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It all starts about 2 weeks prior to the taping of a Home Improvement episode... Audiences Unlimited mails out the tickets for the taping. About a week after that, people all over the world peel themselves off the floor when they realize that they have FINALLY received the tickets that they have been awaiting for about 2 years. As noted on the ticket, you phone Audiences Unlimited to confirm your attendance at the taping (this DOES NOT guarantee that you are going to get in). Then comes a shocking realization... "I've only got a week to get time off work and get myself on a plane to California!" The next week is probably the most hectic you've had in a long time as you try to make the appropriate arrangements.

Probably on Thursday (or Friday) you will arrive in Los Angeles... if you are from anyplace in the country that is even slightly less populated than LA, you will probably have some sort of fit when you see the freeways that you will have to drive on to get from the airport to wherever you are staying. That hurdle overcome, you will proceed to see the many sights of LA as you prepare yourself to attend the taping. Friday rolls around, you take one last look at your ticket noting that it says you should arrive no later than 6PM (HINT: If you are not in line at the studio by at least 4PM... you are probably NOT gonna get in... that's the sad truth) and that parking is available at the studio (be prepared to find someplace else to park... parking IS NOT always available at the studio especially during their construction spree pictured below [BTW, that's the HI boys basketball court in the middle of all of the construction equipment]... Bob Hope drive is not too far away and usually has ample space to park... but PLAN AHEAD). And oh ya, if you're thinking of taking your camera along to try to get a few pics of the stars... DON'T, cameras are prohibited in the studio (and for what it's worth, about the best you will do is catch a distant glimpse of the cast as they go for their supper break - for what it's worth, Richard Karn did stop out and sign a few autographs for the people waiting in line at the studio store.

At about 5:30 they will lead you in off the street, mark your ticket with your position in line and then encourage you to go and visit the Disney Studio Store where you can pick up the usual array of Disney Store merchandise, PLUS merchandise from the various shows that are produced on the Disney lot. You are told to be back in line by about 6PM so they can start seating. While you stand in line, you will watch a steady stream of people going into the studio... these people are being seated in the VIP seats (they have higher priority than you). At about 6:15 or 6:30 they will start to seat the people at the front of your line... at last, you think, we're gonna get in! And then after taking in about 30 people... they stop, congratulations, all of the non VIP seats have been filled. NOW you can start to sweat, they have to wait to see how many VIP's are not going to show up before they can start filling in the seats... be prepared for the longest 20 minutes of your life waiting in line! At about 5 or 10 minutes before seven they will start to seat those remaining in line (at the taping I attended, I estimate that only the first 70 or 80 people in line were admitted to the taping) on your way into the studio itself, you will be made to pass through a metal detector, similar to those you find at the airport. In the door, hang a right... up the stairs and there you are... FINALLY inside the studio being ushered to your seat!

You take a quick look at the layout of the studio while you head for your seat. You will notice the monitors above the audience to show the actual camera shots (before the taping starts, they are showing a quick montage of HI scenes). You will also notice microphones hanging above the audience to record the audience reaction to the scenes (yup, that laughter you hear on the show is REAL and unprompted). Behind and above the audience is the control room and conference room used by the cast/crew/producers. After you sit down you can see the layout of the set... the Tooltime set (and audience, yup those are actual real people in the Tooltime audience) is on the far left side of the studio; the walls, monitors, lights, cameras and crew you see in the Tooltime shots are those from the actual Disney studio. To the right of the Tooltime set is the garage, further right is the main part of the Taylor house and at the far right is Wilson's yard. Also at the far right, not facing the audience (on the night I was there) is Brad's bedroom. Some of these sets may move around depending on which ones they need in order to tape a particular episode. The other thing that you will notice is that everything looks so SMALL. The camera angles and such they use when taping make the sets look HUGE, when really they are not.

So, its 7PM and the taping is ready to start... they have a stand-up comedian that comes out and "warms up" the audience and tells the basics of what's gonna happen. The only instruction that he gives as far as reaction is to laugh when you feel like you want to laugh... with a request that if they have to do a scene again for whatever reason, *please* laugh again :-) The announcer comes over the PA and introduces the members of the cast (who come out onto the stage for the introduction, most of them looking like they are in a state of concentration, getting psyched up for the episode). Then the taping starts... scenes are taped in a logical order, though not nessesarily the final order they will use on the show (but usually close). *Please* don't fall into the trap of watching the monitors all the time... you can do *that* when you get home :)... watch the scene on the set, watch the crew in action, and most importantly, keep the corner of your eye on the other sets... it is *very* possible that you will see one of the cast, hmmmm... Jonathan perhaps , playing to the audience and mocking whoever is doing their scene (oh, say Tim)... perhaps, just perhaps, he knows from rehersals that there is NO WAY they are gonna do that scene in one take. When that eventuality happens and somebody screws up royally, they'll have to shoot the scene again (and again, and again...). If it's a minor slip-up, and they have good footage from the afternoon taping, it is possible that they will not shoot the scene a second time in front of the audience, but will rather use the afternoon footage to fill in. Between takes, and between scenes the "warm-up guy" entertains the audience, gets people out of the audience to do impersonations, or wierd things that they want to show off; trinkets are given out during these times (hats, pencils, that kinda stuff -- I got a pencil, na na nah nah na na ;-) You will probably see the boys goofing around, chatting with the crew or playing with the cameras between scenes as well.

The other thing that you will notice is that the episode evolves in front of your eyes... even after a week of rehersals, if a line or a scene doesn't seem to be "working", they are not afraid to change it on the fly. And don't for a moment think that the younger members of the cast are intimidated by the producers, at least once, I heard Jonathan say "I'm gonna say..." and as it turns out, it was that take that made it into the episode we saw on TV. Unfortunately, the other thing that you will notice is that it is already about 9:40PM and the emcee is telling you that the next scene will be the last one of the night, he also will tell everyone the tentative date that the episode will be aired (usually 4 weeks from the taping). A short time later, that final scene is done... the announcer comes over the PA and does "Curtain Call", all of the actors are introduced, run out onto the set, take their bows and accept the rousing applause from the audience. Then the set lights go down, the audience lights come up... It's over :-(

For what it's worth, the episode that I attended was entitled "Engine and a Haircut, Two Fights", was taped on the evening of February 16, 1996 and aired on March 12, 1996. I had the time of my life... it was well worth the trip, and the year and a half wait for the ticket. Congratulations have to go out to the cast and crew... they make it look SO easy! I hope that they keep the show on the air long enough for me to have the chance to attend another taping... I've got my fingers crossed!