Extreme Makeover's Ty Pennington Drops Update After Near-Death Experience
The past few months have been touch and go for "Extreme Makeover" alum Ty Pennington. The handyman was hospitalized in July 2023 following a near-death experience, which stemmed from an overgrown abscess in his throat. At the time, he expected his hospital visit to be quick, only to find himself requiring emergency surgery. Fortunately, his treatment paid off, and the 59-year-old is on the mend and cracking jokes again.
While speaking to ET, Pennington quipped that he enjoyed almost dying because it made him the center of attention, adding that he's considering doing it all over again. However, he also detailed how the health scare genuinely affected him afterward. "It made me realize you just don't know when your timecard's gonna get pulled, so wake up, live every single day to the fullest," he said. "I mean, that's why the 60s is gonna be like time to start doing everything, and that's what I love about being part of these projects because I think we all want to make sure we've done things to be remembered."
Speaking of projects, Pennington has kept busy following "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." Now that he's fit and healthy again, the host is ready to return to work, and viewers can look forward to seeing him on their screens again very soon.
Ty Pennington is still as competitive as ever
Ty Pennington has continued working in renovation-themed reality television following "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." In 2021, he signed up to host "Rock the Block," a show that pits participants in a competition to revamp old houses. With a brand-new season set to premiere on HGTV tonight, the handyman has made it clear that he's raring to go again, so viewers needn't worry about his recent health scare slowing him down.
"What I love about this show as an artist — we're all very competitive, but until you sort of compete against the top in your field, you can't really say you're the best," he told ET. "But these teams are knocking it out of the park, so if you win this, this basically says you are as good as it gets." Pennington added that he understands the participants' mindset because he comes from a similar background. As such, he expects a great season that brings out the best in people who want to go down in television history as winners.
If you enjoyed this article, check out our list of the 55 best reality TV shows of all time, as well as our breakdown of reality shows that are actually real.