Casino (1995) Watches: Ace Rothstein's Piaget Polo and Bueche Girod
Casino (1995) is a film about taste as much as money, and Robert De Niro's Sam “Ace” Rothstein changes his wristwatch to suit his suit. The names attached to those watches are the Piaget Polo and a family of vintage gold Bueche Girod quartz watches. This guide is candid about the evidence: no brand or costume department statement on a watch turned up in our research, and the identifications come mostly from a fan costume blog and the film-watch database that cites it.
The short answer
Ace wears a rotation of gold dress watches matched to his outfits. A Piaget Polo in yellow gold is the best-known and is credited by two watch outlets. A series of Bueche Girod quartz watches is credited by a costume blog and a film-watch database, though its reference number is unverified. Nicky Santoro wears two watches that no source names, and we found no watch for Ginger . None of these reaches our top evidence tier.
Who wears what: quick reference
| Character (actor) | Watches |
|---|---|
| Sam “Ace” Rothstein(Robert De Niro) | Piaget Polo (18k yellow gold, integrated bracelet, gadroon detailing); Bueche Girod, vintage 18k gold quartz (several models: yellow, white and tri-colour, square and oval dials); Juvena (18k yellow gold, oval dial) and Nobila (gold-plated, round white dial with date); White gold, blue square dial on an integrated bracelet; yellow gold, red square dial on a gold bracelet |
| Nicky Santoro(Joe Pesci) | White gold, round white dial, black Roman numerals, woven-textured bracelet; later a yellow-gold watch in the early 1980s |
| Ginger McKenna(Sharon Stone) | No documented watch |
How we label the evidence
Confirmed means a costume designer, prop department, the brand or the show itself said so, or multiple reputable outlets agree and cite a source. Reported means a single reputable outlet or database reports it. Community-identified means fans identified it from screenshots in a cited community thread, which we flag as unverified. We leave out other fan speculation, and where sources disagree we say so. All prices are in US dollars and are indicative; check current listings before buying.
Sam “Ace” Rothstein (Robert De Niro)
Ace is a sports-betting handicapper turned Las Vegas casino boss, based on the real Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal. Costume designers Rita Ryack and John A. Dunn worked with Rosenthal's own tailors and shirtmakers, and Ryack has said Ace's wardrobe grows more chaotic as his life does. The costume blog BAMF Style identifies a different watch with many of his outfits and notes that many looks do not show the watch clearly enough to name. These are visual identifications, not statements from the costume department or any brand.
| Watch | Reference | Evidence | Where you see it | Price (US) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piaget Polo (18k yellow gold, integrated bracelet, gadroon detailing) | Not identified | Reported | Seen with a blue striped shirt in the finale, per BAMF Style. Time+Tide says De Niro wears it in numerous scenes, and The Hour Markers also names it. Time+Tide gives the original Polo as 36 mm and BAMF lists 38 mm, so size is unsettled | Vintage ref. 7131 C701 gold Polo: auction results of roughly $4,000 to $8,000 and dealer asks of $16,250 to $24,400 (undated 1stDibs listings, indicative only) |
| Bueche Girod, vintage 18k gold quartz (several models: yellow, white and tri-colour, square and oval dials) | Y9624 is cited by IMWDb for the tri-colour model, unverified | Community-identified | BAMF Style assigns different Bueche Girod watches to outfits including the green herringbone silk suit (1973), the grey striped suit and the salmon-pink jacket at the 1982 car bombing. Oracle of Time also says Ace wears a Bueche Girod. BAMF's own post does not cite a source or a reference | A dealer's ref. Y9624 (18k tri-colour, ETA 959.001 quartz) was listed at $4,995, reduced from $12,500, and sold in September 2019. This is a dealer price, not proof of the film watch |
| Juvena (18k yellow gold, oval dial) and Nobila (gold-plated, round white dial with date) | Not identified | Community-identified | BAMF Style only. The Nobila appears with a mint-green shirt at the meeting with Nicky at the Idle Spurs | No price found |
| White gold, blue square dial on an integrated bracelet; yellow gold, red square dial on a gold bracelet | Brand not identified | Uncertain | Described by BAMF Style across many suits. A behind-the-scenes photo shows the white-gold blue-dial watch. One outlet links a red-dial Polo to De Niro, but nothing we read ties the red square dial to a brand | Not applicable |
The honest summary is a rotation. Ace's watches follow his suits, which fits a character known for dressing in color. A dealer Q&A and Oracle of Time connect Bueche Girod to Las Vegas performers, mainly through Frank Sinatra wearing one at the Sands, and we use that only as context. See our guide to Frank Sinatra’s watches.
Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci)
Nicky, Ace's enforcer, wears fewer watches than Ace. BAMF Style counts two across the film, and says he also wears a gold pinky ring and a rope chain with an NS pendant.
| Watch | Reference | Evidence | Where you see it | Price (US) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White gold, round white dial, black Roman numerals, woven-textured bracelet; later a yellow-gold watch in the early 1980s | Not identified | Uncertain | Per BAMF Style. IMWDb lists it as an unidentified white-gold dress watch and gives no brand for the yellow-gold one | Not applicable |
No source names a brand for either watch.
