American television personality and author (born )
Stephen Thomas (born ) is an American author, builder and television personality. He was the host of the PBS home renovation series This Old House from to and of Renovation Nation, on Discovery's former Planet Green channel, for two seasons (&#;) until its cancellation.
Thomas was born in in Pomona, California, and is the eldest of six children. His interest in construction and renovation came from his father who used to buy and repair old houses to accommodate his growing family. The grandfather of Steve Thomas, Rooney Thomas was also a do it yourself guy and an Episcopal missionary in the Alaskan Arctic.[1]
Thomas received his bachelor's degree in philosophy from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington.[2] While at Evergreen, he supported himself as a licensed painting contractor and carpenter.[3]
At the age of 13, Thomas decided he wanted to go sailing, so he bought his first sailboat.[4] In , Thomas worked as a carpenter on a foot (23&#;m) ketch under construction in Antibes, France. He also logged many nautical miles sailing a foot (13&#;m) wooden sloop from England to San Francisco via the Panama Canal, Galapagos Islands, Marquesas, and Hawaii. In the early s inspired by an old dream he went on sailing across the Pacific. This voyage led him to Satawal where he met Mau Piailug and spent months learning the ancient technique of star path navigation.[5] He moved to Massachusetts in
In , Thomas returned to Satawal where he filmed the documentary The Last Navigator with Piailug for the PBS series Adventure.[6] In , while researching his next book, on his family's history in the AlaskanArctic, Thomas was approached by people from the PBS series This Old House who had already screened more than candidates. He was cast to replace Bob Vila and hosted the show from through
Since leaving This Old House Thomas has contributed to programming on The History Channel, hosting and producing the Save Our History series, including one program showing George Washington's estate, and another in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.[7]
Thomas first was involved with Habitat in the early 90s following their stories on This Old House and later partnered with them for a five-part series for Renovation Nation.[8] He currently is Spokesman and Ambassador for Habitat for Humanity International with special emphasis on Women Build, Builders Blitz, and ReStore.[9]
Thomas is a popular speaker on green renovation for builders and homeowners. He is especially interested in green, energy efficient, and low maintenance technologies and materials. He has appeared on television shows such as The Early Show on CBS, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and Jon & Kate Plus 8.
In , Thomas moved with his family to Salem, Massachusetts, where he renovated an Colonial revival in a seaport north of Boston.[10] He now resides in St. George, Maine, with his wife and son Sam. He owns his own construction company, Steve Thomas Builders.[11] A recent project involved renovating a cottage and building a timber-frame barn on Hupper island off the coast of Maine.[1] This became a two-part special on Renovation Nation. He renovated a 1, square foot adobe in Santa Fe, NM, which was the cover story in the January issue of Su Casa magazine.[3] From to , he renovated Sea Cove Cottage in the middle of a fishing village in Maine.[12]
Thomas received the – Daytime Emmy Award of 'Outstanding Service Show Host' for This Old House, plus nine nominations for the same category.[13]