Coulier says he picked the name “Gladstone” himself
Dave Coulier’s sense of humor is about as goofy as his Full House character’s — but a little more risqué.
The 64-year-old comedian and actor proved that on the most recent episode of his podcast Full House Rewind, when he revealed the surprising meaning behind his character’s last name.
Coulier was joined by actress Debra Stipe, who appeared on Full House in a three-episode arc as a love interest of Bob Saget’s Danny Tanner during the show’s fourth season. She and Coulier reminisced about their time on the show, and about auditioning for their roles.
Coulier recalled that when he tried out for the part of lovable stand-up comic Joey with series creator Jeff Franklin and executive producer Thomas Miller, the character may not have even had a name yet.
“I got to pick my own last name. Did you know that?” he said. “My character last name?”
“Jeff said, ‘I’m trying to get a last name for your character,’ ” Coulier continued. “And I said, ‘How about Gladstone?’ And he laughed. He goes, ‘All right. That sounds good.’ And that was it.”
Stipe then asked whether there was a meaning behind the name.
“I always thought it was a funny name,” Coulier explained. “Like, it was almost like, ‘I’m glad that I’m stoned.’ ”
“You know, I’m a comedian, so that was what I thought,” he continued as Stipe laughed. “And, so Jeff laughed, and that was it. But I walked out of that first reading, yeah, thinking I didn’t get this.”
Coulier, who has been sober since early 2020, said he’d been thrown following his audition for the part when Miller asked him to then read for the role that would ultimately go to Saget.
In fact, Full House costar John Stamos revealed last year that he wasn’t immediately convinced Coulier was the right fit either.“[Jeff] Franklin sets up a chemistry lunch with me and Dave Coulier, an up-and-coming comedian who was up for the role of Joey Gladstone,” Stamos recalled in an Instagram post. “Dave waxes on a bit too seriously about comedy and specifically his comedy and how it sets him apart from other comedians. As soon as I get home, I call Jeff: ‘You’re kidding me, right? That guy is what we call NF, not funny.’ ”
Stamos said he changed his mind after seeing Coulier perform his stand-up. “I go backstage: ‘And why couldn’t you have done that at lunch and saved me a 45-minute car ride?’ He laughs, I hug him and tell him how talented he is. I can’t wait to work with him.”
Coulier of course, went on to play the role of Joey on the beloved ABC sitcom for the entirety of its eight-season run from 1987 to 1995, starring opposite Stamos, Saget, Lori Loughlin, Candace Cameron Bure, Jodie Sweetin and a very young Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. He also reprised the role in Netflix’s Full House reboot, Fuller House, which ended in 2020.
