This is an amazing story about a big win. It started in 1957, in Oklahoma, United States. The city of Tulsa made a vast time capsule directly under the courthouse floor. The purpose was to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the state’s establishment.
As a souvenir, a car was deposited inside, a gold-and-white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere. And they nicknamed it as “Miss Belvedere”. Interestingly, Miss Belvedere had a load of surprise for the people of Tulsa, even 50 years later.
Miss Belvedere was a big prize
The car was advertised as an enormous gift. The game was to guess the population of the city of Tulsa in the year 2007. So the person who would be able to approximately guess the answer would get the car in that same year.
812 people answered the question, so 812 answers were put into microfilm and were kept in the glove compartment of the car. Then Miss Belvedere was put into the capsule with other 1957 memories of the state of Oklahoma. They made the capsule out of concrete to ensure that it would even resist a nuclear bomb attack.
For 50 years, everyone held their breath
Finally, it was 2007 in Oklahoma. People of Tulsa city were eagerly getting ready for this special occasion. What would have happened to Miss Belvedere? Would she still be fabulous?
What would Miss Belvedere look like today? Would she look the same as she was 50 years back? Different thoughts hit the minds of Tulsa people. They could not think of anything as they were so excited.
The excavations began and the city was extremely excited
And finally, they took Miss Belvedere out of the capsule. People couldn’t believe their eyes when the car consequently appeared from the cover that was there to protect it. They had not prepared themselves for this!
Guess what had happened? Miss Belvedere was entirely turned into an old lady! The car had been eroded completely-all inside and out. The excitement of people turned into grief in no time. But that was not all!
The winner of the car was about to be announced!
Despite their sadness, the people of Tulsa city were so eager to know who the winner was. The adults who were there back in 1957 were excited more as they witnessed both burying and excavating of the capsule.
The winner was Raymond Humbertson. He had guessed that there would be around 384,743 people in the city of Tulsa in the year 2007. Unfortunately, Raymond had passed way in 1979. Hence, the prize was passed to his sister who was 100-years-old.
What would happen to Miss Belevedere?
The people of the city of Tulsa were then again so curious about what would happen next. Would they be able to repair Miss Belvedere as she was back in 1957? Or would they have to throw her away?
The responsibility of repairing the car was given to Ultra One. This company was responsible to remove rust and to give any needed service to Miss Belvedere. A donor gave a large amount of money (about €17,940) for it.
Miss Belvedere was not lucky
Even though the rust was removed from Miss Belvedere, it seemed that the car could not be saved. By the time, it had entirely destroyed. As Miss Belevedere seemed irreparable, the state didn’t want to exhibit it.
So then there was a question about what to do with the car. They can’t just dump it as it was a legendary car. It was like a souvenir in the city of Tulsa. Then, Dwight Foster, owner of Ultra One, made the final decision.
Could Miss Belvedere be saved?
Miss Belvedere did not have even a glimpse of appearance that she had back in 1957.” It’s basically papier-mache,” said Dwight Foster of Ultra One in New Jersey, “We did not know how bad it was until the car arrived here.” This news shattered the expectations of people.
Unluckily, Even Miss Belvedere got help, it was too late. “Everything we wanted to do on the car could not be finished because it was too fragile,” said Dwight Foster, who knew that if they tried to repair the vehicle, it would be disastrous in the end.
But then there was new hope!
Every dark cloud has a silver lining, right? The new owner, Catherine Humbertson’s nephew Robert Carney brought the good news for the people of Tulsa city. They had decided to donate Miss Belvedere to the Historic Auto Attractions Museum in Roscoe, Illinois! It would be a permanent part of the exhibition.
At the same time, Foster tried to convince the city of Tulsa to donate photos and artifacts to the museum in memory of the legendary Miss Belvedere. Ultimately, Miss Belvedere was sent to Illinois in 2017.
Here Is What Professional Race Car Drivers Drive When Off-Duty
Take a peek inside celebrity garages and find out what your favourite Hollywood star drives around town! Just know that you won’t find any minivans or hondas for these A-listers! Yes, they do run there errands in Lamborghinis!
Think more on the lines of cars worth thousands if not millions of dollars with customized interiors, engines and everything else in between. Click next and see them all for yourself. Our favourite is John Travolta’s car if you can even call it that!
Jay Leno’s 1955 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing Coupe
If there’s one thing we know for sure about Jay Leno outside of his talk show format, it’s that he loves cars. No, he REALLY loves cars, to the point where I almost find it a mystery he didn’t swallow whole the chance to helm Top Gear.
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He owns over 100 cars, over 90 motorcycles, and has countless other car-related items. The crowning jewel of his collection is undoubtedly his beautifully bold in red 1955 Mercedes 300SL Gullwing Coupe, estimated at a cost of $1.8 million. And what a beauty it is.
Jerry Seinfeld’s Porsche 959
Comedian Jerry Seinfeld has been a successful enough personality that he not only has collected a large assortment of cars but also sells a few of them and turns the money over to charity. Quite the way to spread that wealth. His collection includes about 47 cars, but his most rare vehicle is his white Porche 959.
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Valued at $1.8 million, this stunning vehicle is so rare that only 337 versions of it were ever built. If he ever does decide to part with such a lavish automobile, you can bet some charity is going to be very happy with what they’ve got coming their
Nicolas Cage’s 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina
If one considers Nicolas Cage a crazy actor, consider him crazy like a fox for an acting career that has benefited him greatly. Through his numerous movie roles over the years, he has accumulated enough wealth to take an interest in collecting amazing cars.
