Who Died From ‘Pawn Stars’? Inside the Deaths of Richard ‘Old Man’ & Adam Harrison
Pawn Stars first premiered in 2009 and introduced the world to the Harrison family and their pawn shop employees. Since then, the Harrisons have dealt with two public tragedies.
Family patriarch Richard “The Old Man” Harrison, who was on the show until his 2017 retirement, died in 2018. Meanwhile, Adam Harrison — son of Rick Harrison and brother of Corey Harrison — passed away at the beginning of 2024.
Now, the show is on an indefinite hiatus after the end of its History Channel contract. Scroll down for a refresher on what happened to Richard and Adam, as well as the latest on Corey.
What happened to Pawn Stars’ Richard ‘The Old Man’ Harrison?
Richard died on June 25, 2018, from Parkinson’s disease. He was 77 years old at the time of his death.
Rick confirmed the news to fans via an Instagram post the same day his father passed. “Today I lost a friend, a father, a teacher and so much more,” he wrote. “The Old Man lost his long battle with Parkinson’s this morning. Love you Dad. See you on the other side.”
The family also shared an official statement from the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, which Richard co-owned with Rick since 1989. “He was surrounded by loving family this past weekend and went peacefully,” the store’s statement said. “The team at Gold & Silver Pawn and the Pawn Stars family is grieving his loss. He will be remembered as the best father, grandfather and great-grandfather you could have by his family and by fans as the sometimes grumpy (always loving, however), often wisecracking, and voice of absolute reason on the History television show Pawn Stars.”
View this post on Instagram
In a second social media post, Rick also said, “He will be tremendously missed by our family, the team at Gold & Silver Pawn and his many fans the world over. He was my hero and I was fortunate to get a very cool ‘Old Man’ as my dad. That I got to share him with so many others and they got to see what a great family man he was is something I am grateful to have experienced with him.”
What happened to Adam Harrison?
Rick’s son Adam Harrison died in January 2024 after an accidental overdose on fentanyl and methamphetamine toxicity. He was 39 years old at the time of his death.
“I can confirm Adam died from a fentanyl overdose,” Rick told Fox News Digital in January 2024. “The fentanyl crisis in this country must be taken more seriously. It seems it is just flowing over the borders and nothing is being done about it. We must do better.” His official cause of death was confirmed by the coroner’s office less than two months later.
View this post on Instagram
Rick paid tribute to his son on social media after news of his death went public. “You will always be in my heart! I love you Adam,” he wrote. Adam was survived by a son named Colton, whom he shared with his ex-wife Jennifer, and the Harrison family set up an education fund for the child so fans could show their support by donating.
Pawn Stars had already begun production on Season 23 when Adam died, but his death was not a focus on the show. A family member confirmed to TMZ that the show would not address Adam’s passing and that there would be no further comment aside from Rick’s Instagram post. Adam was not a Pawn Stars cast member like his father and brother.
What happened to Corey Harrison?
Even before Rick publicly discussed the indefinite Pawn Stars hiatus, Corey decided he was no longer going to be part of the show after Season 23. He told the Las Vegas Review that he and his costars were “all playing characters” and that it was time for him to move on.
“At some point, you’ve got to prepare for the end,” he said. “I’d be stupid not to be prepared. I look at it that way. I’m set up for the future. I’ve loved filming the show, being on the show, but the past few years have been rough. I’m ready to move on.”
Corey has relocated to Tulum, Mexico, and no longer lives in Las Vegas where his family’s shop is located.
Conversation17 Comments
Please read the TV Insider Community Guidelines.
Register or sign in to join the conversation.
-
C
Jena, did you ignorantly comment thinking you were being funny? Because you accidentally spent think instead of thing. So, you’re insensitive, uneducated and on top of that not fun.
Good Karma is not your friend
-
D
All you not spelling right MFs gotta point but do better... I mean you learn that in elementary... Before there was spell check we actually spell checked... Some of us still do...
-
S
Accidently 'spent' think instead of thing?😂
-
W
he will kill you and sell r ass too she right about that
-
S
Making a comment about grammar, then not checking on your own spelling? That's priceless.
-
B
Jena ignore the hate I know what you are saying there's always grammar police out there
-
K
I'm shocked at how stupid people can be. Anyone can pass at anytime it's never a good thing when a parent has to busy their child. No matter what the reason. And absolutely sometimes we just have to move on.
-
A
YEP
Dumb Schiff like this is why I got off ALL social media.
Negativity is just as bad as FentnyL
Stupidity is a close 2nd
-
O
I know it’s odd right? Watch a show and die!
-
R
And spellcheck isn't yours....
-
R
I think it was a good show. Much better than ancient aliens all the time it should be brought back.
-
D
They always lowballed patrons. Saying, "Look lemme call in an expert". Or saying, " Look it's not gonna sell fast, i take all the risk". Then, Rick and that goofy, fake asl laugh... I mean you see enough episodes, you know they're playing characters but doin business they go back into pawn shop sheisty mode... MF can have a Picasso in there to sell and it's worth a million and he'll offer $50,000... It's a big damn difference between capitalism and usery... Ijs
-
G
Jackass
-
W
good point jena
-
G
A person can die from Pawn Stars?? Wow, good think I don't watch, I could be in danger.
(Good grammar is your friend.)
-
O
Wtf but you are here ? So confusing. Why are you here if you don't enjoy the show? Very sad honestly
-
G
This is a stupid and very insensitive comment, Jena.
-
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services