Full House

Full House
Format Sitcom
Created by Jeff Franklin
Starring John Stamos
Bob Saget
Dave Coulier
Candace Cameron
Jodie Sweetin
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
Lori Loughlin
Andrea Barber
Scott Weinger
Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit
Theme music composer Jesse Frederick,
Bennett Salvay &
Jeff Franklin
Opening theme "Everywhere You Look",
performed by Jesse Frederick
Ending theme "Everywhere You Look" (instrumental)
Composer(s) Jesse Frederick &
Bennett Salvay
Country of origin United States
Language(s) English
No. of seasons 8
No. of episodes 192 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Jeff Franklin
Thomas L. Miller
Robert L. Boyett

Dennis Rinsler
Marc Warren (seasons 5–8)
Producer(s) Richard Correll (first episode)
Don Van Atta (seasons 1–5)
James O'Keefe (seasons 6–8)
Bonnie Bogard Maier (season 8)
Camera setup Videotape; Multi-camera
Running time 21–25 minutes
Production company(s) Jeff Franklin Productions
Miller-Boyett Productions
Dualstar (1993-1995)
Lorimar-Telepictures (season 1)
Lorimar Television (seasons 2–6)
Warner Bros. Television (seasons 7–8)
Distributor Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Broadcast
Original channel ABC
Picture format 480i (SDTV)
Original run September 22, 1987 (1987-09-22) – May 23, 1995 (1995-05-23)

Full House is an American sitcom television series. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife, enlists his best friend Joey Gladstone and his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis to help raise his three daughters, D.J., Stephanie, and Michelle.

The show originally ran in primetime from September 22, 1987 to May 23, 1995 on ABC. The series ran as part of ABC's TGIF Friday comedy lineup for its first four seasons before moving to Tuesday nights, where it aired for the remainder of its run—for a total of eight seasons, and 192 episodes.

Contents

Premise

After Danny Tanner's wife Pam is killed in a collision by a drunk driver, he recruits his rock musician brother-in-law Jesse and quirky comedian best friend Joey to help him raise his three daughters: D.J., Stephanie, and Michelle, in his San Francisco home. Over time, the three men as well as the children bond and become closer to one another.

Initially, Jesse is uncertain if his life is going in the right direction after making the life-altering decision to help raise the girls. In season two, Danny becomes host of a local television morning show. His co-host, Rebecca "Becky" Donaldson, starts dating Jesse, and eventually becomes his wife and joins the household. The family finds a dog and keeps one of her puppies, Comet, as a pet. Finally, Jesse and Becky have twin sons, Nicky and Alex, who become additions to the family. Two notable additional characters are Kimmy Gibbler, D.J.'s best friend and the Tanner family's annoying neighbor, and Steve Hale, D.J.'s boyfriend.

Cast/characters

Main cast

Actor/Actress Character Duration
John Stamos Jesse Katsopolis All seasons
Bob Saget Danny Tanner All seasons
Dave Coulier Joey Gladstone All seasons
Candace Cameron Donna Jo "D.J." Tanner All seasons
Jodie Sweetin Stephanie Tanner All seasons
Mary-Kate Olsen
and Ashley Olsen
Michelle Tanner All seasons
Lori Loughlin Rebecca "Becky" Donaldson-Katsopolis Recurring: season 2
Regular: seasons 3-8
Andrea Barber Kimmy Gibbler Recurring: seasons 1-4
Regular: seasons 5-8
Scott Weinger Steve Hale Guest: seasons 5 & 8
Regular: seasons 6-7
Blake Tuomy-Wilhoit
and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit
Nicholas "Nicky" Katsopolis
and Alexander "Alex" Katsopolis (toddlers)
Recurring: season 6
Regulars: seasons 7-8
Buddy the dog Comet Seasons 3-8

Recurring cast

Actor Character Duration
John Aprea and Yvonne Wilder Nick and Irene Katsopolis Seasons 2 & 4
Miko Hughes Aaron Bailey Seasons 3-8
Tahj Mowry Teddy Seasons 5-8
Blake Tuomy-Wilhoit
and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit
Nicholas "Nicky" Katsopolis
and Alexander "Alex" Katsopolis (infants)
Season 5
Gail Edwards Vicky Larson Seasons 5-7
Jurnee Smollett Denise Frazier Seasons 5-7
Blake McIver Ewing Derek S. Boyd Seasons 6-8
Marla Sokoloff Gia Mahan Seasons 7-8
Jason Marsden Nelson Season 8

Production

Production and filming

The series was created by Jeff Franklin and executive produced by Franklin, along with Thomas L. Miller and Robert L. Boyett. The series was produced by Jeff Franklin Productions and Miller-Boyett Productions, in association with Lorimar-Telepictures (1987–1988), Lorimar Television (1988–1993), and then by Warner Bros. Television (1993–1995).

