Richard Harrison, also known as ‘The Old Man’ from Pawn Stars, died Monday morning.
He had been battling Parkinson’s Disease
for a long period of time, according to his son Rick Harrison. Here are 10 things to remember him by:
- Richard Harrison was the co-owner of the pawn shop featured on the show along with his son.
- He served in the U.S. Navy for 20 years.
- In 1981, he and his son opened Gold & Silver Coin Shop in a 300 square foot shop at 1501 Las Vegas Boulevard.
- The business’s lease expired in 1988, followed by the creation of the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop at 713 Las Vegas Boulevard South in 1989, located less than two miles from the Las Vegas Strip.
- The most common item that is pawned off at the store is jewelry
- Harrison was characterized as getting angry easily and being a man of few words.
- Within ten weeks of the debut of Pawn Stars, the show was the highest rated ever in the history of The History Channel.
- Over that same period, the average number of customers at the store grew from 70 to 700.
- By February 2012, the store was visited by between 3,000 people to 5,000 people per day.
- At last count, Harrison’s net worth was roughly at around $5 million thanks to the success of the show and its impact on the store.
