arrivederci. mona! that smile. technology this convenient... could make history. what's in your wallet? >> a rock 'n' roll legend. >> the crazy thing about roy orbison is, from 1959 to 1964, he had 21 top 40 hits. >> he dies too soon, with three young sons. >> he had secretly always wanted us to be musicians, but he wasn't gonna push. >> does he send them on a musical mission from beyond the grave? >> and then i kind of rubbed my eyes, and then looked at this. >> he said, "i've got this cassette of this song that nobody has heard before." >> will this strange inheritance bring roy and his boys together again? >> had you always dreamt of playing with your dad? >> always, yes. >> [ chuckles ] mercy! [ door creaks ] [ wind howls ] [ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ]

>> i'm jamie colby, and today i'm cruisin' into nashville, tennessee. music city. i'm on my way to meet the sons of rock legend roy orbison. turns out the man who gave the world "oh, pretty woman," "only the lonely," and "you got it" left his heirs an unexpected treasure, and possibly the opportunity of a lifetime. >> i'm alex orbison. even though my dad, roy orbison, passed away in 1988, my brothers and i, 25 years later, found something that would help us realize a lifelong dream. >> alex! >> hello. >> how are you? i'm in hendersonville, just outside nashville, and alex has invited me to a musical landmark. incredible. i can't believe i'm here. >> welcome. >> thank you so much. and the cash cabin. what is this place? >> johnny cash built this cabin in the '80s as a getaway. one of the best recording

studios in the world. >> and the families were close? >> yeah, our families go back to the '50s, when johnny and roy were roommates and labelmates at sun records. >> i can't wait to learn more, and i would love to see inside. >> of course. >> this cabin has been a creative refuge for dozens of major recording artists, but it's also like home to roy's boys, and a link to their late father. what was he like as a dad? >> he was pretty wonderful as a dad. >> born in 1936, roy spent much of his youth in vernon, texas. i heard that he wrote his first song at 8? >> he definitely had his first radio show as an 8-year-old. he walked down with his guitar and knocked on the door, and he said, "yeah, my name's roy orbison, and i want to play some songs for you guys." by the end of the year he had his own show every saturday. >> in 1955, a fateful meeting with johnny cash at a local tv

station sparks roy's musical career, and gets him an invitation to sun records in memphis, tennessee. not long after, roy marries his childhood sweetheart, claudette frady. they move to nashville, and roy rockets to the top of the charts with a string of hits, including "oh, pretty woman" in 1964. was "oh, pretty woman" a game changer? >> people loved the song. it really made him into an international superstar. >> ♪ oh, pretty woman >> roy and claudette have three boys -- roy dewayne, anthony, and wesley. roy can't ask for more, either professionally or personally. then, in 1966, tragedy strikes. >> claudette and my dad were coming back from the drag races on their motorcycles. at the end of the ride, a truck had pulled out, and claudette was killed instantly. >> as a 30-year old widower with

three young sons, roy relies on his parents, who live across the street, for childcare while he soothes himself by writing and touring. back in nashville, young wesley finds comfort in his father's songs. >> that's kind of how i'd visit with him, 'cause he was on the road all the time. so i would just always would go to those records and listen. >> while on tour in leeds, england, in 1968, roy's drummer insists he go out and have some fun. at a nightclub, roy meets 17-year-old beauty barbara jakobs. >> he ran into my mom. and my dad looked over and said, "grab that girl. i'm gonna marry her." >> the two fall in love instantly, starting a long-distance romance. just as roy's getting on his feet, he suffers another devastating loss. on september 15th, a fire rips through his home in nashville.

