Because of his visibility on "Home Improvement," plus national and regional commercials, viewers are hard pressed to complete a day without seeing Richard somewhere. All of which contributes, according to TV Guide, to Richard scoring the second-highest Q rating (which rates an actor based upon recognizability and likeability) in network television -- second only to his "Tool Time" boss, Tim Allen.

But while Richard, a native of Seattle and a graduate of the University of Washington's Professional Actor's Training Program, is considered an overnight success by many fans, he did have a career before his breakthrough role on one of America's most-watched shows.

A veteran of a dozen years of Broadway, off-Broadway and regional theater, Richard earned his first credit on the Great White Way as the "suit of armor" in the smash musical, "Me and My Girl." Accustomed to playing the comic lead, Richard starred in the title role in Larry Shue's "The Foreigner," and includes among his many credits starring roles in off-Broadway productions of "Losing It" and "The Other Shore," the play in which he met his wife, actress Tudi Roche.

After Richard landed small roles in the films, "Desperately Seeking Susan" and "House of Games," a desire to raise a family brought Richard and Tudi to Los Angeles in 1990. Richard's primetime debut soon followed, as a sketch player on Carol Burnett's "Carol & Company." He also starred in the play, "Our Father," which earned a Critic's Choice Award from the Los Angeles Times.

However, it was on Richard's way home from a rehearsal of "Macbeth" that a chain of events began which would change his life forever. That fateful day, he rolled through a stop sign and received a ticket. In traffic school, he met an agent who told him about "Home Improvement," which was being produced by three writers Richard had met several years earlier while participating in the New Harmony Project, a writer's workshop in Evansville, Indiana. Richard called the producers, only to learn that all parts in the show were cast -- but they invited him to meet the casting director for a possible future guest role (should the show make it to series).

A month later, fate intervened again when the actor cast to play Tim's sidekick landed a movie, and bowed out of the pilot. Richard was called back and landed a guest role as Al, with the understanding that the original actor would return to the series. When one of Richard's few lines in that first show (the now famous catch-phrase, "I don't think so, Tim") received the biggest laugh of the night, Richard's fate was sealed as America's favorite second banana.

Not willing to trust his luck, Richard kept his day job -- as an apartment manager specializing in odd jobs -- until the end of "Home Improvement's" first season, when the show finished third. Ironically, instead of playing a craftsman, Richard might have become a fourth-generation builder. His father, Gene Karn Wilson, is a retired Seattle architect and builder who gets a big kick out of seeing his son as the brains behind "Tool Time."

Richard is the spokesperson for Wayne-Dalton Corp., the world's largest garage and entry door manufacturer and sponsor of the annual Richard Karn Celebrity Golf Classic, which each June raises funds for cancer research in Seattle. The tournament is broadcast on ESPN, bringing attention to the disease which claimed the life of his mother, noted Pacific Northwest artist Louise Wilson.

Additional television credits include co-hosting "Secrets of the Internet," and the ABC specials, "Boys Will Be Boys" opposite Ami Dolenz and "Chariots of the Gods."

Richard and Tudi (who has a recurring role on "Home Improvement" as Jill's sister, Carrie), recently celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary and have a five-year-old son, Cooper. During the television season, the family resides in the San Fernando Valley section of Los Angles. They maintain an important tie to the Pacific Northwest, through the Karn family's summer home located just outside of Seattle, in Issaquah, Washington.

In addition to being an avid golfer, Richard enjoys skiing, fishing and poker.

VITAL STATISTICS
BIRTHPLACE: Seattle, WA
BIRTHDATE: Feb. 17
HEIGHT: 5'10"
HAIR: Brown
EYES: Blue

Need to write? Here's where to send mail to Richard Karn.