Events | March 30, 2011

TV Series "Auction Hunters" Returns For A Second Season

New York, NY, -- Spike TV’s hit original series “Auction Hunters” returns for a second season with 20 new episodes starting Tuesday, April 5 at 10:00 PM, ET/PT.  Season two, which continues to follow two of the best prospectors in the business, Allen Haff and Clinton “Ton” Jones, kicks off in Miami with back-to-back episodes featuring the intense drama of highly competitive storage auctions in South Florida.  The new season will travel across the country showcasing the lucrative and often cutthroat world of storage-unit auctions through the eyes of the renowned auction-hunting duo.

Season one of “Auction Hunters” averaged a robust 1.5 million viewers, with the finale in late December delivering 2.3 million viewers.  The series also drew new viewers to Spike and expanded the network’s fan base with Men 35+.

Every year in America, 50,000 storage facilities hold auctions for abandoned storage units and, at these auctions, over $1 billion worth of goods changes hands.  Each unit has the potential to be a goldmine or a bust for those who make their living hunting unclaimed property.  “Auction Hunters” cuts the lock and opens the door into the high stakes, financial risks and potential rewards where the right purchase can bring in serious cash.

The series follows Haff and Jones in their quest to win auctions, dig for abandoned historical treasure and sell them for a profit.  This season they uncover high-valued items including a Winchester model 1912 shotgun valued at $1,500 and the exact scale remote control replica of a $3,000,000 luxury Viper Fan Jet plane valued at $11,500.    

Allowed only a brief glimpse inside the unit before each fast-paced auction begins, skill and strategy are paramount as Haff and Jones have only seconds to estimate the value and determine how high they’re willing to bid to beat out the completion.  Each episode will also feature “the dig,” a process by which our hunters literally dig into the contents of the unit and assess every item within as well as “the sell” where they consult experts, establish value and negotiate a sale with collectors and dealers.

Spike.com will also get into all the behind-the-scenes auction action with “Auction Hunters.”  In addition to featuring weekly preview clips and highlight segments from each episode once the season starts, auctionhunters.spike.com currently features the entire first season of full episodes.  Fans can also connect to the series via the official Auction Hunters Facebook page.

“Auction Hunters” is produced by Gurney Productions and executive produced by Scott Gurney, Deirdre Gurney and Philip Lott.  Sharon Levy is Spike TV’s executive vice president, original series and animation, Tim Duffy is senior vice president of original programming for Spike TV and Joe Weinstock is senior director, original programming.

Allen Haff is a second generation antiques dealer and collector with over 20 years of experience in the field.  By the age of 24, he owned his first antique business in Houston, TX and was one of the earliest eBay sellers of vintage collectibles online.  He moved to Los Angeles ten years ago and immediately began hunting in storage unit auctions, Hollywood thrift stores, estate sales and swap meets and earned a living buying and selling antiques and collectibles.  In 2008, Haff started Hollywood & Vintage, a high volume liquidation company specializing in movie memorabilia and vintage collectibles that he operates from his office and warehouse in Los Angeles.

Ton Jones is a self-described hobbyist who has spent years hunting and fishing, as well as collecting knives, swords, guns, old currency and jewelry.  Jones was introduced to storage unit auctions more than seven years ago when he was looking for old cars to take into the desert to wreck for fun, but what he found was a world specifically tailored to his unique skills.  Jones, an imposing figure standing over 6’0”, 300lbs., is a renowned auction hunter in the Southern California area.  Jones’ expertise lays in rare coins and weaponry, such as medieval swords, daggers and armor.

Spike TV is available in 99.4 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks.  A unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), MTV Networks is one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV’s Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV’s press site at http://www.spike.com/press.   Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
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Press Contact:             Shana Tepper                Spike TV                   212-767-4275