where was he when the fire happened? >> he was doing the last show of a tour in england. he was showing pictures of the boys, and how happy he was to go home, and there was a knock on the door in the night, and then that's when he found out. >> roy's parents and 3-year-old wesley are able to escape. but his two older sons, 10-year-old roy dewayne and 6-year-old tony, are killed. was it something your dad was able to talk about? >> i've gone back through interviews, and what he said is if you look back and you're not a crazy person, then you'd be grateful for what you did have, and not what you don't have. >> it's barbara jakobs who helps him through his grief. in 1969, they marry, and go on to have two boys, roy junior and alex. for now, roy's career takes a backseat to family life. did he encourage you guys to play? >> he didn't push us. he just left guitars all around

the house for us to find. >> had you always dreamt of playing with your dad? >> always, yes. >> as the 1980s unfold, the entertainment world re-discovers roy orbison. linda ronstadt covers "blue bayou," and van halen "pretty woman." both become big hits. then, in 1986, director david lynch chooses roy's song "in dreams" for his film "blue velvet." >> there again, my dad's on the forefront of some groundbreaking thing 'cause david lynch loved his music. >> roy orbison is making a comeback. he's inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame with none other than "the boss," bruce springsteen, doing the honors. >> ♪ and i'm just killing time >> and while roy works on recording a new album called "mystery girl," producer jeff lynne introduces him to tom petty. the three, along with old friends bob dylan and george harrison, start jamming at each other's houses.

>> out of that was born the travelling wilburys. >> traveling wilburys, volume one, is released in october 1988, while "mystery girl" is slated for release in february. it's a milestone roy never reaches. on december 6, 1988, he dies of a massive heart attack while visiting his parents' home in nashville. he's 52 years old. >> i was so crushed as a 12-year-old kid. there was just such a loss. there's no -- no real way to describe it in words. >> but those classic songs and timeless sound live on. orbison continues to be irresistible to hollywood. a year after his death "pretty woman" the movie makes julia roberts a superstar, and orbison becomes as big in death as he was in life. he also leaves behind something very special to fill the hole left in his young boys' lives.

>> the inheritance is strange, but the legacy is love. >> ♪ you got it >> that's next. >> but first, our "strange inheritance" quiz question. what was roy orbison's first #1 single -- "ooby dooby," "only the lonely," "running scared," or "crying"? the answer in a moment. heartburn. no one burns on my watch! try alka seltzer ultra strength heartburn relief chews. with more acid-fighting power than tums chewy bites. mmmmm...amazing. i have heartburn. ultra strength from alka seltzer. enjoy the relief. that's why feeling safe is priceless.

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>> so, what was roy orbison's first #1 single? it's "b." "only the lonely" was released on march 25, 1960, and reached #2 on the billboard hot 100 charts before going to #1 in great britain. >> music legend roy orbison dies from a heart attack in nashville in december 1988. he's 52 years old. at the time, he was about to release a solo album, "mystery girl." though roy's not here to revel in it, he's got another hit. >> from the outsider's perspective, this would be a tragedy that roy didn't live to see the success of this. i think my dad was already in a new career peak, where the guy was not walking down the street without getting mobbed. >> the song "you got it" makes it into the top 10 on the charts. quiet on the set, all right? and in case you need a refresher, my trip to the cash

cabin comes complete with a serenade from wesley orbison. >> ♪ i see a love that money just can't buy ♪ ♪ one look from you ♪ >> i'm crying. okay? >> ♪ i drift away ♪ i pray that you are here ♪ >> ♪ to stay >> ♪ anything you want >> ♪ you got it roy orbison clearly passed down his love of music, and that distinctive sound. but when their mother, barbara, dies in 2011, roy's boys are also the sole heirs to his entire music library. in honor of both parents, they work on a re-release of "mystery girl," which is coming up on its 25th anniversary. this time, they hope to produce a deluxe version with previously unreleased tracks.

