Design Team Bios
Ty Pennington has certainly carved out a niche for himself as the lovable, off-the-wall, hunk-of-a-carpenter and home design guru.
During his four-year stint on Trading Spaces, Ty became well-known as the cute and playful carpenter who would sometimes work shirtless. So it is not surprising that dozens of women desperately hope to catch a glimpse of Ty in action. Beyond cracking jokes, though, Ty enjoys designing, building and working with contractors and his fellow designers to help create magical homes for deserving families.
A self-proclaimed "Jack of all Trades, Master of None," Ty can add bestselling author to his vast list of skills. His first book, Ty's Tricks, published by Hyperion in 2003, was a New York Times bestseller.
In addition to being an author, Pennington has just signed an exclusive multi-year agreement with Sears. He will be partnering with Sears in a broad range of activities, including product design and development, merchandising and advertising, and is the ambassador for the Sears American Dream Campaign.
Ty spent most of his childhood in Atlanta. Following high school, he attended Kennesaw College, focusing on art and history. After one year his art professor suggested a career in graphic design, so Ty started working as a carpenter by day and attending classes at the Atlanta Art Institute by night. After graduation he continued his education at the Atlanta College of Art, studying painting and sculpture while honing his carpentry skills to pay for his education.
During his final semester, Ty was approached by a modeling scout and soon began an exciting and lucrative career. He traveled the world and modeled for various clothing companies and appeared in television commercials. He recently moved to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career, and appeared in the independent film, The Adventures of Ociee Nash, playing aviation pioneer Wilbur Wright.
Ty, who sings and plays the guitar in his spare time, still enjoys his boyhood passions of surfing, skateboarding and playing soccer. He currently lives in Los Angeles.
Paul DiMeo, while best known as the carpenter with attitude on Extreme Makeover Home Edition, is also an established actor, a man's man and the first to cry on this hit show. Think of a man, raised by Italian parents, who loves building the kitchen table as much as what goes on around it, and you have a true sense of the essence that is Paul DiMeo.
DiMeo is particularly renowned for his imaginative work on children's bedrooms. With boundless warmth and genuine nature, he remembers his early Pennsylvania roots and in particular how, at age five, he began his affair with home renovation after the family home burned to the ground. "My father and I embarked upon our own extreme makeover to reconstruct the family home." Indeed DiMeo's hallmark is his deep understanding of family hardship that shines through as the show's rugged carpenter with a heart of gold.
Originally from Media, Pennsylvania, the youngest son of five children, DiMeo attended Point Park College in Pittsburgh and majored in Theater Arts. He began perfecting his skill of set-building for the Pittsburgh Playhouse, while also developing his other big love -- acting. While serving as stage manager for the American Dance Ensemble, he started to build his own resume. A move to New York proved lucrative. Continuing to build a reputation for appearing both on and off the stage, and while living in the East Village, DiMeo befriended the owners of the Open Space Theater on St. Mark's Place, built sets, learned the art of dumpster diving and went on to freelance for the Dance Theater of Harlem, the Yiddish Theater, Carnegie Hall and numerous off-Broadway and Broadway venues. He also pioneered the "Loft Living" project, working on the renovation of lofts and brownstones, and as master carpenter renovated the Landmark Brownstone of Aaron Burr.
Off-Broadway DiMeo played the lead in director Al Carmines' In Circles and was stage manager for On 2nd Avenue and The Golden Boy. As a resident actor, he played Hamlet at King's County Shakespeare, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, as well as lead roles in The Bull and Wisdom's Age at the New York One Act Festival, winning first place for his performance. He has also appeared off-off Broadway in numerous roles, in particular at the 29th Street Playhouse and the Actors Repertory Theater. For television he co-starred with John Lithgow on 3rd Rock from the Sun and guest-starred on New York Undercover; and for feature film he played the lead in director Peter Maguire's No School Today and, demonstrating his great love for kids, was Sparky in the children's feature video, Sparky Moves to Manhattan.
After 17 years in New York, DiMeo decided to move to Los Angeles. Once again he continued the "Loft Living" movement by moving into an old firehouse in downtown L.A. He excelled in his field, renovating the homes and businesses of Hollywood's movers and shakers. His client list includes the Beverly Hills Ralph Lauren Polo store, the William Morris Agency, Glenn Close, Joan and Marty Ransholff, Arnold Rifkin, David Niven Jr., Ann Archer, Marjorie Lord, Angelo DeSapio and -- his most memorable client -- George Hamilton. DiMeo was diagnosed with high cholesterol several years ago and actively campaigns to raise awareness. He recently teamed up with WomenHeart, the Association of Black Cardiologists and AstraZeneca, to educate consumers about the importance of identifying and maintaining a cholesterol goal as part of a heart-healthy lifestyle.
Eduardo Xol, Born in East Los Angeles, Eduardo's multicultural experience of being raised in a predominantly Asian and Latino community shapes his aesthetic influences as a designer and lifestyle expert.
