MIKE: Tom. What's going on, buddy?
TOM: How are you doing? MIKE: Remember me?
TOM: Yeah, I remember you.
MIKE: Yeah, you look the same. You're aging well.
TOM: Yes, you too. MIKE: What's going on, dude? Here you go.
TOM: A lot of people know James from playing with Elvis.
Leader of the TCB Band,
lead guitar player.
They asked me after I retired
if I'd take care of the foundation for them.
MIKE: So, you're the guy taking care of business, huh?
TOM: Yes, sir. TCB.
MIKE: You got the responsibility of it all!
MIKE: One of the blessings to having a store in Nashville
for over a decade is getting to know
so many musicians that are serious collectors.
I was fortunate enough to meet James years ago
when we had a standup base that we needed authenticated.
JAMES: It looks like to me they had the idea
of making it look a little bit like a Black bass,
but I don't think it could be Bill Black's bass.
MIKE: James and I became fast friends
because we share the same passions.
And his wife, Louise, is a real pistol.
MIKE: So, what's going on with this one?
They're gonna sell this too? TOM: That, I'm not sure.
When James gets here, we're gonna talk to him about it.
MIKE: Oh, yeah.
MIKE: There's one right there. That's what, the '59?
TOM: The '59 Corvette. MIKE: Nice!
Oh, you guys got a Manx! No way!
TOM: Yep. '69.
MIKE: Leave it to a true Volkswagen enthusiast
to walk past the Corvette
and start digging into the dune buggy.
MIKE: Oh, this Manx is insane, dude.
Wow.
You got Burton, James on there. Burbank, California.
TOM: Yep. MIKE: Think about these things
hitting the beaches in the '60s, man.
TOM: Oh, these things were a huge fling back then.
MIKE: Oh my God, I can't even imagine.
James had great taste in cars.
I mean, he's got a Manx sitting here,
and then he's got the '59 Corvette.
MIKE: I love the way that James' mind works.
It's like two iconic fiberglass cars
that are on completely different ends of the spectrum.
MIKE: Alright, I just want to get a picture of the number
off the block here so I can send it to Jeff.
He has a business called Speedvette.
Even if I don't buy it, then James and Louise
will have like a jumping-off point in regards
to the value of it, you know? TOM: Yeah, I get that.
MIKE: Yeah. What about any of this other stuff?
What are they doing with all of this?
TOM: This is probably part of his personal collection.
(loud horn honking)
TOM: Sounds like JB's here.
(Mike chuckling) MIKE: What the hell's he driving, a semi?
Does he roll around in this all the time?
(laughing)
TOM: What's the deal? MIKE: What the hell?
(thunder booming)
(upbeat music)
ROB: Holy cow, is it raining!
ROB: I'm freaking sopping wet, dude!
You are getting out and doing the gas next time.
(phone rings) JERSEY JON: Dude.
Hey, Dani, what's up! ROB: What's up, girl?
DANIELLE: Hey, listen. I'm gonna send you out
to meet Ronnie Jr. and Rhonda.
Their dad, Ronnie Sr., worked at the post office
so he would find all kinds of stuff on his postal route.
JERSEY JON: Oh, cool. ROB: He's like the meter reader.
DANIELLE: Yep. Mike picked him years ago
and he had, dude, he had incredible stuff.
RONNIE SR.: I don't have no money in the stock market.
I don't believe in stocks. MIKE: I don't either.
RONNIE SR.: All of this is my stocks.
And I don't have to pay no broker fee.
MIKE: That's right, man.
DANIELLE: Sadly, Ronnie Sr. has passed on.
ROB: Aw... DANIELLE: And the kids
are kind of overwhelmed. They got a lot there.
ROB: Alright. JERSEY JON: Yeah, I mean...
ROB: I appreciate it. Sounds like a good day,
except for this freaking rain. It's not letting up.
JERSEY JON: Yeah, call the weather service
and can they put a hold on this rain for us, Dani?
DANIELLE: Call weather service, put a hold on rain, got it.
JERSEY JON: Thank you! DANIELLE: Okay, guys.
Have a good one. Bye.
(thunder booming)
JERSEY JON: Alright, let's suit up.
ROB: Let's go. JERSEY JON: That's awesome. Yep.
(honking) ROB: Alright, cool.
JERSEY JON: Woo, it's slippery out here! Man.
Hey! RONNIE JR.: Oh, hey guys!
ROB: Hey, are you Ronnie? JERSEY JON: How are you?
RONNIE JR.: Yes sir. ROB: How are you doing, man?
Danielle sent us down. RONNIE JR.: Great to see y'all.
JERSEY JON: How are you doing? RONNIE JR.: Come on in, get out of this rain.
JERSEY JON: Alright, cool. ROB: It's freaking raining down here.
JERSEY JON: Man... ROB: Woo!
RONNIE JR.: Hey, Rhonda. ROB: Wow.
JERSEY JON: Wow, this place is crazy!
RONNIE JR.: Robbie, come on back.
RONNIE JR.: This is my sister, Rhonda.
JERSEY JON: Hello, Rhonda. I'm Jon.
ROB: Rob Wolfe, nice to see you. JERSEY JON: And your name is...
RONNIE JR.: Ronnie. JERSEY JON: Ron?
RONNIE JR.: I'm Ronnie Jr. JERSEY JON: Ronnie Jr. Okay.
JERSEY JON: This is all your dad's stuff?
RONNIE JR.: Yeah. JERSEY JON: This is cool. Hey, look it.
I got a dry one, kind of, for you.
(laughing) JERSEY JON: Phew. Here you go.
This is the kind of stuff we're looking for.
And it looks like you've got a lot of it.
RHONDA: My dad was Ronnie Sanders Sr.
and he collected a lot of things.
Uh, gas pumps, license plates.
RONNIE JR.: The jukeboxes. You know, growing up,
he'd have all his... the music,
and it played at full sound, kind of loud, you know.
RHONDA: When he would come home,
the truck would be loaded down.
JERSEY JON: So, he was a postal worker delivering the mail,
and he was like, "Hey, you wanna get rid of that gas pump?"
"Hey, you wanna get rid of that truck?"
RONNIE JR.: I remember he bought a truck, one time,
the guy was pulling it up, putting the For Sale sign on it.