>> i realized that we had unreleased material that no one had really known exactly what to do with it. >> roy's boys believe somewhere in the massive archive there must be a recording of a song they remember their dad singing around the house, a family favorite called "the way is love." >> "the way is love" is a song that wasn't meant to be released. he was just saying it, like under his breath. just mumbling it, tapping. that was something coming out of him. >> alex decides this would be the perfect song to include. only one problem. he can't find the tape anywhere in what amounts to 30 years worth of material. >> we do have everything catalogued pretty well but there was a large pile of stuff that wasn't. there could be 5,000 cassette tapes, dat tapes. >> so you said, "i have to dig in"? >> i said, "look, everyone, whatever you're doing, drop it. we're gonna go get in the vault and find this tape." >> did you have to listen to thousands of things?

>> i had been in the archives looking through everything for hours, and out of being tired, i had leaned my hand up against the wall, and then kind of rubbed my eyes, and then looked. and i thought, "what is this?" >> after weeks of searching, the original cassette tape for "the way is love" is sitting right in front of him. filled with excitement, alex calls family friend john carter cash, son of the late johnny cash. >> he said, "hey, listen, i've got this cassette tape of this song that nobody has heard before." however, it was an old cassette-tape recording. it had tape warble -- in other words, the pitch would go up and down. [ indistinct warbly singing ] the cash cabin's audio engineer, chuck turner, plays me that original cassette tape, just as alex discovered it. >> ♪ and right the wrong because ♪

>> and as you can hear, all the artifacts from the analogue cassette -- the hiss, the warble john mentioned. >> desperate to perfect their father's voice on such a sentimental tune, roy's boys and john carter cash search for someone who can restore the sound of their dad singing "the way is love." how far did you have to go -- >> to the end of the internet. john carter had a meeting with one of our guys from sony, and i said, "oh, we have this project, and we're just going through these struggles." and he said, "oh, well, i know a guy who is in germany who specializes in this kind of stuff". >> did the german folks get it right? >> they said that there was nothing they could do. >> your heart must have sank. >> it was so heartbreaking. it's almost like a roy orbison song. >> is all hope lost, or has dad left his boys another surprise? is it a coincidence or are you guys playing with us? >> it gave me cold chills. like, "wow!" >> that's next on "strange inheritance."

>> here's another quiz question for you. which of the following artists covered roy orbison's "oh, pretty woman" -- is it alvin and the chipmunks, the ramones, or lady gaga and tony bennett? the answer in a moment. successful people have one thing in common. they read more. how do they find the time? with audible. audible has the world's largest selection of audiobooks. books like peak performance... and endurance. books that energize and inspire for just $14.95 a month. less than you'd pay for the hardcover. with audible, you get a credit-a-month good for any audiobook. if you don't like it, exchange it any time. no questions asked. you can also roll your credits to the next month if you don't use them. audible members use the free mobile app to listen anytime, anywhere. ...on the go... or in the car. the audible app automatically keeps your place, no bookmarks required. so you'll pick up right where you left off,

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>> so, which of the following artists covered roy orbison's "oh, pretty woman"? the answer is "a." alvin and the chipmunks recorded the song for their 1990 album, "rockin' through the decades." >> it's 2013 in nashville, and almost 25 years since the release of roy orbison's "mystery girl" album. roy's three sons want to package a 25th-anniversary re-release,

this time with bonus tracks from the vast music library they inherited. one ballad in particular, "the way is love," has never been heard in public. alex hunts down the recording among thousands, but it's very low quality. >> [ warbling ] ♪ i'd invite the whole wide world to come back to the school ♪ >> and the brothers cannot agree on what to do next. >> i wanted to just release it like that. i like the hiss. roy by himself? you can't beat it. so, i had a little bit more of an obstacle. like, "what are we gonna add to this, or are we gonna tamper with a masterpiece?" >> "are we doing good or are we gonna put a mustache on the mona lisa here?" the thing was, "the way is love," the quality of the actual recording didn't pass the muster on its own. >> the audio is so bad, they can't even be sure what the words are. >> as we were working on it, listening to the old recording, we're all struggling and writing down all these words. >> just when it seems it's time