Throughout his life, he assisted his father in raising and pruning Bonsai. This hobby gave him a deep appreciation for shape, texture and clean lines. His strong connection to his Mexican heritage gives him a love of rich, vibrant colors and rhythm in the garden. Before breaking ground as a designer on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Eduardo was an accomplished keyboardist and percussionist. He was one of the youngest musicians to be scouted and selected to perform with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of ten. But Eduardo's passion for the arts extends beyond playing music. While studying theatre arts at UCLA, he produced several hit musical theatre and comedy revues that toured throughout the U.S. Shortly thereafter, he headed south to Latin America, where he found fame as a star of music, television and videos. He starred in several worldwide-syndicated telenovelas (soap operas), including Sentimientos Ajenos, La Jaula de Oro and Acapulco Cuerpo y Alma.
While in Mexico, Eduardo also found time to produce music and videos. His production company worked with music producer Benny Rietveld of Carlos Santana fame and Mexican superstars Luis Miguel and Pilar Montenegro. Eduardo's partnership with BMG Latin produced his first solo album, La Pasion, for which he was nominated for Premio Lo Nuestro's Artist of the Year, alongside Gloria Estefan and Ricky Martin. His representation of the United States at the International Music Festival at Vina Del Mar, Chile brought his appeal to a worldwide audience. Soon, Elle, Harper's Bazaar and Somos magazines featured the charming and down to earth Eduardo as one of Latin America's most eligible and bachelors.
Over the last few years, Eduardo has transferred his experience in musical composition and television production into the world of design. "Whether it be in a concert or in a flower garden or a Great Room, the importance of harmony in composition is universal," explains Eduardo. In addition to his monthly column that he authored in People en Espanol and his current weekly blog for AOL LATINO that several million people a week read, appearances on Good Morning America, his countless newspaper and magazine articles including being named one of the 50 Most Beautiful, by People en Espanol and among the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in America by Hispanic Magazine, Eduardo has become a respected and coveted voice in the Hispanic and other English language markets. His latest projects include a collection of bed and bath linens as well as a multi-faceted tabletop line for the luxury goods purveyor, Waterford. The collections entitled EDUARDO XOL for Waterford will debut in Fall 2007. In addition, Eduardo has partnered with The Occasion Group, Taylor Corporation's leading paper goods and stationery division to design a line of Quinceanera and specialty invitations. The line launched at the NY Stationary show in May 2007 and will debut with retailers in Summer/Fall 2007. Further, Harper Collins imprint, RAYO published Eduardo's first book on April 24, 2007 titled Home Sense in both English and Spanish worldwide and his second book is currently in development for release in the Spring of 2008.
John Littlefield, Having found a love for acting early in his life, John Littlefield (Johnny) pursued a career in theatre in college, conservatory and finally receiving his MFA in theatre at Temple University, where he also taught. Realizing he couldn't teach his students the business-side of show business, having not done it himself, he ventured to New York to seek his fame and fortune. Through good times and bad, and his die-hard perseverance, he found his niche in Off-Broadway, Regional Theatre and TV.
Most notable is Littlefield's role as Gary Sinclair on Another World, as well as numerous guest starring roles on Law & Order, Roswell, Navy NCIS and West Wing, to name a few. Recently he co-starred with Anthony Hopkins in the motion picture Beowulf, and has also appeared in Fracture and Slipstream. But it was the hard times, honing the skills learned from his dad as a do-it-yourself handyman and carpenter, that led to a career hosting such shows as the Dude Room on the Discovery Channel and working with Habitat for Humanity for CMT's Home Blitz.
Littlefield is thrilled to continue helping needy families by joining the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition design team. Currently living in Los Angeles, when not working, watching his beloved NY Yankees or perfecting his culinary skills in the kitchen, he can be found on the beaches of Southern California charging big waves.
Tanya McQueen, was born and raised in Columbus, Texas, a small town about an hour outside of Houston. She attended local schools before heading to college at Texas A&M. She graduated with a degree in Education and went back to the Columbus area to teach school. McQueen was later elected to the local school board and served several terms. And if you'd told her back then that she'd be designing homes on television, she never would have believed you.
In fact McQueen's career began almost by accident. First, she designed and built her own home, working hand-in-hand with architects and contractors. She enjoyed the process so much, she decided to continue. With the help of her cousin, a licensed interior designer, she founded Tattered Hydrangea. The goal was to find tattered properties that could be improved with a wave of the magic wand and lots of hard work.
The Tattered Hydrangeas purchased homes that lacked style and turned them into jewels - often doing the work themselves. They installed floors and cabinets, hung drywall and painted. LOTS of painting. And she might still be running Tattered Hydrangea, renovating houses and reselling them to happy buyers, except for one videotape that changed everything
McQueen and her cousin taped one of their Tattered Hydrangea properties and submitted it to the TLC show Property Ladder. Producers selected the tape from among thousands of applicants, and suddenly a documentary crew was following the Tattered Hydrangeas through a complete renovation. The episode featuring McQueen aired in 2005, and it caught the eye of ABC and the producers of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. They were impressed by her personality, poise and unique approach to design, as well as her willingness to get arrested for the sake of design (seriously, check out the Property Ladder episode!).
McQueen is now a designer on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, ripping down and rebuilding a new home every Sunday night. It's really just Tattered Hydrangea on the most massive scale imaginable! It also allows her to meet amazing families and change their lives, something she feels honored to do. As she says, "it's a privilege to combine passion for design with compassion for others."