Ginger McKenna (Sharon Stone)
Ginger's signature accessory is jewelry, not a watch. We found no watch for her in any source we read.
Her jewelry is covered in the section below.
Jewelry, taste and the real Lefty
The jewelry is the plot item, not a watch. Ace gives Ginger a trunk of Bulgari bracelets, rings, necklaces and earrings. She spreads them on a bed and asks whether it is too much to wear them all on the same day, per JCK. Later Ginger takes Ace's cash and jewelry, and Nicky's crew carries out jewelry burglaries. No watch is identified as stolen, and we found no confirmed claim that Bulgari supplied the watches.
Real-life basis. Ace is modeled on Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal (1929 to 2008), a sports gambler who ran the Stardust, Hacienda, Fremont and Marina casinos for the Chicago Outfit and survived a car bomb on October 4, 1982. The film's Tangiers casino is fictional. We found no source on what watches Rosenthal himself wore.
Costume process. Ryack and Dunn researched Rosenthal's tailors and shirtmakers and visited his closet, according to BAMF Style. Ryack has also said the often-repeated claim of a wardrobe budget above $1 million is wrong and that the actual figure was much lower.
The Polo. Piaget introduced the Polo in 1979 as an all-gold sports watch with a bracelet whose polished and brushed links run into the case and dial. Warhol and Elizabeth Taylor wore it, per Forbes Australia. Revolution ran its 2024 coverage of the Polo 79 under a Casino headline, but we could not read the article.
Bueche Girod. A dealer Q&A says Vital Bueche founded the firm in 1947 and that Cartier bought cases and hand-wound movements from it in the 1950s to 1970s. That is a dealer claim, not a verified history. See our Cartier history.
Get the look for less
Current or vintage options in the film's spirit. None is a confirmed screen watch, and the prices are indicative only.
| Watch | Why it fits | Price (US) |
|---|---|---|
| Piaget Polo 79 (38 mm, 18k yellow gold, 1200P1 automatic) | The brand's 2024 revival of the 1979 original; the closest new equivalent to Ace's Polo, though the original was quartz | $73,000 per Forbes Australia; other outlets give US$79,000, A$120,000 or CHF 68,500 (2024 launch prices disagree) |
| Vintage Piaget Polo ref. 7131 C701 in 18k yellow gold | The era-correct route to the look | Auction roughly $4,000 to $8,000; dealer asks $16,250 to $24,400 (undated, indicative) |
| Vintage Bueche Girod 18k gold dress watch | Slim gold dress watches of the 1970s; models and condition vary widely | A tri-colour ref. Y9624 was $4,995 at a dealer in September 2019 |
Myths and mix-ups, corrected
- “Ace wears a Piaget Polo” or “Ace wears a Bueche Girod.” Sources split by outlet. The evidence supports a rotation of several watches, including both, plus Juvena, Nobila and unbranded watches.
- “The Bueche Girod is reference Y9624.” IMWDb says so, citing BAMF Style, but the BAMF post we read names no reference and cites no source.
- “Bulgari made Ace's watches.” Bulgari is the jewelry in the bed scene. We found no Bulgari watch.
- “The wardrobe cost over $1 million.” Costume designer Rita Ryack says the real figure was much lower.
- “The original Polo was 38 mm.” That is the BAMF size for the film watch and for the 2024 Polo 79. Time+Tide gives the 1979 original as 36 mm, and another source says 34 mm.
Sources
BAMF Style lookbooks for Ace and Nicky; IMWDb; Time+Tide; The Hour Markers; Oracle of Time; Forbes Australia; Right Time and Analog Shift dealer listings; 1stDibs; JCK; The Ringer; Wikipedia for the film and for Frank Rosenthal, retrieved October 14, 2026. We could not read the Heritage and Sotheby's lot pages for Polo results, the Revolution article or any brand or costume-department statement on a Casino watch, so the Polo price range is indicative. Prices are in US dollars unless stated.
Frequently Asked Questions
What watch does Robert De Niro wear in Casino?
Several. Ace Rothstein wears a rotation of gold watches. A Piaget Polo is the best-known, and a series of vintage Bueche Girod quartz watches is also credited, though neither is confirmed by the costume department.
Is the Casino watch a Piaget Polo?
Time+Tide, The Hour Markers and BAMF Style say one of Ace's watches is a yellow-gold Piaget Polo. We found no statement from Piaget or the filmmakers.
What watch does Joe Pesci wear in Casino?
Nicky Santoro wears two watches, a white-gold one with a round white dial and later a yellow-gold one. No source names the brand.
Who was the costume designer on Casino?
Rita Ryack and John A. Dunn, per BAMF Style. Wikipedia names Ryack.
Did Bulgari make the watches in Casino?
We found no evidence of that. Bulgari is the jewelry Ace gives Ginger in the bed scene.
How much is the Piaget Polo from Casino?
Vintage gold Polos have sold at auction for roughly $4,000 to $8,000, with dealer asks much higher. The 2024 Polo 79 revival is about $73,000 per Forbes Australia.
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