# Pawn Stars - Something I notice every time that drives me insane **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 24, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864 "2011-08-24T04:02:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/1 "2011-08-24T04:02:15Z")
Here is what makes my serum sizzle when watching this show (and I’ll bet no one else has ever noticed it but me): The way Big Hoss shakes hands at the conclusion of the deal. He has this over-the-top (literally) I’m-so-manly-man arch of his arm that is annoying as fuck-all. Imagine someone with their arm in a full cast, bent at the elbow, reaching over a fence to grab a tomato out of his neighbor’s garden. Now, imagine it without the cast, without the fence, and without the tomato. I think he thinks this makes him look like a tough guy whose shit don’t steam. There, now that I’ve clued you in, you will now notice it every frakin’ time. mmm ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/2 "2011-08-24T04:03:20Z")
So? He has to reach over the counter and likely over whatever is being pawned. Big whoop. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/3 "2011-08-24T04:18:38Z")
Gut clearance. It’s probably embarrassing to go to shake hands and have your gigantic belly in the way. ---
**Author:** ![simple\_homer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@simple\_homer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simple_homer)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/4 "2011-08-24T04:19:53Z")
I’ve noticed it. He is not reaching over anything. He is just a big and intelligent guy with an ego to match. I guess you could call it a “power handshake”. ---
**Author:** ![deedeeknowit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@deedeeknowit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deedeeknowit)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/5 "2011-08-24T05:17:10Z")
I don’t see it as a big deal in the way he shakes hands. Big Hoss has gone through a bit of a physical transformation and lost a lot of weight in the past 6 months or so. He is eating better and working out daily, in addition to having lap band surgery. > **['Pawn Star' -- Half the Hoss He Used to Be](https://www.tmz.com/2011/07/07/pawn-stars-big-hoss-weight-loss-115-pounds-lap-band-surgery-history-channel/)** > > Corey "Big Hoss" Harrison from "Pawn Stars" dropped over 100 POUNDS in less than five months, TMZ has learned -- all thanks to hard work ... and a little help from his doctor. ---
**Author:** ![BlueOhio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/439d5e/32.png) [@BlueOhio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueOhio)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/6 "2011-08-24T10:51:32Z")
and eating SUBWAY ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/7 "2011-08-24T11:54:54Z")
Damn, he looks good. Maybe I’ll hit Subway for lunch. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/8 "2011-08-24T17:49:42Z")
Anyone have a video link of the handshake? ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/9 "2011-08-24T18:09:45Z")
1:50 [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ivJmjlhzXUg/maxresdefault.jpg "Pawn Stars: Wheels of Fortune | History") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivJmjlhzXUg) Most of the handshakes on the show are actually done by Rick, who has a less exaggerated technique. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Bosstrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstrain)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2011, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/10 "2011-08-24T18:24:59Z")
I’d much rather someone shake my hand like a man than like a wimpy bitch that’s for sure. There _is_ an art to hand shaking believe it or not, in fact, the pose you’re to hit when shaking someone’s hand starts at the feet and moves all the way up to the tilt of your head before traveling down your arm to the twist of your wrist and how your individual fingers are presented. I would even believe that nobody’s ever shakin’ someones hand properly, ever in history, there are waaaay too many factors and degrees, angles, pressure, and even timing to go into one single perfect shake. Even the masters struggle doing this. There is, however, something to say about someone who can manage to give a similar shake every time, and since Big Hoss has his shake down pat, _I_ cannot criticize. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve shakin’ another mans hand, and for an instant he turns into a girl. Stop with the girly handshakes, the turning away or looking down of the head. These are big mistakes commonly used, and by doing that you immediately tell the other person that you’re a bitch, and now your back has a ‘kick me’ sign on it left there, no doubt from the 4th or 5th grade. Once that signs put on, you’re a fry for the sharks, but this isn’t high-school anymore, now they take everything you have instead of just your pride. That ‘kick me’ sign turns into a metaphorical knife. ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/11 "2011-08-25T15:25:12Z")
> [@Bosstrain](#): > > I’d much rather someone shake my hand like a man than like a wimpy bitch (…) This is all well and good, but what does it have to do with Corey from Pawn Stars shaking hands with his arm pointing downward? ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/12 "2011-08-27T01:15:47Z")
Here’s what I notice…Corey does, of course, try to cut the best deal. But he uses sarcasm & put-downs. Rick, on the other hand, is pretty straightforward & doesn’t seem to almost put down the other person’s intelligence for even bringing the freaking thing in…with Rick, you might “take it up the butt”, but it doesn’t hurt as much. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/13 "2011-08-27T01:49:54Z")
> [@awldune](#): > > This is all well and good, but what does it have to do with Corey from Pawn Stars shaking hands with his arm pointing downward? Because he and **Bosstrain** probably went to the same Dale Carnegie-type assertiveness training so they could learn how to try to signal dominance through a simple handshake. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/14 "2011-08-27T02:14:13Z")
It always just looked like good, firm, handshake delivered by a guy who couldn’t hold his arms against his sides to me. Never bothered me. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/15 "2011-08-27T02:32:20Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > It always just looked like good, firm, handshake delivered by a guy who couldn’t hold his arms against his sides to me. Never bothered me. No, it has nothing to do with the firmness of the shake. It’s the awkward arm position that is odd. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2011, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/16 "2011-08-27T03:02:20Z")
Yeah, I notice it every time, too. I think it is a power thing with him. He has short man syndrome–but in his case, it is not stature, it is being the low man on the totem pole. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2011, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/17 "2011-08-28T12:01:09Z")
> [@Brynda](#): > > Yeah, I notice it every time, too. I think it is a power thing with him. He has short man syndrome–but in his case, it is not stature, it is being the low man on the totem pole. If you’re talking about the Old Man/Rick/Corey totem pole, yeah, I guess. But he’s hardly low man in the entire shop. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2011, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/18 "2011-08-28T12:20:17Z")
Of all the idiosyncrasies in the show, that one stands out? Not Chum Lee’s deer-in-the headlights look? Not the fact that customers routinely enter with wicked looking weaponry in a store that keeps a million dollars in cash out in the open? ---
**Author:** ![detlep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@detlep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detlep)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2011, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/19 "2011-08-28T20:16:45Z")
It’s just a tough-guy handshake. The way he raises his elbow and rolls his wrist places the wrist of the recipient at a physical disadvantage. The recipient is forced to place their palm facing somewhat upwards and their elbow somewhat downward. In the tough-guy world if someone resists the handshake and tries to roll their palm up to a vertical position, the offeror can further raise his elbow and painfully bind the recipient’s wrist. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2011, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864/20 "2011-08-28T21:43:44Z")
**Brynda** and **detlep** are on the right track. It’s dominant body language. It also keeps the other guy from confusing the gesture with a soul-man thumbs-upward shake. I don’t think it comes from Hoss’s rank in the family, though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pawn-stars-something-i-notice-every-time-that-drives-me-insane/593864.md?page=2)