Home Improvement (TV series)

Home Improvement is an American sitcom television series starring Tim Allen originally airing on ABC from September 17, 1991, to May 25, 1999, with a total of 204 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series was created by Carmen Finestra, David McFadzean, and Matt Williams, and, despite not being a favorite with critics, it was one of the most watched sitcoms in the United States during the 1990s, winning many awards. The series also launched stand-up comedian Allen's acting career,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and grossed more than $500 million in syndication revenue by 1996.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Show background

Based on the stand-up comedy of Tim Allen, Home Improvement made its debut on ABC on September 17, 1991,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and was one of the highest-rated sitcoms for almost the entire decade. It went to No. 2 in the ratings during the 1993–1994 season, the same year Allen had the No. 1 book (Don't Stand Too Close to a Naked Man) and film (The Santa Clause).<ref>Template:Cite episode</ref>

Beginning in season 2, Home Improvement began each episode with a cold open, which features the show's logo during the teaser. From season 4 until the end of the series in 1999, an anthropomorphic version of the logo was used in different types of animation.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Episodes

Template:See also List of Home Improvement episodes

Plot details and storylines

Taylor family

The series centers on the Taylor family, which consists of Tim (Tim Allen), his wife Jill (Patricia Richardson) and their three sons: Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and Mark (Taran Noah Smith). The Taylors live in suburban Detroit, and they have a neighbor named Wilson (Earl Hindman).

Tool Time

Each episode includes Tim's own Binford-sponsored home improvement show, called Tool Time, a show-within-a-show. In hosting this show, Tim is joined by his friend and mild-mannered co-host Al Borland (Richard Karn), and a "Tool Time girl"—first Lisa (Pamela Anderson) and later Heidi (Debbe Dunning)—whose main duty is to introduce the pair at the beginning of the show with the line "Does everybody know what time it is?" In reply, the audience yells, "TOOL TIME!" The Tool Time girl also assists Tim and Al during the show by bringing them tools.

Tool Time was conceived as a parody of the PBS home-improvement show This Old House.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Tim and Al are caricatures of the two principal cast members of This Old House, host Bob Vila and master carpenter Norm Abram.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Al has a beard and always wears plaid flannel shirts when taping an episode, reflecting Norm Abram's appearance on This Old House.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Bob Vila appeared as a guest star on several episodes of Home Improvement, while Tim Allen and Pamela Anderson both appeared on Bob Vila's show Home Again.<ref>Template:Cite AV mediaTemplate:Cbignore</ref><ref>Template:Cite AV mediaTemplate:Cbignore</ref>

Characters

Main

Characters	Actor/Actress	Episodes	Seasons
Tim Taylor	Tim Allen	(204 episodes, 1991–1999)	starring seasons 1–8
Jill Taylor	Patricia Richardson	(204 episodes, 1991–1999)	starring seasons 1–8
Wilson Wilson Jr.	Earl Hindman	(202 episodes, 1991–1999)	starring seasons 1–8
Mark Taylor	Taran Noah Smith	(201 episodes, 1991–1999)	starring seasons 1–8
Randall William "Randy" Taylor	Jonathan Taylor Thomas	(177 episodes, 1991–1998)	starring seasons 1–8 (until episode 178, guest star thereafter)
Bradley Michael "Brad" Taylor	Zachery Ty Bryan	(202 episodes, 1991–1999)	starring seasons 1–8
Albert "Al" Borland	Richard Karn	(201 episodes, 1991–1999)	recurring season 1; starring seasons 2–8
Heidi Keppert	Debbe Dunning	(148 episodes, 1993–1999)	recurring seasons 3–6; starring seasons 7–8

Recurring

Characters	Actor/Actress	Episodes	Seasons
Marty Taylor	William O'Leary	(30 episodes, 1994–1999)	4–8
Harry Turner	Blake Clark	(24 episodes, 1994–1999)	4–8
Lisa	Pamela Anderson	(23 episodes, 1991–1993, 1997)	1–2 and 6
Benny Baroni	Jimmy Labriola	(16 episodes, 1994–1999)	3–8
Ilene Markham	Sherry Hursey	(16 episodes, 1993–1997)	3–6
Pete Bilker	Mickey Jones	(13 episodes, 1991–1999)	1–8
Dwayne Hoover	Gary McGurk	(11 episodes, 1991–1999)	1–8
Rock Flanagan	Casey Sander	(10 episodes, 1991–1999)	1–8
Trudy McHale	Megan Cavanagh	(5 episodes, 1998–1999)	7–8

