List of Full House characters
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article does not cite any references or sources. (November 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
This is a list of characters from the TV sitcom Full House.
Contents |
[edit] Main characters
- Danny Tanner
- Jesse Katsopolis
- Joey Gladstone
- D. J. Tanner
- Stephanie Tanner
- Michelle Tanner
- Kimmy Gibbler
- Rebecca Donaldson-Katsopolis
- Nicky and Alex Katsopolis
[edit] Recurring characters
[edit] Steven "Steve" Hale
Steve Hale (originally introduced as Steve Peters) is D.J.'s first steady boyfriend. He joins the cast as an official member in Season 6, although he made an appearance in one episode in Season 5. Steve is two years older than D.J., and he is the captain of his high school wrestling team. He leaves the cast at the end of Season 7 after he and D.J. break up, but later makes a cameo appearance in the Season 8 finale Michelle Rides Again (Part 2). Even though he and D.J. have broken up, he returns in the series finale to escort D.J. to her prom. Steve was played by Scott Weinger, and by Wataru Takagi in the Japanese dub.
[edit] Pam Katsopolis-Tanner
Pamela Cochran/Katsopolis-Tanner (March 5, 1958– May 12, 1987), was the wife of Danny Tanner, and mother of D.J., Stephanie, and Michelle Tanner. She was also the daughter of Nick and Irene Katsopolis, and the older sister of Jesse Katsopolis.
Pam met her future husband, Danny, in tenth grade when she sat next to him in geometry class. In a first season episode, we learn that Danny didn't start puberty until he sat next to her in class; the morning after, he found he had grown a moustache. In the Season 2 finale Luck Be a Lady, Part 2, it is revealed that Danny and Pam eloped at a young age, which upset both of their families, and even caused Jesse to get so mad that he beat Danny up, causing Danny to fracture one of his ribs. She was always smiling, overly excited, and awful at punctuality. Each of her personality traits could also be seen in her three daughters. Shortly after giving birth to her third child, Michelle Tanner, she was killed in a car accident by a drunk driver.
After her death, Pam's younger brother, Jesse, moved into the house to help his brother-in-law, Danny, raise his three nieces: D.J., Stephanie, and Michelle. Jesse is the one who seems to miss Pam the most, which is one of the reasons why living with the Tanner family means so much to him. It was Jesse who pulled everyone together after his sister’s death, according to the episode It’s Not My Job. Pam is seen only once in the series, portrayed by actress Christine Houser in the episode Goodbye Mr. Bear in a home video, which depicts Pam and Danny returning from the hospital with newborn baby Michelle, which reminded the girls about their lovely mother.
[edit] Vicky Larson
Vicky Larson (born April 25, 1957) is Danny's girlfriend and (briefly) fiancée, played by Gail Edwards.
Vicky is the type of woman who is very focused on her career, and that proves to be the undoing in her long-distance relationship with Danny. She also reveals herself to be seven months, three weeks, and two days older than Danny. They meet, and start dating while Vicky is filling in for Becky (who is on maternity leave) on Wake Up, San Francisco. Later, Danny insists that she take a job in Chicago doing the news that she was offered once Becky returns (Play It Again, Jess), and that starts a long-distance relationship that goes from early Season 6 to mid-Season 7, and which includes their brief engagement at the end of Season 6. However, Vicky gets her dream job — anchoring the network news in New York — so she cannot come to live with Danny and his family in San Francisco, nor is Danny able to uproot his family in California. Therefore, they must break up, and she is not heard from again. This would be the final legitimate chance that Danny's daughters have of getting a new mother.
Vicky is a kind woman who gives good advice, especially when it comes to D.J.’s relationship with Steve, and helping Danny to deal with it. She also acts like a mother to Michelle on at least one occasion. When Michelle is being quite bossy during her day as "Princess" at Disney World, Vicky reminds her that a good princess is always fair and kind, and that’s why people love her. The audience is given the impression that she would have made a good mother, and one can even imagine that she has some of the same qualities as Pam. However, her career always came first. In the episode Prom Night, it comes out that she is actually 7 months older than Danny, in contrast to what she told Danny when she first came to Wake Up, San Francisco -- that she was a year younger.