to pull the plug on "the way is love," the team has a breakthrough. >> a couple of weeks go by, and i'm in one of johnny cash's filing cabinets looking through song lyrics. and lo and behold, there are the lyrics to "the way is love" from roy orbison. >> is it a coincidence or are you guys playing with us? >> [ laughs ] >> that's amazing. >> yeah, it's really neat. it gave me cold chills when i found the lyrics, just like, "wow!" >> then comes a surprise call from those german engineers. using a new supercomputer, they find a solution to restore roy's vocals. remember what it sounded like before? [ indistinct warbly singing ] >> so, we took it from that and came up with this. >> ♪ the way is love ♪ the way you love tonight ♪ the way of love makes everything all right ♪ >> wow. wow. it gives you chills.

>> yeah, it does. >> now that they've recovered their dad's voice, the brothers are ready to do something they have wanted to do since they were kids -- record a song with their father. roy with his boys. >> i asked wesley, "i think we should play on this thing, what do you think?" and it was one of those little pauses, and he said, "oh, sure. that's -- yeah. 100% we should do that. >> did anyone say, "that's a crazy idea"? or you were all all-in? >> no, we were all-in. >> everyone's finally ready to rock 'n' roll. roy jr., wesley, and john carter cash agree to play guitar. alex will play drums, and all of roy's boys will sing back-up vocals. listening to it in its raw form even, it's magnificent. fixed up, cleaned up, and with you guys added on? wow. what would your dad say? >> the way is love. i mean it's there in the title. >> about to fulfill their childhood fantasy, they feel

something they never anticipated -- stage fright. >> my heart rate would come up, and i was thinking about playing to this big deal. >> that's next. it's easy to think that all money managers are pretty much the same. but while some push high commission investment products, fisher investments avoids them. some advisers have hidden and layered fees. fisher investments never does. and while some advisers are happy to earn commissions from you whether you do well or not, fisher investments fees are structured so we do better when you do better. maybe that's why most of our clients come from other money managers. fisher investments. clearly better money management.

>> now back to "strange inheritance." >> it's spring 2014 just outside nashville, tennessee, at the cash cabin studio. 25 years after the death of roy orbison, thanks to some cutting-edge technology, his sons have restored a homemade recording he did of a song called "the way is love." take me inside that room when you hear your dad's voice from the heavens. >> it was just like hearing an old friend. >> it was surreal, but also a familiar feeling. >> as they prepare to record the orchestration and back-up vocals, they get an unexpected

case of the butterflies. >> i was nervous the night before, i couldn't sleep. they had to drag me in to play guitar. that was like skydiving. [ roy orbison singing "love is the way" ] i remember specifically thinking "this is one of the toughest songs we could do." it's not quick, it's not technical, but it's free-flowing. >> ♪ the way is love >> ♪ the way is love >> were there tears? >> tears of joy, kind of. it's almost like climbing up to the top of a mountain or something. you know, there's just such a sense of relief. >> ♪ makes everything all right ♪ >> just to hear the boys, 'cause that's the boys singing with their father after all these years, it's so inspiring. but it gave us a chance to get in, be family, and spend time together. >> just like your dads. >> yeah, 'cause our dads were. >> ♪ the way of looooooove

>> the 25th-anniversary edition of roy orbison's "mystery girl" is released on may 20, 2014. the box set includes a documentary directed by alex. >> we did a premiere here at the belcourt in nashville, and then we did one at the grammy museum in l.a. >> wesley was like, "man, now the album's out. like, when are we gonna do it again?" >> i can't even tell you how much it meant. this location is special, and it's johnny's place. johnny was our godfather, and still is. john carter is my first friend, my best friend. >> i think actually the parents would look down at us. we're still just kids playing around, playing the big boys' game. >> [ hums ] >> hit this one twice. >> my trip to nashville wouldn't be complete without a private guitar lesson from roy orbison. junior, that is. >> okay, watch this. open, open, and then there on