Although the series was set in San Francisco, and the opening credits featured a row of classic Victorian houses on 1709 Broderick Street (not the painted ladies), the sitcom itself was taped at Warner Brothers Studios in Los Angeles. The only episode to have actually been taped in San Francisco was "Comet's Excellent Adventure", the first episode of Season 8. There were also a few episodes where the cast would shoot in other locations, most notably Hawaii in the third season premiere "Tanner's Island", and at Walt Disney World for the episodes "The House Meets the Mouse" (Parts 1 & 2) at the end of Season 6.

The series experienced much turnover with its writing staff throughout its run, the first season in particular had at least three writing staff changes with only Lenny Ripps (who remained with the show until season four) and Russell Marcus being the only writers surviving the changes through the entire season. Show creator and executive producer Jeff Franklin was the only writer to remain with the series throughout its entire eight-season run (though all episodes that Franklin wrote and directed were during the first four seasons). Marc Warren and Dennis Rinsler joined the series in the second season and also remained with the show until its 1995 cancellation, taking over as head writers by season five and executive producers by season six.

Casting

Bob Saget was the producers' first choice to play Danny Tanner, but because of his work as an on-air contributor to CBS's The Morning Program, John Posey was cast as Danny for the original pilot. However, when Saget was fired after CBS decided to revamp their morning show, Posey was let go, and the pilot re-shot with Saget.

John Stamos' original character name, "Jesse Cochran," was changed after season one to "Jesse Katsopolis". The change in last names was due to Stamos wanting his character to better reflect his Greek heritage.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen nearly left the show after the 1st season because their real-life mother was concerned about them missing out on having a "normal" childhood. After a significant raise in salary from the show's producers, she agreed to let them continue.

During the show's run, only five main characters were added to the main cast. Andrea Barber (D.J.'s best friend Kimmy Gibbler) had a recurring role in seasons 1–4, but was made a regular in season five. And Lori Loughlin (Rebecca Donaldson [later Katsopolis]) was initially scheduled to appear in six episodes in season two as Danny's co-host on "Wake Up, San Francisco," however, producers decided to write her character into the show and give her a permanent role in season three.

Season five saw the debut of characters Nicky and Alex Katsopolis, who were the twin sons of Jesse and Rebecca. The "baby versions" were played by Daniel and Kevin Renteria. Beginning in season six, Blake and Dylan Tuomy-Wilhoit played Nicky and Alex as toddlers for the rest of the series.

The last character added was Steve (played by Scott Weinger), who is D.J's boyfriend in the seasons six and seven. He returned in the series finale as D.J.'s prom date.

Theme song and opening sequence

Theme song

The show's theme song, "Everywhere You Look", was performed by Jesse Frederick; Frederick co-wrote the song with Bennett Salvay and series creator Jeff Franklin. An instrumental version of the theme song was used in the closing credits, and in the opening credits in some early syndication runs, although the song was almost always truncated to the chorus for broadcast. Seasons 1 through 5 used a longer version of the theme song. However in syndicated airings, the line "you miss your old familiar friends, but waiting just around the bend" replaced the lines starting with "how did I get delivered here, somebody tell me please..." (After ABC Family acquired the series in 2003, it became the first television outlet to air the long versions of the theme since the series' ABC run, included in some episodes from the first five seasons). In later seasons, the song was shortened (as was the case with the theme songs of fellow Miller-Boyett sitcoms Step by Step, and to a lesser extent Perfect Strangers and Family Matters), until it was down to about 42 seconds in Season 8.

Opening credits

In the beginning, the six original characters were shown either at home, or in various shots in San Francisco. Beginning in season 4, the opening credits for the adults were also filmed in San Francisco, as well as the last shot of the opening credits of the show, which features the cast having a picnic in Alamo Square in front of the row of Painted Ladies in the Western Addition neighborhood of San Francisco. Contrary to popular belief, the red-doored Victorian where the Tanners live is not one of these houses. The address of the Tanner house was mentioned in "Blast From the Past" as being located at 1882 Girard Street in San Francisco. The actual location of the house used for exterior shots in the series is 1709 Broderick Street. It was not until season 8 that the opening credits were changed to feature the entire cast in various locations around San Francisco. From seasons 1 through 5, select shots from the opening credits were seen in the closing credits as well, switching to still shots of episode scenes starting with season 6.

