8 Unbelieveable Storage Unit Discoveries

Ever wondered about the kinds of things people forget in their storage units? Turns out, you could find classic cars and boxes full of celebrity photos.

If you’ve seen the hit show “Storage Wars,” then you know all about the kinds of amazing finds that are possible in abandoned storage unit. When you bid on an abandoned storage unit, there’s no telling what you might find. Here are eight of the most impressive finds on record.

1. All of Paris Hilton’s Stuff

Celebitchy, LLC / Via celebitchy.com

The contents of a storage unit were auctioned off for $2,775, and they turned out to include the furniture, computers, clothing, and other items belonging to Paris Hilton. It has been hailed as a “King Tut’s tomb” of celebrity memorabilia. In 2004, Paris Hilton was moving to a different home in the Hollywood Hills area, and the items put into storage were auctioned off. With most storage unit companies, the contents are auctioned off if the renter falls too far behind on payments. Hilton’s publicist claims that the items were “illegally seized” because of a “bureaucratic foul-up.” The winner of the auction sold everything for 10 million dollars, and the buyer allegedly posted Hilton’s personal photos and videos on a website called ParisExposed.com.

2. The James Bond Submarine Car

NBC News Digital / Via nbcnews.com

A storage unit sold for just $100 in 1989, and the famous 007 submarine car was inside! The fantasy submersible version of the Lotus Esprit was featured in The Spy Who Loved Me. The man who bought the contents of the storage unit didn’t understand why the car didn’t have wheels, but he loaded it up for the drive home. Over the CB radio, passing truckers told him that they recognized the car from a movie, and he rented the VHS after he got home. At auction, the car sold for nearly a million dollars.

3. Nicolas Cage’s Superman Comic Book

Via comicsalliance.com

About 11 years after it had been stolen, a comic book that belonged to Nicolas Cage was found in a storage unit in Southern California. The historic comic book, titled Action Comics No. 1, was actually the first to feature Superman. The comic book is estimated to be worth around a million dollars. Since comic books of that era didn’t have serial numbers, the exact copy had to be confirmed by matching imperfections and irregularities. Only about a hundred copies of the classic comic book are still in existence, and only six of those are preserved like Nicolas Cage’s copy.

4. Actual Pirates’ Treasure

Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images / Via sparefoot.com

Dan and Laura Dotson are the stars of the show Storage Wars, and they auctioned off a storage unit that had actual pirate’s treasure inside! The buyer bought the contents of the abandoned unit for $1000 at a storage unit auction. The unit included a plastic container with gold and silver. The container was so heavy that it took three people to move it out of the unit. Some of the coins were over 200 years old, and the contents of the plastic container were appraised to be worth over $500,000.

5. Jackson Family Memorabilia

MJVibe / Via mjvibe.com

The Jackson family got behind on payments for a 6,000 square foot storage space full of family mementos from the Jackson 5 and early days of Michael Jackson’s career. When the family was $60,000 behind on payments, a businessman was able to purchase the contents of the unit. The thousands of personal items include MJ’s earliest stage costumes, complete with his name handwritten inside. Other items of interest include a medical contract for surgery on Janet Jackson’s nose. The businessman claimed that there were also sketches signed by Michael Jackson, including a sketch of Charlie Chaplin. Many of the items were later available for sale online, and a number of lawsuits have been filed by the Jackson estate.

6. Beach Boys Sheet Music and Photos

Via cdn.playbuzz.com

A whole storage unit full of Beach Boys documents went up for auction as a collection. Called the “Lost Archive,” the collection included the band’s first royalty check and personal photographs. There was handwritten sheet music for “Good Vibrations” as well as personal letters and contracts. The collection had been put into storage by a relative of one of the band members in the 1970s. The family member eventually fell behind on payments for the unit. The band attempted to gain ownership of the collection, but the courts ruled that the items were justly the property of the person who won the auction.

7. 1966 Shelby GT350 Fastback

Dorling Kindersley Limited / Via allfordmustangs.com

In Lawrence, Kansas, a man taking over an apartment complex got more than he expected. The garage of the apartment was full of old junk like skis and junk tools. Under the debris, he also found a 1966 Shelby GT350 Fastback. The classic muscle car had a red paintjob and about 87,000 miles on the odometer. Maintenance records suggested that it hadn’t been moved in 26 years. While an apartment garage isn’t quite the same as a self-storage unit, the space had clearly been used in much the same way. The Shelby is such a popular collector’s car that many go for well over $100,000 at auction.

8. Original Madonna Pictures and Negatives

Pomodori Secchi Morti / Via Flickr: 26881273@N02

A storage unit in Chatsworth, California was sold in a blind auction for $150. It turned out that the unit was full of Madonna memorabilia, including photographs, negatives, and polaroids. The storage unit had been rented by Melissa Crow, Madonna’s first assistant, but she fell behind on payments. When the buyer put the collection up for sale online, it also included a collection of 17 journals, but a representative of Madonna claimed the journals are fakes.