'American Pickers' star Frank Fritz's father contests son's will
Nearly five months after the death of "American Pickers" star Frank Fritz, his biological father is contesting his will.
William Fritz, who lives in Texas, filed a petition earlier this month to set aside son Frank Fritz's last testament and have a jury determine what should be done with his son's estate.
The probate case, including the will, has been sealed by an Iowa judge, meaning details of Fritz's assets haven't been made public. But some estimates value his estate at nearly $6 million.
Defendants in the case, some of Fritz's closest companions and caretakers, have retained lawyers "to protect his last wishes," a close friend to Frank told the Des Moines Register.
At issue is, first, whether Fritz was in sufficient command of his faculties to understand and sign a will after he had a stroke — one which was debilitating enough that he was placed into guardianship by the court.
And, second, who was closest to Fritz and would have understood his final desires best: his father or his best friends?
Was Frank Fritz competent to write a last will?
Fritz — known for his dark beard, quick smile and deep passion for vintage motorcycles — rocketed to fame with his friend Mike Wolfe, when their antique-hunting show "American Pickers" premiered on the History Channel in 2010.
Their folksy chemistry created reality show gold, securing celebrity status for the two friends and making "Pickers" both a ratings and rerun juggernaut.
Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, a nagging back injury forced Fritz to leave the show. His exit marked the beginning of a series of medical issues that would eventually lead to his death at age 60 in September.
In July 2022, Fritz was found unresponsive on the floor of his Davenport, Iowa, home and later determined to have had a stroke. While Fritz recuperated, a guardian was "necessary to avoid immediate harm," a petition for emergency guardianship filed in August 2022 argued.
"Because of his stroke, Mr. Fritz's decision-making capacity is so impaired that he is unable to care for his own safety, or to provide for necessities such as food, shelter, clothing or medical care," the petition stated.
A judge granted the guardianship, citing a letter from Fritz’s doctor "indicating he is unable to make decisions for himself."
Many documents in the guardianship case, including the doctor's letter, are sealed. However, a public care plan filed a few weeks later indicated that Fritz did not have a living will.
About two years later, Fritz was listed as having a will in his guardian's final report.
The judge's finding that Fritz "does not have the capacity to execute any legal documents on his own behalf" is key evidence that the will — which was executed in 2023, about eight months after guardianship went into place — should be set aside, or legally invalidated, William Fritz’s lawyer, Cory Gourley, told the Des Moines Register, part of the Paste BN Network.
Gourley also argues that the will is neither properly signed or witnessed.
Two of Fritz's friends deny those claims.
On Memorial Day weekend in 2023, Fritz was well enough to enjoy a visit from Wolfe ― the pair's first meetup in about three years, his former co-star says. And around the winter holidays, Fritz spent two evenings out with friends.
"He was definitely in his right mind" when he finished the will, one of his friends told the Register. "He was able to make his own decisions, and he made them up until probably the last weeks of his life. But at that point, there were no decisions to be made."
The fact that the will was already accepted by the courts is proof the document is valid, the friends said.
Were Bill and Frank Fritz estranged?
William Fritz, who goes by Bill, moved away when Frank was very young and had little contact with his son, the friend told the Register.
He reportedly only visited Fritz once when he was recuperating from his stroke, a recovery that would last more than two years before Frank's death in September.
Through his lawyer, Bill said he had a great relationship with his son. They went on vacation together and Frank visited Bill in Texas.
But when the guardianship was put into place, the defendants "cut off all access to Frank," Gourley said.
The defendants dispute that they impeded any relationship between Frank and Bill.
Outside of his mother, who died in 2013, Fritz didn't have consistent or strong relationships with anyone connected to his biological family, the friend said. Court documents filed in his guardianship case echo that he had "no living relatives he maintains contact with."
Instead, Fritz's life was allegedly populated instead by many deep friendships, including acquaintances who took on the roles of caretakers after his stroke.
They were "in disbelief" when they heard about the lawsuit, the friend said, revealing they were planning and looking forward to a spring celebration of life.
Now, they're preparing to go to court.
"Let us have his celebration of life. Let us do what he wanted, his wishes. Let the poor man rest," the friend told the Register.
"Here we are looking forward to honoring his memory and all of that can't happen now until this is over with."