Home Improvement was a show with literally universal appeal. It ran for eight years from
1991-1999 and was nominated for 34 Emmys, nine Golden Globes, and four People’s Choice awards.
The simple premise of a man trying to do his best to run a home and business
made it relatable. The wacky antics made it entertaining enough for fans to keep coming back.
They also distracted fans from the secrets going on behind the scenes.
Mistakes and interesting details slipped right past their noses.
Keep watching to learn why this scene wasn’t edited, look again
at the Home Improvement blooper. The Idea Came from This Old House
The idea for Home Imprveoment came from the actual PBS home improvement show
This Old House. It followed Bob Vila and his friend Norm Abrams renovated houses. It also
inspired other popular design shows such as Property Brothers and Fix This House.
Bob had no hard feelings about the inspiration. He appeared several times on the show as
Tim’s arch-nemesis. The Working Title
Home Improvement was originally going to be called Hammer Time. It was in honor of MC
Hammer’s one-hit-wonder Can’t Touch This. That working title was funny but didn’t last
long. It was changed to avoid confusion. Stars and Guest-Stars
Frances Fisher was the first choice to play Jill over Patricia Richardson. She even appeared in
the pilot but got low test scores with screening audiences and was replaced.
Ashley Judd almost became the Tool Time girl. Show creator Matt Williams thought
she was too talented for a minor role and wanted to give her a more substantial one.
She was replaced by Pamela Anderson. Zachary Ty Bryan played the oldest
brother Brad and Jonathan Taylor Thomas played the middle child Randy. Jonathan was a month older,
but their height difference made it work. Richard Karn got on the show thanks to a
happy accident. He was fined for making a rolling stop through an intersection and sent to traffic
school. His agent told him about the gig while he was there and talked his way into an audition,
even though he was technically already cast. Being a guest star on Home Improvement was
a way to improve your career, and there was one guest they were dead-set on getting. They
wanted Hilary Clinton, believing it would make their show and her political career.
Cars and Clothes Tim’s clothes not
only became a focal point of the show but were authentic to the state of Michigan. He often wore
a Detroit Lions jersey or jackets supporting other local teams such as the Red Wings. That
changed in one episode where he wore a sweatshirt from Wolford College, which is in South Carolina.
His cars were another point of interest since he always seemed to have a new one each season. Tim
owned at least one of them himself. Seeing Wilson’s Face
Wilson tops the list as one of the most beloved characters that’s never fully seen on a show.
The character was inspired by Tim’s past. He remembered talking to a man across the
fences who always only showed half his face There was one blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment
at the end of the episode The Karate Kid where you could see him in full. It’s
also special because it features a cameo from The Beach Boys as Wilson’s cousins.
Watch the episode in slow motion and pay attention when Jill asks to sing with
them. You’ll see Wilson’s face accidentally revealed when one of the Boys leans forward.
Other than that blooper, the gag went on the entire series. It wasn’t until
the final episode that he came out and showed his face to the world on purpose.
Klaus Was Real There was another
character that wasn’t seen on the show. Tim would often call for a man named Klaus while
filming Tool Time segments. He never showed up, so many fans may have assumed he wasn’t real.
The truth was that he couldn’t have been more real. That was the actual first name of the show’s
sound engineer, Klaus Landsberg. He joined up with Tim again on his later sitcom, Last Man Standing.
Turning Down Even More Money Patricia Richardson decided not
to return for the ninth season despite an offer of $25 million. According to E! News,
she didn’t want to take the gig for money alone. Tim turned down an offer to star in a TV version
of Dead Poets Society or Turner and Hooch. He declined both because he thought they would fail.
He also refused to continue with Home Improvement despite an offer of $50 million because he thought
it would fail without Patricia. He was also ready to move on to bigger and better things.
Like and subscribe for more on this classic show. Keep watching to learn
why this scene wasn’t edited, look again at the Home Improvement blooper.
Goofs and Bloopers Area Codes
Tim’s mistakes on Tool Time were a frequent source of comedy. Al used cue cards to help correct them,
but there was one that slipped through. There was one episode where he put up a cue card
with the address and phone number of the show. The problem is that the number is 815-555-TOOL. That
area code is for Illinois, not Michigan. Accidental Reveals
In the pilot episode, Tim blows up the dishwasher. If you pause the scene right
before the explosion, you can see the cutout where the wall’s rigged to blow.
There’s another special effects reveal in that same episode. Look closer when Tim
gives Brad a motorized wheelchair and runs it through the fence. You can see a loose
board fall right before he crashes through it. The episode Karate Kid has an accidental reveal.
