American Pickers' Frank Fritz Fires Back At Mike Wolfe's Response
The story so far:
In July of 2021, "American Pickers" star Mike Wolfe confirmed what fans had been speculating about for months — that other "American Pickers" star Frank Fritz would not be returning to the program. FrankenStans came out of the woodwork on social media. They were Frank-ly upset. It was a regular grassroots Fritz-krieg of emotional outpouring.
Still, Wolfe went about making the announcement about Fritz's departure with an air of dignity and repose. "I have known Frank for as long as I can remember, he's been like a brother to me," Wolfe wrote in an Instagram post. "...I will miss Frank, just like all of you, and I pray for the very best and all good things for him on the next part of his journey."Not everyone was touched by the sentiment. In an obscenity-heavy response to Wolfe's statement, Fritz told The Sun that "American Pickers" fans were getting played. "Mike's statement was bulls***," he began, and the words didn't get much kinder from there.
Frank Fritz has strong words for his old American Pickers co-star
Frank Fritz went on to claim that "somebody wrote (Wolfe's statement) out for him." Furthermore, his recollection of the duo's time together was decidedly disparate from the unicorns and posi-vibes described by Wolfe. "We never were friends in grade school. I don't believe in ten years he's said five nice things to me, you know? Unless he was cutting somebody else down and we were both laughing," he told The Sun.
Frank continued: "Mike didn't call me himself, never, like I said – we haven't spoken for two years. That is the 100% truth and I don't like people that lie to people. He went on to imply that the split was personal in nature. "If you don't like me anymore, that's your problem," he said. "... I'm not going to sit here and f****** lie to people. And if he doesn't like it, then maybe he should have f****** called me. Maybe he should have called and said 'Hey, how's your back doing?,'" the television personality concluded, referring to his ongoing rehabilitative efforts.
The contentious drama surrounding the future of one of History's best-performing programs continues to get more fiery. What's next for "American Pickers," including the question of who might replace Fritz in the show's upcoming 23rd season, remains a point of fascination for fans.