John Stamos reveals dark side in bombshell memoir

Do you remember watching 'Full House'? Who didn't look forward to the night the Tanners antics would be on TV. But if we have to be honest, part of the draw to the show was John Stamos' Uncle Jesse... after all who didn't have a little bit of crush on the coolest uncle on TV at the time? But now we know things were not as perfect as they seemed.

Stamos was just 24 when he became one of the most desirable men in the world back in 1987. But time's flying... John Stamos is 60!

(Image: 'Full House,' ABC)

Marking his sixth decade, Stamos is changing everyone's perspective of him as a cheery 90s icon, releasing a 352 memoir called 'If You Would Have Told Me.' “I saw a lot of deep, dark stuff," he told the New York Times, foreshadowing the betrayal, substance abuse and other bombshells.

One of the more shocking revelations was that Stamos was s e x ually abused when he was around 10 or 11 by a babysitter. He didn't tell anyone at the time and he didn't realize the extent to which it haunted him until he wrote the memoir.

John Stamos arrived at the status of "most desirable man" through a feel-good family comedy, typical of the 80s: 'Full House.'

'Full House' was hugely successful, and a whole generation of kids from the 80s and 90s grew up with the Tanner Family. It ran from 1987 to 1995.

Despite Stamos' hearthrob status, he experienced what he described as his "worst nightmare" when dating model Teri Copley in the mid 1980s. That was when she walked in on her in bed with someone else...

"I try to hold back tears. Time slows until I'm frozen. I can't breathe. A few tears roll down my face, and it pi* *es me off. They snap me out of my daze, and I feel angry and confused. I could explode," he writes in the memoir. He didn't realize who it was at the time until he saw a poster from the man's Porsche and realized it was none other than Tony Danza!

'Full House' told the story of Danny Tanner, played by Bob Saget, a widowed father trying to raise three daughters on his own. Danny soon realizes that working full time and raising three kids is next to impossible, so he enlists the help of his best friend Joey and brother-in-law Jesse. The sit-com was pretty far from Stamos's real life.

Photo: screenshot from Full House

Among the three men who ran, or attempted to run, the house, Jesse Katsopolis, the character of John Stamos, stood out. He was handsome, a rocker, and a big Elvis fan - both as Uncle Jesse and as John Stamos in real life.

The famous Uncle Jesse was every teenage girl's dream come true. Perfect hair, rocker style, and a bit of a rebel. Plus, he could rock out on that electric guitar! They would have died to realize that Stamos wasn't always lucky in love!!

Between 1987 and 1995, the ABC channel aired the 192 episodes that the series had. Once 'Full House' ended, John Stamos would never again reach the popularity that Uncle Jess gave him. “It’s always killed me that that’s what everybody knew me from, that mullet-headed ding-dong," he told the New York Times.

Stamos will be forever associated with Uncle Jesse, which is something he actually regrets. "If I would’ve straightened out 10, 15 years sooner, I think I’d have been closer to a George Clooney career than I am now," he told the New York Times, refering to his sobriety.

Of course, he has not stopped working either on projects of greater or lesser relevance. In 1982 he had already been on 'General Hospital,' where he was even nominated for an Emmy. After 'Full House,' the actor appeared in various series 'ER,' 'Scream Queens', 'Galavant' or 'You,' but he never again achieved the star status he had thanks to 'Full House.'

John Stamos had a relationship with Rebecca Romijn from 1994 and 2005, when they divorced (they married in 1998). In fact, in the films that the actress and model made at the time, the credits appeared as Rebecca Romijn-Stamos.

He told CBS News that when he was with Rebecca Romijn, he was too consumed with her to think of his career. "I just kind of let things go. I thought I'd done it all. I didn't want to k-- myself. But I didn't care if I died."

Stamos begins his memoir in June 2015. He was divorced, his parents had died recently and his career was in a bit of a dead end.

It was that day when he was incredibly drunk and driving his Mercedes down Rodeo Drive. His fans yelled at him to pull over because he was swerving all over the place. He finally did and the police found him passed out drunk. He woke up with a DUI but his friend Bob Saget at his side.

It was hitting bottom on that arrest that led him to sobriety. "I had that DUI and I was like, "I can't do this. I've got to straighten up,"' he told People. "That's when I was confusing the universe, because I'm not a bad person, but I was doing c r a p py things." He went to rehab and straightened out.

Luckily, his sobriety conicided with a big professional opportunity - reprising his role as Uncle Jesse on 'Fuller House,' the Netflix remake that premiered in 2016. "I got home and I think like a week later, we started Fuller House," he said, refering to his stint in rehab.

Thus, during the five seasons of 'Fuller House',' Uncle Jess stopped by the Tanner house on several occasions, showing off just how well the years have treated him.

His sobriety also coincided with another positive life change - a new relationship! In Feb 2018 the actor went down the aisle again with model and actress Caitlin McHugh. The couple also had a son in April 2018, little Billy.

Stamos and Saget were close friends until the comic died in 2022 after a head trauma. "When he died, I knew he loved me. I knew he cared about me. He told me every day," Stamos said. He noted that Saget's way of expressing his love taught him a valuable lesson: "Tomorrow's never promised, so make the best of where you're at, who you're with." The ER alum added, "And by the way, these are all easy things to say. They're hard to do," Stamos told the NYT regarding what his friend taught him.

Now, the most surprising of all is that his rock facet of 'Full House' was not just an act. John Stamos is an accomplished musician to the point of having collaborated on several albums with… The Beach Boys!

The actor's collaboration with the band dates back to 1985. Since then, he has not only played with them in the studio, but has also accompanied them on several tours. Taking on a handsome, well-known and talented guy to play guitar, bass, keyboard and drums, is a luxury that not even The Beach Boys can give up.

Today, the actor has embarked on 'Big Shot', a Disney Plus series in which he plays Marvyn Korn, a renowned NCAA men's coach, who has just been fired for his bad manners.

Although 'Big Shot' ended in 2022, Stamos has continued working with Disney. He's had roles in 'Muppets Haunted Mansion,' 'Spidey and His Amazing Friends,' and 'Mickey Mouse Funhouse.'

Photo: Disney

Stamos has just undergone a major re-brand with his tell-all memoir, so we may be in the early stages of a career renaissance. Many of his co-stars say he's super talented and deserves more. “He is supremely talented in many different areas, and I think people are finally starting to recognize, ‘Oh, this guy’s the real deal. He’s the whole ball of wax," Lori Loughlin, who played Becky, Uncle Jesse’s onscreen love, told the New York Times.