Why The Pawn Stars Cast Has To Buy Items They Don't Actually Want

The World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas, home of History's Pawn Stars, isn't your average emporium. People aren't just walking in with some jewelry to hock: The crew has seen some insanely valuable items come through the doors over the years, including a guitar played by Jimi Hendrix and a contract signed by the original Beatles. Rick Harrison and the rest of his team may not always be able to make a deal, but they don't mind throwing down some money when they think there are profits to be made. 

Naturally, there's some inherent risk with running a pawn shop. After all, it involves spending a lot of money up front without knowing when exactly the item will sell. Unless they acquire something that's a sure thing, like gold bars, it's essentially a gamble. Too many foolish purchases could end up sinking the business, which is why it may catch some viewers off guard to learn that the Gold & Silver crew has actually been encouraged to make more deals than perhaps they were comfortable with. 

Pawn Stars owes a debt to Antiques Roadshow, a series that also involved people bringing in items they thought were valuable and discovering how much they were really worth. On Pawn Stars, Harrison and his rolodex of experts also appraise items, but there's the added aspect of running a business. While it's interesting to hear people talk about the history of these rare artifacts, there's no doubt that a big reason why people have tuned in for 17 seasons and counting is due to the haggling and negotiations that take place once everything is out in the open. 

It'd get boring quickly if Harrison looked at every item that came in and said, "Sorry, not for me." That's why it made sense when Screen Rant reported, "Executive producer Brent Montgomery quickly figured out that a show with very few sales would lose some of its appeal." As such, the team was encouraged to purchase items they may not have given a second thought to if they weren't on a TV show. We'll never know which items were pity purchases, but taking into account some of the more questionable deals over the years, such as spending $50 on a 50-year-old waffle iron, it starts to make sense.

The revelation isn't exactly surprising. After all, there are several ways in which Pawn Stars stretches the truth or straight-up lies, but as long as it's entertaining, we'll keep coming back.