[edit] Gia Mahan
Gia Mahan, played by Marla Sokoloff, is Stephanie's best friend in Seasons 7 and 8.
Gia might be considered Stephanie’s Kimmy. Just as D.J. let Kimmy lead her astray a little at times, Stephanie got involved in a small number of wild, irresponsible things because of Gia, such as joyriding and attending Gia's makeout party when Gia's mother was not home.
And yet, like Kimmy by D.J., Gia was shaped by Stephanie. During an unknown time when her parents had been through a divorce, Gia is shown as a cigarette-smoking, rebellious pre-teen with horrible grades. She is possibly one to three years older than Stephanie, as evidenced by a comment by Stephanie: "Are you ready for your third year of seventh grade?", and because she said she had two years of sixth grade. Her horrible grades the previous year indicate she might have been held back at least once. And yet, as of early Season 8, we learn that because of Stephanie, Gia has stopped smoking, became more respectful, improved her grades, and lost her inclination to play pranks on other people.
Gia can be described as a leader in some ways. She briefly performed in a band with Stephanie and Kimmy that failed miserably because the girls paid more attention to their appearance than to rehearsing. Despite being a relatively minor character, Gia's presence showed that Stephanie, while lacking the control of the book series, still was responsible enough, and driven enough, to be a great role model to a girl who was going through some personal life issues. Gia might have led Stephanie into some temptations, but by the end of the series, it was apparent that it was Gia who was changed for the better by Stephanie.
[edit] Teddy
Teddy is Michelle’s best friend, played by Tahj Mowry.
He made his debut on his and Michelle's first day of kindergarten after Joey told Michelle that the best way to make new friends was by being funny, and doing a Bullwinkle impression ("She talks with her hands on her head!"). He accompanies her when she needs a "date" to sneak out and join Danny on a date with Vicky in mid-Season 5. He is also the one whose house Michelle runs away to later that season. He moves to Amarillo, Texas in The Long Goodbye, but when his father’s job moves him back to San Francisco, he returns. He is the typical best friend a child his age would have, and he and Michelle even consider trying to be boyfriend and girlfriend in third grade in "Dateless in San Francisco". However, they try too hard to copy what Stephanie and her new interest Kenneth do and find that it’s no fun for children their age. So, they go back to just being "best friends".
The character of Teddy is similar to T.J. from Smart Guy (also played by Mowry).
[edit] Denise Frazer
Denise Frazer is one of Michelle's best friends, played by Jurnee Smollett.
She would eventually be the one who replaces Teddy after he moves to Texas. She first appeared briefly in the episode Girls Will Be Boys, and again in The Long Goodbye, after being transferred into Michelle's class. This was when she became a regular character. Denise, like Teddy before her, becomes Michelle's "partner in crime", and accompanies Michelle whenever she has an idea. In the episode Be Your Own Best Friend in Season 7, Teddy moves back to San Francisco, leaving Michelle to choose between him and Denise for whom to portray as her best friend. At the end of the episode, Danny makes her understand that it is possible to have more than one best friend. Michelle, Teddy, and Denise all become each other's best friends.
In the episode Too Little Richard Too Late, Denise reveals that Little Richard is her uncle. When he comes to the Tanners' house to pick her up, Joey convinces him to perform at his campaign rally to be elected President of the Frasier Street Elementary School PTA.
[edit] Aaron Bailey
Aaron Bailey is Michelle's recurring classmate, and he is played by Miko Hughes.
He is the typical class bully, who tends to be annoying and rude at times. He pinches Michelle in one episode when they are in pre-school and Jesse tells Michelle to fight back. When the teacher punishes them, Jesse takes Michelle home. While that behavior does not continue, his obnoxious ways continue throughout the series. Danny even remarks in a 7th season episode that they are watching Aaron for several days "until his regular babysitter stops twitching".
[edit] Derek S. Boyd
Derek S. Boyd is one of Michelle's friends later in the series, played by Blake McIver Ewing.
