Remarkable story about Paul Newman Daytonas, Rolex chronograph.

James Cox and his girlfriend Nell Newmans stayed at the Newmans home in Westport, Connecticut. In the summer of 1984, he offered to repair the familys treehouse, where Nell and her siblings had played, her mother meditated and her parents read film scripts.

One of the days at the treehouse, Paul asked me what time it was, to set his watch. I replied, I dont knowI dont have a watch. He was clearly surprised. So he said, Here, heres a watch. If you wind it, it tells pretty good time. Newman handed James his Rolex Cosmograph Daytona. At that time, I knew Rolex was an amazing brand, but I had no idea how significant the watch was, James says.

Newman had received the watch as a gift from his wife, who likely purchased it at Tiffanys for about $300 in the late 60s, around the start of her husbands racing career. The Daytona, as its commonly called, is a chronographa timepiece with a stopwatch function, a useful feature for a race-car driver. Dads biggest interest was whether or not he could time laps on it when the cars were running, Nell recalls.

Rolex introduced that particular modela Reference 6239in 1963 and stopped production in the early 70s. Approximately 14,000 were produced. On Newmans watch, along with an estimated 2,000 to 3,000 others, the most distinguishing feature is a black, white and red Exotic dial. (The Daytona models were the only Rolex watches to be manufactured with the Exotic dials.) Woodward engraved Drive Carefully Me on the back, and the original stainless-steel bracelet was replaced with an extra-wide black leather strap. When the Exotic dial versions were released, devoted Rolex fans largely rejected them, but Newman was often photographed throughout the 70s and early 80s wearing his watch. Woodward bought Newman another Rolex chronograph, which is why Nell and James believe he happily gave away his first one. Paul was not the kind of guy who would hoard or collect something, James says.

James discovered that collectors, influenced by images of Newman wearing his watch, had renamed models with Exotic dials Paul Newman Daytonas. By the early 90s, a 6239 Paul Newman Daytona garnered about $10,000 at auction. In May 2016, the auction price for a later reference hit $2 million.

Pop would give you the shirt off his back, says Nell, who believes her father most likely approached James at the treehouse intending to give him the watch. This is following in that tradition of generosity. I think this is the best purpose for the watch.