Timothy "Tim The Tool Man" Taylor PhD is the main character on the American television sitcom
Home ImprovementHome Improvement is an American television sitcom. starring Tim Allen, which aired 1991 to 1999. The show was created by Matt Williams, Carmen Finestra and David MacFadzean. In the 1990s, it was one of the most watched sitcoms, winning many awards...
, portrayed by
Tim AllenTim Allen is an American comedian, actor, voice-over artist, and entertainer, known for his role in the sitcom Home Improvement. His role in Galaxy Quest continues to be among his most popular...
, from which his first name and
alma materAlma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother". It was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, and in Medieval Christianity for the Virgin Mary. In modern times it is ordinarily used to refer to the university or college a person attended...
(
Western Michigan UniversityWestern Michigan University is a public university established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo. When the school first opened, it was known as the Western State Normal School, but was renamed Western State Teachers College in 1927 and Western Michigan College of Education in 1941. On February 26, 1957...
) are derived. Tim Taylor is the husband of
Jill TaylorJillian "Jill" Taylor is a character in the TV sitcom Home Improvement played by Patricia Richardson. Jill is Tim Taylor's wife. Jill helps Tim raise their three sons . Jill Taylor has appeared on critics' lists of "top TV" or "most memorable" moms...
and father of Brad,
Randy and Mark, and lives in the suburbs of
DetroitDetroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Wayne County. Detroit is a major port city on the Detroit River, in the Midwest region of the United States. Located north of Windsor, Ontario, Detroit is the only major U.S. city that looks south to Canada. It was founded...
.
A
hot rodHot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another explanation is that the mufflers were...
enthusiast, Tim is knowledgeable on all things related to cars, and is fond of listing the different parts inside a particular car that catches his attention.
Timothy "Tim The Tool Man" Taylor PhD is the main character on the American television sitcom
Home ImprovementHome Improvement is an American television sitcom. starring Tim Allen, which aired 1991 to 1999. The show was created by Matt Williams, Carmen Finestra and David MacFadzean. In the 1990s, it was one of the most watched sitcoms, winning many awards...
, portrayed by
Tim AllenTim Allen is an American comedian, actor, voice-over artist, and entertainer, known for his role in the sitcom Home Improvement. His role in Galaxy Quest continues to be among his most popular...
, from which his first name and
alma materAlma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother". It was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, and in Medieval Christianity for the Virgin Mary. In modern times it is ordinarily used to refer to the university or college a person attended...
(
Western Michigan UniversityWestern Michigan University is a public university established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo. When the school first opened, it was known as the Western State Normal School, but was renamed Western State Teachers College in 1927 and Western Michigan College of Education in 1941. On February 26, 1957...
) are derived. Tim Taylor is the husband of
Jill TaylorJillian "Jill" Taylor is a character in the TV sitcom Home Improvement played by Patricia Richardson. Jill is Tim Taylor's wife. Jill helps Tim raise their three sons . Jill Taylor has appeared on critics' lists of "top TV" or "most memorable" moms...
and father of Brad,
Randy and Mark, and lives in the suburbs of
DetroitDetroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Wayne County. Detroit is a major port city on the Detroit River, in the Midwest region of the United States. Located north of Windsor, Ontario, Detroit is the only major U.S. city that looks south to Canada. It was founded...
.
Personality and interests
A
hot rodHot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another explanation is that the mufflers were...
enthusiast, Tim is knowledgeable on all things related to cars, and is fond of listing the different parts inside a particular car that catches his attention. Tim is also obsessed with building things. This is usually followed by his trademark grunting. He is also somewhat obsessed with modifying machines and household appliances for "more power" (a favorite catchphrase of his), because he likes doing things the "man's way". Most of the time, the rewired machines will backfire and cause some kind of accident. Nevertheless, he tries to pass these qualities to his sons. It has been shown on some occasions, most notably at the end of the episode 'Ye Olde Shoppe Teacher', that if Tim pays attention and follows instructions without trying to give things more power, he can be an effective craftsman. He is also a big fan of the
Detroit LionsThe Detroit Lions are an American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in downtown Detroit....
,
Detroit TigersThe Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in . The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant 10 times...
,
Detroit PistonsThe Detroit Pistons is a team in the National Basketball Association based in the Detroit metropolitan area. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills.-From Fort Wayne to Detroit:...
and
Detroit Red WingsThe Detroit Red Wings is a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL....
.
Tool Time
Tim is witty, and caring, but a hastily incompetent
know-it-allA know-it-all or know-all is either someone who has a large amount of knowledge or someone who professes to have a large amount of knowledge, but who actually knows very little at all....
tool man. He hosts his own television program,
Tool Time, in which he and his assistant Al Borland teach audiences about home improvement. Audiences think that Tim does this incompetent or outrageous stuff on purpose to tell the audience what
not to do. In actuality however, Tim just doesn't know as much as he thinks he does; Al often proves he is the more knowledgeable of the two. Before becoming the host of
Tool Time, Tim was a traveling parts salesman for Binford Tools. While Tim considers himself to be the star of the show and is a celebrity in Detroit, Al eventually becomes the more popular one with the viewers. Tim's rival is real-life home improvement specialist
Bob VilaRobert J. "Bob" Vila, born , is an American home improvement television show host known for This Old House , Bob Vila's Home Again , and Bob Vila .-Early life:...
