James dean’s Lucky Pocket Watch at Auction

Celebrity memorabilia hunters should not miss this opportunity. The Antiquorum auction house will soon sell a very special pocket watch to anyone who is willing to pay big money for it. It is the very piece that James Dean wore on the set of East of Eden, and which he had bought back in 1951. The piece was manufactured in 1889 by Standard USA, so this is an excellent choice for lovers of vintage timepieces.

The auction will take place in Hong Kong on June 22, and the heirloom will be offered together with the chain that Dean received as a gift from his estranged father. Given its history and provenance, the lot is expected to fetch between $5,000 and $10,000. The piece is what the actor himself credited with his career boom when he got the role in East of Eden, as well as with most of his following successes.

The timepiece was offered by Dean to his friend and hair stylist Tillie Starriet, who kept and cherished it together with a letter that the young actor had written to her, calling her ‘Mom’. Dean had already given his lucky watch to Starriet when he passed away in ’55, so he didn’t have it with him in the tragic car crash. Because his untimely demise happened at 5:43, the time on the watch was set at precisely this hour and then stopped to perpetually pay tribute to the young Hollywood star.