ROB: How many years did he beat the path there?
RONNIE JR.: He was, total, 34.
JERSEY JON: Whoa! ROB: Wow.
RHONDA: I was 36. JERSEY JON: And you were 36?
ROB: That's an accomplishment. JERSEY JON: And you guys worked together?
RHONDA: No. Different offices. JERSEY JON: Oh, wow.
RHONDA: I'm retired from the postal service.
hMy dad and my mom both retired.
JERSEY JON: Walking in here, I noticed you got
some mailboxes over here. RONNIE JR.: Oh, yeah.
JERSEY JON: I like them both because they're--
ROB: Let me see it, Jersey.
JERSEY JON: But that one's brass, Robbie.
JERSEY JON: You don't see brass post office boxes very often.
It was probably in a hotel lobby.
It was fancy, it was probably polished,
so it was the upper scale model.
RHONDA: Somebody that sold him the brass one
is interested in buying it back, you know.
Had a lot of people contacting me about different things.
JERSEY JON: Oh, yeah? Okay. RHONDA: When Jersey said,
"I see something I want," already, my mind was saying,
"Don't pick up that brass mailbox."
RHONDA: Because the guy who sold it to my dad
would like to have it back.
JERSEY JON: So, is this something you want to hold on to?
RHONDA: I'd like to hold the brass one.
JERSEY JON: Okay, you wanna hold the brass one?
How about the steel one? The blue one?
I know you got an attachment for postal stuff.
JERSEY JON: I'm trying to pull teeth here, I think.
Maybe we can put these in the equation later?
RHONDA: Okay. JERSEY JON: Alright?
RHONDA: Alright. RONNIE JR.: Sounds like a plan.
RHONDA: We'll put it in your maybe pile.
JERSEY JON: Alright. Hey, I appreciate you
letting me look at them and check it out,
and also letting us in here. You mind if we look around?
RONNIE JR.: Yeah, yeah, let's do it.
JERSEY JON: Whoa! Wow.
RONNIE JR.: It's like Jenga. JERSEY JON: Yeah!
JERSEY JON: The interior of this building, I mean,
it's like a cathedral of junk.
It's all over the place, man.
It's like from floor to ceiling.
It's packed in there, it's dense.
ROB: Whoa! RONNIE JR.: There's some Pegasus legs.
ROB: Yeah, what's up with that? JERSEY JON: Oh, wow!
ROB: These are what always got broken off.
I mean, is that... You don't have the horse?
RONNIE JR.: Years ago, he had, like, a pair
facing each other up there. ROB: Oh, yeah,
a left and a right? RONNIE JR.: Yeah.
ROB: These Pegasus legs are always bent and broken
because that was the bolt-on point for the big Peggy
that went up on the building.
To find two of them? Absolutely a miracle.
One is a painted version,
and one is a porcelain version.
RONNIE JR.: If we had the whole thing, it'd be worth
some money, you know. ROB: Yeah. I mean,
I've seen them sell at auction for 15, $18,000.
RONNIE JR.: Yeah? ROB: But the guy that needs this?
(Ronnie Jr. laughing) ROB: That's the key.
RONNIE JR.: Yeah. ROB: You got to find that guy.
This one's in good shape, it's got one chip on it.
I mean, do you want to sell them?
RONNIE JR.: Yeah, sure.
ROB: 300 for the pair.
RONNIE JR.: How about, uh, 350?
This one's probably the good one.
ROB: I'm doing it. I'm doing it.
RONNIE JR.: My biggest concern is that now
there's a Pegasus horse with no legs,
and I hope we find it. (laughing)
ROB: Hey, Jersey! JERSEY JON: What?
ROB: Find me the horse.
JERSEY JON: Whoa! (whistles)
ROB: Are you whistling for it? (laughing)
JERSEY JON: Let's see if we can find him.
MIKE: I'm excited to see James.
DANIELLE: You're really amped up, aren't you?
MIKE: Last time I talked to him, he was telling me about
playing with Jimmy Page, Roy Orbison,
and Bruce Springsteen. The list goes on and on.
DANIELLE: He's a rockstar's rockstar.
MIKE: Hey! CREW: Hey, man.
MIKE: It's James Burton in there?
CREW: I think so. MIKE: I want to get his autograph!
JAMES: Hey, hey, hey. MIKE: What's up, buddy?
JAMES: Hey, pal. MIKE: How are you doing? Good to see you.
(Mike laughing) JAMES: Good to see you.
MIKE: You been alright? You look good.
Where's Louise? There she is! In style.
LOUISE: Louisiana. MIKE: You guys always roll like this?
JAMES: Here comes the boss. LOUISE: Yes.
MIKE: Hi. How are you?
LOUISE: We're doing great. It's quite the hop here.
MIKE: We've been looking at all your stuff.
MIKE: James has been a rockstar for so long
that he drives a tour bus like he drives a Toyota.
MIKE: When's the last time this '57 was out, James?
JAMES: I think I drove it when I bought it
back in, uh, was it '72 or '73?
JAMES: Well, when I got old enough to drive,
I got into cars, and uh,
if I see something I like, I go for it.
MIKE: This Manx, when's the last time you drove that?
JAMES: The dune buggy? MIKE: Yeah.
JAMES: I took it to Death Valley.
MIKE: Okay. JAMES: And, uh, played around up there.
MIKE: And that was in the '70s? JAMES: Yeah.
MIKE: The very first dune buggies
were basically Volkswagen Beetles
with a body pulled off.
And then EMPI came along and started making aftermarket
metal conversion kits they called the Sportster.
MIKE: Bruce Meyers wasn't the first guy
to make a dune buggy,
but he was the first one
to make it out of fiberglass.
Think about how many great American industries
that were impactful
that started in somebody's garage.
Bruce Meyers is one of those guys.
He saw the potential, he saw the impact,
he was an artist, he was a surfer.
I mean, he was part of the California culture.
MIKE: What are the floor pans like on this thing?
They're pretty solid, man.
Oh, you got some rot right through here
on the driver's side, it's starting to come through.
MIKE: As soon as I get up underneath
his Volkswagen chassis, it just brings back
all the memories of looking at these things over the years.
