The shop is more souvenirs than pawn
And none of the Pawn Star guys were even there. How often are they at the shop anymore?
shareI think I read somewhere that filming is not even done there (other than exterior shots) because they built a larger replica set in the studio.
I always wondered why the shop looks much smaller in person than on tv. Now I know why.
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When I die, I want to be buried face down. That way whoever doesn't like me can kiss my ass.
It's already on record exactly how the show is made.
Yes, it's a real shop, and, yes, most of the time the public can wander in (although there is usually a queue). No, most of the time you won't see the people from the TV serving in there, though, if they are on the premesis, they sometimes come out (from the back) for a few photos etc. There is a little studio built in a stockroom round the back where the talking-head bits of the shop staff are done.
On days when filming occurs, the shop is closed. The people you see milling around on the TV are extras or a few people from outside who are let in specially to make up the numbers. They are told not to stare at the cameras etc. and to just mill around. They are keen on girls in Daisy Dukes or with cleavage etc. to provide eye candy.
The people from the public with the items do not just wander in. They either have come in during the normal days with an item of interest and their name has been taken along with descriptions and photos of the item. Or else they have emailed or sent photos/descriptions in of their item. Very occasionally, the PS team have hunted out an item themselves and approached an owner - this is mostly with the bigger stuff e.g. wacky custom cars or the like.
A shortlist of people with interesting stuff is drawn up and these people are invited back on filming days. Before the filming day, photos and descriptions of the item are circulated to the experts so they can do research. The member of the staff doing the particular item (i.e. Chum or Rick or whoever) also does a bit of pre-research (or this is done by a researcher more usually these days).
On filming day, everyone waits around for their turn to "come in with their item". This is not spontaneous, and is the second time most of those with items have been to the shop. The occasional, "I need the money urgently," are also BS; the person would have originally come into the shop *weeks* ago!
The experts are also waiting there for their appearance. The "Can you hang on while I give my buddy Fred a call" is BS - the expert is there already and has already seen photos/descriptions of the item and done research.
The bargaining is real and the item does change hands for the stated price, though quite a few items are resold on through third-party outlets rather than the shop itself. The sellers are not actors. Yes, the experts are clued up before they see the item, though they haven't (usually) actually handled it before or seen some of the finer detail/s on the piece or necessarily heard everything the owner has to say about the item.