| Storage Wars | |
 | |
| Genre | Reality |
| Running time | 21–22 minutes |
| Starring | Ricky Smith
|
| Opening theme | "Money Owns This Town" |
| Country of origin | USA |
| Original channel | A&E |
| Original run | December 6, 2011 – present |
| No. of seasons | 3 (as of 2013-2014) |
| No. of episodes | 48 (and counting from Season 3) |
| List of episodes | List of Episodes |
| Official website | Storage Wars at AETV.com |
Storage Wars: Texas (Originally Storage Wars Dallas) is a reality television series on the A&E Network that premiered in 2011. It is a regionalized spin-off of the highly-popular series Storage Wars. The show features auctioneer Walt Cade, as well as auction hunters Ricky and Bubba Smith, Money "Moe" Prigoff, Victor Rjesnjansky, Lesa Lewis and her assistant Jerry Simpson, and Roy Williams, with new bidders Jenny Grumbles and Mary Padian starting in the second season. The premise is essentially the same as the parent show: when rent is not paid on a storage locker for three months in Texas, the contents are sold by an auctioneer as a single lot of items. The show follows professional buyers who bid on the contents (usually for the purpose of reselling for profit should they purchase a locker) based only on a five-minute inspection and what they can see only from the door when it is opened.
Sixteen episodes were filmed for the first season, debuting on A&E on Tuesday December 6, 2011. The premiere episode garnered 4.1 million viewers, making it the most watched series launch in network history. Viewers got a glimpse of Storage Wars: Texas on the first Storage Wars: Unlocked special, when Ricky and Bubba appeared to present a teaser clip. It was revealed that the show was to have been originally called Storage Wars: Dallas. It was later revealed that Storage Wars: Texas and its parent series Storage Wars had both been renewed for another twenty-six episode season respectively, with the second season of Texas premiering on August 15, 2012. Storage Wars: Texas can be seen internationally as well, as AETN International has sold the series to several channels in Canada, Finland, and the Netherlands. Roy Williams did not return for Season 2, and the team of Lesa Lewis & Jerry Simpson, also did not return as main cast members.
Participants[]
Main Buyers[]
Ricky Smith and his partner Clinton "Bubba" Smith - "The Rangers" (Season 1-present): The pair operate a warehouse in Lampasas, Texas, where they stock their purchases for resale. Most of their business is wholesale but they also sell directly to the public. Ricky and Bubba often play up their "country bumpkin" personas in order to lull their competitors into a false sense of security at auction time.
Victor Rjesnjansky - "The Outsider" (Season 1-present): A native of New York, he is known for his distinct Long Island accent (and "Right Here!" catchphrase when he bids), his BMW, and Sopranos-style wardrobe. He often ridicules his native-Texan competitors, whom he regards as yokels. He and his partner Joann run two stores in Tyler, Texas.
Money "Moe" Prigoff - "The Doc" (Season 1-present): A septuagenarian practicing podiatrist who also owns an antique boutique called "River Regency Modern". Prigoff is known for his flamboyant wardrobe and purchases lockers looking for antiques and objets d'art to stock his gallery. He has accumulated his net worth through years in the world of storage auctions. In a second season episode, it was revealed that he keeps items from his lockers not deemed to be valuable piled up in his back yard, upsetting his wife.
Jenny Grumbles - "The Dazzler" (Season 2-present): A furniture restorer/designer, she runs the Dallas-based Uptown Country Homes furniture boutique. She became interested in storage auctions after a friend brought in some furniture for $1,000 and sold it for $5,000. She joined the cast beginning with the season premiere of the second season.
Mary Padian - "The Junkster" (Season 2-present): A furniture restorer/designer, she runs Mary's Finds, a small custom furniture store. She was originally invited to the auctions by Moe in the first season, and now sees the auctions as a source of raw materials to assist in bringing her store to "the next level". She joined the main cast beginning in the start of the second season. After trying to bid on lockers on her own in the first couple of episodes (and by her own admission being in over her head), she decided to form a partnership with Moe. a brief she decided for partnership with Jenny from season 3.
Frequent Buyers[]
Rudy Castro - Castro is a buyer. From what Walt Cade says, few people know much about him. Castro appeared in one episode from the second season: "The Cock Fighter from Mexico." It is unknown if he will make any future appearances.
John "J.D" Thorne- Thorne is a huge buyer. From what Jenny says, Thorne appeared in one episode in the second season "The Ninja and the Pitmaster" he has a net worth costs unknown. J.D. is from L.A. and Orange County.
Other Cast Members[]
Walt Cade - "The Colonel" (Season 1-present): The show's auctioneer.
Thom Beers - The executive producer/narrator of the show, who delivers a quick explanation of the show's premise at the beginning, and does a recap of the buyers' profits or losses at the end of each episode.
Former Participants[]
Lesa Lewis ("The Boss") and her assistant Jerry Simpson (Season 1; Guest Season 2): Lesa and her employee/friend Jerry run the "Again and Again Resale" thrift store in Crockett, Texas. Lesa and Jerry are often at odds over Lesa's propensity to keep jewelry and antiques for herself rather than sell them at the store. They have a combined net worth of $2.5 million. Both have since left the show seemingly replaced by Mary Padian and Jenny Grumbles with their entry removed from the site. Rumors surfaced that A&E wanted to terminate the contract of Jerry Simpson because of a National Enquirer post which showed his arrests (1992 for selling a controlled substance; 2007 for assault). Due to this, both Lesa and Jerry decided to not return. Lesa and Jerry returned during for a second season episode that aired on November 7, 2012.
Roy Williams - "The Player" (Season 1): Roy was formerly a defensive back in the NFL, having been a 2002 1st round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys. Roy played there for 7 years and ended his 9 year career spending 2 years with the Cincinnati Bengals. Roy made his first appearance in episode 10 of Season 1 ("If I Were a Tibettin' Man"), although not as a storage buyer. It was due to Ricky and Bubba finding some Oklahoma Sooners mini-helmets that were autographed by Roy. They then invited Roy to come to a storage auction to see what it was like. When he did, Roy was hooked, and then cast in episode 11 ("Dallas Cowboys And Indians"). He did not return for the second season.
Show opening[]
Every show opens with announcer Thom Beers setting the scene for the series: "When storage units are abandoned, in the great state of Texas, the treasures within are put up for auction."
In the opening titles, the sequence of titles begins at Ricky and Bubba, then Lesa and Jerry, then Morris, then Victor, and finally at Walt. When Roy joined the cast in Season 2, his image and title replaced Moe's. A new opening was shot for season three, featuring Ricky & Bubba, Victor, Jenny, and Moe & Mary. The theme song "Money Owns This Town" (which was written and recorded specifically for the original Storage Wars) plays over the opening titles (in a slightly remixed, Western style form).
Trivia[]
On the 12/9/21 rerun of Storage Wars: Texas on Australian network 7Mate, the logo from the time of it's original airing was left unedited, despite the channel having a branding change in July 2020.