I mean, the first thing you want to look at
is the shock towers, you want to look at the floor pans.
I mean, there's a little bit of damage here,
there's some rot, but overall,
this is a pretty solid vehicle.
MIKE: Bruce Meyers was a genius,
and now they're making Meyers Manx again.
MIKE: They're doing electric ones.
MIKE: Meyers Manx dune buggies have been collectable
for a long time. But there has been a huge
resurgence and interest
because the company has been resurrected
and they're redesigning them in electric models.
JAMES: So, now would be the time to sell that.
MIKE: Yeah. Well, hey,
I'm a player on it, maybe. I don't know.
JERSEY JON: Rhonda, I see these things here.
Hold on, there.
Oh. They're old dive boots.
RHONDA: Wow.
JERSEY JON: It looks like something Robbie would wear.
Grr. (Rhonda laughing)
RHONDA: Get some-- JERSEY JON: Grr!
JERSEY JON: These dive boots are part
of a deep-sea diving rig.
They weigh you down as you're going underwater.
RHONDA: 250.
JERSEY JON: How about two and a quarter? RHONDA: Okay.
JERSEY JON: You'll do two and a quarter? Thank you.
RHONDA: You're welcome. JERSEY JON: They're really cool.
Have you seen Robbie around or did we lose him?
ROB: I just stumbled upon
the Holy Grail of every 45 ever made.
RONNIE JR.: I'll sell you a box, cheap.
ROB: You could have a goldmine back here.
You got to go through every one of these boxes.
RONNIE JR.: Yeah. I don't know-- ROB: It's like comic books.
RONNIE JR.: I don't know if I'd live that long.
ROB: I'll take one box for 30 bucks.
RONNIE JR.: There you go. ROB: Alright.
JERSEY JON: That's cool. RONNIE JR.: Oh, it looks like...
Is that a bank? JERSEY JON: Yeah.
RONNIE JR.: Coin in there, and shoot it in...
I like the guy. JERSEY JON: He's got his hands up.
He's getting held up. (laughing)
I think it looks like from the '60s.
JERSEY JON: It's a die-cast bank.
They came up with a way to inject metal into a mold,
and they can do it thousands and thousands and thousands of times.
JERSEY JON: It's missing the bottom, of course,
and that was probably-- RONNIE JR.: Got robbed.
JERSEY JON: Well... (laughing)
Yeah, got robbed. Very good.
JERSEY JON: I'd do 60 bucks.
RONNIE JR.: How about 80? Would that...
Still keep you going? JERSEY JON: I'm in.
MIKE: Alright, I'm finding some James Burton artifacts.
Le Mirage Perfume,
Beverly Hills, New York.
TOM: I don't think he really wore that.
MIKE: You don't think he was having that?
MIKE: James basically has become a friend at this point,
but every once in a while, it takes over me and I'm like,
this is James Burton, man. This is James Burton's Corvette,
this is James Burton's cologne.
MIKE: It's overwhelming sometimes. I mean,
the achievements he's made, the talents that he has.
It's incredible. And to be able to call him
a friend is such an honor.
JAMES: A girl in Beverly Hills had this car,
drove it to school. MIKE: Uh-huh.
JAMES: And it cost her too much money to drive it.
MIKE: Yeah. JAMES: So, she got a Karmann Ghia.
I said, what do you want for it? And she said, uh, $500.
(laughing) MIKE: Back then.
JAMES: I think I drove it a little bit, but not much.
MIKE: Hey, listen, I love it, the way it looks like this.
It's almost kind of ghostly looking, the way it is.
I love that it has no caps on it,
the black walls, I mean, everything about it.
LOUISE: You'd like all of our cars, then.
(laughing)
MIKE: Let me ask you this. James, are you gonna
get this car back on the road? JAMES: I don't think so.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: We have a picture
at our foundation office with him and Elvis
sitting in this car. MIKE: In this one?
LOUISE: Well... JAMES: No.
LOUISE: I meant the year. (laughing)
MIKE: Well, Elvis did have a Meyers Manx.
I don't know if it was his. He was in a movie with one.
JAMES: I saw his, yeah.
MIKE: Oh, so he did have one? LOUISE: Mm-hmm.
MIKE: The Manx was a cultural phenomenon,
and not just in California.
It made appearances in movies
like The Thomas Crown Affair with Steve McQueen.
Or the opening scene of Live a Little, Love a Little
with Elvis Presley. He was driving a Meyers Manx
that was Yuma yellow,
exactly like the one I'm standing in front of.
Which makes me wonder, which came first,
Elvis's Manx
or James Burton's Manx?
Who influenced who?
MIKE: It's beautiful. I mean, it's a time capsule.
MIKE: It really is. Both of these cars are.
This is the fiberglass car corner over here.
(laughing)
(phone ringing) LOUISE: James, hey,
you've got a phone call in the house
from a promoter that you were waiting for.
MIKE: James in his 80s and he is still
rocking and rolling. He's a busy guy.
He's touring Europe, he's taking phone calls.
I mean, he's one of those guys that loves what he does,
and when you stop working, you stop living.
JAMES: Okay, well, we'll pick up.
MIKE: Okay, yeah. Take your call
and I'll digest all of this stuff.
JERSEY JON: This is all the scientific stuff he bought.
What was going on? Did you find an old lab or something?
I mean, what's going on with this thing?
RHONDA: I think it was from a school.
JERSEY JON: Okay. So, I mean, this is some kind of weird
tuning fork with some electrical coils on it.
RHONDA: I was with Dad when he bought these items
from a science classroom,
I'm guessing that's where they were from.
JERSEY JON: What the heck! Whoa. RHONDA: Oh, wow.
JERSEY JON: That's... whoa.
JERSEY JON: This is the kind of thing that schools would use
to demonstrate different scientific principles
and techniques. But what really stands out to me
is this Wimshurst machine.
JERSEY JON: It's a demonstrator for static electricity,
and I mean, that's the very first time
we're discovering electricity, is with machines like this.
And I think that was why, at the time when, you know,
Leonardo Davinci was around, they started messing
with this stuff.
JERSEY JON: How it works is that
there's two glass discs in there
and they counter rotate two opposite directions.
