Audemars Piguet Makes Time for Bill Clinton

By William George Shuster -- JCK Online, 12/1/2007 2:00:00 AM

Swiss luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet and former President Bill Clinton, representing his William J. Clinton Foundation, in October unveiled the new Clinton Foundation Equation of Time watch.

To honor the 42nd president, there are 42 in each of the limited edition’s three versions: 18k rose gold; 18k white gold; and platinum, which comes with a model of the White House. Each carries Clinton’s engraved signature. The watch, presented in New York City to print and TV journalists from around the world, supports Audemars Piguet’s philanthropy. It has pledged $3 mil-lion to the foundation, drawn from each watch’s sale. Clinton noted his foundation seeks “a measurable and sustainable impact” on problems like HIV/AIDS, global climate change, poverty, and America’s epidemic of childhood obesity.

“We can’t do this alone, and I thank Audemars Piguet for their support of my foundation,” Clinton said.

Noting the watchmaker and the foundation “share common values of innovation and excellence, and the same philosophy,” Audemars Piguet S.A.’s chief executive officer Georges-Henri Meylan said, “[We’re] proud to help the Clinton Foundation achieve the ambitious goals it’s set.”

The watch’s complex functions include equation of time (difference between watch time and solar time), solar culmination time adjusted to the White House’s location, sunrise and sunset times, and a perpetual calendar with astronomical moon display.