Bob Saget is Comedy’s Chameleon

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Photo by Brian Friedman

Bob Saget has seen many stages in his career. First known to a mainstream audience as Danny Tanner, the clean-cut widower in "Full House", and as the host of the equally family-friendly precursor to shows like "Tosh.0", "America’s Funniest Home Videos". Tanner’s career took a turn post-AFHV when he debuted a raunchier style of comedy including a cameo in Dave Chappelle’s "Half Baked" and his role as a fictionalized version of himself in HBO’s "Entourage". 

Recently, Saget reprised the familiar role of Danny Tanner in Netflix’s "Fuller House", and made an appearance in the independent film "A Stand Up Guy".

You’re promoting "Fuller House" right now, along with "A Stand Up Guy". You’re doing stand up and you just finished your Broadway show "Hand to God". How has it been balancing all that?

Well right now I’m away with my daughter. We got away for a few days. But of course while I’m on vacation I love to wake up and do interviews. 

Oh I’m sure (sarcastically).

It’s actually great. I’m a real appreciative guy. I never thought I would be where I am today.

This Netflix thing is amazing because BAM! (oh, I just turned into Emeril), it goes to over 100 countries at the same time on the same day. Back in the day, that never happened. "Full House" was very popular in Australia, but it took a few years before they could buy it because it was syndicated. It’s a new model for broadcasting.

On "Fuller House" I did two episodes, I was going to do three but I started a Broadway play called “Hand to God”, and then came back and started my stand up tour. I’m working on a whole bunch of new material. I do have to do some of the favorites because people really do enjoy my music. Even though I don’t play very well I do enjoy writing comedy songs. I’ll be doing those as well as some of the new stuff I’ve been working on.

So many of these reboots of classic sitcoms never make it past people saying “that would be a good idea”. What all went into getting "Fuller House" on the air?

This was really unbelievable. We were at the premiere last week and they rented out a movie theater. They showed the first episode which has the whole cast in it. What the show is really about is DJ, Stephanie and Kimmy trying to raise their kids in the same house

To see the premiere of a television show on a movie screen was amazing. I’ve seen that before for shows like "Entourage" and other really important shows, but never for a family sitcom. Netflix and Warner Brothers just stood behind the producers. 

They’ve been trying to get this off the ground since 2008. I honestly didn’t think it was going to happen. I didn’t think everyone would be able to come to an agreement. It’s really about the girls, and they look great. If I was on every episode all I’d be doing is saying, “Put a sweater on for God’s sake! Cover those things up”.

A lot has changed since "Full House" has been on the air. Your public perception is definitely one of those things.

I do a mixture of roles. I just got done playing a Lutheran pastor. My stand up is something that allows me to not be myself, but be myself as a stand up comic. There’s a lot of honesty in it, and I think writing my New York Times Best Seller "Dirty Daddy", I had to plug that right away since I’m a press hoe, has changed me a bit in how I do my stand up.

I still do my normal below the belt kind of humor, but I’m not quite as R-rated. I’m a softer comic than I was just because I have nothing to prove. I love talking to people and I love relaying stories that mean a lot to me. I also love silly humor.

I’m a lot cleaner than a lot of my peers who don’t get labeled as dirty because they were never on a family show. People thought that I was just like Danny Tanner at home. Like I would dust bust. I mean I would dust bust if a young girl threw a vase at me. Otherwise it’s just a character.

The funniest part is when I look at Twitter and people say, “Oh my God. Bob Saget is acting. I never realized that”. 

How was working with Michael Rappaport on the movie? I’ve heard some crazy stories about you, John Stamos and Dave Coulier on the set of Full House and I feel like he could go head to head with you on some of your pranks.

He’s so funny. The movie has a lot of great actors in it like Ethan Suplee and Danny A(beckaser). Everyone is spread throughout the movie so I didn’t have any scenes with Michael. Danny A is the star of the movie. His last name is Abeckaser, but he goes by Danny A because I stutter like Bob Newhart trying to say it.

My friend Mike Young directed and wrote it. He assembled a really good ensemble for an independent movie. I play a guy in a bar that sings country western songs about stalking. He’s pretty much just a sicko. People won’t even know it’s me. I wear these old Tom Ford sunglasses, a cowboy hat and sideburns that go down to my lips. It was just a fun part for me to be in.

"A Stand Up Guy" is about a petty thief who gets arrested for drugs, and is put into witness protection in Wisconsin. He gets up at a comedy club and does well. Then someone heckles him so he punches the guy out and it goes viral. So now the witness protection program can’t help him and the mob is after him. There’s a little bit of a “My Cousin Vinny” kind of thing going on with the character.