the same string. then you're jumping one string down for two, five. >> uh-huh. okay, got it. okay. >> i think you actually can do this. >> so that's one, two, four, >> two, five. >> two... where's five? >> right there. >> five. that's five, okay. >> yeah, it's got that little... >> so, one, two, four, two, five. >> that's it. that is actually it. >> yay! [ claps ] [ laughter ] >> am i on? oh. remember i said orbison left behind other music and previously unreleased material? well, here's the story. back in the early 1970s, orbison became disenchanted with his record label, mgm records, and left. some of the albums he recorded with mgm were simply shelved. another project for roy's three sons, and his next generation of fans. i'm jamie colby for "strange inheritance." thanks so much for watching. and remember -- you can't take it with you. do you have a "strange inheritance" story

you'd like to share with us? we'd love to hear it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com >> a mysterious client pays her lawyer with an exotic object. >> maybe she was a spy. >> maybe. >> it becomes his son's strange inheritance. >> it is quite a stunning piece to look at. >> can he decode its past and unlock a fortune? >> it's the equivalent -- for us, as americans -- of owning something that may have been there with george washington. >> wow. >> "wow" is right. >> a small town, an ancient emperor, and a puzzle. >> it was a three-week auction, and nothing happened. >> nothing? no bids? >> you're thinking that "my gosh. this is terrible. oh, it's all out the window."

>> i'm jamie colby, and today, i'm visiting townshend, vermont. classic norman rockwell america. it's the kind of place where neighbors can still leave their doors unlocked and where a country lawyer can let clients pay him with food from their farm or dinners at a restaurant or gifts of some kind. in fact, that's how this "strange inheritance" story begins. >> my name is paul weber. my father was a lawyer in small-town vermont, who was always willing to help a client out. and that's how i ended up inheriting a really cool and really old chinese relic and a pretty strange story to tell. >> i'm jamie. i meet paul, a local math teacher, and his wife, sarah, at their home. >> come on in. >> thank you so much. the residence doubles as a bed-and-breakfast the couple have run for almost 30 years. i couldn't help but noticing, as i came in, you have a lot of

exotic art. >> my father was always interested in asian art and he dabbled in painting a little bit. and so that's why we have lots of things around the house. >> when paul's father, bruce weber, wasn't practicing his painting skills, he was practicing law in nearby brattleboro. what kind of attorney was your dad? >> well, as a small-town lawyer, you don't specialize. you do a little bit of everything. >> in the mid-1970s, a woman comes to bruce in need of legal services. whether she couldn't afford his fee or for some other reason, she offers him works of art instead of cash for his services. >> she had quite a collection, so i'm told, of asian art. and my father was interested in that. and so his fee for the services was to receive these pieces of asian art. >> how much was the fee? >> i have no idea. >> one of the items the mystery

client gives paul's father is this delicately carved piece of ivory. it's so intricate, i can actually make out the faces on the people. >> right. >> this is a single tusk? >> this is a single tusk. >> paul's father receives three more chinese artworks in the deal. >> there was a small piece of jade carved into kind of a mountain scene. and there was also a feather headdress. but the most amazing piece was a table screen. >> and here it is. screens like this have been used in china for centuries. a functional piece of art atop a desk. it blocks the wind and sun in an open-air work space. >> it had chinese calligraphy on one side and then, on the other side, a pastoral scene of horses, all held in a bronze frame. >> my first question -- who is

this client of bruce's, and how did these exotic items end up in small-town vermont? >> i really don't know anything about it. >> you must be curious. >> a little but. but i don't know the woman, and i'm sure she's long gone now. she'd spent considerable time overseas, particularly in china. maybe she was in the foreign service. >> maybe she was a spy. >> maybe. >> were they displayed in your home growing up? >> yeah. they were always conversation pieces, because they're pretty unique. >> when bruce weber passes away, at age 72, the artworks become paul's strange and still-mysterious inheritance. >> we tried to have the characters read by a chinese teacher. she couldn't read them. >> in 1997, the couple sends photos of the items to lark mason, the vice president of chinese art at the famed sotheby's auction house in new york city, to do an insurance appraisal. what was the chinese-art market

