astronaut ever to make a space walk.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voskhod_2
Such outstanding successes have been celebrated AT THAT TIME in USSR in many ways, including some commemorative WATCHES - some of them may be seen in the posts above!!!


BUT, even if the above events have precipitated the American Sputnik crisis and triggered the Space Race, as a part of the larger Cold War,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_crisis
a NEW HOPE may have appeared from TWO events that will lead the USA/NASA to the first MOON LANDING in human history in 1969:
1. The President JFK's outstanding speech at Rice University on September 12th, 1962 - setting the goal of the space race during the 60's - THE MOON LANDING!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g25G1M4EXrQ
2. The first NASA/USA Astronaut Space walk in history, on the Gemini 4 Mission - June 3, 1965, by astronaut Edward H. White
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gemini_4

Nevertheless, the Gemini 4 mission was only a pale consolation prize for NASA at that time, since Edward H. White was ONLY the SECOND Man in Outer Space, after the Russian Alexei Leonov. But, for sure, it was a MAJOR STEP forward to the later FIRST conquest of the MOON !!!
Thus I was quite surprised when I have discovered the USA Ingraham watch celebrating this outstanding achievement, EVEN IF that event occurred 2 and a half month LATER than the Russian Space Walk!!!

Anyway - based on the current knowledge - one may SAFELY say that this Ingraham watch is the FIRST Western made watch TO CELEBRATE A REAL AND MAJOR SPACE CONQUEST EVENT - FROM THE WESTERN/CAPITALIST SIDE OF THE "RACE" TO SPACE!!!
How one may know the approx. production time of the watch???
1. It has on the case back the famous image published by LIFE Magazine in June 18, 1965 (pls see the above posts!)
2. The Ingraham Watch company became bankrupt in early 1968
https://pocketwatchdatabase.com/guide/c ... ngraham-co
thus is quite safe to say that the watch may have been produced somewhere between MID 1965 to the late 1967 , probably in a limited amount, since I COULD NOT find another mention of it after a deep online search even on the web archives!

Please let me know if You have any knowledge of the same OR a similar WESTERN made watch from any watch company in the mid 60's!!! Thanks in advance!

[cybr]

And now, before the episode 3...A BIG SURPRISE:
1. According to the MAJOR Doensen's book: "After the launching of the first space-vehicles, the owner of Catena Bulle Switzerland, Claude Lebet and the director Francis Bourquin ask André Le Marquand to create a range of watches of a totally new design. The result is an edition of four series of watches in 1972 and 1973, nearly all inspired by an astronaut's helmet. This watch is also sold by Tressa Lux, Fortis, Jules Jurgensen, Octo, Zeno Watch, Harlem and others. On December 11th 1969 the design is registered in the USA under no. 20.466 and a patent application is filed on February 10th 1970, in Switzerland."
https://doensen.home.xs4all.nl/c16.html

2. I have already presented that - probably - the helmet like design of the front face of the 1972 CATENA SPACEMAN was probably inspired from the “2001:A Space Odissey” movie (please see the first posts of this thread!)

3.BUT how about the IMAGE on the "plastic" caseback of the FIRST GENERATION Catena Spaceman watches (1972)???
"1972 - The Spaceman watches cause a sensation at the Basle Fair. Nobody thought these strange watches could ever be sold. Nevertheless, within ten years 150.000 Spacemans were sold all over the world. Especially in the Far East and in Hollywood, the watches were very successful. Many fake copies were made in Hong Kong."
https://doensen.home.xs4all.nl/c16.html

Please look at similarities between the images below (the astronaut image on the right is a little rotated from the original source to make them easy to be compared!):


This is ANOTHER photo/image from the first NASA/USA Astronaut Space walk in history, on the Gemini 4 Mission - June 3, 1965, by astronaut Edward H. White
The original source of the photo is from
https://theluxurychannel.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Edward-White-Over-Hawaii-The-First-American-Space-Walk-Gemini-4-Mission-1965.-%C2%A9-the-artist-courtesy-of-Beetles-Huxley-and-Osborne-Samuel-2.jpg


Can You see the similarities???

