Bob Saget is one of the few celebrities who leaves behind two very different legacies. Some remember him as the wholesome family man at the heart of Full House, a TV show that helped raise an entire generation growing up in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Those audiences, in turn, were delighted to show their own children the sequel series Fuller House, in which Saget appeared in 15 episodes from 2016–2020.
Others remember Saget as a legend of standup comedy. And the only thing more shocking than his punchlines was his raunchy language that was sure to scandalize audiences who only knew him as the neat-obsessed Danny Tanner on television.
No matter how you grew to love Saget, the world was shocked when he died suddenly on January 9, 2022 at the age of 65. Details of his death and final days are still somewhat mysterious, but here is everything we’ve been able to piece together.
A shocking death
Bob Saget was found dead in his Orlando, Florida hotel room on January 9. He was staying at the Ritz-Carlton Orlando and his body showed no signs of trauma. At first, Saget appeared to be sleeping: ABC reports that the body was found lying face-up, and nothing appeared to be disturbed in his room.
After an initial examination, the local Chief Medical examiner declared, “At this time, there is no evidence of drug use or foul play.” To get to the bottom of things, there will be both a full police investigation and an autopsy of Saget’s body.
But all of that could take a minimum of 10 weeks. In the absence of any official verdict for Saget’s cause of death, many suspect that COVID-19 may be to blame. But is there any truth to that?
About those COVID-19 rumors
It’s not hard to see how rumors of COVID-19 killing Bob Saget got started. After his death, one source told CNN that Saget was diagnosed with COVID-19 in December. Since the actor died a month later, it’s natural to wonder if the cause may be COVID or complications related to COVID.
However, according to one of the sources speaking to CNN, things aren’t that cut and dry. The source pointed out that “Bob seemed healthy. He would not have traveled and been performing had he been not feeling well.”
To this point, Saget was only in Orlando because he was preparing for a series of stand-up performances throughout the Sunshine State. CNN reports that Saget definitely referred to COVID in the past tense when he appeared on a January 5 episode of the podcast A Corporate Time with Tom and Dan.
As Saget said, COVID “is not good. It does not feel good, I had it… I don’t know if I had Delta or, I might have had a combo, maybe at one point they were working together, I don’t know. I think at one point Omicron was opening for Delta but then Omicron got so big Delta’s opening now for Omicron.”
And that’s the Saget humor we’re going to miss so much. The man was cracking jokes until the day he died.
Saget’s heartbreaking final conversation with his wife
When a famous person dies, especially when they die unexpectedly, their final days are put under a microscope. And sometimes, this may make the celebrity look worse in retrospect (for example, when fans only found out after the singer Meat Loaf died that he had vehemently spoken out against wearing masks and lockdowns intended to stop the spread of the virus).
But the more we learn about Saget’s final days, the more we love the man. And perhaps the best example of this is the final conversation he had with his wife, Kelly Rizzo, via text message.
On the Today show, Rizzo revealed her final exchange with Saget. “I think I said, ‘I love you dearly.’ And he said, ‘I love you endlessly,'” she said of their text messages. “And then I said, ‘I can’t wait to see you tomorrow’ … It was just all love.”
Obviously, Bob Saget was taken from us much too soon. But there is a certain bittersweet joy in the fact that he got to tell his wife how much he loved her before passing away.
A bittersweet last podcast
Aside from watching Fuller House or catching one of his standup shows, the easiest way for fans to get new Bob Saget content was to listen to his podcast, which is appropriately titled Bob Saget’s Here For You.
The final episode dropped last week, and we should warn you: listening to this podcast is going to make you cry about Saget’s passing all over again!
As CNN reports, fellow comedian Bill Burr introduced Saget on the episode, and Burr said doing so was an “honor.” After Saget’s death, Burr was very reflective about the veteran comedian’s legacy. “[Saget] really was there for everybody,” Burr said. “Just truly one of the funniest human beings I ever met and also one of the nicest. He was as funny as he was nice,” he said. “I absolutely love the guy and am in shock that he’s no longer with us, but I am just so thankful to have met him, to have known him. He just was the greatest guy ever.”
During the podcast, Saget had an in-depth interview with another fellow comedian, Margaret Cho. At one point, she brings up her desire to perform standup forever, and this prompts a passionate response from Saget. “I didn’t know I was going to love stand-up as much as I love it. I haven’t loved it this much since I started, I think.”
Bob Saget dying just when he was loving his career more than ever before? Yeah, you’re going to have to pass us a few more tissues.
Saget’s castmates speak out
Comedians and celebrities around the world expressed shock and remorse over Saget’s death. But some of the keenest grief came from those who starred alongside him in Full House and Fuller House.
As Entertainment Weekly reports, John Stamos issued a statement on Instagram. But the statement didn’t come from him alone: it was attributed to all the major players from Full House: John Stamos (who played Jesse), Dave Coulier (who played Joey), Candace Cameron Bure (who played D.J.), Jodie Sweetin (who played Stephanie), Lori Loughlin (who played Rebecca), Andrea Barber (who played Kimmy), Scott Weinger (who plated Steve), Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (who played Michelle), and series creator Jeff Franklin.
“Thirty-five years ago, we came together as a TV family, but we became a real family,” the statement reads. “And now we grieve as a family. Bob made us laugh until we cried. Now our tears flow in sadness, but also with gratitude for all the beautiful memories of our sweet, kind, hilarious, cherished Bob. He was a brother to us guys, a father to us girls and a friend to all of us. Bob, we love you dearly. We ask in Bob’s honor, hug the people you love. No one gave better hugs than Bob.”
The Olsen twins made their own prior statement to Entertainment Weekly. “Bob was the most loving, compassionate and generous man. We are deeply saddened that he is no longer with us but know that he will continue to be by our side to guide us as gracefully as he always has. We are thinking of his daughters, wife and family and are sending our condolences.”
Some of the stars took to Twitter to express their grief. This includes Candace Cameron Bure:
John Stamos also shared his own grief on Twitter:
Similarly, Dave Coulier shared his remorse via Twitter:
Laughlin issued her own separate statement to Entertainment Weekly. In part, it read, “Bob was more than my friend; he was my family.” She added. “I will miss his kind heart and quick wit. Thank you for a lifetime of wonderful memories and laughter. I love you, Bobby.”
Andrea Barber took to Instagram to share her grief over a series of photos. In her post, she proudly declared that Saget had “the biggest heart of anyone in Hollywood.”
And Jodie Sweetin made her own lengthy Instagram post in which she reminisced about things like “the hundreds of inside jokes we all had, the kind that only a family knows and that nobody else will ever understand or think is funny.”
Ultimately, Sweetin seemed to speak for us all when speaking about Saget’s life and his legacy. “He was a genuinely kind spirit who made it through so much in his life, and was most happy when he was helping others. Whether it was personally or through SO many of his different avenues of philanthropy. He gave great hugs too.”