Sarit Catz Blog
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Have you guys seen any of the video of John Stamos doing interviews in Australia?
WATCH THE BIZARRE JOHN STAMOS INTERVIEW NOW!
Evidently, he was promoting the TV show “ER,” which is airing over there. He showed up to various interviews apparently under the influence of something. He and his reps claim it was fatigue and jetlag. To the rest of us it looks like drugs and alcohol. I have no idea which is true.
I will tell you that I think John Stamos is a hell of a guy. He was the first big star I wrote for because “Full House” was my first job as a TV writer. Stamos was extremely nice to me and my partner. In fact, he seemed to be very nice to everyone.
In pre-production that season, they were casting little boy twins to play Jesse and Rebecca’s twins. Even though casting was happening somewhere else on the lot and he was technically still on hiatus, Stamos came by the writers’ offices to say hi to the writers. He introduced himself to my partner and me, asking us about our working style. Did one of us do story, the other dialogue? No, we both did everything. We just did it together. Why? It’s more fun that way.
There was no big eye contact moment or anything, just a normal little chat. Doubtless, he doesn’t remember the conversation or me or my partner. The thing is, it was a normal little chat because he just acted normal. No star trip. Normal.
Later on in the season, when we were into production, we were shooting an episode where the character of Joey was shooting his last episode of his “Ranger Joe” kids’ show and the “Ranger Joe” set was being struck. The kids on the fake show used to sit on these fake tree stumps and my partner and I wanted to use one as a side table in our office. We asked one of the prop guys if we could have one of the fake tree stumps. He told us it was not possible because everything was catalogued and cross-checked etc. Stamos overheard this conversation and he asked the prop guy if he could have one of the stumps. Of course, the prop guy said no problem and had a grip put one in Stamos’ dressing room. Stamos turned to us, winked, and said he’d have a P.A. bring it over to our office. And he did.
Actually, the whole cast was pretty darn nice. One Friday night when were taping a show that my partner and I wrote, Bob Saget came over to us on the set between scenes to thank us for a speech we wrote for him. He said it was the kind of speech he rarely got to deliver on the show, it was very well written, and he really appreciated it. What do you think about that, eh?
I have no dirt on Mary-Kate and Ashley because they were really little girls. The other girls were actually very good, professional, and friendly. Lori Laughlin was gorgeous, she could eat like a truck driver yet stay skinny as a rail, and she could crush your hand with her vise-like handshake. Dave Coulier has the longest tongue you’ve ever seen - longer than Gene Simmons – which is weird, but sexy.
I’ve worked on many shows since. Some better. Some not. A lot of them cooler, but none of them a bigger hit with more staying power.
Here’s the thing, I don’t know if Stamos is drunk or tired or whatever, but when the talk show hostess asks him how he feels when he looks back at his time on “Full House,” he says he looks back on it fondly. Me too.
When my partner and I went out to L.A. for our first staffing season, we had a bunch of general meetings with studio and network execs and we got on a bunch of their “approved” lists. We were hoping to get meetings with show runners and were planning to pop the cork on a bottle of champagne we had if we landed a job. We had a motto, a policy, a slogan, maybe a mantra – we would take any job, even “Full House.” Wouldn’t you know it, we met with the show runners of “Full House” fairly early in the staffing season. We got the job offer and went out to a bar. There was no question that we were going to take the job, but we sat at the bar for a while deciding if we popped the cork for “Full House.” We decided we were being complete idiots if we didn’t pop the cork. We popped the cork.
I’ve had a love/hate relationship with that credit, which in many ways is my best credit. It’s a kids’ show. It’s not “cool.” But you know what? I still get checks. Not big ones.
Also, now that I have kids, I’m a full on celebrity because of “Full House.” I dropped my daughter at ballet class a while back and talked to her teacher about my pilot. The teacher’s cousin had shown up to be an extra – he was a friend of a friend of the director – and he looked awfully familiar. I eventually placed him as the hip hop and tap teacher at my daughter’s dance school and he told me his cousin is my daughter’s teacher. So, when I drop my daughter off, the teacher and I got to talking about my pilot and my checkered TV past. So, word got out in the school…
When I picked up my daughter an hour later, every little girl in the class asked for my autograph. Seriously.
But that’s not my real point. My real point is that now that I have kids, I understand the value of a show like “Full House.” It wasn’t cool or edgy or sophisticated. But it wasn’t trying to be. It really was a show that was good at being what it was.
And being good at what you are is a pretty amazing achievement. The trick is figuring out what you are. I’m still working on that.
In the meantime, I say what Stamos is, is up to him. But IMHO, Stamos is a nice guy… who also happens to look pretty damn hot. Better than ever. Rock on, John. return from Sarit Catz blog to Sarit Home Page
