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Ride the Storm: Navigating Through Unstable Periods / Katerina Rudko (Belka G...
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Auction Kings
1. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
Contents:
ï· Images â slideshow structure pulled from US site when available, images pulled from
Discoveryâs in-house asset database
ï· About the Show
ï· Meet the Crew
ï· Episode Guide
MISC Images
About the Show:
http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/auction-kings/about-this-show/about-show.htm
Discovery Channel's series Auction Kings delves into the world of unique items â from
vampire-hunting kits to meteorites to jewel-encrusted pencils â and the emotional process of
their acquisition and loss. Don't miss the thrill of the purchase AND the sale every Tuesday at 9
p.m. ET/PT.
Auction Kings showcases one of the country's most storied auction houses, Gallery 63, in
Sandy Springs, Ga. Its owner, Paul Brown, worked for 20 years at Red Baron's Antiques, his
dadâs auction house, learning the art of selling and how to tell trash from treasure. Today,
Gallery 63 is renowned for bizarre, high-end items â such as a snooker table custom-made for
the Rolling Stones â and Paul has made a name for himself as the go-to guy for bidders
looking for those one-of-a-kind pieces that can only be found inside his doors.
Paul manages his feisty staff, eager buyers and rare items like a circus under the big top. The
bidders and sellers come from all walks of life, looking to make money, buy a unique piece or
simply enjoy the excitement of winning. When bidding starts, the gloves come off and it's every
buyer for himself. And, sure, that ancient hand cannon may be appraised at $5,000 ... but what
did it sell for?
Don't miss Auction Kings, a celebration of some of history's most rare items, and the intriguing
sellers, buyers and experts who love them.
Meet the Gallery 63 Crew
http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/auction-kings/bios
PAUL BROWN, OWNER OF GALLERY 63
Paul Brown grew up never wanting to be in the antiques business. In fact, he was pretty sure
he'd be the youngest member of the Rolling Stones ... until the whole "no musical talent" thing
sunk in. Instead, Paul went to work at a car wash, where his Renaissance-Man boss
encouraged him to study literature. He did just that, earning a bachelor's in English and enrolling
in grad school, well on his way to writing the Great American Novel or strolling across a campus
quad.
After a while, though, his interest in the family business began to grow, and in 1989 Paul started
working daily at Red Baron's Antiques, his dad's auction house. Immediately drawn to the
academic component of the antiques business, Paul immersed himself in the catalogs of the
famous New York auction houses, learning the parlance of the trade, before bringing Red
2. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
Baron's auction catalogs up to their standards. After a year or two, he took over all advertising,
promotional, research and catalog duties at the company, riding a wave of successes
throughout the 1990s and 2000s.
But around 2005, a bored Paul grew interested in a new challenge and decided to take over
Gallery 63, in Sandy Springs, Ga. Today, Gallery 63 is known for bizarre, high-end items â
such as a snooker table custom-made for the Rolling Stones â and Paul has made a name for
himself as the go-to guy for bidders looking for those one-of-a-kind pieces that can only be
found inside his doors.
CINDY SHOOK, THE MANAGER
Tough, caffeine-loving Cindy is the heart of Gallery 63. Responsible for handling all inventory,
Cindy tags every piece of the 500 lots a week that the auction house takes in. She's also
responsible for collecting money from winning bidders, so those who don't pay their bills had
better watch out.
Cindy and Paul have worked together since the early 1990s, when she started at Red Baron's
as a furniture cleaner ... and quickly progressed to the position of head of inventory. Then, years
later, Cindy happened to be on personal leave from Red Baron when Paul was assembling his
Gallery 63 team. He asked her to come work for him, and she agreed. And, according to Paul,
"Thank God she did. It would be exceedingly difficult to function without my right arm. She is a
fine person and among the most loyal I have ever met."
JON HAMMOND, THE PICKER
Jon beat out a field of nearly 100 candidates when he answered a cryptic post on Craigslist for
an assistant manager position. The fact that he was an English major in college earned him his
first interview. From there, he consistently impressed the Gallery 63 crew, ultimately sealing his
job by climbing a rope to the ceiling of the auction room, some 18 feet in the air.
Thus Jon was hired and then told, "Oh, by the way, you are also going to be on a television
program this fall on Discovery Channel." He handled the news with characteristic aplomb,
quickly adapting to the chaos of Gallery 63 under the tutelage of his tough-love mentor, Cindy.
And slowly but surely, Jon is learning how to sift through people's junk and find the treasure.
