LOS ANGELES – Ty Pennington (search), the hyperactive team leader of ABC's home improvement series "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (search), is recovering from a weekend appendectomy.
Pennington was in his hometown of Atlanta for a taping of an upcoming episode when he was taken to the hospital for the surgery, the network said Tuesday.
Pennington and his team were rebuilding a home in Lake City that has serious plumbing problems.
He participated in guiding the design team from his hospital bed and taping went ahead as planned.
"I don't want to let the family down, and all of us with the show want to give them the new house they deserve," Pennington said in a statement.
Network executives say it is just like Pennington to want to include his situation in the episode.
"Our show has always been authentic in the way it portrays reality, and this is just another testament to that," said Tom Forman, executive producer and series creator.
Pennington, the former "Trading Spaces" (search) carpenter, is the author of "Ty's Tricks: Home Repair Secrets Plus Cheap and Easy Projects to Transform Any Room," a mixture of handyman tips and how-to projects.
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