'Pawn Stars' and Pickers: History Channel Makes, Well, History
by Elizabeth Sexton
The channel that connects viewers with history is making its own, experiencing double-digit growth. Thanks to success with a new season of “Ax Men” and premiere episodes of “Pawn Stars” and “American Pickers,” the History channel marked its best January ever.
On Monday new records were set by their two reality shows that both feature household treasures, “Pawn Stars and “American Pickers.”
The network’s best ranking show of all time, “Pawn Stars,” received 7.7 million total viewers. “American Pickers” also set a record for itself with 6.6 million viewers.
"American Pickers," quickly growing popularity, offers a unique glimpse at the subculture of “antique pickers.” Pickers are a lot like antique dealers in industry knowledge and are always on a quest for valuable relics that can be sold.
Pickers, however, are more like the bad boys of treasure hunting. They obtain their artifacts by scrounging around garbage drop-offs on the side of the roads and rummaging through abandoned garages. There’s a science to their scavenging, which is revealed on the show as hosts Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz travel the country, meeting collectors, hoarders and historians who have a story to tell and objects to explore. Their adventures lead to gems and sometimes just junk.
The staff of "Pawn Stars," on the other end of the spectrum, allow the finds to find them at the "Gold & Silver Pawn Shop" in Las Vegas. According to the History Channel, pawn shops originating in China more than 3,000 years ago. Today, there are more than 12,000 pawn shops operating within the United States.