With more than a decade on the air, the much-loved reality TV show Pawn Stars has faced its share of
scandals over the years. With controversies that include legal troubles, public embarrassment,
and an arrested cast member, here are the scandals that have rocked Pawn Stars.
Things apparently took a nasty turn after 62-year-old disabled Vietnam veteran
Daniel Callahan walked into the store one day, looking for an appraisal on his Model 96B rifle.
As Right This Minute reported, Callahan alleged,
“[Rick and Richard Harrison placed him] in a chokehold, dragged him through the store,
and threw him onto the sidewalk.”
Callahan also claimed his rifle and walking stick were damaged during the purported incident.
Callahan filed a lawsuit against the Gold & Silver Pawn shop in April 2012,
accusing the Harrisons of physical assault and seeking $20,000
in damages. But then Rick’s son Corey shot down Callahan's story.
In the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Big Hoss claimed Rick and Richard weren’t even in
the same room as Callahan, and also that the Vietnam vet was the real aggressor:
"[He was] absolutely irate with a weapon in his hand, […] screaming, 'I want to see the
owner.' […] The way he was acting, it was in our best interests to get him out of there."
The Pawn Stars cast members are no strangers to brushes with the law. In 2014, they found
themselves at the center of a legal battle yet again — this time for allegedly melting down a
stolen antique coin collection. According to ABC News, David Walters claimed his niece, Jennifer
Beckman, stole his costly coin cache in 2013 and then sold it to the Gold & Silver Pawn shop.
Walters claimed the haul "netted a total of $12,375" when Beckman sold it,
but he maintained the actual value to be closer to $50,000. As soon as Walters realized the coins
were missing, he immediately reported his niece to the authorities, but when the cops contacted
the shop, the coins couldn’t be identified. As a spokesperson for the store told Fox News:
"They may have been melted down. […] They may have
been sold. They may be in buckets with like coins waiting to be evaluated."
The spokesperson disputed the valuation claim made by Walters,
before insisting none of the Pawn Stars cast members had done anything illegal.
Pawnbrokers deal with a spectrum of people: the strapped for cash,
the desperate, the opportunists, the regular Joes just looking to score
a bargain. Rick Harrison has encountered them all.
In an interview with NPR,
Harrison shared that the store's busiest time is when there's a big boxing match, saying,
"I don't know what it is about fight fans. […] They
always bet more than they can afford to lose."
Harrison then admitted he regularly acts as an unofficial bail bondsman
for a certain sector of his clientele — pimps:
"When they get arrested, they will always have someone bring their jewelry down to
me. […] I will loan them half of what they paid for it — and that's their bail money."
Corey Harrison treated the aptly named Spectators Bar to a performance they'll
likely never forget during a booze-fueled Jefferson City night out in 2014.
According to RadarOnline, Corey and some biker buddies were riding in a sponsored motorcycle
tour when they decided to make a pit stop in the Missouri capital. Harrison had allegedly been
partying hard for seven nights straight before hitting the town. As one eyewitness claimed,
"[T]his particular night, [Corey] was very drunk. […] You could tell when we
walked in the bar that it was not gonna go well."
Perhaps inspired by Missouri's "Show Me State" nickname, after downing "copious
amounts of shots," Harrison proceeded to expose himself then publicly urinate.
However, the show wasn't over yet. After posing for fan photos with his pants down, Harrison
"picked up a barstool and threw it," resulting in him getting tossed out of the premises.
Corey later apologized for the drunken debacle, telling E! News,
"Not my finest moment, obviously. […] I sincerely
apologize to everyone for my behavior. I am truly sorry."
"That was a ride, man."
Corey Harrison was back making headlines again in 2021 for all the wrong reasons.
TMZ revealed that Big Hoss rented an RV for a short vacation in the California
desert in 2020. However, according to the vehicle's owner, William Villafana,
Harrison apparently failed to return the RV on the agreed date and in one piece.
