| Money Pit's Tom Kraeutler and Leslie Segrete recently hosted a two-hour special radio broadcast with the experts from This Old House to celebrate the completion of the Emmy Award-winning PBS television show's first-ever project in New York City, a 1904 Brooklyn Brownstone.
An archive of the broadcast is now available online.
To listen to hour 1 of the show, go here
To listen to hour 2 of the show, go here
"This Old House was truly the first home improvement reality television program," said Kraeutler. "They have been entertaining and educating millions of home enthusiasts for three decades and we knew our audience would have strong interest in the show and their accomplishments with this project. Both This Old House and The Money Pit appeal to motivated people with a passion for making good homes better."
Located in historic Prospect Heights, the 1904 Renaissance Revival brownstone was a former rooming house transformed into a three-family home. The team refurbished well-worn period details while adding modern conveniences that restored years of neglect while updating the house for 21st century living. The This Old House New York City project, featuring 10 brand-new episodes, airs nationally on PBS Thursdays at 8pm. (check www.thisoldhouse.com/tvschedule or your local listings).
According to host Kevin O'Connor, the project is particularly relevant today. "It tells the story of one family converting a former rooming house into a three-family home to afford to stay close to the diverse cultures and resources the city has to offer."
The Money Pit broadcast was produced inside the historic home and features interviews with O'Connor, as well as other This Old House experts including master carpenter Norm Abram, landscape contractor Roger Cook, general contractor Tom Silva and design correspondent Carole Freehauf. Local general contractor Michael Streaman also joined the show, along with homeowners Kevin Costello and Karen Shen, who entertain the audience with all-too-familiar tales of the trials and tribulations of living through a major restoration.
"The project is beautiful and the creativity of the production team impressive," said Money Pit co-host Leslie Segrete. Among the highlights, the on-line purchase of a historic spiral staircase that did not fit, exquisite and delicate wooden fret work that nearly came crashing down during the filming and some good old-fashioned neighborly bartering necessary to find doors, spindles and other sorts of architectural elements that were common to turn-of-the-century Brownstones but missing from the project house.
Money Pit hosts Tom Kraeutler and Leslie Segrete are both vintage house owners themselves and have a first-hand appreciation of the challenges of rebuilding a historic home. Their latest book is entitled My Home, My Money Pit: Your Guide to Every Home Improvement Adventure, published by Globe Pequot Press, and is available on-line and at bookstores nationally.
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