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Just take a look at his long list of vehicles: a Ferrari Enzo, 1964 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud III, 1965 Lamborghini 350 GT, 1955 Porsche 356 Pre-A Speedster, 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina, 1963 Jaguar E-type Semi-Lightweight Competition, 1970 Hemi ‘Cuda Hardtop, 1938 Bugatti T57C Atalante Coupe, 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spyder, and 1971 Lamborghini Miura SVJ. And the 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina is one of the most treasured with a value of $3.6 million.
Rowan Atkinson’s Bentley Mulsanne
Rowan Atkinson is better known as the person who came down on this Earth in a beam of light and called himself “Mr Bean.” Rowan Atkinson is known and loved by everyone since his character Mr Bean has made all of us laugh for hours on end. Whatever you did, you couldn’t get enough of Mr Bean.
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Although you might think that Rowan Atkinson is the same kind of person as Mr Bean, that assumption is wrong. Rowan is a man of taste and class, which can be judged by the cars he owns. His collection includes some of the most exquisite cars in existence. He owns multiple cars such as the Aston Martin v8 and a Bentley Mulsanne, and the most notable one was a rare purple McLaren F1 that he crashed twice. Even though Mr Bean drove a Mini, Rowan Atkinson has a taste in cars that a few people can match.
LeBron James’s Lamborghini Aventador
LeBron James is arguably currently the best and most popular basketball player. He’s won multiple championships for his teams, the Miami Heat in the past and currently, the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s won the NBA MVP award 4 times in his career. Along with his basketball career, he’s made other marks in different aspects as well.
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He owns a line of shoes called the “Lebron 11.” These shoes have a liner that’s signature to their design. Lebron James owns a Lamborghini Aventador with a wrapped-in custom-made wrapper, the same liner pattern found on his line of shoes. Apart from that, his garage contains cars such as a Porsche 911S, a Ferrari F430, a Maybach 57, and many more. These cars in his garage are super fast on the road, but some of them are so luxurious that you’d just want to sit in them and take the pleasure of just being in one.
Lewis Hamilton’s Pagani Zonda 760 LH
Lewis Hamilton is a professional race-car driver for the Mercedes AMG. He was previously driving for McLaren in the year 2008. Lewis Hamilton is probably the best race-car driver of his generation. He is, by numbers of wins, the most accomplished driver of this era. Some of his accolades are winning 4 world championship titles with 2,610 career points. With 62 wins under his belt, you know that he’s making tons of cash.
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His love for cars is palpable both on the track and off. He owns multiple, expensive, and fast cars, such as the Pagani Zonda 760 LH, the McLaren P1, and the Ferrari Laferrari, and his love for the Ford Shelby Cobra is unparalleled. He owns two original Shelby Cobras in black and red. He’s currently at his peak, and we expect to see some new and interesting additions to his car collection. We can’t wait to find out what’s in store.
John Cena’s 1966 Dodge Hemi Charger
John Cena is a world-famous wrestler whom everyone knows and loves, as they’ve watched his fights on TV. After slowing down in his wrestling career, he ventured into multiple other genres such as movies and singing. He’s appeared in movies, such as The Wall and Trainwreck.
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He owns a 1966 Dodge Hemi Charger, a 1970 Buick GSX, a 1970 Mercury Cougar Eliminator, a 2007 Dodge Charger SRT-8, and many many more. These cars reflect a lot about John Cena since muscle cars are all about power and speed, which seems a lot like what John Cena is all about.
Snoop Dogg’s 1967 Cadillac Deville
Snoop Dogg is one of the most renowned rappers of his time. Snoop Dogg, originally known as “Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr.” is a living legend among all the rappers who’ve made their names in the rap world. Snoop has always loved the old-school style of rap, and his love of cars is also a bit “old school.”
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Some of the cars in his collection are, a 1967 Pontiac Parisienne, a 1967 Cadillac Deville, and a Dodge Challenger. Most of these cars were sought after by many famous people in their eras. Snoop Dogg was an OG from the beginning and still is the best.
Lil Wayne’s Bugatti Veyron
I think everyone who’s reading this article at least knows the name “Lil Wayne.” He’s a famous rapper with multiple chart-topping songs on Billboard. His singles like “A Millie,” “Lollipop,” and “Got Money” are some of his top songs in his album that earned him a Grammy Award.
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He owns a Bugatti Veyron, an Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, and a Bentley Mulsanne, and we’ve barely just scratched the surface. Celebrities usually compete with each other on the basis of how much they can flex their money, and Lil Wayne did that by buying the Bugatti Veyron just for show, but he enjoys driving his cars and loves each and everyone one of them.
Micheal Jordan’s Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano
Michael Jordan was the greatest basketball player of his time, and he claimed that he’d beat LeBron James in a one-on-one match. Michael Jordan is a role model for kids and adults alike. His commitment to the sport and his love for the game has made him an ambassador of basketball.
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His most notable cars are the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano and the Mercedes-Mclaren SLR 722 Edition. At the peak of his career, he used to arrive at his games and interviews in his Ferrari 512 TR, which is also a classical legendary car.
John Travolta’s Jumbo Jetliner
Other celebrities may have more cars, but John Travolta’s garage is the only one with space to park an aeroplane – two of them in fact. Travolta’s Florida estate includes parking for 15 cars, a private jet and a jumbo jetliner.
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Of course, with two personal planes, he needed a private runway as well, so he installed a 1.4-mile runway leading to the garage itself. And yes, Travolta is licensed to operate all of these machines himself.
Adam Carolla’s 1979 Porsche 935
The comedian might not be quite the household name of the likes of Seinfeld, but Adam Carolla is well known for his car collection. His latest acquisition alone set him back a cool $4.4 million USD thanks to the 1979 Porsche 935.
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The car has quite a story attached to it and was once driven by Paul Newman in the 1979 24 hours of Le Mans, winning in its class and finishing second overall. As historic artefacts go, this is one that certainly takes the cake or more like, throttle!
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