And there's these combs on each side of the glass,
they pick up the static electricity charge
and they bring it into these capacitors.
From there, it discharges into these balls
and it goes bzz, like a Frankenstein movie,
you know? It's like, it's so cool to see this.
JERSEY JON: I mean, this piece is not made in the 15 or 1600s,
this is made in the '20s, 1920s.
This one looks like it's in pretty darn good shape.
I think it would actually work.
JERSEY JON: I mean, look at this lamp.
Look at that baby. It's got like a parabolic lens
in there, it's all like, silvered.
JERSEY JON: There's also this parabolic mirror is so cool
because right away, what comes up in my mind
is that this could be repurposed.
JERSEY JON: It's sitting on a table
with an Edison bulb here. RHONDA: Yeah. That'd be cool.
JERSEY JON: That'd be wicked cool! You got this little,
like, homemade motor. This came out of a school?
RHONDA: I think so, yeah. JERSEY JON: So, your dad
was buying stuff from everywhere.
RHONDA: If it was a good deal, he was down for it.
JERSEY JON: "If it was a good deal..."
JERSEY JON: I can see all the conversations
that I could have with Ronnie Sr.
You know, I feel I'm getting to know him.
I'm doing it through the objects he's collected in his life.
JERSEY JON: For one, two, three, four pieces here...
I'm thinking two and a quarter.
RHONDA: I, uh, in my head I was thinking
200 or above, I'm taking it.
JERSEY JON: Well, I'll tell you what,
then I offered you more than you wanted, right?
RHONDA: Yes. JERSEY JON: Alright. Thank you.
RHONDA: Thank you. JERSEY JON: That's really cool.
I love early science stuff. It's neat!
LOUISE: This used to be a guesthouse
and our party house, and nothing but fun, fun, fun
went on here. MIKE: This is a pretty dang big guesthouse.
LOUISE: Yeah. 3,000 square feet. It's big.
These are some of James' cottage cases
that came from LA that he used in studios.
MIKE: What year do you think this is from?
LOUISE: Oh, probably the '60s.
MIKE: Oh my gosh. LOUISE: And, um...
MIKE: So, the bottom of it is blown out.
LOUISE: Yeah. Let me tell you how to repair.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: You put a piece of board here.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: There, there, and there.
MIKE: Can you put a 2x4? Because it has to slip
over this, right? LOUISE: I think we could do it.
MIKE: This is so cool. It's got his name on it,
it's directly connected to him playing,
it held his amp.
But the condition is just not there.
I love that Louise is like,
"What are you talking about?! You can fix it this way,
all you got to do is hammer this, glue that."
Louise is spunky, she's scrappy,
and evidently, she's handy.
LOUISE: They just recorded with Brad Paisley, so...
MIKE: Really? LOUISE: And he's getting ready
to do a thing with Ron Don.
MIKE: James is obviously best known
for playing with Elvis Presley,
but he also played with guys like Merle Haggard,
Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash,
Elvis Costello, John Denver.
MIKE: Yeah, of course. LOUISE: People ask him,
when are you going to retire? And he says, to what?
I mean, he's never worked.
He's only played all of his life, so, it's not work to him.
MIKE: How about 300 in the condition it's in?
LOUISE: Can I think about that? MIKE: Absolutely.
LOUISE: Okay. MIKE: Absolutely.
Think about that. I mean, there's one thing
that I've seen here just walking in the door.
What about the Untouchables game?
What's going on with that?
TOM: This has got a bunch of his music and stuff in here.
LOUISE: Oh, gosh, that's awesome.
Wow. See, that's the studio stuff he would be playing.
MIKE: Did James write songs? LOUISE: He wrote Suzie Q.
MIKE: Oh my gosh, that's right. LOUISE: Yeah.
It was a sign on and sign off song
that they used at the club with Dale Hawkins.
And so, Dale finally put words to it. But then--
MIKE: How old was he when he wrote that?
LOUISE: 14. TOM: 14.
MIKE: 14 years old.
And how old was he when you came into his life?
LOUISE: I was 16 but he was 21.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: So, we had--
MIKE: What did your mom and dad think of that?
LOUISE: They didn't like that at all.
They didn't like he was a musician,
and they didn't like that he was older.
LOUISE: We used to have all the parties out there
and it was a party house.
And it was decorated, music stuff, everything.
JAMES: There's a lot of history out there.
LOUISE: We don't throw anything out.
MIKE: You know, you got the cops and robbers.
These guys have shotguns, driving the getaway car.
LOUISE: James loved it because it was cars.
MIKE: It's basically a chase game.
You're the police, you got a pistol grip
in your hand, a throttle at your foot.
You can see the pavement moving underneath them
on this conveyer belt.
It's just such a hard game to find.
I mean, yes, this one's not in the best condition,
but it can be fixed, it can be repaired.
I mean, it's so cool to see it here in this pool house
because of all the entertaining they did.
Imagine who would've played this thing.
MIKE: Alright, so I can see there's an 8-track in here,
look at that. LOUISE: Oh, yeah.
MIKE: That's the sound. LOUISE: That's the sound.
MIKE: You know, here's the deal.
I know these are expensive games
when they're rocking and rolling
and they're in really good condition.
LOUISE: Mm-hmm. MIKE: I mean, I don't know...
the market on it completely, but I've seen these games
bring as much as 10 to $12,000.
LOUISE: Wow. MIKE: When they're done.
I mean, I'm talking like really nice, pristine games.
And that's why I wanted to see the cabinet on it.
LOUISE: Yeah. MIKE: To see how nice the paint was on it,
you know what I mean?
So, this side looks pretty good too.
It has a little bit of nicks, but not much.
MIKE: I'm thinking, uh... 4,000 bucks.
LOUISE: Mike, you gotta remember, we're best friends.
MIKE: Hey! I know! I am remembering that.
LOUISE: How about 45,
and I'll throw this in.
MIKE: 4,000 for the game
and 500 for the shipping case.
LOUISE: Yeah. Okay. MIKE: Alright, we're doing it.
LOUISE: Good go. MIKE: Alright, thank you.
I love it. We've got a guy I think that can get this
fired up, but you know, the Untouchables 8-track,
that might be a little bit difficult to get that rolling.
