'Pawn Stars' 'Old Man' Richard Harrison Dead At 77

David Moye

Richard Harrison, who starred on the popular History Channel reality show“Pawn Stars,”died Monday morning after a long bout with Parkinson’s.

He was 77.

A rep for the Harrison family confirmed the death to USA Today and released this statement:

We are deeply saddened by the loss of our friend Richard “The Old Man” Harrison, a beloved member of the HISTORY and “Pawn Stars” family. He will be greatly missed for his wisdom and candor. Our thoughts are with the Harrison family during this difficult time.

Known as the “Old Man” on the show, Harrison’s kind yet curmudgeonly demeanor put him at comical odds with his son, Rick, his grandson, Corey, and co-worker Austin “Chumlee” Russell.

“Today I lost a friend, a father, a teacher and so much more,” Rick Harrison wrote in an Instagram post Monday.

A post shared by Rick Harrison (@rick_harrison)on Jun 25, 2018 at 7:58am PDT

Born in North Carolina, Richard Harrison served 20 years in the U.S. Navy, where he attained the rank of first-class petty officer before being discharged in the mid-1970s, according toFox News.

After getting out of the military, Richard Harrison attempted to make money in real estate during the 1980s, only to lose 1 million dollars in the process.

Instead, he uprooted his family and moved to Las Vegas, where he opened theGold & Silver Pawn Shopin 1988, according to theHistory Channel website.

A post shared by Rick Harrison (@rick_harrison)on Jun 25, 2018 at 6:57am PDT

The shop was successful, but became world-famous after “Pawn Stars” premiered in 2009. The show featured the “Old Man” and other employees negotiating over the unusual and rare items brought by customers to the store.

Though Richard Harrison dealt with Parkinson’s at the end of his life, retirement was never an option, he told car outlet Hagerty in 2012.

“Retirement is overrated,” he said. “I have friends who retired, and a lot of them have admitted that they’re not happy with it. People have asked me many times, ‘Well Richard, when are you going to retire?’ I tell them the day that I walk through that door and it’s not fun, I’ll quit. It’s still fun for me.”

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.