Time to Give Back

Elizabeth Taylor goes for a heart-shaped one banded with diamonds. Oliver Stone favors a model with a picture of Chairman Mao on the face. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf of Desert Storm fame likes a simple look, a large, multi-function diver’s watch.

Those folks, and more than 70 other celebrities, donated personal timepieces to the Famous Faces Watch Auction for Charity to be held Wednesday at the Tourneau TimeMachine shop in New York City. The watches have been on tour leading up to the event and were seen recently at the Tourneau boutique in South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa.

Abby Lester, 49, of Irvine was one of those who dropped by to take a look. A big fan of Taylor, she was struck by the star’s watch, designed by Chopard and valued at nearly $11,000.

“It’s what I’d expect from her,” says Lester. “Feminine [and] fancy. It looks very, very expensive. . . . I wouldn’t mind trying it on for a while.”

Stone’s piece, which wasn’t priced, was made by Shanghai Tang in 1997 and shows Mao Tse-tung waving to the crowd. Schwarzkopf’s very practical watch, also unpriced, is by Seiko. Other watches were donated by Tom Cruise, Mark McGwire, Ronald Reagan, Robert Redford, Oprah Winfrey, Christopher Reeve, Paul Newman and Nicole Kidman.

Leonardo DiCaprio provided a Tank Francaise model by Cartier, valued at $2,700, with a square face and Roman numerals. Madonna, never one to shy away from glitz, contributed a Steel Beluga model from Ebel. Not priced, this flashy number is rimmed with dozens of small diamonds.

Lisa Wells, a Tourneau spokesperson, says auction proceeds will benefit the World Health Organization, the Salvation Army, the Special Olympics, the Leukemia Society and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, among others.

For information, call (800) 223-1288.