LOUISE: It's not, no. You just take a little tape.
Don't you remember how you fixed your 8-tracks years ago?
MIKE: No. LOUISE: I have cars with 8-tracks.
We had to fix those all the time.
ROB: This is probably when he was buying these--
JERSEY JON: When he was picking, doing the postal picking.
ROB: Postal picking. JERSEY JON: Postal picking, man.
He'd find, "Hey, you got a gas pump out there, how much is that?"
Come back for it. RONNIE JR.: He used to dig them out the woods.
I remember going on vacation, me and my sister
would have all kinds of room. You know, she'd have
the whole back, I'd have the middle section.
ROB: Yeah. RONNIE JR.: Then on the way home,
we'd like ride on top. (all laughing)
JERSEY JON: On top of everything you bought?
We're all built the same way. My dad used to do the same thing.
We'd go out at a flea market and sell a bunch of stuff
and we'd have a big dinner on the way home,
and that was kind of like, see, that's how this works.
JERSEY JON: A lot of time when you're collecting
these gas pumps, you're buying them for parts,
you're buying them because you need the top for one
to make the other one complete.
So, this is kind of like the graveyard of gas pumps.
ROB: I mean, I'd be interested in both the Hayes pumps.
This Hayes is here with the top, it's missing the cylinder on it.
JERSEY JON: The square sides. ROB: Yeah.
And this one here... this one right here.
This one, you know.
The paint is flaking off of it, but it's another Hayes.
It's missing the cylinder and it's missing the top on here
so I'd like to try to find the top of the cylinder
if we could, for this.
ROB: These are Hayes visible pumps.
Most of the visible pumps you see are round at the bottom.
These are actually squared off and tapered to the top,
and if you look at the top, it looks like a mushroom.
So, it's just a little bit different pump.
Little bit harder to find parts for,
but these are more valuable.
ROB: Would you sell this? RHONDA: I would.
ROB: I would do 2,600
if I could find the top and a cylinder.
RONNIE JR.: For the... For the two?
ROB: Yep. JERSEY JON: I think I saw some inside.
RONNIE JR.: Let's just do 2,500
for what we're looking at here.
ROB: Okay. RONNIE JR.: And if we find the cylinder,
we can negotiate that, because I'm not sure
if the cylinder's got BB holes in it
or cracks in it. We didn't really look at the...
JERSEY JON: Yeah. ROB: 2,500
for what we're looking at. RONNIE JR.: Okay.
ROB: That work? RONNIE JR.: Good.
JERSEY JON: Cool, thank you. ROB: Awesome.
MIKE: Can I look at these slot machines over here?
LOUISE: Yes, you can.
They came out of a ski lodge
we own part of years ago
from Calgary, Canada, and Happy Valley.
MIKE: That's where you guys were at up there?
LOUISE: Yeah. And now it's all subdivision.
We were one of the owners at one time, of it.
MIKE: There's a lot of memories in here.
Not just like from parties and stuff,
but all of these items, you know, from different places
they've been. So, you know, the fact that she's telling me
that the slot machines came from a casino
that they were investors in in Canada.
I mean, that just shows like all the little things
they were doing on the side besides playing music, you know.
They were running a business. The business of life.
MIKE: This one's called the Mills Extraordinaire,
and this one is the Rock-Ola Revamp.
They're both from the same time period,
which is the 1930s.
They need work. I'd like to be at like 400 apiece.
LOUISE: I'll tell you what,
I know they're worth around 1,200 each.
MIKE: If they're restored, yeah. LOUISE: If they're new,
and I'm not gonna do anything with them,
so I'll make you an offer you can't refuse.
(chuckling) MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: 450 each.
And they're yours.
MIKE: Alright, we're doing it.
We're doing it. Shake her hand, Tom.
MIKE: Tom is just as surprised as I am.
Louise is selling stuff.
TOM: We sold something! LOUISE: Yeah! Good.
MIKE: Sold something!
ROB: Can I look up there? RONNIE JR.: Yes. Oh, yeah.
ROB: Up top, here? JERSEY JON: Oh, it's got an upstairs here?
ROB: There's stairs right here. RONNIE JR.: You can go up--
JERSEY JON: Yeah, yeah, there's a whole mezzanine up there.
JERSEY JON: When you walk into most collector's spaces,
you kind of know what the vibe is.
You know right away, hey, this guy collects cars,
he collects tools, he collects boats, whatever.
With this pick, there's a variety here.
I don't know where to focus.
ROB: Haha. He made this one.
ROB: He made it into a... looks like it was a clock body.
He made that and fit it in there.
ROB: Ronnie Sr. looked like he was a guy
that liked to tinker with different things.
This ACTO gas lens,
they took a clock body and put a glass lens
on the inside of it, and then lit it up from behind.
I mean, it's genius. It's a piece of folk art,
but, man, I'll tell you what, I'm gonna start doing this.
RONNIE JR.: When I saw it, I thought it was a pump globe
and then it's like, wait... ROB: Well, that's what it would've gone on.
This would've gone on a pump. RONNIE JR.: The lens...
ROB: The lens would have, but he put it in a clock body,
is what he did. Unique. RONNIE JR.: Yeah.
ROB: 250. I think retail on it
after we probably wire it
and do everything to it, maybe 400.
RONNIE JR.: Yeah? ROB: It's like a folk art piece,
is what it is. I mean, the lens is where the value is.
RONNIE JR.: Could you do 275?
Just to kind of sweeten it up a little bit?
ROB: 275. RONNIE JR.: Okay.
ROB: I'll do it. I love it. RONNIE JR.: Great.
ROB: I got a feeling that your dad built that.
RONNIE JR.: He may have.
MIKE: The TCB Band.
Look at that. LOUISE: Oh my...
MIKE: Emory Gordy Jr., James Burton, Ronny Tutt,
Jerry Scheff, Glen Hardin.
LOUISE: That's the only record they ever made, too.
And we got a box of them. MIKE: So, this was Elvis' band?
LOUISE: Yep. They didn't even go on the market, so...
MIKE: They never went on the market?
TOM: They were never released. LOUISE: Never.
MIKE: Really? LOUISE: No.
MIKE: Have you ever seen one of these sell?
LOUISE: Just once. MIKE: What did it go for?