He has appeared in eight episodes throughout Seasons 6-8. Michelle first meets Derek in the episode The Play's the Thing, when he gets the role of Yankee Doodle in their school play "America the Beautiful". Though Michelle is initially jealous of Derek for winning the part over her (due in no small part to the fact that both of her sisters played "Yankee Doodle"), she helps him recover from stage-fright, and they eventually become friends. Derek is very educated and well-spoken for a boy of his age, though also a bit on the wimpy side. He also shows signs of being a bit obsessive-compulsive. As shown in several episodes, he is also a very talented singer. He says he blends in with his surroundings.
[edit] Lisa Leeper
Lisa was one of Michelle's friends in the series. She is featured in six episodes, and it is revealed that she is an extremely good singer. She sings the song, "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" in an episode with the character, Derek. She was played by Kathryn Zaremba
[edit] Nelson Burkhard
Nelson was a recurring character during Season 8, who was very wealthy, and who dated D.J. on-and-off for some time. Not much is revealed about Nelson's background or family, aside from the fact that he is very rich, and often throws and attends big parties on yachts. Though toward the end of Season 8, he mentions that his cousin, Regina, is visiting America from England, and he sets Joey up with her on a date. He was played by Jason Marsden, also known for playing recurring roles in several TGIF sitcoms, such as Step By Step. Toward the latter stages of his "relationship" with D.J., he gets into a "tug-of-war" with Viper to be D.J.'s boyfriend.
[edit] Viper
Viper (real name never revealed)was a recurring character during Season 8. He was the guitar player in Jesse's latest band, Hot Daddy and the Monkey Puppets. D.J. and Viper first meet when Jesse holds auditions for guitarists for his new band. They immediately hit it off, and begin to date, much to the chagrin of Jesse, who sees a little too much of himself in the young and wild Viper (who even has a cobra tattooed on his arm), and especially Danny, who is convinced that Viper is nothing more than a wild, uncontrollable, long-haired rock-and-roll "animal". Eventually, both Jesse and Danny learn to accept Viper for the kind and gentle person that he truly is, and he and D.J. continue to date. Viper's last appearance on the show was in an episode (D.J.'s Choice), in which he breaks up with D.J., only to want her back a few days later. He then finds out that she has resumed dating Nelson. At the end of the episode, Viper and Nelson are so busy competing with each other to try to "win" D.J. that she decides she wants to date neither of them. Viper was played by David Lipper.
[edit] Claire Tanner
Claire Tanner is Danny's mother. She helped Danny with the girls in the first few months after the death of Danny's wife, Pam, and once returned in the episode Granny Tanny. She was portrayed by Alice Hirson in Our Very First Show and The Return of Grandma, and Doris Roberts in Granny Tanny.
[edit] Wendy Tanner
Wendy Tanner is Danny's sister, who is an avid animal enthusiast, and works at a zoo. She owns a chimpanzee named Ginger, and is known to have had somewhat of a rivalry with Joey in their childhood, but when she comes back to San Francisco, she and Joey have a brief relationship after they both revealed themselves to have "secret crushes" on each other. It is also revealed that she collects exotic souvenirs from around the world. Wendy was played by Darlene Vogel.
[edit] Nick Katsopolis
Nick Katsopolis is Jesse and Pam's father. He is an avid fan of Elvis Presley, just like Jesse. Also just like his son, he is very much interested in his hair and ladies. He owns his own business, in which he is a bug exterminator. He met his wife, Irene, the day that Elvis was drafted. He was played by John Aprea. Nick was a strict but loving father. In the episode, "DJ's Day Off" it is mentioned that he would punish Jesse severely. This combination is also seen in the episode "It Is Not My Job", when Jesse quits the extermination business Nick responds with: "If you are out of the business, you are out of the family." Later on, he explains this saying that he did not build up the business to sell it to a stranger. Also, his love for his family is shown by the fact that Irene bringing in Michelle curbed his anger.
[edit] Irene Katsopolis
Irene Katsopolis is Jesse and Pam's mother, and the wife of Nick Katsopolis. She often talked about diapering Jesse's "tushy", and touched his and other people's "tushies", which made Jesse mad. She was played by Rhoda Gemignani in The Return of Grandma, and by Yvonne Wilder during the remainder of the show.
