Odd issue with the electric lights in a display cabinet - help please.

[MontanaMama]

I bought an older mission style Stickley display cabinet at an estate sale. It is solid cherry with glass doors and sides with 5 heavy glass shelves inside it. Got it for $450...it is in mint condition structurally so I got a great deal on it.
Here's the issue: It has two mini spot lights in the top of it that shine down through the cabinet. At first I thought the lights didn't work because it didn't light up when I plugged the cord into an outlet. By accident, I learned that the lights indeed work IF I plug the cord into the outlet twice. I plug the cabinet in...unplug it...then quickly plug it back in and the lights work! The only outlet on the wall where this cabinet lives is behind a small table next to it...it's kind of a hassle to move the table, plug the cabinet in and move the table back. Not a huge deal but I would like to plug the cabinet into an extension cord with a switch to turn it on and off but it doesn't work because of the having to plug it in twice to make the lights work. Any thoughts out there? I think the cabinet may be haunted. It is quite beautiful, however.