Austin Lee Russell (born September 8, 1982), better known by his stage name Chumlee, is an American businessman and reality television personality, best known for his appearances on the

History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...

television show ''

Pawn Stars ''Pawn Stars'' is an American reality television series shown on History and produced by Leftfield Pictures. The series is filmed in Las Vegas, Nevada, where it chronicles the daily activities at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, a 24 ...

'', which depicts day-to-day business at the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

where he works. Chumlee went to work at the pawn shop five years before filming the first season, having been a childhood friend of

Corey Harrison Richard Corey "Big Hoss" Harrison (born April 27, 1983) is an American businessman and reality television personality, known as a cast member of the History TV series ''Pawn Stars'', which documents his work at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn ...

whose father and grandfather founded the shop. Chumlee is often portrayed on the show as the

comic foil A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases fo ...

, but he often appraises items in his areas of expertise, including

pinball machines Pinball games are a family of games in which a ball is propelled into a specially designed table where it bounces off various obstacles, scoring points either en route or when it comes to rest. Historically the board was studded with nails call ...

, sneakers, and video games.Chumlee displays the ability to repair a gas-powered toy car in "Never Surrender" (Episode 3.25) and expert knowledge in discerning a fake pair of

Air Jordan V Air Jordan is an American brand of basketball shoes produced by American corporation Nike. The first Air Jordan shoe was produced for Hall of Fame former basketball player Michael Jordan during his time with the Chicago Bulls in late 1984 an ...

sneakers in the following episode "Honest Abe" (Episode 3.26). Corey refers to Chumlee's knowledge of pinball machines, as well.Fralic, Shelly (September 17, 2011
"How, in the name of Brad Pitt, did Chumlee become a rock star?"
''The Vancouver Sun''.Chareunsy, Don (September 8, 2012)
"Austin ‘Chumlee’ Russell to celebrate 30th birthday tonight at LAX"
. ''Las Vegas Sun''.Brunner, Rob
"The 'Pawn Stars' Guide to Las Vegas"
''

Men's Journal ''Men's Journal'' is an American monthly men's lifestyle magazine focused on outdoor recreation and comprising editorials on the outdoors, environmental issues, health and fitness, style and fashion, and gear. It was founded in 1992 by Jann Wenne ...

''. Retrieved December 1, 2013."Pawn Stars: When you negotiate with a Pawn Star, you lose..."
''

Maxim Maxim or Maksim may refer to: Entertainment * ''Maxim'' (magazine), an international men's magazine ** ''Maxim'' (Australia), the Australian edition ** ''Maxim'' (India), the Indian edition *Maxim Radio, ''Maxim'' magazine's radio channel on Sir ...

'' (Australia). April 2013. Retrieved December 1, 2013.

Early life

Russell was born on September 8, 1982, in

Henderson, Nevada Henderson is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, about southeast of downtown Las Vegas. It is the second largest city in Nevada, after Las Vegas, with an estimated population of 320,189 in 2019. The city is part of the Las Vegas Vall ...

. When he was about 12 years old, he was given the nickname "Chumlee" due to his large face and chin, which prompted the father of one of his friends to remark that he looked like Chumley, the

walrus The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large pinniped, flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in ...

from the animated TV series ''

Tennessee Tuxedo Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

''.Harrison, Rick; Keown, Tim (2011). ''License to Pawn: Deals, Steals, and My Life at the Gold & Silver''. Hyperion. 2011. New York. pp. 3, 151 and 204. As a child, he became good friends with

, whose father,

Rick Harrison Richard Kevin Harrison (born March 22, 1965) is an American businessman, reality television personality, and owner of the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop which is featured on the History series ''Pawn Stars''. Harrison and his father, Richard Benjamin H ...

, and grandfather, Richard Harrison, opened the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop in 1989.

Career

Chumlee began working for the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop at age 21. He worked there for five years before filming the first season of the reality television series ''

'' in July 2009. His duties include behind-the-counter work at the shop, such as testing items, loading items, and writing tickets for items purchased by customers.Profile for Austin "Chumlee" Russel
. Gold and Silver Pawn Shop, Retrieved August 25, 2010 In the series, he is depicted as the comic foil, often made the butt of the others' jokes for his perceived lack of intelligence and his incompetence,Examples include the Old Man's remarks in "Plane Crazy" that Chumlee probably can't spell the word "art" and can barely tie his own shoelaces. for which he has been referred to as a "village idiot".Long, Christopher (December 29, 2009)
"PAWN STARS (TV SERIES) - DVD review"
Movie Metropolis. Chumlee has responded by explaining that he is underestimated and points to his expertise in

, which he utilizes in the second-season episode "Pinball Wizards", much to Corey's surprise, as an example of an area in which he is knowledgeable. Chumlee emerged as the breakout cast member, and a fan favorite of the series.Bourdeau, Annette (March 12, 2012). Has a large fan base in many countries like India, China, Sri lanka. Once Samanvay Lamba remarked him as his favourite characte
"'Pawn Stars': 13 Things You Didn't Know About Chumlee, Rick And Corey"
''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

''. As a result of the show's success, he formed his own company selling novelty items of his own design and arranged his personal appearances. He sold half of his stake in the company in 2010 to Rick Harrison for $155,000, so that the shop could handle orders of his merchandise more efficiently. Chumlee's sales of merchandise have surpassed other stars of the show due to his popularity. Chumlee appeared as himself, alongside Rick and Corey Harrison, in the episode "iLost My Head in Vegas", on the American TV series ''

iCarly ''iCarly'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider, which originally aired on Nickelodeon from September 8, 2007, to November 23, 2012. The series tells the story of Carly Shay (Miranda Cosgrove), a teenager who creates and hosts ...

.'' In May 2017, Chumlee opened a candy shop, ''Chumlee's Candy on the Boulevard'', across the street from the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop in Las Vegas.

Personal life

Chumlee enjoys collecting shoes, owning more than 200 pairs. He also enjoys sports, the

Pokémon Trading Card Game The , abbreviated as ''PTCG'' or ''Pokémon TCG'', is a collectible card game developed by Creatures Inc. based on the ''Pokémon'' franchise. It was first published in October 1996 by Media Factory in Japan. In the US, it was first published ...

, video games, and skateboarding. He is a fan of both punk rock and

rap music Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

. He is a fan of the TV series ''

Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter and broadcast on the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s and ...

'', ''

Sons of Anarchy ''Sons of Anarchy'' is an American action crime drama television series created by Kurt Sutter for FX. Originally aired from September 3, 2008 to December 9, 2014, ''Sons of Anarchy'' follows the lives of a close-knit outlaw motorcycle club ope ...

,'' and ''

Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited hig ...

''. He enjoys driving his 1986

Buick Regal The Buick Regal is a line of mid-size cars marketed by Buick since 1973. For nearly its entire production, the Regal has served as the premium mid-size/intermediate offering of the Buick product range. Introduced as a submodel of the Buick Cent ...

, which he has customized with hydraulic lifts on the front and back. , he owned a collection of cars which included a

Rolls-Royce Phantom Rolls-Royce has used the Phantom name on full-sized luxury cars over the past century: *Rolls-Royce Phantom I, 1925–1931 *Rolls-Royce Phantom II, 1929–1936 *Rolls-Royce Phantom III, 1936–1939 *Rolls-Royce Phantom IV, 1950&ndash ...

Maserati GranTurismo The Maserati GranTurismo and GranCabrio are a series of a grand tourers produced by the Italian automobile manufacturer Maserati. They succeeded the 2-door V8 grand tourers offered by the company, the Maserati Coupé, and Spyder. GranTurismo I ( ...

Cadillac Escalade The Cadillac Escalade is a full-size luxury SUV engineered and manufactured by General Motors. It was Cadillac's first major entry into the SUV market. The Escalade was introduced for the 1999 model year in response to competition from the Merced ...

Range Rover Range may refer to: Geography * Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra) ** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands * Range, a term used to i ...

, and a 1964

Impala SS The Chevrolet Impala () is a full-size car built by Chevrolet for model years 1958 to 1985, 1994 to 1996, and 2000 to 2020. The Impala was Chevrolet's popular flagship passenger car and was among the better-selling American-made automobiles in ...

. By September 2013, Chumlee had altered his lifestyle habits and lost in a year by exercising at a gym six days a week and improving his diet, including drinking more juice, eating more vegetables and abstaining from

red meat In gastronomy, red meat is commonly red when raw and a dark color after it is cooked, in contrast to white meat, which is pale in color before and after cooking. In culinary terms, only flesh from mammals or fowl (not fish) is classified as ...

, a change that was inspired by his father's death at age 54 from

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of t ...

, two weeks before ''Pawn Stars'' debuted. Chumlee's diet has enabled him to be able to ride a hovercraft he had purchased earlier in the series, which had a maximum weight restriction of . He later regained the weight, weighing as much as in January 2019. He had gastric sleeve surgery, leading to him losing by October 2021.

Legal troubles

On March 9, 2016, Chumlee's home was raided during the course of an investigation into sexual assault allegations. During searches of his residence, police found

crystal meth Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug and less commonly as a second-line treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obesity. Methamphe ...

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

Xanax Alprazolam, sold under the brand name Xanax, among others, is a fast-acting, potent tranquilizer of medium duration in the triazolobenzodiazepine (TBZD) class, which are benzodiazepines (BZDs) fused with a triazole ring. It is most commonly ...

, and multiple firearms. Evidence of possible

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

use was also found. Chumlee was arrested but released on bond the following day, and scheduled for appear in court days later. On May 23, 2016, Chumlee was charged with 20 felony counts, including drug and weapons charges. David Chesnoff, Russell's lawyer, confirmed that Russell had pleaded guilty to a felony weapons charge (unlawful possession of a firearm) and a gross misdemeanor of attempted drug possession in a deal that calls for three years of probation and counseling.

References

External links

*
"About The Series"
History Channel Online. {{authority control 1982 births Living people Participants in American reality television series Place of birth missing (living people) Pawn Stars People from Henderson, Nevada