Bob Vila: Man of a Thousand Faces

I had a chance to speak with Bob Vila a couple of weeks ago. What an interesting man! He's got more interests than you can shake a stick at such as playing the violin, shooting pool and cruising for chicks in downtown Cambridge. He graciously agreed to tell me all about his life after This Old House in the following interview.

RC: Hi Bob, thanks for doing this little interview for crang.com...
BV: Hi, I'm Bob Vila and welcome home again! I never mind doing interviews, Rob, it's how I make my money.
RC: Oh, we never discussed a payment for this...
BV: Just kidding Rob. I've had so much heat over that Sears scandal since I left This Old House I try to joke about it a lot.
RC: Speaking of This Old House, it's been about 11 years since they fired you...
BV: Actually 12. And I wasn't fired - I left because I really couldn't agree with what direction PBS was taking the show. It started out as a home improvement show for average middle-class folks, and ended up in being sort of a showcase for "here's what you could do if you had money but since you don't you can always watch us pretend that everyone has this much money" show.
RC: You can say that again.
BV: I've also had a lot more freedom to promote Sears since I left PBS. You know, PBS really takes that no advertising thing a lot more seriously than you think.
RC: Or a lot more seriously than you thought. Have you ever seen Norm Abrams since you left the show?
BV: No. I never could stand him really. He always tried to copy me - the beard, the plaid shirts, the gut...
RC: Speaking of the gut, I notice that you are in excellent shape these days. And it's not hard to notice, I must add, with the tight-fitting body suit that you're wearing.
BV: Thanks for noticing Rob, it's been a tough few months but I've started doing ads for Craftsman excercise equipment and I thought I'd better look the part. And it doesn't hurt the chick action either.
RC: The chick action? I thought you were married?
BV: I'm also celebrating the 10th anniversary of my show Home Again on BVTV. It's hard to believe it's been 8 years since Riley cut off his finger.
RC: No kidding. What happened to Riley's finger anyway? Was it an accident on the set?
BV: Yes, but not the kind you probably think. Riley and I were shooting tequila at the end of a particularly hard day on the set and one thing led to another and I cut his finger off.
RC: One thing led to another?? What happened Bob?
BV: I asked him if I could try out his new circular saw and let's just leave it at that.
RC: Bob, what do you think of all these other home improvement shows that started up and rode the coattails of This Old House?
BV: Some of them are ok. Like Men In Toolbelts. Those guys are a riot! But that Hometime and Home Savvy! What a joke! That Dean Johnson... who does he think he is? Does he think we don't notice that his women cohosts are never the same? I say get rid of Home Savvy and bring back JoAnne Liebeler to Hometime. But Home Improvement I liked.
RC: Speaking of Home Improvement, weren't you a little upset that they were basically mocking you with their show?
BV: Jeez, I don't know. I never really thought of it that way...
RC: Bob, most people know of you because of your dedication to safety and to educating young children about the safe use of power tools. How did all this come about?
BV: Huh?
RC: Don't be shy Bob.
BV: Well I don't know about safety, but I do know that Time-Life Books have quite a number of good series on fixing your home.
RC: Do you have any other interests that our readers might be interested in hearing about?
BV: Really, if anybody wants to hear anything more in depth, I think I should use this opportunity to mention my Fan Club. They have all the information about me and it's a real value at $22 a year.
RC: Is that US dollars?
BV: Yes it is! You folks in Canada can send a check for $28.
RC: $28 Canadian?
BV: Oh no. $28 American.
RC: But to us that's $42 Canadian? Why is it twice as much to be a fan in Canada? And why does it cost anything to be a fan anyways?
BV: A man's gotta eat Rob. Besides, you wouldn't believe what you can find out about me if you belong to the fan club.
RC: What's in the future for Bob Vila?
BV: More of the same. I hope to bring PBS to its knees in the near future. I'm in talks with Steve Thomas (the new host of This Old House) to come and work for me. And I'm actually in the middle of the Canadian Billiards & Snooker 2000 National 8-Ball competition right now - that's why I'm in town.
RC: Wow! No wonder your web site says you're booked through 2000. You're a busy man.
BV: Yes. And I hope to be even busier in 2001. The busier I am, the less time I have to spend at home, the more time I have for cruising for chicks. And since I've gotten back into shape, I've set my goals on the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
RC: Wow again! What competition are you planning on entering?
BV: Oh I'm not entering! I'm 58 years old! I just want to go to Athens to see the Olympics.
RC: Thanks for the interview Bob. Good luck in the future!
BV: Anytime Rob. And I hope your web site starts making you some money soon. It must be awfully hard on you spending all those hours and getting nothing out of it.

So that was it. If you'd like to visit Bob's web site, I'm sure you'll find something interesting to read about.

As always, send me your suggestions for future columns on crang.com. See you next week.

© October 21, 2000