According to the eBay seller, investments2001, the car used to be the property of Universal Studios:

This is the real Universal car not a copy. The car runs and drives good it has new tires on it know [sic]. The car is in a car Museum right now, when it goes on tour it draws a VERY VERY LARGE crowd.

Sadly, it drew a less impressive crowd - and even less impressive bids - on eBay. Despite 32 hopefuls, the car failed to meet its reserve and went unsold after the auction ended last night. We wish we knew what the reserve actually was... or that the seller had realized that the last Ecto-1 on eBay went for almost $20,000 less.

1959 Replica/Kit Makes [eBay]

Among the participating authors are Matthew Battles, whose article on space travel we linked to the other day, as well as Susanna Breslin, Michelle Tea, Luc Sante, many more. They call their project Significant Objects. Each author buys a cheap trinket at a thrift store, invents a backstory for it, and then posts it on eBay. The opening bid price is exactly what they paid for it - usually just a few dollars. Most of the objects seem to be strange nick nacks, like a cow statue covered in red peppers or a plastic hot dog.

The project, conceived by io9 pal Joshua Glenn and Rob Walker, is only a few days old, so it's hard to say for sure whether these objects will acquire substantial value based on their invented alternate histories. Still, it's obvious that some stories appeal more than others. Lucinda Rosenfeld's backstory about a cow-shaped creamer has already gotten 10 bids that have increased the value of the object from $1 to nearly $10. Maybe it's because her story is all about how Norman Rockwell was secretly depressed and left this cow creamer behind at a sanitorium where he spent time? I'm excited about an alternate America where Rockwell was depressed all the time.

So far none of the stories have been explicitly science fictional, but taken together they represent an interesting kink in the alternative history genre. One thing is certain: If Rosenfeld's success is any indication, these authors may actually get paid more for short fiction on eBay than they would at most publications.

Check out Significant Objects and see Rosenfeld's Cow Creamer on eBay.

The auction, which was open for bidding only if you had been pre-approved as being good for the money, was run for the Liberty Hill Foundation, a favorite charity for director Abrams:

The Liberty Hill Foundation partners with innovative and effective Los Angeles grassroots organizations to combat poverty and injustice. Together, we help transform the City of Angels into a place that promises safety, equality and opportunity for everyone who lives here. Our motto is Change, not Charity. Charity is important, but our dollars go the next step organizing, advocating, creating change for the long term.

2 Tickets to the Star Trek Movie World Premiere in LA! [eBay]

The seller's description is convincing, to say the least:

By the Lords of Kobol, you simply have to have your own VIPER PILOTS LICENSE! Become a true Colonial Warrior and help protect humanity from the dreaded Cylon forces! Now you can also become one of the highly trained highly skilled Pilots that are allowed to call a Viper MK2 home. Help protect the last remnants of the twelve colonies. With the help of the Gods, you may become as well known as Apollo and Starbuck. Looks great mounted on a wall in a frame or displayed in its own handsome gold trimmed Certificate folder. Become a Viper Pilot today! Each License is signed by Commander Adama and President of the twelve colonies Laura Roslin and shipped in a heavy cardboard mailer to prevent bending or other damage.

The Woodford Correctional Center in Queensland, Australia has built a full-sized Dalek replica from Doctor Who that comes complete with wheels, space for an occupant, and an electronic voice changer. Granted, you have to Fred Flintstone the thing around with your feet, but it's a small price to pay. You can pedal this thing down to your local market and shout "EX TER MI NATE!" until you get arrested. Priceless.

Bidding is up to $3000 bucks Australian right now, which is roughly $2700 US, although you'll have to fly down to Australia to pick the thing up, since they wont ship it outside of Oz. You might also want to check and make sure it's passenger-free when you get it, since these same inmates melted the walls at the prison with toasters in 1997 and escaped. Maybe they've incorporated that same wall-melting in the Dalek's beam weapon.

'Doctor Who' Dalek For Sale [Comic Mix]

The seller's description says it all:

This Torso is very unqiue with a Grey Male Torso shell that contains two chromed Robot arms that each contain several LEDs at the end, along with a red lighted chest plate and chromed metal neck. There are two long 12" strands of LED spinal cord which hang from the bottom. But the real fun lays inside the chest when the front is removed with a great android inside featuring over two dozen light up LEDs, Fiber lights, along with a Strobe in the center that you can hear charge up to flash.

Terminator 3 T3 Robot Light Up Torso Movie SciFi Prop [eBay.com]