It’s a really fun movie, and it’s about stand up, which is close to me obviously. It’s doing really well. It’s on iTunes. It’s on things that I didn’t even know existed. It’s on Amazon. Amazon is good because if you’re watching an erotic film on Amazon, in two clicks you can buy lotion too. You can buy tuna fish and watch porn and get lotion.

That sounds like a great premise. Have you ever come close to punching a heckler at one of your shows?

I would never punch anybody, because I would run away. I have security everywhere I go. Just last week I was doing a show right outside of Chicago and a fight broke out in the audience between 15 people, three separate groups. One guy was flicking some guy’s ear, and then they all just started punching each other. I couldn’t believe it because it was a real nice place in the suburbs of Chicago. I had them call the police while everyone is punching each other. I have zero tolerance for that kind of crap so I had them stop.

Is that the Danny Tanner in you?

No, no, no. There’s no Danny Tanner when I’m on stage. He would probably run up and start cleaning the tables if there was blood on them. Mike Young had to do security because all of the security in that town were old ladies. They had a couple old men and a couple old ladies so no one knew what to do. They did end up arresting a couple people for starting the fight. Then I ended up doing another half hour to make up for the time they spent beating the crap out of each other.

I’m a pretty passive guy. If a heckler says something to me and they’re not having a good time I just get them their money back and have them leave. I do like talking to people. Usually the people who talk at my shows are cool, but sometimes you get a guy who didn’t mix his meth right that day. You have to have a good batch of meth if you want to come see me. I’m kidding I don’t promote drug use at my shows. I can tell who’s on what when I’m at my shows. 

I don’t think you’ll see anyone on meth when you come to the Pabst. Just a lot of alcohol.

That’s fine. The only problem is people who try and give me drinks before I go on and I can’t drink them. My work requires actual thought and booze slows me down too much.

Also, people think I smoke so much pot. They always think I’m stoned. They reply to me on Twitter or Instagram and say, “Bob looks baked”. No, if I’m around stoned people I just go right to where they’re at. I’m an emotional chameleon when it comes to people on substances.

So it’s safe to say your real life isn’t anything like its portrayed on "Entourage"?

Well, once in awhile it is. I’m not a misogynist. I’m not going to take a girl from Drama after taking hits from a bong. That’s not my make up. I’m not that guy. Also I’m older now. They would probably want Drama more now.

I had a girlfriend once that said I was my character from "Entourage". She said, “You’re not shaved, you’re wearing a black robe, you just got out of your Jacuzzi and you’re smoking a cigar. It looks ridiculous”. Then we had a nice night. I think people sometimes want the bad boy, and I’m a mix of all of that. There’s a little Danny Tanner in me, but I’m not a two-dimensional character from a children’s show.

I’m also not a misogynist, or a stalker. The only stalking I would do is looking over someone’s Instagram account to see if they have a boyfriend or if they’re still available. I’m a single man, and sometimes the Internet can do weird things to people.

To end on a little more serious note, can you tell me about your involvement in the Scleroderma Research Foundation?

Absolutely. I’d be honored to. I’ve been involved in that for over 25 years. I had a sister who lost her life. She came down with this rare disease called Scleroderma that affects a lot of women in their childbearing years. There are hundreds of thousands of people in the world with it. We do benefits. I’m on the board of directors of the Scleroderma Research Foundation. There’s also the Scleroderma Foundation, and they do good work, but I’m on the board of the Scleroderma Research Foundation. We do a good job of differentiating ourselves (laughs). We’re trying to find a cure, or at least get more people into remission. We’ve raised over $30 million over the last 20 years. I got involved by doing comedy benefits for them before my sister was even sick.

My sister came down with the disease and I couldn’t believe it. That she had this thing happen to her, and within three years she had lost her life to it. I’m devoting the rest of my life to it. We do these benefits called “Cool Comedy, Hot Cuisine” two to three times a year. We just did one in L.A. and raised $650,000. We had Jimmy Kimmel do the auction with me, and John Mayer performed. Jim Gaffigan and Jeff Garland also performed.

Then in New York a couple months ago Andy Cohen did the auction with me, and Louis C.K. performed. We raised over $700,000 that night. It’s so significant because that money goes right to research. Our operating costs are low and we have a small board. I’ll be working with them for the rest of my life.

Bob Saget will be performing at the Pabst Theater on Friday, March 11.