Tim Allen has always gone to infinity and beyond with everything he’s ever done.
He has had an impressive career, with roles in Toy Story , The Santa Clause , and Home Improvement . And yet, there is so much we don’t know about the actor.
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To solve that, here are 10+ random facts Tim Allen fans didn’t know.
1. He is the third of six siblings:
He was raised in Denver by his mother, Martha, a community-service worker, and his father, Gerald, an insurance salesman.
He told Parade that being a middle child helped him learn “how to manipulate the system.”
“I’d see what my older two brothers would screw up, and I learned how to circumvent that.”
But that didn’t stop him from getting into trouble.
“Of all the kids, I was the most troublesome. I sort of put [my mother] through hell,” he said. “I’ve had a lot of trouble in my life.”
2. There is a nod to Tim Allen’s *Home Improvement* show in *Toy Story*:
When Woody was trapped in a crate, it was anchored under a Binford toolbox.
Binford was the fictional tool company in Home Improvement .
3. He was once arrested for 1.4 pounds of cocaine:
Yes, seriously! In 1978, The Santa Clause star pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges and even had to rat out other drug dealers for a lighter sentence!
I bet you didn’t know that!
In the end, he served two years and four months at a federal prison in Minnesota. From there, he was put on parole.
Allen has opened up in the past about the experience: “It was a watershed moment,” he told Closer magazine.
“It put me in a position of great humility, and I was able to make amends to friends and family and refocus my life on setting and achieving goals.”
4. He’s over 21 years sober:
Getting away from his personal battles is one of his biggest achievements.
“To be perfectly frank, I’m going on 21 years sober. That’s the biggest blessing in my life,” he told Parade .
5. He said that comedy has been his coping mechanism throughout his entire life.
“It always has been. I don’t really like people that much,” he told Parade .
“To keep them at bay, you make jokes, and they laugh and walk away.”
6. He’s a family man:
He’s been married to his wife, Jane Hajduk, for almost 14 years.
The pair share a young daughter, Elizabeth. Allen also has another daughter, Katherine, 29, from his previous marriage to Laura Deibel.
7. Playing Buzz Lightyear has meant so much to him:
He even got emotional while promoting Toy Story 4 .
“We’ve hit a high mark when you become an icon. I never thought of that. I can’t describe except I’m honored and humbled to be a part of this thing,” he said during a panel.
8. He is open to reviving *Home Improvement*:
The sitcom ran for eight seasons from 1991 to 1999.
“I always think about it, because I still talk to everybody involved,” Allen told TV Line about the possibility of a revival.
“I like the idea of finding out where the boys are now, and where… *Tool Time* would be in today’s world,” he continued.
“I just think it’s a marvelous idea, and all the actors think it’s a great idea,” he said.
9. His father was killed in a car accident when he was 11:
This completely changed his outlook on life.
“When my dad was killed, we had a priest that said, ‘He’s in a better place,’ and I kind of snapped, like, ‘What are we doing here, then?!’”
10. His childhood was filled with lots of toys:
This certainly came in handy when he later portrayed Buzz Lightyear in Toy Story .
His favorite toys were Lego, a moon-base toy, and military action figures and army tanks that his father gave him.
11. He has a passion for cars:
His impressive car collection is a testament to that very fact.
His love for them goes back to his childhood when he was growing up in Detroit, which is where they were testing new models.
“They had models that you don’t see because they were testing them. It was like a dream come true,” he said.
He even wants to one day do a show about cars.
“I told the guys, the next one has to be about cars.”
12. He’s really big on living a healthy lifestyle:
You may not expect it from the star, but he’s always working out, eating healthy, and even meditating.
“I don’t wanna be a wrinkled old man. I wanna walk out of here standing straight up. I don’t wanna be scared of falling,” he told Parade .
13. He loves Burger King:
He may eat healthy, but that doesn’t stop him from enjoying fast food from time to time.
As for his fav? He loves the chicken sandwich at Burger King on a long bun with mayonnaise: “Frickin’ love that thing.”
14. He also loves Locos Tacos at Taco Bell.
“It’s a taco shell made out of Doritos, and it’s out of this world. I don’t eat a lot of ’em, but man, do I like ’em. Just don’t tell anybody,” he said to Parade.
15. He started a fire in his basement as a kid:
Quite the troublemaker! This was caused when he mixed everything in his chemistry kit just to see what would happen.
A fire is what happened, which is why he had the kit taken away.
16. He considers himself a political anarchist:
“Politically I’m kind of an anarchist if you see my stand-up. I’m for responsible government that actually does what we pay them to do. I’ve worked different jobs and I’ve had a colorful past and I pay a lot in taxes,” he said to Entertainment Weekly .
“I wish we got more for our money. Whatever political party is for more responsible use of our money — that’s all I meant.”
“In Los Angeles, I’m concerned about the 26,000 homeless people and I do the best I can. I’m concerned about keeping my roads and stuff clean in North Hollywood. Generally, the government is no help and people have to do that themselves.”
17. He also thinks that the government should pay teachers more:
Which, honestly, I have to agree with.
Teachers do a lot of work and are incredibly underpaid, no matter what country you live in! They don’t get the credit that they really, truly deserve.
18. He has a hard time balancing work and home:
He has admitted that he struggles with trying to find time for both.
He constantly fears that he is spending too much time at work and not enough time with his family or, in turn, that he is not working hard enough.
19. When he reflects on his career, and *Last Man Standing* in particular, there is one word he likes to think of:
“The word that keeps me alive is ‘grateful.’ I love what I do. I get far more enjoyment out of entertaining people than anything monetary,” the star said to Us Weekly .
“I love the live audience we have. I tell them every night, ‘This is old-school stuff, what television and broadcast started with.’ I don’t know the future, but this [show] is rare.”
I could not have said it better myself!
20. He isn’t a huge fan of streaming television:
Considering where he came from with Home Improvement , and the fact that he has basically lived on ABC and Fox, this isn’t too hard to believe.
He considers streaming services like Netflix to be similar to processed food, whereas cable is “fresh” television.
21. He enjoys getting under people’s skin:
In fact, his exact words to IndieWire were:
“I like to mess around because I’ve been a standup fiery comic for 30 years. And I like pissing people off, and I said there’s nothing, especially in this area, that pisses people off more than a very funny conservative.”
22. He feels that because of the political divide, it’s harder to say whatever he wants as a comedian:
“It’s been in my personal life also. People have heard me say something, and then I’ve had people say, ‘I’m gonna mention that.’ Like they’re going to try to hurt me on something I said on stage. Especially in live comedy.”
“So now in live comedy, I have to explain to people what I mean by these words. See what’s underneath there, we’re the same people. I got to work this stuff out.”
“I got to work out the potholes and the homeless people in my North Hollywood location where my studio is, I got to work this out. This arguing is not, it’s not helping. It’s not doing anything,” he said to IndieWire.
23. He admitted to the Comedy Couch that he has always felt more comfortable in Canada:
“Yeah, I’ve always felt, and I don’t like to say this because I sound like an ex-patriot, I always feel quite a bit more comfortable sometimes in Canada. For a variety of reasons. I just think it’s a politer place. Kind of. You don’t have quite the population to deal with but you don’t immediately get into skirmishes with everybody.”
Do you know any other random and interesting facts about Tim Allen?
Or were you pleasantly surprised by the facts we presented you with in this article?
Either way, let us know down below in the comments section! We would love to hear from you!