LOUISE: It was up for 85, but I think 300 is closer.
They've never been released.
MIKE: What year did this come out?
LOUISE: '78. MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: The next year after Elvis went to heaven.
And that was the TCB Band.
MIKE: Would you sell any of these?
LOUISE: Yeah. I'm thinking...
200 would be the minimum.
MIKE: Apiece, that you'd want? LOUISE: Yeah, each,
what I'd want for them.
MIKE: Alright. Man, I mean, it's incredible
to see so many of them. LOUISE: There's not any-
MIKE: I knew nothing about this album.
LOUISE: Nobody does.
We're getting ready to do a big show.
MIKE: Yeah. LOUISE: I'm gonna release them
and they're going to be very, very, very expensive.
MIKE: Yeah, yeah. LOUISE: And they'll sell.
MIKE: If you saw them for 85 apiece,
what about 100 apiece for one case?
LOUISE: How many is in a case? MIKE: I don't know.
LOUISE: 150.
Because I know how valuable they are.
MIKE: I think there's 25. LOUISE: Okay.
MIKE: Louise knows she can get more for these albums
than anyone else, because she has a direct
connection to Elvis's fans.
They've got a big promotion coming up
and she wants to sell them at top dollar.
MIKE: How about I buy one for your 150, and...
LOUISE: And James will sign it. MIKE: And James will sign it?
LOUISE: Yes, of course.
MIKE: Louise has been around the block long enough to know
if James put his name on something,
it's worth more money. And she's right.
MIKE: Okay, alright. I'm doing that.
It's cool. I love it.
JERSEY JON: Look at this railroad sign, dude.
That's a railroad crossing sign, it's cast-iron.
This is probably what your dad was gonna do.
There's one piece. RONNIE JR.: Probably so.
JERSEY JON: And there's the other piece.
RONNIE JR.: Probably so, yeah. JERSEY JON: It's missing a chunk.
ROB: Missing a chunk out of it. JERSEY JON: But still,
I weld these Robbie. You put nickel rod on it,
you can weld them.
JERSEY JON: The people that buy these railroad signs,
they're model train collectors, they're railroad buffs.
And they're cool. It's cast-iron.
They're kind of hard to find.
JERSEY JON: I got a book press here. Yep.
ROB: It still works. JERSEY JON: Still works.
RHONDA: Oh, wow.
JERSEY JON: It's got some decoration on it.
RHONDA: You're making me want to keep it.
(laughing) JON: Well, hey, look...
RHONDA: I'm kidding. RONNIE JR.: Yes.
JERSEY JON: It's a cast-iron pile.
RHONDA: My dad was always working on something.
Always had a project.
Always saw something
and thought how he could make it better.
Fix it.
JERSEY JON: For that sign right there, I'd go 100 bucks.
This book press right here, this one here retails
for probably around two and a quarter.
So, I'd do 100 and a half on it.
ROB: For 250. JERSEY JON: For 250 for boom and boom.
RONNIE JR.: Yeah. JERSEY JON: Unless you want a book press.
RHONDA: No, I really don't. JERSEY JON: Are you sure?
JERSEY JON: You got some books you want to press down?
You got some leaves? You good? RONNIE JR.: I think that's good.
Good luck with that.
JERSEY JON: I know, I know. Thank you.
MIKE: Look at this!
JAMES: It's a '66.
MIKE: Okay. I see that. Yeah, man. Dang, James!
JAMES: When I got it, it was like brand new.
LOUISE: You bought it in Vegas.
MIKE: Did you buy this in the '70s or...?
LOUISE: Uh, yeah. JAMES: Yeah.
MIKE: Were you guys living in Vegas at the time?
LOUISE: We had a home there and one in Toluca Lake, California.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: So, we'd go back and forth.
MIKE: I can't even imagine James and Louise's life.
Vegas, early '70s,
Elvis has a residency there
and they've got a house. They're cruising The Strip
in a Corvette. What a hard-earned life.
MIKE: Can we look at the engine? JAMES: Yeah.
MIKE: Okay.
JAMES: Is it still there?
(laughing) MIKE: It's still there.
So, did you put the Tri Power on this, James?
JAMES: No. MIKE: That was on there when you bought it?
JAMES: Yeah. MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: Our neighbor owned this
and he kept asking him,
and finally, he gave up and sold it to him.
MIKE: Oh, James kept bugging him?
(laughing) LOUISE: That's how he gets all these cars.
MIKE: Okay. LOUISE: Most of them.
MIKE: James is like one of the most
famous guitar players in the world.
Can you imagine living next door to him,
he's like, "Hey, I wanna buy your car, I wanna buy your car."
I love that. I love that he's, like,
really never forgotten where he came from.
These guys still have a house in Shreveport.
They're both such down-to-earth people
for the lives they have lived.
That speaks volumes to how he feels about these cars.
You know, he's looking beyond the dust,
he's looking beyond the repairs,
and he's thinking about snapshots,
those memories in his life of, like,
you know, when he got them.
LOUISE: James never lets me drive any of his cars.
(Mike laughing)
LOUISE: I have to buy my own if I want to drive them.
JAMES: I'm funny about my cars.
She can drive the automatic easier.
LOUISE: Like, he got me a Camarro SS.
But he'd buy me cars, but that was my car.
He didn't want me touching his cars.
MIKE: I mean, Elvis bought people cars.
Did he ever buy you guys cars?
JAMES: No, I had more cars than he did at that time.
MIKE: Did he try to buy you a car, James?
LOUISE: Yeah. The El Dorado. MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: At the Bicentennial. He called us and said,
"I found one." And they only made 250,
and the dealers were keeping them.
We got in a car and ran over there and bought it.
JAMES: When I worked Las Vegas with Elvis,
I don't think he could drive very good.
(laughing) JAMES: Because, you know,
the guy had shaky legs.
(Louise laughing) JAMES: And uh,
I never would let him drive my car.
JAMES: Well, I figured if he had the money to buy it,
he would do it, but I went ahead and jumped the gun.
MIKE: Yeah, yeah, you wanted to make sure you could get it.
(upbeat music)
ROB: Hey Ron. RONNIE JR.: What do you got?
ROB: Found a milk glass body.
