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1. “The purpose of our series is to show you the many steps involved in taking an old house that’s fallen on really hard times and saving it, turning it back into a home the family can be proud of.”
From the creation of Bob ’s very first episode ofThis Old Housein 1979 , this program line sums up so much of what he — and by extension , we here at BobVila.com — are all about . From the get-go , Bob has enjoyed not only salvaging what others might fling , but also divvy up accomplishment , intoxicate liquor , and inviting us along on the journeying . In 2022 , Bob andThis Old Housewere awarded theLifetime Achievement Awardat the 49th one-year Daytime Emmy Awards .
2. “The wardrobe was kind of weird, the hair was kind of long, but it was real life.”
Today , Bob is roll in the hay for his tight trim down byssus , but when he was the boniface ofThis Old House , Bob reckon every piece the 80s . For him , the coloured sweaters , corduroy gasp , and employment boots were his daily power train , but once he was on television , he did feel a little ego - conscious . “ I did n’t feel like I looked right , ” he enjoin in his audience forThis Old House : fortieth Anniversary Special . The audience disagree . In fact , Bob ’s fun persona became a boastful part of the reason the show was an initial success .
3. “My dad built the house that we grew up in.”
Bob ’s parent go far in Florida from Havana in 1943 , and Bob grow up in Miami . During his childhood , the family made frequent trips back and forth to Cuba , where he was disclose to early 20th - centuryarchitecture . His father built their theatre and deal the process with untested Bob as he worked . This custom of go by along skills is one Bob still keep today with both his own family and his extended mob of fans .
4. “I got the community together to help me.”
Bob was a Peace Corps volunteer in Panama after he graduated from college in the previous 1960s . “ Being a Latin American , I looked at the possibility of spending two years solve in a Romance American country as something really , really exciting , ” he tell CNN . He constructed his first house , a one - room building where he lived , with the help of his new neighbor . This was his earliest raid into working side - by - side with others to create a home , showing by model that DIY is a group effort . When he repay to the U.S. that fiddling family became a community center .
5. “I hate to say goodbye but it looks like we’ll be able to say hello again…”
At the end of the first time of year in 1979,This Old Housewon an Emmy Award , and next thing they knew , Bob , Norm , and the crowd work national . “ I do call up feeling somewhat embarrassed because , what am I doing on television ? ” Bob said onThis Old House : 40th Anniversary Special . Suddenly , the guys were getting recognized on the street and had unexpected careers as public figures . Thankfully , after completing his 10 years on the show , Bob did n’t say goodbye . He went on to appear on show includingBob Vila ’s Home Again , Bob Vila , Guide to Historic Homes of America , Restore Americafor HGTV , and as a correspondent forTodayandThe CBS Early Show . Today , the editors at BobVila.com have the pleasure of carrying on his work and help him say hello to a whole new generation ofDIYers .
6. “It’s always been important to me…to try to promote healthy lifestyles and good ideas, not just good design.”
In aninterview with the Television Academy , he talked about how important saving and preservation have always been for him . It ’s not just about rehabbing a household ; it ’s about recycle , reuse , and repurpose . From the kickoff of his career , Bob endorsed green practices . In the first years ofThis Old House , the work party implemented solar and other conservationist process . The longer he was in the industry , the more Bob endorsed environmentally friendly approach to construction , renovating , and daily household living .
7. “A job worth doing is a job worth doing right.”
This quote from Bob ’s first appearance on the television receiver seriesHome Improvement , irk Tim ‘ The Toolman ” Taylor , but gave the rest of us a neat direction to tote up up Bob ’s approach to home DIY . His focus on quality , on learning the right way to attain the best results for a project , is a authentication of his bequest . Bob seem on three episodes ofHome Improvementwith histrion Tim Allen , plus a few cameo sprinkled in here and there . Held up against Tim ’s constant nisus for “ more exponent ” and funny attempts to one - up the rest home advance caption , Bob seemed even more like the steady , irrefutable cat we all knew and loved .
8. “I like the idea of being remembered as the granddaddy of home improvement.”
In his interview with the Television Academy in 2010 , Bob was asked how he ’d like to be remembered . He was about to become a grandfather , so the idea of being our home improvement grandpa was on his mind . He shared his pride in a long career . “ The whole idea of having barrack a lot of people to bringnew life to old housesis something that I ’m gallant of . I ’m very glad that it ’s taken that turn . ” But he is most humiliate by the influence he ’s had on younger generations . “ I get stopped very often by a vernal man or young fair sex who will say ‘ You ’re the rationality I ’m a contractile organ , architect , internal designer , or a pipe fitter . ’ I had the opportunity to inspire a lot of citizenry to go into building professions , and that ’s very satisfying . ”
This Is the yr for a Kitchen Renovation
Whether you ’re selling or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . Learn why we view this renovation the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to stay on budget .
Photo: BobVila.com
Photo: BobVila.com
Photo: BobVila.com
Photo: BobVila.com
