Henry and Clara Ford were great fans of the weekly "Amos 'n' Andy" radio program, a comedy enormously popular almost from the moment of its first broadcast in 1927. Like other popular radio programs, it went on television in the late 1940s, but it did not last long in the new medium; CBS canceled the show in 1953. It was one of the longest-running programs--if not the longest- running-- in broadcasting history; more than twenty years on radio and over three years on television.

The stars of the program were Freeman F. Gosden ( Amos ) and Charles K. Correll ( Andy ), who also wrote the scripts. On December 8, 1942, Henry Ford wrote them a personal letter, congratulating them on "sustaining so high a level of quality for so long a time." A few weeks later, after attending a Christmas performance that they gave in Detroit, he wrote to ask them for a copy of the script. "Amos and Andy" not only sent him the script but also the two watches shown here, along with the following letter:
Dear Mr Ford:

We are sending you...... two wristwatches. The one with a leather strap ( an Elgin) belongs to Charles Correll. The one with the chain ( a Longines) belongs to Freeman Gosden. These watches were worn by us the night we.....wrote our first Amos 'n' Andy program. We watched the hour hand make a complete revolution. It was a long night. We thought you would like to have these watches for your collection.

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