Has anyone ever hitch-hiked (or picked up a hitch-hiker) IRL?

Back in Alaska I did it a handful of times out of necessity if I broke down or got a flat tire. Once I picked up an elderly native man who was walking in the pouring rain at 5am in the summer when I was getting off my security guarding shift, but that's about it. I remember he pretty much just sat in silence the whole ride and I got the sense that he didn't speak English that great (probably just some native language).

My dad once gave a ride to a guy who was living in a bus (not the INTO THE WILD GUY, but a very similar story) out on the Steese Highway, and a few months later the guy died in his bus and was then largely eaten by his starving pet dogs.

I don't think I see hitchhikers anymore; maybe like once a year or so. In the rest of the United States, I get a sense that it just doesn't happen except in some rural communities or when someone breaks down in the wild. Seems like extreme environments like Alaska have more of a community spirit where everyone trusts each other a little more, which used to be the case more universally but it's gradually eroded over time due to several horror stories (and movies like this).

Anyone have any crazy stories about hitch-hiking or picking up weirdos?