The role of Michelle was credited as being played by "Mary-Kate Ashley Olsen" from seasons 2 to 7 (the duo was only credited in the closing credits in season 1, as "Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Fuller Olsen"; though in syndicated reruns, they are also credited in the opening credits as the former) because the show's producers did not want audiences to know that Michelle was played by twins. Ashley's name was made to appear as Mary-Kate's middle name in the titles (the role of Michelle was played by twins because California state law regulates the number of work hours for a young child; therefore it is common for the role of one baby in a TV or film production to be played by twins). Sister series Family Matters did the same thing in its first season with twins Joseph and Julius Wright, who portrayed Richie Crawford as a baby, with the twins credited as Joseph Julius Wright. In season 8, with the entire opening credit shots revamped for the last time, the Olsen twins were now given special billing in response to the popularity they earned as separate performers over the years. Appearing last in the credits, they were credited as "And Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen as Michelle". Fittingly, Mary-Kate is the twin appearing in the shot, but the girl in the painting is Ashley. Starting with season 3, Lori Loughlin was featured in the opening credits, however it was only in episodes she appeared in. From season 4 onward, she was featured in the opening credits of every episode. It was not until season 5 that Andrea Barber was added to the opening credits, despite her recurring role on the show since the first season. The long opening was cut when the show started regular rotation upon the end of first-run airing.

Episodes

Ratings

Full House aired on Fridays from September 22, 1987 to August 1991, which spanned the show's first four seasons, and later became the flagship program of ABC's newly launched TGIF block. During the 1987-88 season, however, the show did move to Tuesdays briefly, and then aired twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays for a few months in order to help the series build an audience. It remained on Fridays permanently for the next three seasons, as the show's ratings became more respectable. The show was moved to Tuesdays for Season 5, and remained there until its ending in 1995. While Season 1 was not very successful, mostly because it was a new series placed in an 8/7c time slot (most freshman series start out in protected time slots preceded by successful lead-ins), the show quickly became popular during Season 2 as it was placed immediately following the established hit show Perfect Strangers. From Season 3 onwards it was ranked among the Nielsen ratings' Top 30 shows (a ratings increase which allowed the series to move back to Fridays at 8/7c).[1] By Season 4, it jumped to the top twenty and remained there until Season 7 (including Seasons 5 & 6 earning their peak spots in the top ten).[2]

In 1995, despite the fact the show was still rated in the top 25, ABC announced that it was canceling the show after the 8th season due to the increasing production costs. The new WB network wanted to pick up the show for a 9th season, but John Stamos announced that the 8th season would be his last (he was mainly upset about Full House defecting from one of the "Big Four" networks to a network which had not yet received full national distribution). Eventually, the other actors announced they were also ready to move on to other projects, thus ending the show's eight-year run. The one-hour finale was watched by 24.3 million viewers, ranking #7 for the week and attracting a 14.6 household rating and a 25 percent audience share.

Season Episodes Original air dates Nielsen ratings
First air date Last air date Ranking # of Est. viewers
Season 1 22 September 22, 1987 May 6, 1988 #53 9,632,400
Season 2 22 October 14, 1988 May 5, 1989 #27 11,875,800
Season 3 24 September 22, 1989 May 4, 1990 #23 14,091,300
Season 4 26 September 24, 1990 May 3, 1991 #15 14,802,900
Season 5 26 September 17, 1991 May 12, 1992 #8[3] 15,997,770
Season 6 24 September 22, 1992 May 18, 1993 #10[4] 14,709,800
Season 7 24 September 14, 1993 May 17, 1994 #12 13,376,400
Season 8 24 September 27, 1994 May 23, 1995 #24 11,829,600

Syndication

U.S. syndication

Currently, Warner Bros. Television Distribution handles the domestic and international syndication rights to the series. Since its 1995 finale, Full House has gained even more popularity among newer generations of family audiences through syndicated reruns. During the summer of 1991, reruns of the early seasons began airing in a daily daytime strip on NBC.[5] Starting in September 1991, Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution began distributing Full House for broadcast in off-network syndication and was syndicated on various local stations nationwide until 2003. In 1998, Atlanta-based cable superstation TBS (which is now a traditional cable channel, as of October 2007) and Chicago-based superstation WGN obtained cable rights to the series and aired the show every weekday until 2002, when the show was dropped from the schedules of both networks.

In September 2003, ABC Family acquired the series; as a result, ABC Family became the first network since ABC to air the original extended version of the theme song, featured in select episodes of the first five seasons; the closing credits however are substituted with marginalized credits to allow for promotion of other ABC Family programs. In other broadcast and cable syndication runs (as well as most other episodes aired on ABC Family), a shortened version of the main theme with alternate lyrics is used for all episodes of the first five seasons; however, the opening credits for the final three seasons are shown as they originally aired.

