Did 'American Pickers' Star Frank Fritz Have a Wife?
The 'American Pickers' star died on Sept. 30, 2024.
Published Oct. 1 2024, 11:02 a.m. ET
Unlike Mike Wolfe, his former American Pickers co-star, Frank Fritz wasn’t much of a social media guy. The 60-year-old hadn’t touched most of his public profiles since 2018, and his accounts were made private in the wake of his health struggles in 2022.
On Oct. 1, 2024, Mike shared the tragic news that Frank had passed away the previous evening. Naturally, fans of the show and of Frank himself wondered about who he was leaving behind.
In 2021, rumors surfaced that Frank finally had himself a wife after years of bachelorhood. But is there any truth to these reports?
Did 'American Pickers' star Frank Fritz have a wife?
It’s difficult to track down anything about Frank’s relationship status given his lack of activity on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. However, fans began to think that Frank's long-term relationship was headed for marriage. In 2021, Frank was dating a woman named Diann, whom he occasionally posted photos of on his now-private Facebook page.
In December 2016, Frank shared a picture of Diann, her daughter Paige, and Paige’s daughter Eulalia, eliciting shocked responses from his followers when he referred to the infant as his "granddaughter."
The antiques dealer later clarified that he hadn’t gotten married, but noted, "Diann's family is my family. It is great being Grandpa Frank! I love my girls."
Sadly, in an interview with The Sun in July 2021, Frank gave an update about his relationship as he entered rehab. "The main problem was this girlfriend I had, I thought I was getting married and I bought a brand new house. Then I found out that all the time while I was on the road, she had a boyfriend back here."
He added, “It hurt my feelings, my self-esteem and my whole world. I gave it a good shot, I tried to drink her away. I never drank that much before."
In response, Diann told The Sun, "It's not true what he's saying. If he's trying to make me look like the bad person of course I'm going to say it's not true, because it's not." She elaborated, "I don't care to have drama or chaos in my life, I'm just trying to heal right now. It's been two years, I'm ready to move on." This implies that Diann and Frank officially broke up around 2019.
Frank was hospitalized with a stroke in July of 2022.
Since American Pickers first aired in 2010, Frank was forced to miss some of the show's 300+ episodes due to various medical issues. He reportedly underwent back surgery in 2019 and eventually left the show due to his health struggles in 2020. The reality star had also been open about his longtime battle with Crohn’s disease.
After leaving American Pickers, many fans speculated that Frank and Mike Wolfe's friendship was on the rocks. However, when TMZ broke the news that Frank had been hospitalized following a stroke in July 2022, Mike wrote a touching Instagram post to honor his friend and ask for thoughts and prayers.
Frank Fritz died on Sept. 30, 2024.
On Oct. 1, 2024, Mike took to Instagram to share the tragic news that Frank had passed away the night before. "It’s with a broken heart that I share with all of you that Frank passed away last night," he wrote. "I’ve known Frank for more than half my life and what you’ve seen on TV has always been what I have seen, a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny. The same off-camera as he was on, Frank had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself."
Our thoughts are with Frank's friends, fans, and loved ones during this tragic time.
