From beekeeping and wine-making to scrapbooking and woodworking, more and more celebrities are devoting their downtime to hobbies and do-it-yourself projects that are often quirky and always personally rewarding. DIY-Do It Yourself Network will showcase known personalities and their personal passions in Celebrity Hobbies, an intriguing new 13-part series that launched on April 4. Hosted by Tracy Griffith (half-sister of actress Melanie Griffith), Celebrity Hobbies will air weekly on Friday nights. The series will feature more than two dozen actors, musicians, athletes and authors at home or in the field, in their studios and workshops, as they demonstrate first-hand for viewers their particular penchants, ranging from the artistically fulfilling and functional to the relaxing and downright offbeat. Each episode will focus on two celebrities, who give step-by-step instructions on a project, as well as guest experts who give advice on the array of topics featured every week. Like with any DIY program, the network’s website, DIYnet.com , will provide step-by step project instructions and related resources to each of the episode’s topics. The one-hour special, to precede the series premiere, offers a fast-paced preview of many of the personalities featured in the program, including the NFL’s Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders who love to scrapbook; Atlanta Braves’ catcher Javy Lopez who collects and operates radio control airplanes; actor James Avery who collects African-American memorabilia; and rock guitarist Steve Vai who’s in to beekeeping. AND Hut Stricklin (NASCAR driver): When he’s not behind the wheel revving the engine, Hut restores classic cars and offers some tricks of the trade [scheduled to air on April 25th at 8:30pm/et, re-air dates can be found on their website]. Mario Andretti (race car driver): Mario demonstrates the much slower-paced world of fine winemaking at his own Napa Valley vineyard. DIY, one of four cable television networks operated by Scripps Networks, focuses on the do-it-yourself enthusiast, providing in-depth demonstrations and tips for categories such as arts and crafts; automotive and boating; cooking and entertaining; decorating and design; gardening and landscaping; household and cleaning; home building; home improvement; recreation and hobbies; and tools and products. DIY is distributed to 13 million U.S. households and is on pace to reach 20 million by the end of 2003. The network’s companion website, DIYnet.com, mirrors the weekly on-air programming schedule, featuring easy-to-use, step-by-step instructions for more than 9,000 projects, including a detailed online guide to resources, materials and related projects. DIYnet.com users can search the site for any project shown on-air, engage in community bulletin boards and submit do-it-yourself questions to the expert DIY staff.(4-13-2003)