[edit] Stavros
Stavros, Jesse's swarthy, greasy, woman-crazed Greek lookalike is played by actor John Stamos (Jesse) and tries to pick up on Rebecca "Becky" Donaldson (Jesse's girlfriend and later wife, played by Lori Laughlin) one episode.
[edit] Other characters
[edit] Mindy Gladstone
Mindy Gladstone is Joey's mother. She appears only once throughout the entire series, in the fourth episode The Return of Grandma, but Joey talks about her often. For example, in the episode Viva Las Joey in Season 4, Joey lands a gig opening for Wayne Newton in Las Vegas. When Joey was asked by Jesse why he couldn't invite his mother to come see the show, he claims she is working as Goofy at Disney World. Mindy Gladstone was played by Beverly Sanders.
[edit] Walter Berman
Walter F. Berman is a school friend of Stephanie Tanner, played by Whitby Hertford. At first, Stephanie disliked him, and went as far as teasing and imitating his resemblance to a duck. She -- along with the rest of the class -- even nicknamed him "Duckface". However, after following her Uncle Jesse's advice, she learned to appreciate Walter more, even if he was a nerd. This led to Walter briefly considering Stephanie as his "secret girlfriend".
[edit] Harry Takayama
Harry Takayama was the first on-screen friend of Stephanie Tanner, appearing in the second season. He would usually call her "Chief", and she referred to him as her boyfriend -- without understanding that term's full meaning. This led to a pretend wedding in the episode Middle Age Crazy. His last appearance was in Nerd for a Day, in Season 3.
[edit] Cindy
Cindy was Danny's girlfriend in Season 4, but she only appeared in three episodes. She is first seen in the episode Terror in Tanner Town, when it is revealed that she works as a dry-cleaner. She first met Danny when he was a customer at her store. She also has a precocious 10-year-old son named Rusty. Cindy was played by Debra Sandlund.
[edit] Rusty
Rusty is the son of Cindy, Danny's girlfriend, in Season 4. Rusty has a reputation for being a troublemaker and a prankster. In the episode Terror in Tanner Town, Rusty spends the day with the Tanners, and wreaks havoc throughout the household, including putting green dye in Danny's shampoo; giving D.J. and Stephanie trick gum that turns their teeth black; and locking Jesse and Rebecca in Jesse's room. He also recorded over Joey's comedy video with a clip of himself on "Rustyvision".
Rusty also caused a major commotion with a love letter he typed. He intended for D.J. to receive it, and think it came from Ricky, the paperboy, whom she had a crush on. However, since Rusty did not write "Dear D.J.", or address the letter to anyone, and simply signed it "Hot for You", the letter got around to everyone in the Tanner household from someone else, leading to pandemonium. Rusty appeared in only two more episodes, including: Happy New Year (in which Stephanie actually kisses him, after HE keeps saying he will, and he turns out to have been lying) and Stephanie Plays the Field, in which Rusty was on Danny's Little League Baseball team. Rusty was played by Jordan Christopher Michael.
[edit] Brett Davis
Brett Davis appeared in Season 4, a classmate and friend of Stephanie's who plays Little League Baseball for the Cubs. He is supposedly Stephanie Tanner's first love. In the previous seasons, Stephanie showed little interest in boys, except as playmates (i.e. -- Harry and Walter). D.J. teases Stephanie about her interest in Brett, such as when Stephanie clenches her heart, and says her heartbeat feels like "Brett-Brett, Brett-Brett". In the episode Stephanie Plays the Field, Brett asks Stephanie to go easy on him with the "Tanner Twister", a method of pitching created by Stephanie and her father. Though she struck him out later in that episode, she thinks he is mad at her. Brett said he would have done the same thing. They still remained boyfriend and girlfriend, although he is never mentioned again after that episode. Brett was played by Sean Fox.
