{"id":83674,"date":"2024-10-04T16:16:14","date_gmt":"2024-10-04T09:16:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/?p=83674"},"modified":"2024-10-04T16:16:14","modified_gmt":"2024-10-04T09:16:14","slug":"frank-fritz-american-pickers-star-dead-at-60-rest-in-peace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/frank-fritz-american-pickers-star-dead-at-60-rest-in-peace\/","title":{"rendered":"Frank Fritz, \u201cAmerican Pickers\u201d star, dead at 60 \u2014 rest in peace"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Fritz, who left the series in 2021, had been suffering from health problems and was hospitalized from a stroke two years ago.\n<p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' class='\"aligncenter' size-full wp-image-65650 src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/viralhatch.com%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/10%5C/Frank-Fritz-1.jpg%5C%22" sizes='\"auto,' srcset='\"https:\/\/viralhatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Frank-Fritz-1.jpg' https: alt='\"Frank' fritz width='\"683\"' height='\"1024\"' title='\"\"'>\n</p><p>The news was announced by Fritz\u2019s friend and co-star Mike Wolfe, who said that Fritz passed away last night.\n</p><p>\u201cI\u2019ve know Frank for more [than] half my life and what you\u2019ve seen on TV has always been what I have seen, a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny,\u201d Wolfe wrote in a social media tribute. \u201cThe same off camera as he was on, Frank had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself.\u201d\n</p><p>Fritz and Wolfe gained fame as the hosts of the reality TV series\u00a0<em>American Pickers, which premiered on the History Channel in 2010. The series showed the two \u201cpickers\u201d traveling across the USA, searching for valuable antiques and collectibles in unexpected places.\n<p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' class='\"aligncenter' size-full wp-image-65651 src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/viralhatch.com%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/10%5C/Frank-Fritz-2.jpg%5C%22" sizes='\"auto,' srcset='\"https:\/\/viralhatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Frank-Fritz-2.jpg' https: alt='\"Frank' fritz width='\"768\"' height='\"512\"' title='\"\"'>\n</p><p>\u201cWe\u2019re looking for amazing things buried in people\u2019s garages and barns,\u201d the show\u2019s opening narration explains. \u201cWhat most people see as junk, we see as dollar signs. We\u2019ll buy\u00a0<em>anything\u00a0we think we can make a buck on.\u201d\n<p>\u201cWe make a living telling the history of America\u2026 one piece at a time.\u201d\n</p><p>The series attracted millions of viewers, becoming one of History Channel\u2019s most popular programs. In its debut year it was the #1 non-fiction series among total viewers and adults 25-54.\n</p><p>While the antiques were often interesting, there\u2019s no doubt it was the chemistry and charisma of the two hosts that kept viewers coming back for more.\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' class='\"aligncenter' size-full wp-image-65652 src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/viralhatch.com%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/10%5C/Frank-Fritz-3.jpg%5C%22" sizes='\"auto,' srcset='\"https:\/\/viralhatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Frank-Fritz-3.jpg' https: alt='\"Frank' fritz width='\"603\"' height='\"1000\"' title='\"\"'>\n</p><p>In 2021, it was announced that Fritz would be leaving\u00a0<em>American Pickers\u00a0after a decade on the hit series. Fritz said the decision was not his own, and that he was pushed out by the network after a back surgery.\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t leave the show,\u201d\u00a0he told\u00a0<em>The Sun\u00a0at the time. \u201cI finished shooting and then I had a little back surgery and the pandemic came.\u201d\n<p>He also suggested that his co-host\u2019s ego was a factor, saying the show had \u201ctilted towards him 1,000 percent.\u201d \u201cI haven\u2019t talked to Mike in two years,\u201d Fritz said. \u201cHe knew my back was messed up, but he didn\u2019t call me up and ask how I was doing. That\u2019s just how it is.\u201d\n</p><p><img loading='\"lazy\"' decoding='\"async\"' class='\"aligncenter' size-full wp-image-65653 src="%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/viralhatch.com%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/10%5C/Frank-Fritz-4.jpg%5C%22" sizes='\"auto,' srcset='\"https:\/\/viralhatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Frank-Fritz-4.jpg' https: alt='\"Frank' fritz width='\"768\"' height='\"960\"' title='\"\"'>\n</p><p>In July 2022, Fritz was hospitalized from a stroke. In 2023, he had a tearful reunion with Mike Wolfe, and the two resolved their purported feud. However, Fritz declined an offer to rejoin\u00a0<em>American Pickers, deciding to focus on his health.\n<p>It\u2019s clear that the two former co-hosts have remained friendly since then, and it seems Wolfe was by his side til the end.\n</p><p>\u201cWe\u2019ve been on countless trips and shared so many miles and I feel blessed that I was there by his side when he took one last journey home,\u201d Wolfe wrote on Instagram. \u201cI love you buddy and will miss you so much I know [you\u2019re] in a better place.\u201d\n</p><p><em>American Pickers\u00a0remains a staple of the History Channel lineup. Fritz has never officially been replaced as co-host, though series regulars like Danielle Colby, Mike Wolfe\u2019s brother Robbie, and friend and antiques expert \u201cJersey Jon\u201d Szalay will rotate accompanying Wolfe on his antiquing trips.\n<p>Colby also shared her own tribute to Fritz on social media. \u201cFrank, I will miss your ability to make everyone laugh, your love for talking tattoos, your epic collections but what I will miss the most are those little glimpses of vulnerability from time to time,\u201d she wrote.\n</p><p>\u201cFrank, you loved your cat and your momma and we bonded on those things. You will be missed for all of these reasons and so many more.<br>\nRest in Peace Road Dog.\u201d\n</p><p><strong>Rest in peace to the iconic reality TV star Frank Fritz\u00a0\ud83d\ude22\ud83d\ude4f Please share this story in his memory.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fritz, who left the series in 2021, had been suffering from health problems and was hospitalized from a stroke two years ago. The news was announced by Fritz\u2019s friend and co-star Mike Wolfe, who said that Fritz passed away last night. \u201cI\u2019ve know Frank for more [than] half my life and what you\u2019ve seen on &hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":83675,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[670],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83674"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83674\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83676,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83674\/revisions\/83676"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/83675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}</p></strong></p></em></p></em></p></em></p></em></p></em></p></em></p></strong></p>