Production

The series ended after eight seasons in 1999. Richardson was offered $25 million to do a ninth season; Allen was offered $50 million. The two declined the offer and the series came to an end as a result.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Michigan college and university apparel

Throughout the show, Tim Taylor would often wear sweatshirts or T-shirts from various Michigan-based colleges and universities. These were usually sent by the schools to the show for him to wear during an episode.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Because Allen considered Michigan his home state, the rule was that only Michigan schools would get the free advertising.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> There were two notable exceptions. During the episode "Workshop 'Til You Drop" Tim wears a Wofford College (South Carolina) sweatshirt.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> And in "The Wood, the Bad and the Hungry" he is seen wearing an Owens Community College (Ohio) sweatshirt.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

College or university	City (of main campus)	Episode	Season
Albion College	Albion	My Dinner with Wilson	4
Alpena Community College	Alpena	Engine and a Haircut, Two Fights<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Aquinas College	Grand Rapids	Crazy For You<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Baker College	Flint Township	No Place Like Home<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
Bay College	Escanaba	Her Cheatin' Mind<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Calvin College	Grand Rapids	Eve of Construction<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Central Michigan University	Mount Pleasant	Blow-Up<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Cleary University	Howell	You're Driving Me Crazy; You're Driving Me Nuts	2
Cornerstone University	Grand Rapids	Talk to Me<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
Davenport University	Grand Rapids	Room Without a View<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Eastern Michigan University	Ypsilanti	To Build or Not to Build<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2
		Let Them Eat Cake<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
		Believe It or Not<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	7
Ferris State University	Big Rapids	Be True to Your Tool<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Grand Valley State University	Allendale	What You See is What You Get<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Henry Ford Community College	Dearborn	A House Divided	4
Hillsdale College	Hillsdale	The Naked Truth<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
Hope College	Holland	Talk to Me	4
		Shopping Around<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Kalamazoo College	Kalamazoo	When Harry Kept Delores	5
Kellogg Community College	Battle Creek	Future Shock<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
		Jill and Her Sisters<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
Lake Michigan College	Benton Township	Eye on Tim	5
Lake Superior State University	Sault Sainte Marie	Brother, Can You Spare a Hot Rod<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
Lawrence Tech	Southfield	High School Confidential<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Madonna University	Livonia	Oh, Brother<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Marygrove College	Detroit	The Route of All Evil<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
Michigan State University	East Lansing	Frozen Moments<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
		It Was the Best of Tims, It Was the Worst of Tims<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Michigan Tech	Houghton	A Hardware Habit to Break<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	8
Mott Community College	Flint	Wilson's World<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
Northwood University	Midland	A Sew, Sew Evening<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Northern Michigan University	Marquette	Swing Time<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Northwestern Michigan College	Traverse City	Chicago Hope<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
Oakland University	Auburn Hills	Slip Slidin' Away<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Owens Community College	Toledo, Ohio	The Wood, the Bad and the Hungry<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
Saginaw Valley State University	University Center	The Eyes Don't Have It<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
University of Michigan	Ann Arbor	Borland Ambition	4
		Super Bowl Fever<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
		A Marked Man	4
		Advise and Repent<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	5
		The Vasectomy One	5
		Family Un-Ties<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
		An Older Woman<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	7
		Room at the Top<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	7
Walsh College	Troy	Dollars and Sense<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
Wayne State	Detroit	Olde Shoppe Teacher<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	4
		Burnin' Love<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
Western Michigan University	Kalamazoo	May the Best Man Win	2
		It Was the Best of Tims, It Was the Worst of Tims<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3
		That's My Momma	5
		Future Shock<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6
		A Night to Dismember<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	7
		Taylor Got Game<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	8
Wofford College	Spartanburg, South Carolina	Workshop 'Til You Drop<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	6

Syndication

In the United States, Home Improvement began airing in broadcast syndication in September 1995, distributed via Buena Vista Television (now Disney–ABC Domestic Television) and continued to be syndicated until 2007, in a manner similar to Seinfeld and The Simpsons after they began airing in broadcast syndication. Episodes of Home Improvement were not aired in order of their production code number or original airdate. On cable, the series started airing in 2002 on superstations TBS and WGN America. It later ran on Nick at Nite, and its sister network TV Land, and eventually the Hallmark Channel in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The show's creators brought a lawsuit against Disney in 2013 alleging that the latter sold the syndication rights for the show at "well below market value" including offering the syndication rights in New York for "no monetary compensation". The lawsuit was settled in 2019. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.<ref name="LATimes">Template:Cite web</ref>

Home media

Buena Vista Home Entertainment has released all eight seasons on DVD in Regions 1, 2, and 4. Season 8 has the "Backstage Pass" (which immediately followed "The Long and Winding Road, Part III")

On May 10, 2011, Walt Disney Studios released a complete series box set entitled Home Improvement: 20th Anniversary Complete Collection on DVD in Region 1. The 25-disc collection features all 204 episodes of the series as well as all special features contained on the previously released season sets; it is encased in special collectible packaging, a Home Improvement toolbox with a Binford "All-In-One Tool" tape measure.

