“Full House” star Dave Coulier: How he came up with the name of his successful role

Actor Dave Coulier (64) has revealed the cheeky origin of Uncle Joey’s surname Gladstone – the character he played in the successful sitcom “Full House”. As he revealed, he was allowed to choose the name himself and was inspired by a stoner gag.

He thought the surname was funny

In a new episode, he told guest Debra Stipe (62), who appeared as Cindy in three episodes of “Full House”: “I was allowed to choose my own last name, did you know that? My character’s last name.” He then recommended “Gladstone” to the director, who approved it with a “sounds good.” When Stipe asked if there was a meaning behind the name, Coulier explained: “It was almost like: ‘I’m glad I’m stoned.’ You know, I’m a comedian, so I thought it was a funny name.” “Glad” means happy, “stoned” means stoned.

“This is my Joey”

Dave Coulier also noted that when he auditioned, he was initially unsure whether he would get the role. ABC producers had sent him mixed signals. While one praised him, another wanted to re-cast him for the role of father Danny Tanner, which was eventually given to Bob Saget (1956-2022). That’s why he believed he had botched the audition: “I said, ‘I just messed up. That’s it. I didn’t understand that I should now read the father.'” And he didn’t want to play him because it was clear to him: “I don’t care who comes in here today, that’s my Joey. That’s my character.'” And as we know, he got the job.

The actor played Joey Gladstone from 1987 to 1995 in the popular series “Full House”, which made him internationally famous. From 2016 to 2020, like many of his colleagues in the main cast, he also appeared in the Netflix sequel “Fuller House”.