like at that time? >> the chinese-art market was dominated by western buyers who had a western perception of what was valuable. >> lark thinks those buyers will be most interested in the screen. he appraises it at $10,000 to $15,000. >> a lot of money. >> did you sell? >> oh, no. we weren't interested in selling at the time. we didn't send them down there with any other intention than just getting an up-to-date evaluation. >> so, for the next decade, the artworks just sit in paul and sarah's home, helping decorate their bed-and-breakfast. but the couple will look at these curious relics anew when, on an overseas trip, their lives take a joyous surprise turn. >> we did not particularly want children, but i just told paul, "i don't think i can leave that child here." >> that's next. >> but first, our "strange inheritance" quiz question.

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>> it's "b." many were flown over enemy camps, meant to be interpreted

as warnings from the gods to flee. >> back in the 1970s, a small-town vermont lawyer named bruce weber does some work for a client and, in lieu of cash, accepts four pieces of chinese art from the mysterious woman. the artwork eventually becomes his son, paul's, strange inheritance. this is a piece of history. >> yeah, it is. >> this finely crafted table screen is appraised for $15,000. but paul and his wife, sarah, aren't about to sell. >> mostly, they were just pieces that reminded me of my father. >> then, out of the blue, life presents paul and sarah with something they neither sought nor expected, in a place far from their vermont home. it's 2005. they're on a volunteer trip to a rural village in northern tanzania. what led to your interest in africa? >> well, i'm a teacher, and i

took a sabbatical, originally to teach english. >> what was life like for the people there when you were there? >> it's a pretty tough life. there was no electricity at all, water by bucket. it breaks your heart. >> that's when a young boy named leyeyo steals theirs. >> every single time we turned around, there was leyeyo. >> sarah and i were walking down to watch a soccer game, and leyeyo somehow inserted himself in between us. and we were holding hands with leyeyo. >> and then we found out that he was sleeping outside under a tree and was literally starving to death. we did not particularly want children, but i just told paul, "i don't think i can leave that child here." >> a year later, sarah and paul are finally able to bring leyeyo to the u.s. and then adopt him.

why'd you feel you had to do more? >> because i could do more. >> the couple opts for private schooling so their son can get the individualized attention he needs. but that takes some serious cash. >> the amount we paid for private school was nothing that we ever had in our plans. >> it was a ridiculous amount of money. >> it probably averaged out for $15,000 a year. >> the couple uses money sarah had inherited after her father had passed away to fund leyeyo's education. but it only goes so far, and as their son reaches the end of high school, with college on the horizon, sarah and paul find themselves running out of money and answers. what do you think that college education is gonna cost you? >> well, you know, it could be about $50,000 times 4. it's a lot of money to put a kid through college these days. >> like millions of other american parents, paul and sarah

start scrambling. they'll need, somehow, to raise more cash. mortgage the b&b? maybe. but what about those puzzling chinese pieces? >> i thought, "well, you know, if they are worth $10,000, that would be a chunk of change for college." >> in 2014, they track down lark mason, the man who appraised the items all those years ago. he's no longer at sotheby's but running his own auction house. >> i sent him pictures in an e-mail, and he was very excited. >> excited because, lark says, a lot's changed since the '90s, when he appraised the screen for 15 grand. that's appropriate to the time frame? >> for that time frame, yes, absolutely. china's economy has grown dramatically from the '90s up to the present days. there's a lot more people with money, with ability to buy things. >> seems the swelling ranks of 21st century chinese millionaires have shifted the market for chinese art into

overdrive. two weeks later, sarah drives down from vermont and brings the artwork to lark's manhattan office. >> he said the headdress might go for a few thousand, and then the little carved piece of jade -- that might get a couple of thousand. >> and that might cover leyeyo's textbooks. but then there's the table screen. as before, lark is most intrigued by it. >> the quality struck me. the workmanship, the design -- all of it was just exactly what you would want to see in an object that would be coming up for sale. >> and now that paul and sarah are serious about selling, it's time lark zeroes in on the screen's past. exactly when was it made? where? by whom? for whom? the first clue -- its exotic materials, gold, turquoise, coral, white jade.

