The Big Moment Paul Junior got Fired on American Chopper!

A major part of the appeal of American Chopper was watching the family dynamic – and the huge fights that happened because of it – between Paul Sr. and Paul Jr. For years, the tension would build, the two would argue, then things would be better for a while. The longer this went on, despite the success enjoyed by the show and their Orange County Choppers shop, the time between blow ups would shrink, getting to the point that it seemed like they spent more time fighting than they did working.

Eventually, as is often the case in family businesses, there came a point when the arguing and tension led to the need for change, and the clip below shows that very moment. Paul Sr. calls Paulie into his office to discuss Jr’s tardiness, and the things quickly devolved from a heated discussion to an outright screaming match.

The elder Teutul berated Jr for coming in late, taking extended lunch breaks, and even sleeping while on the clock. Junior returned fire, pointing out that bikes were being completed, the employees are getting their jobs done and the company is doing well regardless of how long he takes for lunch.

Senior, fed up with Paulie’s lackadaisical attitude, sends his son home for good both Teutul’s angrily toss random items in their anger. Paulie starts the mayhem by slinging an office chair and storming out, taking out a garbage can and a small container on his way out the door. Back in his office, Senior knocks over the office mini-fridge with an angry kick as both men continue to swear under their breath. The rift would never heal, and the two have yet to work under the same roof to this day. Senior continued to run OCC while the younger Paul would start Paul Jr. Designs, a shop of his own in nearby Montgomery, NY.

While many viewers believed this scene, and many of the fights between the father and son, to be faked or scripted, court records and testimony from show producers and shop employees show that the fights were very much real.