DELFINO RAMOS, THE HANDYMAN
Fix-it genius Delfino Ramos can take apart, tune up, assemble or rewire anything that comes in
... even things â such as a 90-year-old player piano â he knows nothing about.
An employee of Gallery 63 since it opened, Delfino came on as temporary help, but his
infectious smile, perpetual good attitude and undeniable talent led Paul to hire him, despite not
having an opening at the time. And Paul has never looked back. Always good-natured and
calm, Delfino not only can fix anything, he can transform the antiques-strewn floor of Gallery 63
into a bidder-ready auction house in a matter of hours ... and be a pleasure to be around to
boot.
3. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
2011 EPISODE GUIDE
WACKY TAXI/OLIVER NORTH SWORD
Gallery 63 auctions off a Marine dress sword engraved with Oliver North's name and a WWI-era
Gibson mandolin. Then a seller takes the crew for a ride in his Wacky Taxi, a 23-ft long cab
complete with '50s diner-style interior.
BLOW GUN/WOODEN HARLEY
In addition to auctioning off an enormous 1800s music box and an all-wood Harley-Davidson
motorcycle -- reportedly made by two drunk cabinet makers -- the Gallery 63 crew blows off
steam by test-firing an antique South American blow gun.
TORTURE/TRAINS
Hopeful sellers turn to Gallery 63 to auction off a mystery medical -- and perhaps torture --
device, a centuries-old mini sword made for a nobleman's child and a huge(and expensive)
model train layout.
SEANCE MACHINE/AIRSTREAM
The Gallery 63 crew auctions off an early 1900s seance machine and a regular old trumpet ... or
IS it? Then Paul takes a gamble on auctioning a seller's retro home -- an iconic, silver 1975
Airstream trailer.
HARLEY SERVI-CAR TRIKE/ITALIAN MULTI-GAME
An unusual looking 1947 Harley-Davidson Servi-Car (a three-wheeled motorcycle) rolls up, and
Paul jumps at the chance to tool around on it. Jon brings back a rare, vintage British rocking
horse from a pick, but Paul's sister Susan worries that it might not rock buyers. Finally the
Gallery 63 crew can't resist a friendly wager on a vintage Italian multi-game table.
CIGAR-BOY LIGHTER/EINSTEIN LETTER
Delfino fires up an antique cigar-boy lighter; Jon gambles on an escritorio, an ornately carved
and ivory-inlaid Spanish desk that is more than 400 years old; and Paul takes in a letter
handwritten by Albert Einstein to the seller's father.
FORTUNE TELLER SCALE/BASEBALL CARDS
The Gallery 63 crew takes in a vintage fortune-telling scale, a menagerie of taxidermied
animals, and a collection of baseball cards that reveals quite a few namers, famers and rookies.
HOUDINI LETTER/OLYMPIC PING PONG
Houdini descendent Aron Houdini visits Gallery 63 to authenticate his famous relative's historic
letter and perform his own escape-artist trick. Then the Gallery 63 crew also takes in a 1951
Ford F1 and an Atlanta Olympics table tennis set that inspires some friendly competition.
4. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
DINO POO/ANCIENT HEAD PIPE
A paleontologist's package of coprolite (dinosaur poo) amuses the Gallery 63 crew. Paul Brown
hopes the signature on a first-edition Gone With the Wind proves legitimate this time, then visits
the mystical Lithia Springs, which yields an ancient skull-shaped jadeite pipe.
MOONSHINE STILL/CIVIL WAR IRON KNUCKLES
Up for auction: Civil War-era iron knuckles found on a local battlefield, a mini British Mini
Cooper, and a family's moonshine still.
KING, BLING AND RODEO RING
A three-carat, platinum-band ring catches manager Cindy's eye, but it's a humble bull sack
purse that inspires her to hold Gallery 63's first mechanical bull rodeo. The Gallery 63 crew also
takes in a vintage dive helmet and a ship's binnacle.
SPACE ODDITIES
Paul Brown heads to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center to collect historic items for a special
charity auction sale, including a space suit, an astronaut's work of art and an Apollo 13 pinball
machine, signed by both the astronaut and the actor who played him.
ELVIS CADILLAC/EDISON LETTERS
The King comes to Gallery 63 ... a Cadillac once owned by the King of Rock and Roll, that is.
The crew also takes in an authentic flag-themed guitar signed by Bruce Springsteen, then Paul
is "enlightened" when he comes across some rare correspondence from Thomas Edison,
showing a less-known side of the famous inventor.
