Frank Fritz’s Friend Reveals Details of ‘American Pickers’ Star’s Final Days

New details are emerging about American Pickers star Frank Fritz’s final days. The beloved History Channel personality passed away at the age of 60 on Monday, Sept. 30 after suffering numerous “serious health issues” over the past several years, with a close friend revealing that they believe “Frank could’ve lived a lot longer if the will to live would’ve been there.”

Detailing Fritz’s health battles, close friend Jerry Gendreau told The Sun that “from 25 or 30 on,” Fritz suffered from Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that affects the lining of the digestive tract, per the Mayo Clinic. In more recent years, Fritz’s health worsened, Gendreau said. The American Pickers star underwent back surgery in 2021 and was hospitalized for a stroke in July 2022. Between 2022 and 2023, he was rushed to the hospital on four separate occasions, including for pneumonia and a seizure.

“He felt really, really bad,” Gendreau revealed. “You would go to see him in the nursing home and one-half of his body was completely done. He would lift his arm up and it would just drop. That’s got to be tough to be totally bedridden.”

Gendreau explained that after suffering the stroke and his other health issues, Fritz became “frustrated” because he “couldn’t come out and say what he wanted to say. I’ve seen this when people get tired, they get tired. I think if you don’t have the will to live, you won’t. I think Frank could’ve lived a lot longer if the will to live would’ve been there.”

Gendreau, who remembered Fritz for his “spontaneity” and being a “pretty much a what-you-see-is-what-you-get guy,” said Fritz likely “would’ve went back” to American Pickers if not for his health struggles. Fritz appeared on American Pickers alongside Mike Wolfe from 2010 until his final appearance in March 2020, when he was forced to step away from the History Channel series due to his health.

Amid his passing, many of Fritz’s American Pickers co-stars have paid tribute to him. In an emotional Instagram post, Wolfe remembered Fritz as “a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny” and someone who “had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself.” He added, “I love you buddy and will miss you so much I know your (sic) in a better place.”

In honor of Fritz, History Channel dedicated a marathon of “best of” episodes to him ahead of the Season 26 premiere on Oct. 9. At the top of some of the episodes, the channel included an “In Memoriam” title card for him.