Villafana claimed Harrison's assistant called a day later to say the vehicle had been involved
in an accident, and they were going to have it towed back. But, it took another two days before
the damaged vehicle finally arrived. In addition to actual bodywork damage, Villafana also alleged
the RV's awning had been “ripped off,” with empty bottles and eggs all over the place inside.
Villafana told TMZ the damage would cost up to $30,000 to repair and that,
because of the vehicle’s state, he had to "cancel ten reservations." He also claimed that Harrison
refused to pay for the damages, forcing him to file a police report. Harrison’s rep told TMZ,
"Corey rented the RV, the pop outs wouldn't go back in,
and it was not driveable. […] He had it towed back to Las Vegas and had insurance on it."
“Well, that is gonna make one hell of a story.”
Over its 19 seasons, the Pawn Stars cast has made bank. According to History, Rick Harrison is worth
an estimated $8 million. Corey "Big Hoss" Harrison and Austin "Chumlee" Russell have accumulated
around $5 million each. Not surprisingly, given the show's success, its network has also scored
big. As Celebrity Net Worth reported in 2014, History rakes in a cool $3 million per episode.
But, there's no such thing as trickle-down economics in the world of reality TV.
The New York Daily News reported on production companies accused of committing
"wage theft" — and the people behind Pawn Stars were named and shamed as culprits. Per the outlet,
a 2013 survey conducted by the Writers Guild of America East determined that
“[Screenwriters and producers on the show] lose $30,000 a year in unpaid
wages by working without breaks and overtime pay."
When you factor in the other staff working behind the cameras, too, the amount of lost earnings
comes to a staggering $40 million. As producer David Van Taylor told the New York Daily News:
"I've known people to work upwards of 100 hours in
a given week while shooting. […] There's no compensation for that additional work."
According to the WGA East, Pawn Stars writers and producers earn roughly 4 grand less per
week than the same positions on scripted shows earn. The disgruntled employees of
Pawn Stars creators Leftfield Entertainment voted to unionize in 2015 — hoping that
collective-bargaining power would result in more-equitable pay and work conditions.
Cast member Olivia Black had no idea she would become a reality
star when she answered a Craigslist ad for a pawnshop overnight worker.
In her Pawn Stars introduction video, Black said,
"I hadn't actually realized exactly what I had applied for. [...] So I
was kind of blindsided when I found out everything that was happening."
But she was cut from Pawn Stars after only 13 episodes. As she shared in a Reddit AMA,
"On December 15th, 2012 the National Enquirer ran an article on me,
linking to my SuicideGirls photos, and two days later I received a call from the
Pawn Stars producers that my services were no longer needed on the show."
Black was permitted to carry on working at the store so long as she didn’t appear on camera.
But she quit the job a few months later, telling Fox411,
"It was very apparent my time there was done."
Though the news outlet reported she was planning to file a lawsuit against Leftfield Pictures, she
held no ill will towards the pawnbroker staff, who publicly supported her. As she told RadarOnline,
"It's really comforting knowing that the guys at the pawnshop are on my side
and […] really could care less what I choose to do in my personal life."
Austin "Chumlee" Russell is definitely one of the shadiest cast members on Pawn Stars.
As TMZ reported in 2012, he was caught on camera brawling with a dude in Hollywood
before fleeing the scene. The victim was left bruised and bleeding on the side of the road,
but Chumlee insisted he acted in "self-defense." TMZ quoted Chumlee as saying,
"Instinct just took over. [The man] didn't even know I was on
TV. […] [He] just wanted to ride in our car and start problems."
But there was no excuse for what happened four years later.
As reported in the Chicago Tribune, Russell landed in jail after being arrested "on suspicion of 20
felonies." The arrest came after cops raided Chumlee’s house as part of their investigation
into sexual-assault allegations made against him. The charges were ultimately cleared, but
TMZ reported the raid netted the cops, quote, "a huge laundry list of narcotics,"
including weed, meth, and Xanax. They also discovered traces of cocaine
and 12 guns, eight of which were unregistered.
