Five Longines evidenza limited edition Harry Connick, Jr. timepieces raised $220,000 at auction during sold-out benefit performances of the Roundabout Theatre Company’s Tony Award-winning revival of The Pajama Game, held June 13-17 at the American Airlines Theatre in New York. All proceeds from the watches will benefit Habitat’s New Orleans Musicians’ Village, a program under Habitat for Humanity.

Musicians Village was started by Connick and fellow musician Branford Marsalis shortly after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, to help rebuild homes for displaced musicians and keep the jazz culture intact. In addition, proceeds from the ticket sales will support the Musicians’ Village, The Actor’s Fund of America, and Roundabout Theatre Company’s Education Programs & Musical Theatre Fund.

Highlights of the five-night auction included, actor Alec Baldwin matching a donation of the top bidding couple one evening while still enabling them to keep the watch. Another night, one couple quietly doubled the top bid. On the final evening of the auction, some audience members gave additional funds to the charity. The money raised from the five timepieces will help to build four homes in New Orleans.

The Longines evidenza limited edition is an automatic chronograph timepiece with a tonneau-shaped rose gold case with case-back engraved with Harry’s signature. Each watch is individually numbered. The watches were created for this auction and are exclusive timepieces that go beyond the retail price of $8,500 each, given the uniqueness worldwide and Harry Connick engraved signature. Only 11 of the timepieces have been manufactured worldwide, with #11 being presented to Connick as a gift from Longines. The remaining five timepieces are reserved for another charity event later this year in the U.S.

JCK