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Tygert Burton "Ty" Pennington (born Gary Tygert Burton; October 19, 1964) is an American television host, artist, carpenter, author, and former
model A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided in ...
and
actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...
. His rise to prominence began with his role as carpenter on the
TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...
home improvement reality show ''
Trading Spaces ''Trading Spaces'' is an hour-long American television reality program that originally aired from 2000 to 2008 on the cable channels TLC and Discovery Home. The format of the show was based on the BBC TV series '' Changing Rooms''. The first ...
'' (2000–2003), and continued when he hosted the ABC reality series '' Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' (2003–2012), where he won two
Primetime Emmy Awards The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Owned and operated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the P ...
. Following the show's conclusion in 2012, Pennington has focused on numerous other projects, including host of ABC's short lived talk show '' The Revolution'' in 2012, TNT's '' On the Menu'' opposite Emeril Lagasse in 2014 and
Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery, who manages and operates it as a division of the Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Networks Group. The channel airs both televi ...
's ''American Diner Revival'' opposite Amanda Freitag from 2015 to 2016. On September 13, 2017, it was announced that Pennington was joining the revival of ''Trading Spaces'', which began airing on April 7, 2018, on TLC.


Early life

Pennington was born Gary Tygert Burton, the son of Yvonne Vickery. Yvonne separated from Ty's father when he and his older brother Wynn were very young, and spent several years as a single parent before she remarried. Her new husband adopted both boys, giving them his surname Pennington. Ty claims to be of partial Cherokee descent.


Education

A self-described "Jack of all trades", Pennington learned woodworking early in life and began teaching himself about carpentry and home improvement. After attending Sprayberry High School in
Marietta, Georgia Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...
, he first attended
Kennesaw State University Kennesaw State University (KSU) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia with two campuses in the Atlanta metropolitan area, one in the Kennesaw area and the other in Marietta on a combined of land. The school was founded ...
, where he majored in art and history. He paid his way through college by taking night classes and working during the day, first working in landscaping before moving into construction. Despite his skills in carpentry, Pennington initially decided that carpentry wasn't something he wanted to do professionally, noting his main interests were in becoming an artist, specializing in Graphic Design. On the advice of one of his professors, he transferred to the Art Institute of Atlanta, from where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in graphic design.


Career


Television

Pennington parlayed his hands-on skills and design acumen into a career in the entertainment industry, becoming a set designer, including for ''
Leaving Las Vegas ''Leaving Las Vegas'' is a 1995 romantic drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis and based on the 1990 semi-autobiographical novel by John O'Brien. Nicolas Cage stars as a suicidal alcoholic in Los Angeles who, having lost his family ...
'' in 1995. In 2003, he acted in the independent film, ''The Adventures of Ociee Nash'' (as "Wilbur Wright"). However, his professional breakthrough came through
The Learning Channel TLC is an American multinational cable television, cable and satellite television, satellite television network owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks, Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. First established in 1980 as The Learn ...
's (now known as simply TLC) innovative hit show ''
Trading Spaces ''Trading Spaces'' is an hour-long American television reality program that originally aired from 2000 to 2008 on the cable channels TLC and Discovery Home. The format of the show was based on the BBC TV series '' Changing Rooms''. The first ...
''. In each episode, two sets of neighbors redecorated one room in each other's home. Both teams in early seasons shared one carpenter, while later on, each team had a carpenter. Pennington was featured as one of the show's original carpenters, and quickly became a show favorite. In 2003, when ABC began developing a show that would rehab the homes of deserving families in seven days or less, Pennington was chosen as the leader of the eight-person design team. '' Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'', originally planned to be a 13-part special, became a huge hit, catapulting Pennington to stardom. This led to an endorsement deal with
Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co., commonly known as Sears ( ), is an American chain of department stores and online retailer founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosen ...
, a sponsor of the show. Pennington was extremely dedicated to the show, spending on average 240 days of the year working, and was known to have fought off anything from pulled muscles to heatstroke to food poisoning to keep doing his job. He stated that his career on the show resulted in the channel's commissioning '' Ty Pennington's Great British Adventure'', in which he worked with communities including
Portreath Portreath ( or ) is a civil parishes in England, civil parish, village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is about three miles (5 km) west-north-west of Redruth. The village extends along ...
,
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
(UK) to restore a run-down town park in a week and
Portishead, Somerset Portishead ( ) is a town and civil parish in the North Somerset unitary authority area, in the county of Somerset, England. With a population of 26,366 at the 2021 Census, the town is located on the Severn Estuary opposite Cardiff and Newport, W ...
(UK) to renovate the town's derelict outdoor pool into a community-run Lido. The series was shown from September 16, 2008. When ''Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' ended in 2012 with its ninth season, Pennington had helped rebuild more than 200 homes for the show. Afterwards, Pennington relocated from Los Angeles to New York City, where he was cast to take part in the lifestyle-based talk show ''The Revolution'', which aired on ABC in January 2012. When the show was cancelled after six months, Ty began pursuing other goals. In January 2021,
HGTV HGTV (an initialism for Home & Garden Television) is an American basic cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The network primarily broadcasts reality programming related to home improvement and real estate. HGTV Dream Home is an ...
debuted ''Ty Breaker'', a show that features Pennington helping families struggling to make their homes work for their changing lives. Pennington joined the HGTV renovation competition series, '' Rock The Block, '' as host for its 2nd season, which premiered on March 8, 2021, and has continued in that role since. He is currently hosting the 5th season of the show, which premiered in March of 2024. Pennington is also the host of HGTV show ''Battle on the Beach, a'' competition real estate show with 3 teams that renovate a beach home room by room, alongside Alison Victoria, and Taniya Nayak.