>> all that is something that not a normal person would have. >> so, it comes together, and you know it's special. >> exactly. >> another clue is how many different kinds of craftsmanship it displays. >> the people that were doing the bronze work -- you had the guilders. you had the individuals that were coming up with the different-sized stones here. you're looking at least 7, 8, 9, 10 different individuals involved in this. >> but who would have that kind of money to put into the materials even for this? >> a very important person. >> a very important person whose identity, lark believes, lies hidden in its cryptic imagery and symbols. the mission -- to crack the screen's code. that's next. >> here's another quiz question for you.

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>> it's "c." the cookies were made famous by a japanese-american immigrant who was the landscape designer of golden gate park's famed japanese tea garden. >> in the fall of 2014, auctioneer lark mason thinks that if he can decipher the imagery and writing on this antique chinese table screen, he can unlock the value of paul weber's strange inheritance. and now the appraiser suspects it's directly linked to some important figure in chinese history. what's on this side?

>> this side depicts the eight horses of wang mu. wang mu was the fifth emperor of the zhou dynasty, who boarded a chariot in search of the peaches of immortality in heaven. >> according to the myth, each of his magical chargers had a special talent. one galloped without touching the ground, while another ran as fast as the sun's shadow. now, wang mu ruled about 1,000 years before christ. lark knows the screen is not that old. but the myth becomes a popular subject for chinese poets and artists and a symbol for the later emperors. but which one? lark hopes the inscription on the other side holds the answer. his crack research staff soon has a translation of the ancient chinese. what does it say? >> well, the inscription's really interesting, because it

specifically mentions qianlong. >> emperor qianlong reigned during most of the 18th century, which is why lark is so excited by his next discovery. >> there's a date mentioned -- "30 years earlier, in 1743, when i commissioned a painting about horses." so that takes us up to 1773 or so. >> smack-dab in the middle of qianlong's reign. >> and so all that ties together here in this one screen. >> it's museum-quality? >> oh, no question. >> really? >> absolutely. no question. >> that hardly surprises the curator of asian art at the metropolitan museum of art in new york city, which has, on display, a number of works commissioned by qianlong. was he a proponent of the arts? >> he was absolutely a patron of the arts, someone who was very involved in using art as a means of self-expression, as well as to legitimize and maintain his

rule. >> like this hand-carved piece of ivory used to hold paintbrushes. they're pretty fancy for putting in paintbrushes. >> it's a pretty fancy one, yes. >> like most pieces commissioned by qianlong, the brush holder tells a story. >> this is about a young scholar who was so gorgeous that, when he went by, women pelted him with flowers. >> the detail is amazing. the number of people that look like they're on a balcony. >> isn't that wonderful? >> qianlong is revered in china today. he is the emperor to whom people look up as an example of the best of good government. >> so anything from this particular dynasty is considered very valuable? >> very valuable. the equivalent for us, as americans, of owning something that would have been there with george washington. >> wow. >> "wow" is right. >> betting that wealthy chinese buyers will bid high for something that could have sat on

qianlong's desk, lark jacks up his price a bit above his 15-grand appraisal in 1995. >> the table screen was now valued at between $60,000 and $90,000. >> six to seven times more than 20 years ago? >> that's right. >> it was more than we make in a year for sure... [ laughs ] ...which, to me, was more than i could ever dream about. >> 90 grand. an elated paul and sarah know that will go a long way to pay their son's college bill. but lark advises them to test the market by first selling one of the other pieces paul's dad received from that long-ago client. the result is positive. >> that jade piece that we thought would sell for about $1,000 ended up selling for $12,000. >> what?! >> and we were really stunned. >> tough to come up with the estimates in a very strong,