[edit] Kevin Gwynn
Kevin Gwynn is supposedly D.J.'s first "true boyfriend". In one episode, D.J. and Kevin go to a school dance together. Paul and Sam convince him to drink beer because it will "help him loosen up". He follows them, and they all end up getting suspended from school. When Jesse sees D.J. trying to tell Kevin's friends how stupid they look, Jesse thought D.J. was drinking. Kevin finally tells Jesse and Danny the truth. He was played by Scott Curtis.
[edit] Paul
Paul is one of Kevin's friends. In Just Say No Way, He convinced Kevin to drink beer so it would "loosen up". He also sprayed some all over D.J. and Kevin told him he didn't have to do it. D.J. took his beer and told him and Sam this. After drinking beer, he got caught drinking and was getting suspended from school. He was played by Brandon Stewart.
[edit] Sam
Sam is one of Kevin's friends who wears glasses. In Just Say No Way, He, along with Paul, convinced Kevin to drink beer so it would "loosen up". After drinking beer, he got caught drinking and was getting suspended from school. He was played by Joe Elrady.
[edit] Vanessa
Vanessa (Christie Claridge) is Jesse's one-time girlfriend in Our Very First Show.
[edit] Roxie
Roxie (Felicia Michaels) is Joey's girlfriend in Season 7. She is a stand-up comic (like Joey) with a mouse-like voice. She makes fun of Danny, Rebecca, Jesse, and the girls as part of her comedy routine. Roxie later apologized to the Tanner family, also admitting that she was called "Squeaky" in her youth.
[edit] Caroline
Caroline (Dorothy Parke) is a friend of Danny's, who was seen in an early episode where Danny, Joey, and Jesse all went fishing on a boat. She also appeared in the episode that included Danny's 30th birthday.
[edit] Adrianna
Adrianna (Fabiana Udenio) is Jesse's one-time girlfriend in Daddy's Home.
[edit] Corinna Spicer
Corinna Spicer (Elizabeth Keifer) is a student in Jesse's "private music class", whom Jesse liked in Jesse's Girl. At the end of the episode, she winds up with Joey instead.
[edit] Jill
Jill (Darcy DeMoss) is one of Jesse's earliest girlfriends on-camera. She and Jesse date when there is no one else to date, according to her.
[edit] Duane
Duane is Kimmy Gibbler's boyfriend in Season 8, whom she considered marrying in Reno. He is known for rarely speaking. In the few times that he does speak, his catchphrase, "Whatever!", is the only word that he says, except for Shakespeare's Sonnet #18 that he recites from memory. He would also say "I Guess" if anybody asks if "whatever" is the only thing he says.
[edit] Mrs. Carruthers
Mrs. Carruthers is a recurring character in Season 8. She has a massive crush on Joey, as evidenced by her constant "chasing" him down, and his subsequent "hiding" from her. In one episode, she collaborates with Kimmy Gibbler to form a Neighborhood Watch program. She also is known to "dominate" the PTA elections at Michelle's school every year. She is played by actress Marcia Wallace, famous for her work on the Simpsons and others.
[edit] Pets
[edit] Comet the Dog
Comet is a golden retriever, and was introduced to the show in the third season. Comet was born to a dog named Minnie. In a few episodes, Comet was played by a dog named Buddy. Buddy was born in 1988, but died of cancer on February 11, 1998.
Comet's "mother", Minnie, (who was actually male in the storyline) ran away from her home in Ohio, and somehow ended up in the Tanners' backyard in San Francisco, California while she was pregnant. Minnie gave birth to a litter of puppies (which included Comet) on Jesse's bed. Minnie's owner then arrived at the Tanner residence shortly after Minnie gave birth. Once he arrived, he was so grateful that the Tanners had taken care of Minnie and her puppies, and he allowed them to keep one of the puppies. Michelle chose which puppy they would keep, and whom they named "Comet".
In the episode Comet's Excellent Adventure, which was the season premiere of Season 8, Michelle was constantly reminding Jesse -- at a time when he was busy talking on the phone -- that it was his turn to walk Comet. In the heat of the moment, Jesse told Michelle to walk Comet herself. Michelle was only 7 years old at the time, and not very strong, so Comet ran away from Michelle. Since Michelle was not allowed to cross the street, she only followed Comet to the end of the sidewalk. Comet spent the day exploring the city of San Francisco with a female collie. Danny Tanner and Becky happened to be broadcasting their talk-show live at the time he was informed about Comet's disappearance, and he abruptly announced the news to his viewers, and let Michelle say some words to Comet as well. When Comet saw Michelle's message on a television in the window of a local store, he immediately ran back home.
