Bob Saget Biography

Actor, comedian, writer, director, producer. Born on May 17, 1956, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In his long career in the entertainment industry, Bob Saget has worked as a sitcom star, a television host, and a stand-up comedian. His comic skills emerged at an early age, winning kisses from girls in kindergarten for making them laugh. Around the age of 9, Saget started making movies with a Super 8 camera.

Initially, Saget wanted to go into medicine. But his grades were lackluster and got even worse when the family moved from Philadelphia to Encino, California, while he was a teenager. He returned to Philadelphia for his senior year of high school. At Temple University, Saget pursued his love of film. He made a short documentary, Through Adam's Eyes, about a boy who undergoes surgery to correct a genetic defect. Well received, the film earned Saget a Student Academy Award in 1978.

After graduating from Temple in 1978, Saget went to the prestigious film school at the University of Southern California, but he did not last long. "I quit after a couple of days. I was a cocky, overweight 22 year-old. Then I had a gangrenous appendix taken out, almost died, and I got over being cocky or overweight," Saget told the Saturday Evening Post in 1990.

Staying in Los Angeles, Saget started channeling his natural comic talents into a stand-up routine. He spent years on the comic club circuit, developing an act based on free association and his own unique commentary. Along the way, Saget befriended fellow comedians Gary Shandling and Dave Coulier. He was driven to succeed, once describing himself as a "triple-A personality." Still Saget did manage to have a personal life, marrying attorney Sherri Kramer in 1983. The couple had dated since high school.

While on the road, Saget met Brad Grey who became his manager. He eventually landed some small roles in television and film, but his big break came as part of a news show. In 1987, Saget was joined CBS's The Morning Program to add some humor to the show, which was co-hosted by Mariette Hartley and Rolland Smith. The gig proved to be short-lived. "The affiliates were upset—I was considered too 'hot' for the morning, whatever that is," Saget once said. 

After six months, Saget was let go from The Morning Program. His next project would prove to be his greatest success. As Danny Tanner, a widowed father of three on Full House, Saget played one of television's nicest, albeit wimpiest, dads. The premise of the show was that his brother-in-law Jesse (John Stamos) and his friend Joey (Dave Coulier) move in with his family. His eldest daughter, D. J., was played by Candace Cameron. Jodie Sweetin played middle child Stephanie while the role of baby Michele Tanner was shared by twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.

While critics weren't thrilled with the show, audiences loved it. The series reached the top 20 soon after it premiered on ABC in the fall of 1987. With cute kids and a lot of domestic humor, it was a natural fit for the network's Friday night line-up of family entertainment.