And Now....the conclusions:
1. The upper face of the FIRST Spaceman Watches (1972) was probably inspired from the “2001:A Space Odissey” movie - Premiere April 2, 1968, USA - (as I have already demonstrated at the beginning of this thread and in the image below)!
2. Even if the FIRST Spaceman watches have appeared and " cause a sensation at the Basle Fair" in 1972, on the caseback they have used images NOT FROM MORE RECENT (1969) MOON LANDING (!!!) BUT from the GEMINI 4 Space missions/the first SpaceWalk from an USA Astronaut in 1965!!!

And why???
Because in "On December 11th 1969 the design is registered in the USA under no. 20.466 and a patent application is filed on February 10th 1970, in Switzerland.", so they probably were not able to change "in time" the design with the new (copyrighted?) images from the moon landing!!!

Isn't it amazing???!!!???



I almost cannot believe: IT SEEMS THAT I AM THE FIRST PERSON WHO HAVE NOTICED THE 1972 SPACEMAN WATCHES CASEBACK'S SIMILARITIES WITH THE 1965 GEMINI 4 MISSIONS IMAGES in the last 45 years!!!

Regards,

[767Geoff]

Well, (similar to Cybr):

Here is one inspired by the movie “2001, A Space Odyssey”. Just finished restoring it including removing someones botched lume job (yellow and mouldy due to not letting it dry before encapsulating the movmemnt.) I chose a reddish lume for artistic sake and to set it off from other standard lumes. I wanted the lume to look like suns orbiting the centre. Note the intentional misspelling of Odyssee as Cybr noted. This was due to the movie title being patented with the correct spelling.



I have a huge ugly Camy similar in shape but much larger: so ugly it is good Will post later when done.

Geoff

[Kasper]

wow i'm impressed... perfect execution...a real beauty in every way Geoff.

[cybr]

Excellent restoration job, Geoff!!!
And Your outstanding watch is the FIRST (and more rare) variant made in 1969!!!
The difference between first version from 1969 and the later one (cca 1970-1973) are:
"The first version from 1969 isn't shown in the catalogs but it's well known. The dial has circular hour markers and bold triangular-shaped luminous hands. It came on a mesh bracelet that looks a little like chainmail.

The second version was introduced in 1970 and produced through 1973. The dial was changed to rectangular hour markers and the hands became luminous stick hands. The bracelet was also changed to a link-style design."
on may read more on
http://www.hamiltonchronicles.com/2016/ ... yssee.html

And I have to admit that I am very curious to see the (ugly?) Camy...You've mentioned above...
Regards,

[cybr]

And BTW, the Hamilton Odyssee 2001 watch was NOT simply inspired by the Space Odyssey 2001 Movie: Hamilton has been chosen to made the "prop" watches used in the movie!!!
As one may read in the excellent material on Watchismo website:
"1966, Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke commission a variety of companies to imagine & design futuristic products for the year 2001. Oh, yeah, and to be featured in the film, "2001 A Space Odyssey."

Hamilton is hired and John Bergey creates a digital clock and analog/digital wristwatch (movie prop watch seen below). At the same time, it inspires his work inventing the Pulsar Time Computer LED digital watch in 1970. (entirely separate history, stay focused!)"
https://watchismo.blogspot.com/2009/04/2009-yet-another-space-odyssey-hamilton.html

The Hamilton Nixie tube clock for the movie- which probably inspired the later development of Hamilton Pulsar LED watch , image from
http://retroleds.com/the-pulsar-project/?v=93b46a3fc67d


Even more, Hamilton proposed 2 different Wristwatch designs: The well known one - and finally used in the movie - from John Bergey design and one from Richard Arbib - based on early design of Hamilton Electric, and "Stanley Kubrick chose the Bergey design over the Arbib."

Space Odyssey 2001 prop watches design by Richard Arbib -the rejected design! , image from
http://wristwatched.com/index.php/2014/ ... ssey-1968/

versus Early Hamilton Electric by Richard Arbib, image from
https://doensen.home.xs4all.nl/fotos/c1a.jpg

Thus, Hamilton finally have launched also a "commercial" version labeled "Odyssee 2001" not Odyssey 2001, probably to avoid copyright issues
Regards,

[Kasper]

I left this page open for 2 days drooling on these incredible watches ... thx for the read and the incredible nice pictures