When Mike Wolfe announced his vintage car had been crumpled (but his spirits had not been tampered) after a serious car wreck over the weekend, the first feeling I had as a frequent American Pickers viewer was relief. Vintage cars aren’t always the safest, and hearing he and his girlfriend Leticia Cline would be OK was good news. But it wasn’t exactly the whole story.
In fact, as more details have come to light in the days after the accident in Columbia, Tennessee, Ms. Cline actually seems to have suffered some very serious injuries. A post from her employer, Ace Coffee Shop, mentioned she was airlifted to the hospital after the accident, where she will remain for some time.
The good news? She is expected to make a full recovery. The bad news? TMZ reports she suffered a slew of injuries, including a lacerated lung and broken ribs, jaw and sternum. She’ll be facing a long road to recovery that includes surgeries coming up. Right now, she’s expected to remain at Vanderbilt Hospital until next week. The professionals are allegedly waiting for her swelling to go down before surgeries can be undertaken.
Meanwhile, Mr. Picker himself, Mike Wolfe, escaped the accident with only a broken noise, a knee injury and a few lacerations. From the post, he's been a regular visitor at his partner's side.
The major injuries will put Ms. Cline out of work for a while, and her coffee shop expressed how much they will be missing her in action, also asking for patience from the community while they are down a major employee during this time. Wolfe then commented on the post, writing, "Best Dam quiche I’ve ever had ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️."
The news comes around a year after longtime host Frank Fritz's death, and as American Pickers is taking a bit of a break a first in decades. Mike Wolfe had been pursuing other opportunities, including events, but also a movie gig with Cline, when the accident occurred.
Wolfe and Cline were first linked romantically in 2021, following the American Pickers star's divorce. Leticia Cline also has a reality background, having appeared in the competition series Beauty and the Geek.