RONNIE JR.: Oh, yeah.
ROB: Looks like a 13 and a half inch.
One side's broke. JERSEY JON: Is it in good shape, Robbie?
ROB: Eh. One side's broke. RONNIE JR.: Aw, shucks.
It wasn't like that earlier.
ROB: Wait, are you saying I did it?
(laughing) ROB: What?! I didn't do that!
I just picked the thing up.
JERSEY JON: "It wasn't like that earlier."
(laughing) ROB: It does stink.
ROB: I saw this piece right here. It's pieces.
This would've been advertising the barbershop.
JERSEY JON: Yeah. It's a fancy one, Robbie.
ROB: Yeah, I mean all the chrome that's on here.
JERSEY JON: I don't see them too much like this.
I mean, the chrome is nice on it.
ROB: Porcelain.
ROB: A barber pole tells you
that they're going to actually treat you like a professional.
They're going to give you the neck shave,
they're gonna trim the ears up,
they're gonna trim the eyebrows, trim up the beard.
They're gonna make you look like a million dollars
when you leave.
ROB: 400 on this.
And 400 on this. JERSEY JON: Yeah.
ROB: I think it's $1,000 put together.
RONNIE JR.: How about 850?
ROB: Let's do it. RONNIE JR.: Appreciate it.
JERSEY JON: Thanks, buddy. RONNIE JR.: Thank y'all, man.
RONNIE JR.: It's been hidden up here, and uh...
We only broke one side of that so far.
(Jersey Jon laughing) RONNIE JR.: You know?
ROB: Yeah, only one side.
RONNIE JR.: You get it out of here before, uh...
ROB: Before the other side gets broken?
RONNIE JR.: Yeah.
LOUISE: James has a disease called the Wantitis.
MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: And everything he sees, he wants.
MIKE: Okay. (laughing)
LOUISE: Even today.
JAMES: Well, I might need it.
LOUISE: Yeah. (laughing)
MIKE: Is that the way you still are with guitars, James?
If it's rare or interesting enough?
JAMES: They normally give them to me.
LOUISE: Yeah, he doesn't buy guitars.
But we have this foundation
that we give guitars all over the world.
MIKE: I know, I know you guys do.
LOUISE: For 19 years. MIKE: How many guitars have you guys given out?
LOUISE: Thousands. We never even counted them.
JAMES: I started playing guitar when I was very young,
and uh, I never thought I'd make money doing it.
But just playing the instrument was what really made me happy.
Then I decided I want to help the kids
try to do something with music, you know.
Some want pianos, but they're too heavy to carry around.
LOUISE: Yeah. We don't give pianos.
(laughing)
LOUISE: We give them to vets too.
MIKE: So blessed to be able to do that.
LOUISE: And children in hospitals, St. Jude's, Shriners.
It changes their life. We get written all these songs.
MIKE: They found purpose. LOUISE: Yeah, they write songs
that tell what's in their heart and in their mind.
MIKE: Absolutely. LOUISE: And that's their outlet now.
MIKE: After getting to know James and Louise,
one of the things I love about them
is how spiritual they are, and how giving they are.
They understand that James's legacy
goes way beyond him being one of the most famous
guitar players in the world.
They know we're all here to take care of each other.
And if anybody understands the impact
a guitar can have on a child's life, it's James.
JAMES: Did you paint this? TOM: Uh...
One of your cans with the heat undercoating
decided to start shooting itself here.
MIKE: Oh, the can blew up?
TOM: Yeah, the can blew up
and sprayed undercoating all over it.
LOUISE: We should've left them in California.
JAMES: Well, the Louisiana weather, it's very humid.
When you keep them in garages, they sweat,
the upholstery dries out and cracks.
JAMES: The paint's all dried out.
MIKE: I know, there's pieces
there coming off of it in sheets.
LOUISE: I know. Oh my God. MIKE: Can I take a picture?
JAMES: Yeah. MIKE: Of the block number?
JAMES: Yeah. MIKE: So I can send it to my Corvette guy?
Just so, you know, you'll find something out too
whether or not this is the original engine to the car.
MIKE: I mean, obviously this has been altered.
And I love the Tri Power on it.
MIKE: James cares about these cars.
He loves these cars.
They were a big part of his life.
It's just that they've led such a busy lifestyle.
You know, he's been on the road for so long.
He's still touring in Europe now.
It's not that he's forgotten about the cars,
it's just that he knows
they're there, and that's enough for him.
MIKE: Let me ask you this, James.
Is this something that
you would consider selling? Either this car, or the '59?
JAMES: Well, since I'm a car collector,
I might consider selling one.
MIKE: James, I'm obviously interested in this car.
I really am. I mean, I would drive it just the way it looks.
I mean, mechanically, it has to be completely
gone through, it needs tires, it needs everything.
JAMES: Oh, no, it runs great. MIKE: It runs great?
JAMES: It runs great. MIKE: It'll run great, I'm sure.
JAMES: It also works with the dirt on it.
MIKE: What, you talking about this is extra?
JAMES: Yeah. Yeah. (Louise laughing)
MIKE: There you go.
MIKE: To walk out of here with any car
is obviously a longshot,
because I understand how much these mean to him.
In James's mind, he's still 25
because he lives his life like he is.
I mean, the guy is still touring,
he's still rock and rolling.
You know, he's young at heart, man.
And that's why now I think he's kind of thinking,
okay, I can get these back on the road,
I can get them running again,
I'm going to drive these cars again.
And him having these cars, they feel like family to him.
MIKE: Hey. JEFF: What's going on?
MIKE: Nothing. Hey, I'm with James and Louise and Tom,
and we're looking at the '59 Corvette right now.
What can you tell me about this '59
in regards to the condition of it and the value of it?
JEFF: Well, it needs to be completely restored,
but it's kind of a cool patina-looking car,
from what I can see from the pictures.
MIKE: I know, and that's what I like about it too.
JEFF: How long has he had that car, Mike?
MIKE: The USC decal
where she went to school says '71.
LOUISE: She was in school when we bought it.
MIKE: Okay. So, they bought it in the early '70s
in Southern California. JEFF: Early '70s, so he's had it for 50 years.
That's pretty cool. MIKE: Yeah.
