20 Secrets About American Pickers That Reveal How Staged The Show Really Is

Following the fortunes of traveling antique hunters Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz, American Pickers has become one of the History network’s best-loved reality shows. But how much of the picking, haggling and driving across the United States that you see on screen is actually real? Here’s a look at why the show which prides itself on finding authentic treasures might itself be totally fake.

20. Producers do all the picking

American Pickers makes it look as though Wolfe and Fritz travel across America looking for places that might hold some buried treasures completely on the fly. But their road trips are rarely as spontaneous as they seem. According to Screen Rant, producers trawl through countless submissions from viewers eager to get a visit from the pair. They then apparently visit the most promising leads in person long before the camera crew rolls up.

Speaking to the San Angelo Standard-Times about his experiences on the show, Ken’s Toys owner Ken Young claimed that he was actually given three weeks’ notice by producers. He said, “They have what you call a ‘snoop.’ They get somebody to go into a site and look around. The man who came in that day, he gave me his card. Then I got a phone call and they said when they would be coming.”

19. Scenes are reshot repeatedly

Ever wondered why some of the conversations in American Pickers sound like they’ve been rehearsed countless times? Well, that’s because some of them essentially have, according to a South Carolina auctioneer called Rob Dinkins. As with many other reality shows, its participants are supposedly required to repeat what they’ve just said numerous times for the benefit of editors.

Dinkins talked to the South Carolina Radio Network about why some participants might well experience déjà vu during their time on the show. He said, “You go from one room to the next, you have to do that like three times. They’ve got to film you leaving the room, then they’ve got to film you coming into the room.”