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R.I.P. Bob Saget, the comedic centerpiece of Full House
The stand-up comic and America's Funniest Home Videos host was 65.
The Morning Show was such a debacle it is now forgotten. CBS launched the breakfast program in the winter of 1987, almost 35 years ago to this very day. It was a bold blend of news and comedy, a formula that is now routine. The show crashed and burned in the ratings but one career rose from the ashes — Bob Saget.
Saget was a film-school graduate from Temple University, in his hometown of Philadelphia. He made art films in college. He was always smarter than he played. And darker. In 1981, he made his television debut on Bosom Buddies, playing, fittingly, "Bob the Comic." It's the one where Tom Hanks and Peter Scoleri bus tables in a nightclub, "The Show Must Go On." Two years later, Saget popped up on The Greatest American Hero, but his screen career ran rather dry until 1987.
Full House cast Saget as widowed father Danny Tanner shortly after The Morning Show. ABC slotted the sitcom on Friday night, where it would become a centerpiece of the seminal TGIF lineup, a staple of Gen-X and Millennial youth viewing. The San Francisco-set family comedy was not an immediate hit. In its first season, Full House ranked just 71st amidst network shows. But it's cute catchphrases, coupled with the good looks of John Stamos and the simmering edge of Saget, launched the show into the Top 25 by season three.
And as Full House was entering its third season, Saget broadened his fame, landing a gig hosting America's Funniest Home Videos, which was essentially YouTube, two decades before YouTube.
Just as Saget was becoming the face of family television, he countered his reputation with adult comedy, directing his pals Norm MacDonald and Artie Lange in the cult movie Dirty Work. His 2014 comedy album That's What I'm Talkin' About, earned a Grammy Nomination.
According to TMZ, Saget passed away on Sunday, January 9, in Orlando. He was 65.
22 Comments
While I didn't really care for Full House all that much, I did think that Bob Saget was the best host of America's Funniest Home Videos. I really enjoyed him on that.
He seemed to be enjoying the work he was doing on his tour.
Condolences to his wife, children and longtime friend John Stamos.
R.I.P. Bob Saget.