HAUNTED CABINET/SIGNAL CANNON
Paul Brown can't resist test-firing an antique Winchester Signal Cannon to get it ready for
auction, and an owner brings in an antique cabinet she thinks is inhabited by her friend's ghost.
Finally, to convince Paul to take on his 1974 Grumman airplane with a reserve price of $30,000,
the pilot/owner takes Paul on a breath-taking flight.
MUSTANG/VINTAGE LUNCH BOXES
The crew fires up the engine on the ultimate '60s pony car icon: a red 1965 Mustang. An
aspiring teenage antiques dealer sweetens her deal with Cindy by including a free lunch inside
her dad's collection of 1970s lunch boxes. And picker Jon takes in possibly the oddest, noisiest
instrument Gallery 63 has ever had: a Stumpf fiddle, which curiously bears little resemblance to
an actual fiddle.
5. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
CIVIL WAR TREASURES/19TH CENTURY CAMERA
A family's collection of personal letters, diaries, and documents detailing their ancestor's life as
a Civil War infantry captain and a functioning 19th century camera make their way into Gallery
63. Then a seller brings in what he thinks is a Civil War era telescope that he bought at a
garage sale for $75, but if it's legitimate, the piece could be one of the rarest items in Gallery
63's history.
AWESOME 80s
Flipping through the pages of three high school yearbooks, Cindy comes across the familiar
faces of Angelina Jolie, Monica Lewinsky and Eric Menendez, while Paul test-drives a MOST
EXCELLENT 1982 Corvette. Then, having acquired it from a childhood trade, a seller comes in
with an authentic basketball legend's rookie card looking to come out on the better end of that
trade 25 years later.
Watch video from Awesome 80s.
JIM MORRISON POEM/CABBAGE PATCH BABIES
A seller looks to make big money from two authentic kids (not "dolls") signed by the original
artist, complete with their original adoption papers. Then Paul takes a gamble on a Lomax
three-wheel trike from the UK, using it as a big-ticket item at the auction. An authentic
handwritten poem and signature from rock legend Jim Morrison could bring in big money for
Gallery 63 and the previously homeless seller, who plans to donate the profits to charity.
WWII HARLEY-DAVIDSON/1800S GAMBLER'S WATCH-GUN
Paul and the Gallery 63 crew help unload a pawn broker's rare World War II Harley-Davidson. A
seller's one-dollar find turns out to be an extremely rare piece of baseball history. Paul antes up
with his mentor/dad Bob Brown in a bet that a beautiful, but deadly, gambler's watch will far
exceed appraisal estimate.
DELOREAN TIME MACHINE/SPEAKEASY PIANO
Gallery 63 goes back to the future with a DeLorean Time Machine, then uncovers a Prohibition-
era piano hiding a secret. With the gallery's booming business, Delfino has his work cut out for
him building out the new overflow seating area. Meanwhile, Paul and Cindy shift into the danger
zone when they try out a gas-powered pogo stick not meant for kids.
OUIJI BOARD/RICHARD PETTY JEEP
Up on the block: a 1946 Willys Jeep restored by Richard Petty, a Rock-Ola jukebox, and a Ouija
board that becomes the basis for a prank on Cindy.
DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE/CONCESSION WAGON
6. AUCTION KINGS: Package Outline
The Gallery 63 team auctions a vintage fire truck, a 19th-century copy of the Declaration of
Independence and a Tiffany grandfather clock, as well as races to fix an antique concession
wagon that breaks during offload.
HAPPY DAYS PINBALL/WALL OF SHAME
A vintage slot machine, a pinball machine used on Happy Days and a 1940s Whizzer motorized
bicycle all go up for auction. Then Jon takes a World War II Soviet flag to a lab to authenticate
its blood stain, and not even Paul can escape Cindy's Wall of Shame for people who don't pay
their bills.
SHRUNKEN HEAD/MLK LETTER
A letter signed by Rev. Martin Luther King and doll furniture created by famous folk artist
Howard Finster go on the block; a woman brings in what she believes to be a shrunken head;
and Paul enlists his mentor and father, Bob Brown, to help entice Paul's son Elijah to go into the
family auction-house business.
NAPOLEON MIRROR/WWI BOY SCOUT POSTER
Before auctioning off a hand mirror signed by Napoleon and a World War I Boy Scout war
bonds poster, Gallery 63 owner Paul Brown calls in his antique-expert sister to shed some light
on a mysterious cabinet, and picker Jon Hammond goes all out to impress his boss by helping
assemble the upcoming auction's catalog.