News broke last week that Frank Fritz, the former co-lead of the popular History series American Pickers, had had a stroke. The news was even bigger news because it was Mike Wolfe, the man who had confirmed Fritz’s firing from the series, who broke the news that his former TV partner was in the hospital. Now, a rep for Wolfe is speaking out about respecting the former reality TV star’s privacy during this time.
Mike Wolfe had previously broken the news of Frank Fritz’s hospitalization on social media, though he specifically asked at that time that the opinionated fanbase hold off on queries, noting it was not the time to "set the record straight." Other American Pickers star Danielle Colby had encouraged Frank to “just keep fighting,” though her post has now been deleted on Instagram.
Unfortunately, when it comes to Fritz and his team, People said they reached out to Frank Fritz’s team but it has been radio silence for now. Instead, in a new statement, Mike Wolfe’s representative asked the fanbase to give the former reality star some space.
We asked that everyone keeps Frank and their thoughts and prayers. The most important thing is that we allow him time to heal and giving [sic] him the space to do so.
The communication from Mike Wolfe and his representative makes more sense with added context. Fans on social media even before the news broke about his stroke have been very open about being disgruntled about Frank Fritz’s exit. On the latest post announcing the stroke, a lot for Pickers fans did send prayer emojis, but other people who saw the post had specific comments about the two needing to make amends.
Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz had a very public falling out about his exit from television, with Fritz speaking candidly in interviews about not being in contact with Mike Wolfe, as well as going to rehab and sharing more about what he feels happened before he was fired by the History series. Wolfe responded to these interviews by sharing a social media post addressing Fritz’s exit, but in more recent interviews, things had not seemed to thaw, and neither American Pickers star had reportedly reached out to mend fences. Then, of course, Frank landed in the hospital.
Meanwhile, American Pickers has moved on with Mike’s brother Robbie taking up the other seat on the road tripping show. New episodes of the long-running reality series air on Saturday nights as part of the summer TV schedule; however, reportedly the show has seen a decrease in viewership since Frank Fritz exited. We’ll keep you updated if the reality star or his reps make any official statements.