Nick at Nite also acquired the series in 2003, and aired it from October 6 of that year until April 10, 2009; several months later on August 31, 2009, it moved to sister channel The N and continued on that channel after its September 28, 2009 rebrand as Teenn Nick, remaining on the channel until October 24, 2010. The following day on October 25, 2010, the series returned to Nick at Nite after a one-year absence, airing in the hour leading into the start of Nickelodeon's broadcast day. The show currently finds itself on Nick at Nite from time to time, airing in the early morning hours.

Full House is now back on Teen Nick

International syndication

Country / Region Network(s) Broadcast run Title
 Australia Seven Network 1987–1994 Full House
Nine Network late 1990s
7TWO January 2010 – present
 Belgium 2BE 1995–2000 Full House
 Brazil Rede Globo 1990–1995 (first-run)
1995–2000 (reruns)
Três é Demais
SBT 2000–2006
Warner Channel
 Bulgaria BNT Пълна къща
(palna kashta)
 Canada CTV 1987–1995 (first-run) Full House
CTS 1987–1995 (first-run)
1995–present (reruns)
Prime 1997–2003
Comedy Gold 2010–present
 Denmark Kanal 2 1988–1995 Fuldt hus, later named to Hænderne fulde
 France RFO La Fête à la maison
TF1
 Germany RTL Television 1992–1999 Full House
RTL II 1999–2008
 India Doordarshan 1987–1994 Full House
Zee Cafe 1993-2008
Star World January 2007–2009
 Israel Israeli Educational Television צער גידול בנות
 Italy Italia 1 1996–2002 Gli amici di papà
 Ireland RTE2 1988–1995
 Japan NHK 1987–2000 フルハウス
(furu hausu)
 Malaysia TV3 1992-1998 Full House
 Mexico Azteca 7 1987–1995 Tres por tres
 Netherlands RTL 4 1991–1999 Full House
Veronica 1999–2001
Yorin 2001–2005
 New Zealand TV 2 1990–1995 Full House
 Norway TVNorge "Under samme tak"
 Pakistan Pakistan Television Corporation Full House
 Peru Panamericana Televisión Tres por tres
 Poland TVP2 1992–1995 Pełna chata
TVP2 and TVN and TVN7 unknown
TV Puls 2011-present
 Philippines RPN 9
 Russia ORT 1 Полный дом
(polnuy dom)
 South Africa SABC 1996 – present Full House
 Spain RTVE Padres forzosos
 Sweden TV4 (original run) Huset fullt
Kanal 5 (syndication)
TV4 Komedi 2010–2011
 Slovenia Kanal A Polna Hiša
 Turkey Kanal D Bizim Ev
 United Kingdom Channel Four 1988–1992 Full House
Sky One 1992–1996
 Ukraine 1+1 1997 – present
ICTV 1996–2002
Ukrainian Television and Radio 2006 – present
 Latvia LNT 2002-present Pilna māja

Puerto Rico (Teleonce) Indonesia (TVRI,1994-1997)

Feature film

In a December 2008 news story,[6] it was reported that John Stamos was planning a reunion movie.[7] Reports, however, indicate that this idea was quickly withdrawn, because most of the cast was not interested.[8]

In 2009, Stamos announced that a feature film based on the show is still on. Stamos told The New York Daily News, "I'm working on a movie idea, but it wouldn't be us playing us. I'm not 100% sure, but it would probably take place in the first few years." Stamos has Steve Carell and Tracy Morgan in mind for the roles of Danny and Joey respectively.[9]

Other media

DVD releases

Warner Home Video released all eight seasons of Full House on DVD in Region 1 between 2005–2007.[10] A complete series set containing all 192 episodes was released on November 6, 2007.[11] The first four seasons were also released on DVD in Region 2 and Region 4.[12]

Book series

Books based on Full House are geared toward children primarily ages 8–14. However, many are considered enjoyable by fans of the sitcom, especially of the characters Stephanie Tanner and Michelle Tanner, who are the main focuses. Warner Brothers, the owners of Full House, would not permit others to use their characters, and selected who could write books based on the TV series. Such strict control by the owners of Full House means they may be considered more than fan fiction, and in fact represent a parallel universe known to many fans as the Book Universe.

The series include the following:

Time frame

The books, most of which were published between 1993 and 1994, along with the 1994 Dear Michelle series, span from Stephanie's sixth-grade year (season 7 on TV) to her ninth-grade year. No book has been written to date to show her in high, nor Michelle starting middle school. The Flamingos are featured less and less in Stephanie books, and the last Club Stephanie trilogy shows Stephanie and her friends becoming friends with the Flamingos by the end.

