Frank Fritz‘s cause of death has been revealed after he died at age 60 last month.
The former American Pickers co-host died of “late sequela of cerebral infarction,” a stroke resulting from cerebral vascular disease, with aortic stenosis and COPD also contributing to his death, according to a death certificate obtained by TMZ.
Cerebral vascular disease effects blood vessels in the brain and cerebral circulation, while aortic stenosis restricts blood flow from the heart to the rest of the body.
Mike Wolfe, Fritz’s longtime American Pickers co-host, announced that he died Monday, Sept. 30. “It’s with a broken heart that I share with all of you that Frank passed away last night,” he shared on Instagram.
“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.”
Mike Wolfe and Frank Fritz in Season 2 of American Pickers (2010).
Wolfe added, “We’ve been on countless trips and shared so many miles and I feel blessed that I was there by his side when he took one last journey home. I love you buddy and will miss you so much I know [you’re] in a better place.”
Fritz and Wolfe began co-hosting the History Channel series in 2010, traveling across the country in search of rare Americana artifacts and national treasures to buy from collectors for resale or to add to their personal collections.
Fritz stepped away from the show in 2020, and he was hospitalized in 2022 after suffering a debilitating stroke.
