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For nearly nine years, millions of fans tuned in every week to watch a new episode of the hit comedy show Home Improvement. The series starred Tim Allen as Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor, who hosts his own home improvement show, Tool Time.
He does this while also trying to be there for his wife, Jill, and their three sons, Brad (Zachery Ty Bryan), Randy (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), and Mark (Taran Noah Smith). The show ran for eight seasons and officially ended in 1999.
Credit: ABC
Fans were devastated when they learned the show would be ending, and now we know why.
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Patricia Richardson — who starred alongside Allen as his wife Jill Taylor — revealed that she and Allen both wanted the show to end, and she knew how to make it a reality.
Richardson, who was being paid $1 million per episode, was going to demand that she get the same pay rate as Mr. Allen, who was making $2 million per episode.
“I knew that Disney would in no way pay me that much. That was my way to say ‘no’ and was a little bit of a flip-off to Disney. I’d been there all this time, and they never even paid me a third of what Tim was making, and I was working my ass off. I was a big reason why women were watching.”
Credit: Screenshot ‘Home Improvement’, ABC
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Sadly, things did not end well between her and Allen. The Strong Medicine actress said that she and Allen were on the same page about the show needing to end after such a long run. However, when Disney rejected her payment demands, Allen acted like she was betraying him.
“I was mad at Tim because he was leaving me alone being the only person saying no, which made me feel terrible and like the bad guy and he was upset with me for leaving,”
While the duo would have a mini Home Improvement reunion for two episodes of Allen’s show Last Man Standing, they have not kept in touch.
Credit: Screenshot ‘Last Man Standing’, ABC
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Richardson also revealed that she thinks Tim Allen’s political leanings have affected how Hollywood treats the show in the age of streaming. Home Improvement was a wildly successful comedy, but isn’t often mentioned when critics speak about the best shows of the 1990s.
“I think it’s about Tim, and it’s about his politics.”
Richardson admitted that she did not agree with his extremely conservative politics either.
Credit: Screenshot ‘Last Man Standing’, ABC
For his part, Allen has not commented on the show’s ending or his strained relationship with Ms. Richardson. However, when he has, it has always been positive.
In early March, ABC announced that Allen would be returning to television with his new show, Shifting Gears. Allen will star as Matt, a stubborn widower who owns a car restoration shop. His life is turned upside down when his daughter, who is going through a divorce, moves in with him and brings her young daughter.
Were you sad to see Home Improvement end? Let us know in the comments!