JEFF: Um, but yeah, I mean, it looks like it's all there.
You know, the way it sits, I think a fair price
for both parties would probably be in the $30,000 range.
25 would be low, but 30 would be a fair price.
MIKE: Hey, did you get a chance to look at both cars,
the '66 and the '59,
and whether they're matching numbers cars?
JEFF: I did, Mike. I looked at the '66,
and that does show that it's a matching number car.
It's a 327 350 horse. MIKE: Okay.
JEFF: Which is the '79 car. The 59 does not appear
to be a numbers matching car from what I can read
from the VIN number. It doesn't appear
that it's, uh, seeing that it's a manual transmission car,
should have different digits on the block,
so I don't think that's the original motor for that car.
MIKE: Okay. So, that's good information.
JEFF: You know, the way it sits, I think that '66
is probably worth about the same,
around the $30,000 range.
It needs to be completely restored, of course.
MIKE: Okay, so you think the value of the cars
is both the same, the piece, and then we also have
to take into consideration
that they were James's cars as well.
Alright, buddy. Thank you for everything, I appreciate it.
JEFF: You bet. Thanks, Mike. See you later.
MIKE: Bye.
JAMES: You know, you get too much stuff
and you have to pick and choose what you want to keep.
MIKE: So, here's what I'm thinking, okay?
$30,000 for this one, $20,000 for this one. $50,000.
(exhales slowly)
JERSEY JON: Whoa. Look at this thing!
Hey, Ron! RONNIE JR.: Yeah, man?
JERSEY JON: Come here, buddy. Look at this thing.
RONNIE JR.: What do you got?
JERSEY JON: Oh, this is cool.
Oh...
RONNIE JR.: Oh, the service center.
JERSEY JON: Yeah. You know about this?
RONNIE JR.: Date and Nite. ROB: Oh, look,
it's got a '59 on there. JERSEY JON: Yeah!
ROB: Look at the El Camino right here.
The toys back in the day, they were the bomb.
JERSEY JON: Freaking, the best. Even the inside, Robbie!
RONNIE JR.: Oh cool. JERSEY JON: It looks like it's never been played with.
JERSEY JON: This is an exciting time in America,
you know, back in the '50s. People have extra money now,
post-war, they're going on vacation,
they're bringing their kids,
they're seeing these service stations on the road,
and here's a toy that emulates that.
JERSEY JON: Typical post-war toys.
They're just going transitioning from, you know,
making war materials, now they're starting
to stamp out stuff out of tin. ROB: Yeah.
JERSEY JON: You know, and then, now it's coming into stuff
that's made out of plastic toys.
There's plastic pieces with tin pieces.
So, it's very interesting. RONNIE JR.: Yeah.
JERSEY JON: It's like a transition toy,
like in the '60s, this thing would've been
blow molded plastic. So, it's mostly complete.
Retail on something like this...
4 to 500 bucks.
RONNIE JR.: What do you think? JERSEY JON: Um...
Two and a quarter.
RONNIE JR.: How about 250? Just to...
JERSEY JON: 250? I got you, man.
RONNIE JR.: Alright. Appreciate it, man.
RONNIE JR.: I'm glad you like it.
JERSEY JON: Yeah, I'm in it.
JERSEY JON: Rhonda and Ron respect the collection.
They understand why their dad put it together.
They're taking their time with it.
They're reliving their father's memory
through this collection.
ROB: Thank you. RHONDA: Thank y'all.
JERSEY JON: I have a lot of respect for that.
That's really a great way to celebrate
the guy who put it together.
MIKE: I would like to be at $50,000
for both of these cars.
And I would put them, I would put them both
back on the road.
LOUISE: Let's think about it, Mike.
MIKE: Okay.
LOUISE: The cars he told me today he didn't want to sell
was the Corvettes, the T-bird,
and one of his Cadillac convertibles, the '76.
We can handle four cars.
We're really good. And he can drive them and enjoy them.
LOUISE: I'll tell you, we'll take 25 on that,
and that's a steal. 25.
MIKE: I sent some pictures to my guy, Louise,
and I wanted to be fair with you guys, and I get it,
but at the end of the day, it's like,
he sent me back a message and said,
"Hey, this is a $25,000 car running down the road."
I mean, it just needs a lot of work.
LOUISE: 24.
Hey, I came down. MIKE: I know, hey...
(laughing) LOUISE: That was a lot of money.
MIKE: You know, after collecting Volkswagens for so long
starting out with Karmann Ghias and then with Volkswagen Bugs
and then with vans,
it's like all the barns I've been to
over all the years,
I have come across dune buggies before.
But now I'm starting to look at them
with different eyes, because you know,
what Bruce Meyers did is really incredible.
I mean, Southern California culture,
you know, people connected to music,
fashion, surfing, all of that stuff.
But the dune buggy is always right there.
LOUISE: It's so original.
You could polish that paint. It's not coming off.
JAMES: It's fiberglass, yeah. MIKE: It's the Yuma.
How about this... LOUISE: I want you to have it.
MIKE: $23,000.
LOUISE: Alright. JAMES: Okay.
MIKE: Alright. Alright, we did it!
LOUISE: That's his car. MIKE: James, actually,
James, I'm proud of you for selling a car.
LOUISE: I am too! MIKE: Aren't you proud?
LOUISE: He told me if anybody he would ever sell it to,
he wanted Mike to have it.
So, we said sure, okay. So, we did that.
JAMES: Yeah, I'd be glad to get it back on the road.
I'd like to see that.
MIKE: I hope this has a bunch of nickels in it.
(laughing) LOUISE: It might. It might.
MIKE: James and Louise have such a bright light,
and it's not just from him being a star.
It's who they are as people.
Their spirituality, their humility,
their generosity, that is what shines through.
MIKE: Alright. LOUISE: Okay.
MIKE: I'll talk to you guys soon.
I'll see you in Nashville. We'll have another
catfish dinner together. Hey, thanks for all your help, buddy.
MIKE: I want to get this Meyers Manx running,
drive to James's house in Nashville,
and give him a ride on the Natchez Trace.
That's the day I'm looking forward to.
MIKE: Alright, TCB! Taking care of Burton!
(laughing) JAMES: You got it!
(honking)