The Most Heartwarming Scene On American Pickers

"American Pickers" premiered in January of 2010, and the series is now comprised of more than 330 episodes across 22 seasons (via IMDb), averaging two seasons a year. In a typical episode of "American Pickers," antique experts Frank Fritz, Mike Wolf, and Danielle Colby search American cities both big and small for hidden treasures. Their antiques expertise helps them identify items that may be underappreciated by their owners, which they then restore and flip for a hefty profit.

Sometimes, the magnitude of the Pickers' profit is the primary draw of a given haul. In one episode of the series' tenth season, for example, the Pickers purchase a motorcycle with a sidecar that appears to be around 60 years old for a hefty sum of $10,000. They are then able to restore and flip the bike for $18,000, making it one of the most valuable items purchased in the history of the series.

That said, not every episode is about turning a profit. Wolf states outright in the series' intro, "The people we meet? Well, they're a breed all their own." The appeal of an episode of "American Pickers," then, extends beyond its hosts to the original owners of some of the items they end up buying. In some cases, the brief relationship established between the Pickers and a seller can result in a genuinely heartwarming moment, such as when the Pickers returned to a struggling theme park with a surprise for its owner.

In the "American Pickers" Season 3 premiere, Fritz and Wolf visit a theme park in Easton, Pennsylvania called Bushkill Park. Prior to the Pickers' visit, which occurred some time before the episode's 2010 air date, the park was damaged by recurring flooding. First, Pennsylvania was struck by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, which dealt significant damage to Bushkill Park. It was then subjected to flooding from the nearby Bushkill River in subsequent years and sustained damage from heavy snow (via Lehigh Valley Live). By the time the Pickers visit Bushkill Park, it hasn't fully recovered from the decline in business.

Fritz and Wolf ultimately decide to purchase some sideshow banners from the park's owner, for which they paid a total of $700. As it turns out, however, the signs are the original work of an artist named Fred Johnson, whose work is well-known to connoisseurs of vintage sideshow signage. Because of their pedigree, the Pickers are able to sell the signs for a grand total of $10,000.

The Pickers don't keep the entirety of that profit for themselves, however. Before the episode's conclusion, Fritz and Wolf return to Bushkill Park and hand its owner $5,000 in cash to put toward the park's renovation. He is so touched that he promises to declare an annual "Frank & Mike" day in their honor (via Lehigh Valley Live). The Pickers' generosity toward a struggling small business owner makes their return to the park stand out as the most heartwarming moment in the entirety of the series.