Jacob & Co CEO Ben Arabov on Thursday visited the Vitelli bar in the Sicilian town of Savoca, where some of the most famous scenes from The Godfather with Al Pacino were shot, as part of the watchmaker’s tribute to the 50th anniversary of the release of the cinema classic.
Jacob Arabov is known for creating over-the-top timepieces, dazzling in their detail and never skimping on the “wow” factor. But for the latest in his Opera collection, a series that blends the Swiss mechanical crafts of watchmaking and music boxes, Arabov wanted something really new. Having created a watch, he thought that something was still missing. “I wanted to put something iconic in this watch, and The Godfather came to mind,” says the man behind the New York-based luxury watch and jewelry brand known as Jacob & Co.
Nino Rota’s Golden Globe-winning score is instantly familiar, and Arabov liked the idea of paying tribute to Francis Ford Coppola’s Oscar-winning 1972 film and its music. That’s how the Opera Godfather watch was born, though its path to get into collectors’ hands hasn’t been easy, primarily because the watch needed to be vetted by Paramount Pictures, which owns the rights to The Godfather and its score.
As part of the whole experience, after the presentation of the watch at Taormina’s Hotel Timeo, Arabov visited the Vitelli bar in the small village of Savoca, which was chosen as the location for the scenes in 1971.
Savoca acts as the backdrop to the romance between Michael Corleone and Apollonia, who, in the film, is the daughter of the bar’s owner and is set to be asked for her hand by the lead character.
It is still possible today to experience that atmosphere of the cult American film, both inside and outside the bar, and the Jacob & Co party considered the visit an unmissable part of their trip.
