The hit History Channel show Pawn Stars has been on the air for 15 seasons. Nobody could have anticipated that a show about old junk and a bunch of old guys would become one of the channel’s highest-rated shows.

People from all over the world travel to the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, Nevada to buy and sell artifacts, treasures, antiques, and oddities. Some of the objects that come through the door of that now-iconic institution are worth tens of thousands of dollars. Pawn Stars may be a reality show, but how much of it is actually real? Keep reading to find out.

After Old Man passed away, his will revealed something shocking

It All Started In Sin City

Richard Harrison (AKA “Old Man”), his son Rick, Rick’s son Corey, and Corey’s friend, Chumlee had been working at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop long before Pawn Stars premiered. Old Man opened the store in 1989 and ran it as a 24-hour family business.

It was Rick who had the idea to turn the daily workings of the store into a television show. He pitched the idea to several networks in the early 2000s until eventually, the History Channel picked up the show.