Other work

Prior to his partnership with Sears, Pennington was the owner and designer of his company, Furniture Unlimited, based in Atlanta and Los Angeles. He also lends his name to Sears, with their design team guiding the design of every item in the Ty Pennington Style line of bedding, tabletop items, bath accessories, furniture, patio furniture, and other miscellaneous home decor. Pennington published ''Ty's Tricks: Home Repair Secrets Plus Cheap and Easy Projects to Transform Any Room'' (2003), a
do-it-yourself "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi- ...
guide on home improvement. On May 15, 2007, he released the first issue of his quarterly magazine ''Ty Pennington at Home'', which ran until 2009. On July 25, 2008, he announced a 3-year partnership with Marketplace Events, the largest organizer of consumer remodeling, home decor and gardening shows in North America. He appeared on an episode of ''
Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! ''Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!'' is an American animated children's educational television series created by Bob Boyle for Nickelodeon. The series was produced by Bolder Media (a joint venture of Frederator Studios and the Mixed Media Group) and Star ...
'' playing a fictionalized version of himself named Ty Ty The Tool Guy. In September 2008, Pennington became the spokesperson for Abbott Nutrition and their
baby formula Infant formula, also called baby formula, simply formula (American English), formula milk, baby milk, or infant milk (British English), is a processed food, manufactured food designed and marketing, marketed for feeding to babies and infants ...
packaging innovation called ''Similac SimplePac''. He was also involved with the ''Similac Custom Nursery Design Contest'' and ''Ty's Nursery Guide'' that were part of the new product marketing. In September 2011, Pennington appeared in an episode of Disney's '' Take Two with Phineas and Ferb''. In February 2014, Pennington became the spokesperson for Guaranteed Rate and has been featured in a series of commercials and ads for the Chicago-based mortgage lender. Since April 2024, Pennington is a brand ambassador for Karndean Designflooring.


ADHD

As a child, Pennington was plagued with behavioral problems until he was diagnosed with
ADHD Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple ...
at the age of 17. He also discussed his ADHD with
Glenn Beck Glenn Lee Beck (born February 10, 1964) is an American conservative political commentator, radio host, entrepreneur, and television producer. He is the CEO, founder, and owner of Mercury Radio Arts, the parent company of his television and rad ...
and in the movie ''The Disruptors''. Pennington has partnered with
Shire plc Shire plc was a UK-founded Jersey-registered specialty biopharmaceutical company. Originating in the United Kingdom with an operational base in the United States, its brands and products included Vyvanse, Lialda, and Adderall XR. Shire was acq ...
to raise awareness of ADHD in adults and promote the use of
Vyvanse Lisdexamfetamine, sold under the brand names Vyvanse and Elvanse among others, is a stimulant medication that is used as a treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adults and for moderate-to-severe binge e ...
for the treatment of adult ADHD. He has been criticized for promoting the use of ADHD medications such as
Adderall Adderall and Mydayis are trade names for a combination drug containing four salts of amphetamine. The mixture is composed of equal parts racemic amphetamine and dextroamphetamine, which produces a (3:1) ratio between dextroamphetamine and l ...
without disclosing his sponsorship.


Personal life

Pennington was arrested for a DUI in Los Angeles on May 5, 2007 with a
blood alcohol content Blood alcohol content (BAC), also called blood alcohol concentration or blood alcohol level, is a measurement of alcohol intoxication used for legal or medical purposes. BAC is expressed as mass of alcohol per volume of blood. In US and many i ...
of .14 percent. He faced 6months in jail. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 3 years probation. In July 2021, Pennington announced his engagement to his girlfriend of one year, Kellee Merrell. They got married on November 27, 2021 in Savannah, Georgia.


Books

* ''Good Design Can Change Your Life: Beautiful Rooms, Inspiring Stories'', Simon & Schuster; (September 9, 2008); * ''Ty's Tricks: Home Repair Secrets Plus Cheap and Easy Projects to Transform Any Room'', Hyperion (2003);


See also

* Andy Kane - equivalent on ''Changing Rooms'', the British forerunner of ''Trading Spaces''


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pennington, Ty 1964 births Living people American adoptees American entertainment industry businesspeople Male models from Georgia (U.S. state) Artists from Atlanta Participants in American reality television series People from Marietta, Georgia Primetime Emmy Award winners American people who self-identify as being of Cherokee descent People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder