<Tr> <Th> Portrayed by </Th> <Td> Richard Karn </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Information </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Family </Th> <Td> Alma Borland (mother) Cal Borland (brother) </Td> </Tr> <P> Albert E. "Al" Borland (Richard Karn)--A master plumber and licensed contractor, Al is Tim's un-hip sidekick on the show - within - a-show Tool Time and best friend . His personality is an exact opposite of Tim's--he is reserved, quiet, does not show much enthusiasm and has a wide array of professional knowledge concerning tools . Al made frequent suggestions that he should be the host of Tool Time instead of Tim . Al does not make as much money as Tim, in fact it is implied that his salary is not very big at all . In the episode, "Brothers and Sisters", Al says that he gets a very small paycheck . In the episode, "Fifth Anniversary", it is revealed that a big reason why Al was chosen to be Tim's assistant was because Al was the only assistant applicant that was willing to work for the salary that was offered . Al could be characterized as a "mama's boy"; he spent a great deal of time attempting to please his mother Alma--who was severely overweight (though she was never seen). She died from a heart attack near the end of the series after Al asked her permission to marry Trudy . His father was almost 60 when Al was born . Young Al has mechanical talent - constructing a model crane out of wood . Al was engaged to an orthodontist named Ilene for a time, but they ended up calling off the wedding . He also dated Greta Post who appeared a few times in the series . In a later season, Al met a wealthy exterminator named Trudy . They hit it off and were married in the show's final episode . Al might have been based on Norm Abram of This Old House because of the resemblance (flannel shirts, beard, pudgy, etc .) and the fact that Al does all the "real work" on the Tool Time show (much like Norm did on This Old House). In the episode "No, No, Gadot", Tim and Al were arrested for scalping hockey tickets . In a holding cell, an inmate named George approached them and asked if they were "the guys from that TV tool show", and Tim responded with "why, yes, I'm Bob Vila, and this is Norm". Al has a big brother named Cal who is a physicist, and unlike some other siblings around the world, they had never gotten into a physical fight . Instead, they usually settled their disputes over a cup of tea . In a flashback episode of the Tool Time premiere, Al was noted to be a Pisces and had a clean - shaven face, while Tim had a beard . Al has his own fan club . Like Tim, Al is left - handed and his favorite board games are Parcheesi, Chinese Checkers, Scrabble and Bingo . His favorite movie is My Fair Lady . One episode had a pet of Al's, a turtle named "Scooter," which Tim accidentally dropped in cement . With his dry wit, Al serves as the show's (both Tool Time and Home Improvement) straight man to the wackier, more outgoing Tim . Beginning at the end of the fifth season, Al invented a second source of income for himself by inventing a board game based on Tool Time, which features Tim, Al and Heidi as playable characters . </P>

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