[VIDEO] Watch Stories: Spike Feresten

Chances are if you have laughed any time in the last 25 years, you can thank Spike Feresten for at least one of them. Spike, an American comedy writer, screenwriter, television personality, and podcast host spent the first years of his career writing for shows like Saturday Night Live, The Late Show with David Letterman, and Seinfeld. However, comedy isn’t his only love. He also has an affinity for both cars and watches and is quite the collector of both.

A former east coaster, Spike is now a Hollywood staple. Yet, his relaxed and relatable style is true to his Boston blue-collar roots.  He is the everyman, a jeans and tee kind of guy with a deep love for his hometown Red Sox; never forgetting where he came from.

Now, in a town peppered with standout Ferraris and flashy Lamborghinis, you can find Spike in a virtually “invisible” Porsche. Porsche is undoubtedly at the highest levels of luxury and performance, while still maintaining a certain level of humility. Because, let’s be honest, the have looked the same for decades. In all things Spike isn’t about flash. He has worked hard and earned all that he has, but he is drawn to quality, without the ostentatious extras.

As Spike’s career grew, so did his watch and car collection. For him, the two are linked. He favors stainless steel sport watches steeped in racing history. His collection; it mostly focuses on Heuer, Tudor, and Rolex. It isn’t a surprise that every piece he owns has a story, and that as a writer, Spike is so willing to share.

 

The Collection:

 

The Tag Heuer 2000 automatic with a black dial and stainless steel case is what Spike likes to call his “taproot” watch. It is the piece that got the collection going and was a gift to himself. To him, it is a reminder of how far he had come after becoming a writer on David Letterman and finding his way in life.

Initially his collection didn’t grow quickly. Spike actually didn’t purchase another watch until after he moved to Los Angeles. His next pick was a 1964 Carrera re-issue with a silver and blue dial; it’s a beautiful piece that hearkens back to his first year of Seinfeld. When talking about the show, he reminisces about how awesome of an experience that first year was, but that they never left the office.  The Carrera represents a lot of hard work and time spent on what became one of the most popular sitcoms in television history.

 

Eventually, like many collectors, Spike got into vintage. One morning at his local coffee shop he fell for a blue Tudor Submariner on another man’s wrist. From there, he was on the hunt. During the first year of production on his late night show and coincidentally on his birthday he got a call about a vintage blue Sub from the late 1970’s. This Submariner had a little extra history with it, as the French Navy used it, and even came with military papers.

For Spike, getting into Rolex took a while. Where he grew up, no one owned luxury watches like that and he had a preconceived notion about the kind of guy who would sport a Rolex. That is, until he got the early Daytona bug.  So, when his late night show was picked up for the third year, he commemorated it with a Daytona 6263. With a white dial, black bezel and black sub-dials, it has now become a daily wear. His love for the Daytona didn’t stop there. His favorite of his new watches is his 116500, with the black dial and cerachrome bezel. To him, it is the perfect watch.

Each of these watches go with Spike’s car collection and he is happy to talk through pairing them together. The craftsmanship and history of each inevitably links the two. They are also conversation pieces. Collecting both watches and cars allows Spike to meet interesting people he may have never crossed paths with. And to him, that is why it is so fun.

To hear more of Spike, check out Spike’s Car Radio on Podcast One.

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