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Revision as of 19:59, 30 December 2004 by Dmn (talk | contribs) (disambig ABC)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Home Improvement was a American television sitcom series that starred Tim Allen as Tim Taylor. The show started in 1991 and ran for eight seasons on ABC, with 204 episodes. It is currently in national syndication on cable television stations such as TBS Superstation.
Set in Detroit, Michigan, the series centers around the antics of the Taylor family, which, along with Tim, included his pedantic wife Jill (Patricia Richardson), and their three mischievous sons, the popular and athletic Brad (Zachary Ty Bryan), brainy and tree-hugging Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) and the youngest Mark (Taran Noah Smith).
In the first few seasons, Brad and Randy would torment their youngest brother and each other as well. As the series progressed and matured, Brad and Mark would eventually get along. Turning from a small, innocent boy, Mark also dresses mainly in dark goth clothing in later episodes.
The other important side of the show - and explanation of the series' name - comes from Tool Time, the fictional handyman show-within-a-show hosted by Taylor and his mild-mannered assistant Al Borland (played by Richard Karn) who prefers to wear flannel shirts, and whose catchphrase was "I don't think so, Tim." He also came up with many puns and giggles and snorts when a joke is made at Tim's expense. Taylor was always arrogant and prone to accidents and his "archenemy", so to speak, is the real-life home improvement specialist Bob Vila. His projects on Tool Time usually go awry - such as using an oversized and overpowered Binford gadget. The cautious, insecure, and brighter Borland always bore the brunt of Tim Taylor's jokes and constant put-downs. A running joke was Tim's references to Al's overweight mother, who is usually referred to but is never seen throughout the series - although in one episode, she dies and the characters are at her funeral. Al has a "twin" brother named Cal and they settle their disputes over a cup of tea.
Throughout the series, Jill studied to become a psychologist. In later seasons, Randy was written out of the script by mentioning that he was in Costa Rica. In one episode, Tim also received a Ph.D from his alma mater.
The show featured a few unique gimmicks. During scene changes clever "wipes" were used to comically remove the current image from the screen. For example, the current scene could shatter like glass, fall over like a piece of wood, or deflate like a balloon.
The other gimmick was the character of Wilson (Earl Hindman), the Taylor family's sage, advice-giving neighbor with many historical, philosophical, and literary works to quote. Tim often confusingly misquotes and re-words Wilson's advice when speaking to Jill or his sons. For reasons that were never explained, half of Wilson's face was never seen on the show, and was instead constantly - and sometimes humorously - blocked by various props, such as fences, masks, trees, and unusual costumes. In the series finale episode his less than perfectly photogenic face was fully exposed. When it came into question whether 'Wilson' was the character's first name or last, he explained that his full name was actually Wilson Wilson, Jr.; his father's name having been Wilson Wilson, Sr. During the show, Wilson is usually working on an unusual project of some sort in his backyard. His usual catchphrase is "Well! Heidi-ho neighbor" when greeting Tim.
The sitcom launched the career of former Playboy model Pamela Anderson, who would later star in the internationally-syndicated television show Baywatch. Anderson played the announcer and "showgirl" Lisa in the character Tim Taylor's Tool Time show. As Anderson gained stardom, she was replaced by another actress. On Tool Time, Lisa was replaced by Heidi (Debbe Dunning), who stayed on the show for the remainder of the series. Anderson made a guest appearance as Lisa in a later episode, and in the show, Heidi becomes jealous when Lisa gets more attention.
The series ended in a two-part series involving Tim being displeased at how Tool Time had been changed into something resembling The Jerry Springer Show, and Jill getting a new job. The problem was that the job was in Indiana and Tim didn't want to move at first.
Of course, after talking to his neighbor, he agreed to leave Detroit. Tim ended his Tool Time appearances with a final show that garnered huge ratings. However, Jill realized that they would be moving out of the house the family grew up in. So they put it on a ship and took it with them to Indiana.
Cast
- Tim Allen as Tim Taylor
- Patricia Richardson as Jill Taylor
- Zachery Ty Bryan as Brad Taylor
- Jonathan Taylor Thomas as Randy Taylor (1991-1998)
- Taran Noah Smith as Mark Taylor
- Richard Karn as Al Borland
- Earl Hindman as Wilson
- Debbe Dunning as Heidi Holden (1993-1999)