The series became available on Netflix on February 1, 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

DVD Name	Ep#	Release dates
		Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
The Complete First Season	24	November 23, 2004	July 14, 2005	June 28, 2005
The Complete Second Season	25	June 7, 2005	October 13, 2005	July 20, 2005
The Complete Third Season	25	November 22, 2005	January 12, 2006	January 16, 2006
The Complete Fourth Season	26	June 6, 2006	December 6, 2007	December 5, 2007
The Complete Fifth Season	26	November 14, 2006	March 6, 2008	April 2, 2008
The Complete Sixth Season	25	May 15, 2007	November 13, 2008	December 3, 2008
The Complete Seventh Season	25	August 7, 2007	April 2, 2009	March 18, 2009
The Complete Eighth Season	28	June 10, 2008	August 13, 2009	December 2, 2009
20th Anniversary Complete Collection	204	May 10, 2011	N/A	N/A

Post-series events

Template:Prose Tim Allen, Richard Karn, Casey Sander and Debbe Dunning had a reunion in a television special named Tim Allen Presents: A User's Guide to Home Improvement in 2003 (a terminally ill Earl Hindman did voice-overs, befitting his never-seen persona of Wilson; Hindman died shortly after the special aired).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Allen presented his own favorite clips from the show, insider's tips, personal reflections and a question and answer session with the live audience.

On August 3, 2011, in Pacific Palisades, California, the surviving main cast members reunited for Entertainment Weekly magazine, including Jonathan Taylor Thomas, whom the cast had not seen since 1998.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Karn guest starred in two episodes of Tim Allen's 2010s ABC/Fox sitcom Last Man Standing in 2013.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Thomas has also appeared on Last Man Standing,<ref>Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Tim Allen Reunite on Last Man Standing Retrieved March 20, 2013</ref> and has directed episodes of the series.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2015, Patricia Richardson guest starred on Last Man Standing in the episode "Helen Potts", playing the episode's titular character.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Thomas made a cameo in the episode, playing Richardson's son.

On May 5, 2015, Hollywood Life reported that Allen and Karn had admitted talking about getting back together as a cast for a Home Improvement reboot or reunion show. Karn was quoted as saying, "There is always a chance, absolutely. Would I be on board? Yeah, I think so! I would love to see what the story lines could be, it could be very funny!"<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

On February 18, 2020, CinemaBlend reported that Allen wants to bring back Home Improvement for a revival:

I like the idea of doing it as a one-off, like a one-hour movie [versus a full-fledged revival series]. I like the idea of finding out where the boys are now, and where... Tool Time would be in today's world. I just think it's a marvelous idea, and all the actors think it's a great idea.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In January 2021, Allen reprised his role of Tim Taylor in an episode of Last Man Standing titled "Dual Time".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Premiering in February 2021, Tim Allen and Richard Karn, teamed up with YouTuber DIYer April Wilkerson, on History Channel unscripted competition show Assembly Required; where home handymen/makers/DIYers/inventors, compete to build souped up home tools a la Tool Time from Home Improvement, with supplied parts and pieces, and some of their own junk at home.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Premiering in June 2022, Allen and Karn again teamed up with Wilkerson on another History Channel documentary series More Power; where the hosts cover the history of tools, again a la Tool Time from Home Improvement.<ref name=Collider-20220606>Template:Cite news</ref>

In a 2024 podcast interview, Richardson debunked Allen's claims of a reunion and denied interest in one. She cited Earl Hindman's death, Zachery Ty Bryan's legal issues, and the retirement of both Taran Noah Smith and Jonathan Taylor Thomas from acting as further reasons.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

External links

• Official homepage
• Template:IMDb title
• Template:Epguides
• The Home Improvement Archive
• UltimateDisney.com – Seasons 1–8 DVD Reviews
• Home Improvement Seasons 1–8 on DVD