Since July, the new series has seen a famous face repay someone in their life who is foundational to their success. In a massive gesture of gratitude, they bring in host Nischelle Turner and a team of designers to renovate and improve that person’s home. The show closes out its first season with Boston Rob going back to his hometown to make over the kitchen and deck of his parents’ (Robert and Linda Mariano) house, wanting to say thanks for all the sacrifices they’ve made in pursuit of his million-dollar dreams. And if you know anything about Boston Rob’s construction background and hands-on approach to Survivor, you know he won’t be appearing without getting his hands dirty. Check out our exclusive conversation with Boston Rob about his experience on Secret Celebrity Renovation below. The season finale airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on CBS. Secret Celebrity Renovation is a very different show from your usual reality fare. How did you get involved? So I got a call originally from Bob Horowitz, who is the head of production. And he said that my name had come up in a meeting with Kelly Kahl, who is the President of CBS Entertainment, that they were doing this new renovation show, and they wanted me to be involved in it. It’s perfect for me because my background’s in construction. And CBS has always been family to me over the last 20 years. What made you decide to renovate your parents’ house? When Bob pitched me the idea of doing something to give back to somebody that’s made a difference in my life, it was a no-brainer for me. The first people that came to my mind were my parents. Family has always been so important. I thought it was perfect because they’re totally the type of people who refuse to want their money back. My parents just give, give, give, and they don’t want to take anything ever. So this was a nice way to be able to give them something that they can’t return. They can’t give it back. And because my background is in construction, I took an active role in actually completing the renovation. So it was more personal to me as well.Despite seeing so much of your life in the past 20 years on TV, we actually don’t know that much about your parents. What was it like to be able to show that side of the Mariano family? They’re super private, and that’s why they don’t really seek out the limelight. They’re just really family-oriented people. So I kind of tricked them into it. I told them I was going to do something over there at their house. They knew that I was going to do something, but they didn’t know exactly what I was going to do. In the other episodes of the series, usually, they tell the people in advance what they’re going to do. And then and then they have them go away, and they do the renovation. With my parents, it was a little bit different. They had a house down in Florida where Amber and I are, and they were staying down there at the time because it was in the late spring. So I was like, “Listen, I’m gonna go up to Boston and do some stuff at your house.” You got to blindside your own family! Without spoiling too much, what was their reaction when they saw what you had done? They had no idea. They had just come back, and it was a complete surprise. The reaction’s pretty epic because they had no idea. I’m 45 years old, but I still think my dad thinks of me as a little kid. So he was like, “Ooh, he’s going to go do something over there. That’s cute. What’s he going to do, build the bench or something?” It’s pretty awesome to see their reaction. As you said, your background’s in construction. But I can imagine how this project is different from any other you’ve worked on because it’s so personal. Talk to me about that. It’s not even so much the house because the materialistic thing is great. But just to be able to do something for them. You’ve covered Surivor and me for a long time. A lot of people see how I am on TV, with Survivor and The Amazing Race and the strategy and the social game and all of that. You’ve got to understand that all came from somebody. That came from my upbringing. My dad is super entrepreneurial, a strategic go-getter trying to figure out the best way to do things. In a way, people get the backstage view into how Boston Rob became Boston Rob.I called in some of my buddies from when I was a kid growing up. I called some other friends from when I was in construction. And they came over; they gave me a hand. I was there every day. I came to Boston for two and a half weeks, and I actually stayed at the house. I got up at 5:00 in the morning every single day. I worked until 7:00 at night, 12-14 hours with the other guys. This was no Mickey Mouse maze. To me, that’s what made it so good. Because it was so authentic. Back in the day, my dad was very handy. So he understood the amount of work that we did in the time that we did it. My mom saw just the cosmetic end of the finished product, and it’s not that she wasn’t appreciative. But my dad understood what went into doing what we did and the time that we did it. He was floored. Talk to me about visiting Canton, because this is another side of you that we hadn’t seen on the other shows. I’m from Boston, so my buddies are going to bust my balls and give me a hard time. But at the end of the day, I guarantee any one of them will tell you that I’m still the same person from before. They might tease me and call me “Hollywood.” But they know I’m the same. So for them to show up for me when I needed them was pretty awesome. There’s no free plot, no free passes. This is not a Sunset Boulevard, where somebody’s going to look at you one way and tell you something different.As you mentioned, you have a hands-on role in the renovation process. Was that always the plan? That was the plan the whole time. So when Bob called me up, I said, “Listen, I’ll do it, but I want to be actively involved in it. I don’t want to do a made-for-TV renovation.” I mean, three days into it, I’m like, “Oh my God, what did I agree to exactly? It’s just me and two other guys there!” But the intention from the beginning was to be involved in it. Because it made it that much more special. It’s not like I’m using my “celebrity” to be able to give them something. I’m their son, and I’m doing something for them. For the rest of their lives, they’re going to be in that kitchen, and they’re going to know that I had a hand in making that happen for them. On that note, you chose to renovate the kitchen and the deck for your parents specifically. Talk to me about the reasoning behind those choices. I mean, it’s really the heart of being Italian. In our family, everything happens in the kitchen. That’s a gathering place where we share our meals. That’s where we sit down and talk. I came up with a cookbook last year; the kitchen has always been like the heart of the family. So that room just seemed to be where the most appropriate room to redo in the house. The deck space is a big outdoor space. We always have a lot of people over. We have a big family between my brother, my sister, and me, and my extended family. My father is one of six, so I have a lot of uncles and cousins that are all still in the area. And everybody is very close. We get together all the time, holidays, weekends, whatever. It’s a nice place to gather.I hear one of the things you sprung for was a pizza oven, as pizza making is something you and your dad love to do. Can you elaborate on that? That was so much fun to be able to do that. We put a pizza oven on the back porch. And we got to fire up the oven. I made a fire with the flint, just to show off. My dad and I went to Sicily 15 or 20 years ago, and we had some pizza over there. And it was just unbelievable. Ever since then, we’re always on the quest to make the best pizza. We always used to say, “Oh, if we had a real oven over here, then we could make pizzas and have a party.” So we were able to get one, install it, and build it into the deck. Once we made it into this outdoor kitchen area, it definitely brings a party to the backyard.In a preview clip for the episode, you talk about how having children made you appreciate what your parents were able to do for you. How did this whole experience make you look at the generations of Marianos in your life? Like I said before, I get all the credit for being Boston Rob from TV. But all of those strategic and other aspects really came from them. I never really see it as repaying them because I could never actually repay them; that’s too much. But just to be able to do something, even a little something, that’s going to make a difference. It is true what I said about my own kids. I don’t think you realize it until you have your own kids. And you have to start to make sacrifices as a parent, whether it’s not going out, working extra, changing diapers, or whatever it is. All of a sudden, it hits you. You see your parents in a whole other light. They did all of this for me way back when they didn’t have X, Y, and Z. So when you see that realization, it’s a little bit of an awakening. I’m lucky. I have a great story; I don’t have a sad story. I’m lucky I had two parents; they cared for me that did everything for me and my brother, my sister to make our lives awesome. And I try to do it for my own kids. This was a really cool way to say thank you.Next, here’s everything you need to know about the newest season of Survivor.
