Photo Credit: Getty Images
Rick Harrison, star of Pawn Stars, has spoken candidly about the pain of losing his son, Adam Harrison, who passed away on January 19, 2024, at the age of 39 due to a fentanyl overdose. In a recent interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger, Harrison reflected on his grief and the struggle of coping with such a profound loss.
"I think about him every day," he admitted. "In his 20s, he had drug problems. God, I put him in rehab so many times. And every time he'd be doing great, and then it would just fall back." Despite his efforts to help Adam, the situation took a tragic turn. "Apparently, it wasn't heroin. He ended up getting some fentanyl, and it killed him."
Harrison, who shares Adam and Corey "Big Hoss" Harrison, 41, with ex-wife Kim Harrison, and Jake Harrison, 21, with ex-wife Tracy Harrison, expressed how the loss has led him to constantly question himself. "The thing is, when you lose a kid, you second guess f–king everything," he said. "It's like, 'Could I have done this? Could I have done that?' It goes through your brain constantly. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about him."
He recalled how, in desperation, he once had Adam arrested, hoping it would help him recover. "I figured maybe if we put him in jail for two months, it will clean him out. But he just went straight back on it," he shared. "You try to give them tough love, but God, you just never see the OD coming. You want to give them tough love and everything, but I never thought that would happen."
Despite the heartbreak, Harrison has found strength in his surviving children and grandchildren. "I think about the good times, and I think about my other kids, my new grandbaby, my other grandkids. I got four grandkids. So, keep on moving on," he said. "Appreciate what you got, 'cause you're not always going to have it."
As he continues to navigate life after Adam's passing, Harrison embraces a philosophy of cherishing the present. "I spend as much time with my kids as I can. I talk to all my kids on the phone almost every day. I love my kids, love my grandkids," he emphasized. "Enjoy life. Just enjoy life with your family, with your friends. It's not that hard to be happy."