upward-trending market. >> so, then it became clear that we got to put this table screen in an auction. >> and then, just like that, the buyers vanish. >> it was listed on the featured items, but nobody bid on it. >> will a family's hopes be dashed... >> nothing happened. >> nothing? no bids? >> there were no bids. "what's going on here?" >> ...or will their prayers be answered? find out next. what's your strange inheritance story? we'd love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com. copd makes it hard to breathe. so to breathe better, i go with anoro. ♪go your own way copd tries to say, "go this way." i say, "i'll go my own way" with anoro. ♪go your own way once-daily anoro contains two medicines called bronchodilators, that work together to significantly improve

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>> now back to "strange inheritance." >> in 2015, paul weber is trying to sell his strange inheritance -- enigmatic pieces of chinese artwork to help fund his son's college education. >> it was a question of, you know, how are we gonna come up with the money for him to go to college? >> his rare table screen, once

appraised for $15,000, is now valued at up to $90,000, after the appraiser confirms its connection to the revered chinese emperor qianlong. >> he is the emperor of emperors. he's exactly the one one wanted to have commission this object. >> in april 2015, the table screen is offered for sale in a two-week online auction. but despite being a featured piece, the screen is not an instant hit with bidders. >> it was at the top of the list, and nothing happened. >> nothing? no bids? >> there were no bids. i mean, two weeks, anyway, were gone, and we called and said, "you know, what's going on here?" >> on the final day of the auction, with just 30 minutes left on the clock, there is still no action on the table screen. >> it looked like nobody was gonna bid on it at all. >> they were nervous. >> auctions are horribly nerve-racking, because you're thinking, "my gosh. nobody's interested in this.

this is terrible. oh, it's all out the window." >> finally, with just minutes to go, a flurry of bidding. >> there were two bidders, that i saw, that were going back and forth, and it just started climbing and climbing. >> the price jumps from zero to $60,000 in about 5 seconds, well into the appraisal range, then surpasses lark's high estimate. he sends the auction into overtime. it passes 200k. the final bid? $250,000 to a taiwanese collector. >> "you've got to be kidding me." i mean, it was like "monopoly" money. >> what kind of difference will that money make for you, for sarah, and for your son? >> it'll make a big difference. >> i'm really grateful that i'm gonna be able to go to college and, like, feel very grateful for what my future holds. >> talk about a strange inheritance that ripples around

the world. a piece of art crafted in a chinese emperor's workshop somehow ends up in a small vermont town two centuries later. it then travels all the way back to asia, changing the life of a young man from africa along the way. >> my father never knew leyeyo, and that's a little bit of a bittersweet thing. he would have thought there would have been nothing better to spend the money on than to give him an opportunity to extend his education. >> his grandson. >> that's right. i think, for my father, it would have been the most meaningful fee that he ever received. >> the buyer of paul's strange inheritance is a wealthy taiwanese businessman on a mission to track down chinese artworks around the world, buy them, and bring them home. he says he's thrilled about his newest purchase, both for its immense beauty and its great historical value. i'm jamie colby for

"strange inheritance." thanks so much for watching. and remember, you can't take it with you. >> this is a fox news alert, we are awaiting a press conference from house republican leaders as we enter the 50th hour of the government shutdown after lawmakers failed to make a deal to keep the government-funded past midnight. welcome to the "journal editorial report". i am paul gigot. we are live as we mark the first anniversary of president trump's inauguration. it is being met with protests and marches across the country including right here in new york city. more on that in a moment but first, let's go to fox news contributor peter doocy on capitol hill on the very latest on shutdown negotiations