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CNN Live Today
Interview with Bob Vila, Home Improvement Expert
Aired June 05, 2002 - 10:45 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Well, circle the date and fire up those power tools. Father's Day is a week from this Sunday, and who better to help you craft the shopping list for dear old dad than TV's original handyman, Bob Vila?
For almost a quarter of a century, Vila has hosted his own home- improvement show, and has since branched out to the Internet, and authored 10 books. Busy guy. Bob Vila, though, somehow made some time for us this morning, joining us from Chicago. Bob, good morning. Good to have you with us.
BOB VILA, HOME IMPROVEMENT EXPERT: Thank you. Good morning, how are you doing?
KAGAN: Well, I was doing great until, I got to say, they gave me the box that you sent, and the craft that I was supposed to put together.
VILA: I'm sorry if I've ruined your morning.
KAGAN: Well, I think I ruined yours. Let me explain. This is a Kid's Club craft project, that the idea is that kids can make it for their dads. Just tell me this -- be gentle -- what age was this supposed to be appropriate for, Bob?
VILA: Oh, you know. You can -- I have done this with 6-year- olds, believe it or not.
KAGAN: Oh, great. That's good.
VILA: But they will need a little supervision. And when they join the Craftsman Kid's Club, what they get is a quarterly news letter that usually has instructions for making a wood-working project. They don't actually get the wood and the screws, OK...
KAGAN: Oh, OK. Well...
VILA: ... but we've sent them to you just so that you can understand how -- how it goes together. It is supposed to look like this when it is finished, OK?
KAGAN: A nice little mail organizer with that pen holder in front. VILA: Exactly. And it is the kind of thing that could really become a memento if the kids make it as a father's day gift. What you need to do is you buy a board, you cut it into four pieces, and by pre-drilling it like we have here, it is easy to assemble using inch and a quarter or inch and a half screws, and when you have finished you have got -- you either make it and leave it in the raw wood, or you can paint it or stain it, but it shouldn't take you more than about 15 minutes to put it together.
KAGAN: So, just to be clear. This is for a 6-year-old, and you made it even easier for me by precutting the board, and drilling the holes. So really, I mean, this was about as simple as it gets.
VILA: This is a project -- it is a project that a 6-year-old could make with a little parental guidance from Mom or from an older sibling.
KAGAN: Well, maybe that was it -- I needed some parental supervision. Let me show you where I went wrong, and maybe you can coach me through this. So, I got everything kind of screwed together correctly, but where I messed up -- it is that pen holder thing -- I went to put these hooks in...
VILA: Yes.
KAGAN: And I put the boards in the wrong order, so this one is really supposed to be in front, and that one is supposed to be in the back.
VILA: Don't feel bad. It will all come together eventually. I also sent you a ratchet. I don't know if you have gotten that, or if your producers are holding it.
KAGAN: Yes, they were using that to hit me over the head to try to make me figure out...
VILA: Yes, OK. Well, I will tell you something. This is a brand-new kind of thin profile, ergonomically-designed ratchet. And ratchet wrenches are not just for mechanics and people that work on trucks -- truck motors and the like.
KAGAN: What are they for?
VILA: They are a wonderful tool for -- anytime you buy something and it says some assembly required, whether it is a barbecue or a piece of exercise equipment or a bicycle, you know, a ratchet is a terrific tool to have. It will come with a variety of the different heads, and all the different sizes to fit the appropriate size bolt or nut. And the thin profile really lets you get into tight quarters to tighten something down. I mean, even...
KAGAN: You know what that is for -- that when I call Ed (ph), my fix-it man.
VILA: Yes.
KAGAN: He is my Bob Vila.
VILA: Yes. Well then, maybe if he is a dad, you can give him one of the thin-profile ratchets.
KAGAN: OK. Hey, real quickly, you're a dad; Bob, right?
VILA: I have got three. Only one still at home.
KAGAN: And what are you plans for Father's Day?
VILA: Well, I just want to relax. Father's Day always comes a couple of days after my birthday, so the kids are challenged, and I'm always hoping just for a nice book.
KAGAN: A nice book. Because you can't make Bob Vila something. I mean, you're the king of making stuff.
VILA: No, no, no. They used to make stuff. As I say, they are a little bit older now, so maybe they will make dinner.
KAGAN: Make dinner. Nice effort there. Well, happy birthday coming up, and early happy Father's Day to you.
VILA: Thanks a lot.
KAGAN: Pleasure to have you with us. Bob Vila joining us from Chicago, and looks like I had better keep my day job as a news anchor because I won't be taking Bob's.
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