Chumlee ultimately arranged a plea to escape a prison sentence. As reported in USA Today:
“[Chumlee Russell] pled guilty to a felony weapons charge — unlawful
possession of a firearm — and to a gross misdemeanor of attempted drug possession."
The vast majority of reality TV shows are accused of staging scenes
and scripting dialogue to help create some extra drama. And for years,
there's been speculation about how fake Pawn Stars may be. Ironic,
with the shop’s staff spending so much time determining whether items are authentic or not.
Even though the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop is an actual business,
it's more like a TV set — with off-camera areas packed full of show merchandise.
As the shop’s website explains, busy schedules and Nevada privacy laws mean the cast make
"impromptu" stops by the store. Meaning, they don't exactly have regular shifts.
On top of that, all potential sale items that appear on the show are examined ahead of time.
Store manager Travis Benton told the Las Vegas Review-Journal
that items are viewed by producers first, who decide if they’re worthy of going on air.
And as shop employee Rocco Landi shared with the news outlet,
“[A] seller is coached on how to act while on camera. […] It
can take several tries to get it right."
Pawn Stars fans were shocked when Richard Harrison died in 2018,
after a long battle with what the public later learned was Parkinson’s.
Rick announced his 77-year-old father's death on Instagram:
"He was my hero, and I was fortunate to get a very cool 'Old Man' as my dad."
But a more-shocking revelation was yet to come.
Richard Harrison died a wealthy man. Before his passing, he had completed a will,
listing his wife JoAnne and sons Rick, Joseph,
and Christopher as his heirs. In 2017, however, as reported by The Blast, Harrison amended his will
to exclude his youngest son Christopher — but did not include an explanation.
Long before there was the show Pawn Stars in Las Vegas, Nevada, there was Pawn Star,
a store located in Florida. As reported in the Tampa Tribune, Frank Bishop settled on
his store's name in 2006 because he thought it was cool, albeit, quote, "a little provocative." When
the History reality show about the day-to-day dealings of the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop first
aired in July 2009, with pretty much the exact same name, Bishop, quote, "felt vindicated."
However, his feelings soon turned to anger and shock after receiving a cease-and-desist
letter from A&E Television Networks' Manhattan legal eagles. According to TMZ,
the attorneys claimed the name of Bishop's shop constituted "fraud and trademark infringement."
They demanded that he change the store's name immediately or face further legal action.
But Bishop refused to kowtow to the mega-network's orders.
Instead, he fired straight back at them with a "strongly-worded letter" from his own attorney,
as recounted by TMZ. The businessman pointed out that he had legally registered "Pawn Star"
as his shop's name a whole three years before the show's TV premiere. That said, he could
be persuaded to submit to their demands if the price was right. As Bishop’s attorney told TMZ,
"If you want to take something, this is America. Write a check.”
Mega money is paid to production companies in return for stars covertly endorsing
brands' products on camera — so it's a win-win for both parties. But perhaps
no program is as scandalously blatant about product placement as Pawn Stars is.
There's a reason the cast seem to be constantly chowing down on foot-longs,
the counter is frequently littered with logo-covered wrappers, and scenes often
take place inside a Subway restaurant. According to Trend Chaser, the fast-food giant happens to be
"one of the show's biggest sponsors," and there's nothing subtle about the arrangement.
Take the time when Corey Harrison picks up a Subway sandwich and,
quote demonstrates how the auction will unfold later in the day.”
And then there was the time Chumlee made a joke about Subway and Jared Fogle,
the convicted sex offender who used to be the brand's spokesperson. At first, Chumlee was
simply doing his own weight-loss program, while proudly announcing his achievements along the way:
“That’s under two fifty, fully dressed.”
But, according to Screen Rant, while boasting about his shed pounds, the cast member also
quipped about being, quote, "the next Jared from Subway." No Chumlee, just, no.