Bob Vila

Biography

Bob Vila is an American television host and home improvement expert, best known for pioneering the home renovation TV genre. Born in Miami, Florida, in 1946, Vila learned construction skills from his father, who built their family’s home by hand. After graduating from Miami Jackson High School, he studied journalism at the University of Florida and then served in the Peace Corps in Panama. Vila began his television career as the host of the groundbreaking PBS series This Old House in 1979 after winning a restoration award for his work on a Victorian Italianate house in Newton, Massachusetts. His approachable style and expertise made the series immensely popular and helped launch a wave of si...