As we mentioned during the DStv Upfronts on Monday, South Africa's getting a local version of the reality show Pawn Stars - the History channel show that follows a real life pawn shop owner and their pawny clientele.
The success of the series is directly dependent on how entertaining the pawn shop owner is so I've been curious about the dude they've chosen to do it.
His name's Roy Peretz and he owns a pawn shop in Jozi, in Hyde Park. It's called Cash Inn and he's owned it for about 20 years. I've never heard of him in my life and imagine you haven't too - unless you're a pawny type.
I see he's been on radio offering his expertise on valuations etc. so it seems he knows his stuff. He owns the shop with two partners. This is him:
And the pawn brawn who work with him:
Here's more about him and the set-up from the show's official description:
With eccentric Johannesburg pawn shop owner Roy Peretz, his partners Eytan and Liel and assistants Irene and Solly, the quirky, the unexpected and the downright hilarious is an entertaining given, as South Africans from all walks of life flock to pawn or sell anything from a German nineteenth-century pencil sharpener to a YAK-52 Soviet-era aeroplane.
South Africa’s rich and diverse culture provides a treasure-trove of fascinating artefacts from past to present, from muscle cars to military, which flood through the pawn shop doors daily. Roy and his off-the-wall team haggle with customers for the best price, aided along the way by experts in antiquities and pop culture, and sometimes hilariously hamstrung by the interpersonal machinations of the pawn shop team.
Whether it’s an ancient Khoi-San hunting kit, a Boer War coin or a Pontiac Firebird muscle car, everything has a story, and a price. The back-room shenanigans of the pawn shop team combines with the historical and the hysterical inside the shop, to create a gripping and highly entertaining journey through a nation’s hidden gems. There’s only one guarantee on Pawn Stars South Africa – expect the unexpected!
Quite interesting I thought. A real slap in the face for Cash Converters which pleases me a lot.
The sorts of things people take in to flog are cool ... if Roy's a good pawn star, the show should be fun.
The premiere date hasn't been scheduled for it yet - it'll start on History later this year though. Will keep you in the loop.