It happens after Randy’s getting bullied and Mark puts the bully in a storage closet. You
can see the mall backdrop Shake as they run away. The episode Growing Pains also has an accidental
set reveal. Tim goes outside to set up a pulley system for Randy’s school play. Wilson walks
over the fence, but you can see the top of the house set in the upper left corner of the screen.
Reaction Mistakes Home Improvement is
one of Hollywood’s many examples of a stunt almost going wrong. It’s also an example of a
time you can see the actor’s fear on their face. That happened during the episode Bye Bye Birdie.
The skid steer loader Tim’s riding on is tilted back. It went so far back that he believed he
was in danger, and you can see it on his face. Tim also had a strange reaction to a stunt in the
episode Let’s Do Lunch. It happens when Al does a blindfolded wood smell challenge. Tim pranks
him by putting his sock on one of the beams. Al gets grossed out and tosses the beam on
the ground. You can see that it hits Tim’s left foot, but he acts like his right foot is in pain.
Crew Caught On Camera At the beginning of Growing Pains,
you can see a head moving behind Karen and Jill while they watch a recording of Tool Time. If
you look, you can see a crewmember’s arm in the bottom left while Tim’s talking to Jill.
The episode Arrivederci Binfor has perhaps the most obvious crew reveal. After John Binford dies,
Tim has a 21-nail-gun salute on Tool Time for him who goes wrong. You can
see a crew member with a rifle shooting the set to create the bullet holes from the gun.
Darker Secrets Tim’s Checkered Past
Tim was arrested in 1978 at a Michigan airport for possessing over 650 grams of
cocaine. He was a well-known dealer at the time and got caught in a sting operation.
He became an informant for other dealers but spent two years and four months in prison.
Tim says that time haunted him, but it didn’t fully scare him straight. He got a DUI during
Home Improvement’s run in May 1997. He got helpencouragedrages others to go to Alcoholics
Anonymous because it’s free and easy to find. Tim vs. JT
JT told people that he’d been acting since he was eight and wanted to stop for a bit. He said,
"I wanted to go to school, to travel and have a bit of a break."
Most of the cast supported his decision. Patricia felt it was great that he wanted
to go back to school and get an education. Tim got angry when JT changed his goals. He
started making films instead of going to school. The two actors had such a major
falling out that they didn’t even appear in the final episode of the series together.
Child Star Troubles Zachary and Tyran are glad
they escaped many of the troubles that other child stars experience. In their own words;
“People ask if you had kids would you let them do the same thing? I
would have to say probably no because I think we got really lucky that -- well,
first of all, we are still here and didn't have to deal with too much --crazy drug
problems or anything like that. For a lot of the kids we grew up around, had problems.”
Zachery did get into plenty of other kinds of trouble. He was arrested on October 16,
2020, after allegedly assaulting his girlfriend. He attempted to choke her and
took the phone away when she tried to call 911. He was arrested on charges of strangulation,
assault, and interfering with a police report. He was released on $8,500 bail
and required to stay away from his girlfriend. Taran Noah Smith played Mark, the youngest son
on Home Improvement. He ran away from home at 17 and battled his parents in court until he
gained control of his $1.5 million trust fund. He then married 33-year-old Heidi Van Pelt,
but she was after his trust fund. They divorced in 2007. His home went under foreclosure and he was
arrested for a DUI and drug possession in 2012. Taran fortunately reconciled with his mother in
2016. They wrote a book to help other families in the entertainment business. He’s now an artist who
assists in disaster relief. Reboot Plans
Fans like to look for any hint of a reboot of their favorite shows. Home
Improvement devotees have gotten plenty. The cast appeared in a photo shoot for
Entertainment Weekly in 2011, except for Pamela Anderson and the late Earl Hindman. Tim and
JT also showed they’d buried the hatchet when he appeared on an episode of his sitcom Last Man
Standing in 2016. That show was canceled in 2017. Tim and Richard plan to start a building-themed
reality show for the History Channel called Assembly Required. He said there was no one better
to join him on a show about the joy of building than his “buddy from the old Tool Time days.”
There is one cast member who’s not on board. Patricia Richardson even went so far as to say
“Tim lying to people and telling them that I was on board and I didn’t know anything
about it.” He apparently never asked her or JT if they’d be interested in the idea.
It would also be difficult to get some of the stars, even if they were interested.
Having the show with only two kids and no Wilson wouldn’t be the same.
Who’s your favorite male sitcom lead? Let us know in the comments below.