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As a 20th-century cultural touchpoint, the Rat Pack has become one of the signifiers of the 1960s' glitterati and all the associated glamour. Images of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr and Peter Lawford spring to mind, dressed in tuxedos and bow ties, on one of their martini-soaked Las Vegas nights.
But that Rat Pack was, in fact, an encore: the original clique dates back to the late 1940s. Headed up by Humphrey Bogart and his wife Lauren Bacall, it included the likes of David Niven, Errol Flynn, Ava Gardner and a young Sinatra. The name bestowed on the group, meanwhile, was reputedly coined by Bacall, who upon seeing an inebriated Bogart and his cronies exclaimed: "You look like a goddamn pack of rats!"
After Bogart's death in 1957, Sinatra took the helm as the de-facto ringleader - he was even briefly engaged to Bacall - and helped steer the rebooted Rat Pack in the profes- sional direction that spawned the countless concerts, TV shows and movies that brought the group to the public's attention.
The Rat Pack's sartorial style extended to their choice of watches. Bogart, as part of the original Rat...