Awards and nominations

Kids' Choice Awards

Year Award
1995 Favorite Television Actress – Candace Cameron Bure (won)
1996 Favorite Animal Star – "Comet" (nominated)

TV Land Awards

Year Award
2004 Quintessential Non-Traditional Family – cast (nominated)
2007 Favorite Elvis Impersonation – John Stamos (won)

Young Artist Awards

Year Award
1989 Best Young Actress Under Ten Years of Age in Television or Motion Pictures – Jodie Sweetin (nominated)
The Most Promising New Fall Television Series (nominated)
1990 Best Young Actor/Actress – Under Five Years of Age – Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen (won)
Best Family Television Series (nominated)
Best Young Actress – Starring in a Television Comedy Series – Candace Cameron Bure (nominated)
Best Young Actress – Starring in a Television Comedy Series – Jodie Sweetin (nominated)
1991 Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Series – Jodie Sweetin (won)
Best Young Actress Supporting Role in a Television Series – Andrea Barber (won)
Outstanding Performance by an Actress Under Nine Years of Age – Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen (won)
Nominated Young Artist Award Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Series – Candace Cameron Bure (nominated)
1992 Best Young Actress Supporting or Re-Occurring Role for a TV Series – Andrea Barber (won)
Nominated Young Artist Award Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Series – Candace Cameron Bure (nominated)
Outstanding Young Comedienne in a Television Series – Jodie Sweetin (nominated)
1993 Exceptional Performance by a Young Actress Under Ten – Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen (won)
Nominated Young Artist Award Best Young Actress Co-starring in a Television Series – Andrea Barber (nominated)
Exceptional Performance by a Young Actor Under Ten – Tahj Mowry (nominated)
Outstanding Young Ensemble Cast in a Television Series (nominated)
1994 Best Young Actor Guest Starring in a Television Series – R.J. Williams (nominated)
Best Young Actress Co-starring in a Television Series – Andrea Barber (nominated)
Best Young Actress Starring in a Television Series – Candace Cameron Bure (nominated)
Outstanding Young Comedienne in a Television Series – Jodie Sweetin (nominated)
1995 Best Youth Actor Guest Starring in a Television Show – J.D. Daniels (nominated)
1996 Best Youth Comedienne in a TV Show – Andrea Barber (nominated)

References

  1. ^ http://www.chez.com/fbibler/tvstats/by_5_yr_period/top_programs_1985-1990.html
  2. ^ http://www.chez.com/fbibler/tvstats/by_5_yr_period/top_programs_1990-1995.html
  3. ^ ClassicTVHits.com: TV Ratings > 1990s
  4. ^ ClassicTVHits.com: TV Ratings > 1990s
  5. ^ NBC Daytime schedule history.
  6. ^ "John Stamos Planning A 'Full House' Remake?". WENN. starpulse.com. December 4, 2008. http://www.starpulse.com/news/index.php/2008/12/04/john_stamos_planning_a_full_house_remake. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 
  7. ^ Wieselman, Jarett (2009-07-13). "A 'Full House' Remake, Original Recipe?" (XHTML). New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/popwrap/item_8lnCqGE8QIrovlMU6TUGBJ;jsessionid=78F5714E0CAB8565FAB4F59730387953. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 
  8. ^ Kristin Dos Santos (2008-12-11). "Full House Remake "Completely Dead"". Watch with Kristin. E! Online. http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/watch_with_kristin/b72921_full_house_remake_completely_dead.html. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 
  9. ^ "ROLL CALL: John Stamos Working On 'Full House' Movie" (AJAX). NBC Bay Area News. Access Hollywood (KNTV San Francisco). 2009-06-05. http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/entertainment/ROLL_CALL___John_Stamos_Working_On__Full_House__Movie.html. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 
  10. ^ "Full House (1987)". Releases for Full House. TVShowsOnDVD.com. 2011. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/shows/House/1809. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 
  11. ^ "Warner Home Video Releases Full House: The Complete Eighth Season and Full House: The Complete Series Collection on DVD November 6" (Press release). Warner Home Video. 2007-07-19. http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/House/7726. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 
  12. ^ "Best Matches". Results from the title search for "Full House". Australia: dvd orchard. 2010. http://www.dvdorchard.com.au/productfound.asp?Qno=TBCTIC0TPC0&SearchString=Full+House&S1=True&S2=True&S3=False&NoCache=0.7805139. Retrieved 2011-01-18. 

External links

San Francisco Bay Area portal
Television portal