, who made a few guest appearances on the show. A
running gagA running gag is a literary device which often takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
is when Tim accidentally causes destruction to anything he touches-from the world's smallest car to running over golf carts-with a
Marine CorpsThe United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for providing force projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to rapidly deliver combined-arms task forces. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
tank.
Relationship with Wilson
Living next door to the Taylors is Wilson, the man who helps Tim with his problems by quoting
philosophersPhilosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems concerning matters such as existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing these questions by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on reasoned...
and historical figures. Tim, who is apparently not as intelligent as his wife Jill, has trouble understanding what Wilson tells him but eventually manages to figure it out on his own. However, he tends to mix up the words when trying to repeat Wilson's quotes, always to humorous effect. Tim, or any of the other Taylors, have a crisis ending conversation with Wilson in nearly every episode, even when traveling considerable distances. In one episode, Wilson points out that "Tim Taylor" spells out "mortality" when rearranged, and that
"Jill Taylor" is "Jolly Trail" when rearranged.
Relationship with Al
Though ultimately good friends, there was a tense relationship between Tim and Al. Al was portrayed as a slightly geeky character, usually having more knowledge, skill, and audience popularity than Tim. His catchphrase, as an opposition to Tim's ill-advised ideas or jokes, was "I don't think so, Tim." He also came up with many
punsPuns may refer to:*Partido de Unión Nacional Saharaui, the Sahrawi political party* Pun, figure of speech...
and giggles and snorts when a joke is made at Tim's expense. The cautious, insecure, brighter Al always bore the brunt of Tim's jokes and constant put-downs. Al is frequently taunted by Tim because of his weight, beard, in Tim's eye bland personality, his overweight mother, poor sense of humor and his preference of
flannelFlannel is a soft woven fabric, of various fineness. It usually doesn't have a nap, and instead gains its softness through the loosely spun yarn it is woven from...
shirts (and often other flannel items such as an oversized pair of flannel briefs in the episode "The Karate Kid Returns"). Tim typically uses his television show to vent about numerous problems he is having in his personal life, and Al is usually very annoyed by this. A
running jokeA running gag is a literary device which often takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling....
for Tim was commenting on Al's overweight mother, who was often referred to but was never seen throughout the series (although in the penultimate episode of the series, "Dead Weight", she died, and the characters were shown paying their respects at her extra-wide coffin which showed her body but not her face. Also, prior to her death, her arm can be seen waving (with a leg of chicken in hand).
Family
Tim's family lives in a suburb in
DetroitDetroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Wayne County. Detroit is a major port city on the Detroit River, in the Midwest region of the United States. Located north of Windsor, Ontario, Detroit is the only major U.S. city that looks south to Canada. It was founded...
,
MichiganMichigan is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Ojibwe term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. His father, Michael Taylor, died when Tim was only 11 years old which had a profound impact on Tim's life, however Tim found somewhat of a father figure in John Binford, the CEO of Binford Tools but is again profoundly affected when he dies from a heart attack. His mother, Lucille Taylor is seen mostly in Christmas episodes and various others.
Tim has seven brothers, but no sisters. His brothers Jeff and Marty, who were seen in various episodes, and John and Rick, who were mentioned in the episode "Oh, Brother", Steve who is mentioned throughout the series, Brian, who is mentioned in the episode "The Naked Truth", and Danny, who is mentioned in the episode "He Ain't Heavy, He's Just Irresponsible". In order from oldest to youngest is Jeff, Brian, Tim, Steve, John, Rick, Danny and Marty. Tim has long had strained relationships with most of his brothers, due to his constant joking, put downs, and pranks. Out of all his brothers, Tim is the most successful.
Running gags
- Tim's love of cars and tools.
- The simian, manly "grunt" he makes when he says, hears or sees something manly.
- His comedic catchphrase "More power!". Usually when the audience says this line, Tim says afterwords, "You're darn right more power!".
- Other people mentioning Tim being in the emergency room after an accident.
- Tim's subconscious or consciousness to make destruction (i.e., blow up the dishwasher
A dishwasher is a mechanical device for cleaning dishes and eating utensils. Dishwashers can be found in restaurants and private homes.-How dishwashers work:...
or the water heater.)
- His long runs in the bathroom.
- His comedic personality.
- His mangling of Wilson's advice (one variation is an episode where Tim actually gives good advice and astonishes everyone)
- Tim getting frustrated over people commenting that they love Tool Time for Al. Sometimes saying, "Al is my assistant, he assists me".
- Whenever Tim goes in the basement
A basement is one or more floors of a building that are either completely or partially below the ground floor. Shallow foundation buildings do not have basements...
he hits his head on a pipe. A variation was when Tim hits his head while going down a U.S. aircraft carrier steps.
- When he tries to bench weight.
- Tim's attempts to upstage Bob Vila
Robert J. "Bob" Vila, born , is an American home improvement television show host known for This Old House , Bob Vila's Home Again , and Bob Vila .-Early life:...
.
- Tim's joking about Al's Mother.
- his accident prone nature