''Renovate My Family'' is an American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

series broadcast by the

Fox Broadcasting Company The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations an ...

(Fox). The series was broadcast for one season from September 1, 2004, to August 15, 2005. Each episode of the series followed one family who received a "full-force makeover", which included renovations to their house and improvements to their day-to-day lifestyles. The series was hosted by American television producer Jay McGraw. In 2005, ''Renovate My Family'' was one of several television programs cited in a

class-action lawsuit A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action ...

filed by the Writers Guild of America concerning labor law violations.

Format

It begins with the families receiving the announcement, usually in an unexpected place where many people are present (and all are in on the surprise). The family is then rushed back to their home where they are given a small amount of time to pack their things and leave their house once they are chosen because a group of home designers will build a new house for them in its place. They have only one week to build the house. The family gets to take part in tearing the house down as well. The families who are chosen for ''Renovate My Family'' usually have some sort of family issue. While the house is being built, the host takes the family to a special retreat for that week where the family not only gets to spend time together but also must confront the family issue(s) through special counseling. On the day before the house is due to be finished, the family is separated and taken to separate salons where each family member is given a makeover. They are then reunited back at their home just before the new house is to be unveiled.

Production

The series' working title was ''Family Time''. According to

Mike Darnell Michael H. Darnell (born 1962) is an American television executive and former child actor. He is currently the president of unscripted and alternative television at Warner Bros. He spent nearly 19 years at the FOX network as president of alternat ...

, " e basic idea is to take every makeover show you've ever seen and roll it into one."

Lawsuits

The Roisers, who were featured on the third episode of the series, filed a lawsuit against Fox and Rocket Science Laboratories, in which they claimed "shoddy work" which created safety hazards in their home. On August 23, 2005, ''Renovate My Family'' was one of several television programs cited in a class-action lawsuit filed by the Writers Guild of America, which concerned labor law violations.

References

External links

* {{imdb title, 0423722 Fox Broadcasting Company original programming 2000s American reality television series 2004 American television series debuts 2004 American television series endings Television series by Rocket Science Laboratories