[edit] Sparky the Dog
Sparky the dog is a Jack Russell Terrier, who is owned by Teddy and his family. He was seen only in a few episodes. In the episode The Volunteer, Sparky was given four out of five stars in the Tanners' dog show, which he won for his "funny walk". He also appeared in the episode One Last Kiss. Sparky attended Comet's birthday party, and Michelle wanted to keep him because Comet had grown too big for her. To hide Sparky from the rest of the family, she puts bunny ears on him, and calls him "Peanut".
[edit] Coco the Dog
Coco the dog is a poodle, who is owned by the Gibblers. She can supposedly sing along to "Polly Wolly Doodle", as Kimmy exclaims in the episode The Volunteer in Season 5, in which the Tanners hold a dog show in their backyard for the neighborhood dogs. At the end of the episode, Comet falls in love with Coco.
[edit] Martin the Goldfish
Martin was a one-episode-only character, as the pet goldfish of Michelle. His appearance was in the episode A Fish Called Martin. Michelle won him at a carnival, and Danny states that it was very expensive for her to win him. Martin only lived for a short time, as Michelle gave him a bubble bath, which killed him, when she misunderstood Joey when he told her to keep him clean. Joey, Danny, and Jesse then bought her a new fish, named Freddy, but Michelle was afraid that she would kill him, too. It was Michelle who noticed that Freddy was doing something strange, which turned out to be having babies. Michelle was proud of herself after telling the adults about the fish's sudden pregnancy. None of the fish in this episode are ever mentioned again.
[edit] Freddy/Freida the Fish
Michelle's replacement for Martin, first believed to be male, but was proven female, after giving birth in front of Michelle. It is unknown what becomes of Freida after the episode. The family probably separated the mother fish from the baby ones to give the babies growing-space.
[edit] Scruffy the Pig
Scruffy was a pig who appeared in the episode in Season 6 "Room For One More" that belonged to the neighbors that Stephanie and Michelle was watching for the weekend. When Jesse had a lot of work to do and he tells Becky he wants another kid. While everyone was in the basement during the radio show Scruffy comes down and tries to tell them that the food Danny cooked in the oven is burning.
[edit] Guest Star Characters
[edit] Little Richard
Richard Wayne Penniman (played by himself) appeared in an episode because he was holding a concert in San Francisco. It turned out that he was Denise's uncle. Michelle asks him to perform a concert to help Joey's campaign for PTA President. He accepts, and performs for Joey's campaign. Richard is quite late to the concert but makes it up to them. He has a dislike to Jesse after Jesse's comment about him putting a punch bowl on his head at family gatherings.
[edit] Steve Urkel
Steven Quincy Urkel (played by Jaleel White) is a cousin of one of D.J.'s one-time friends. During his visit, he must raise the spirits of Stephanie Tanner, because she has to get eyeglasses. Stephanie is reluctant because of how eyeglasses will make her look, but Urkel helps her feel better. Urkel was from the show Family Matters.
[edit] The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys (played by themselves) appear in four episodes of the show -- Beach Boy Bingo, Our Very First Telethon, Captain Video: Part One, and "Captain Video: Part Two" in the "Forever" music video. The first time they appeared in the series, they were supposed to be guests on "Wake Up, San Francisco", but had to cancel their guest visit. D.J. wins a telephone contest, and gets concert tickets, but she has trouble deciding whom to take with her. In the end, the whole family ends up singing on stage with at the concert.
In "Our First Telethon", Mike Love is the surprise guest at a telethon hosted by Danny Tanner.
In "Captain Video (Part 1)", Mike Love and Bruce Johnston appear together to have lunch with the family, jam with the Rippers while the rest of the family watch and subsequently give Jesse permission to use the song "Forever" which originally appeared on the Beach Boy's Sunflower album in 1971.
|