'Man Caves' Wraps Up New Basement in Chatham Home

Bob and Jennifer Papa of Chatham Borough helped the crew from the television show "Man Caves" build a new office space for Bob in the basement. Or rather, at least one of them did.

"When we first got here and took out the equipment, we thought Bob was going to help out," c0host and former NFL player Tony Siragusa said. "On his first cut he almost took his hand off, so we've sat him out."

Instead, Jennifer is the one who has been helping out. In fact, it's thanks to Jennifer that the show is there in the first place. She applied for the show to come to the family's house to build a home office for Bob, a Sirius radio show host. The crew calls it the "Work From Home Cave."

Jason Cameron, cohost of the show, said, "This is a space where he can close the door and do his work undisturbed."

Before "Man Cave" came onto the scene, Jennifer said the basement looked "like a dorm room." She said, "He really needed a space that was his, that no one would mess with and that was his own. He works hard enough."

Bob said he was nervous and excited about what the show could do in such a short length of time. "They came in [Monday] and they'll be done [Wednesday," he said. "It's a cool thing, it's an amazing thing they're doing."

The cave will feature a wall-mounted television area for Bob to watch sports games (for work) along with all the necessary satelite radio equipment.

Rick Garrabrant, the show's producer and director, said that anywhere between 300 to 1,000 requests come in each week from households that want a "man cave." They look for something that's new and unique in the need, the space and the design. "Ninety percent of what we do is sports," Garrabrant said. "We like to look for a new theme."

Siragusa may have an idea for a new theme. Referenceing all the handywork that Jennifer has done on the room, he said, "She's the one who deserves a Man Cave!"

The Work From Home Cave will be completed Wednesday afternoon to the Papa family and their neighbors.