Saget's performance at a show tailored to predominantly Black audiences took them by storm.
At the height of his career in the 1990s, Bob Saget was simply known as the silly but lovable father on Full House. And that's exactly what the predominantly Black audience at the Comedy Store's Phat Tuesdays showcase expected when he was introduced. But little did they know they were in for the biggest shock -- and laughter -- of their lives.
Saget's legacy in comedy is fondly being remembered in Guy Torry's docuseries, Phat Tuesdays: The Era of Hip Hop Comedy. Saget appeared in episode 3, as the docuseries recalled white comedians showing up to the world-famous Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip to perform at the all-Black comedy night. Some performed well and others bombed, but nobody did it like Saget.
In the docuseries, streaming now on Prime Video, Saget recalled showing up to Phat Tuesdays for six months and having the time of his life doing what he loved doing best, performing for an audience.
"It was just a badass night," said Saget, who died on Jan. 9 in Orlando, Florida, from "blunt head trauma." "I played for a lot of audiences and I felt like this audience knows what's true. They're laughing at what's true."
It's easy to spot the juxtaposition between Saget's wholesome character as Danny Tanner -- the single father raising three young girls with the help of his two best friends -- and the comedian's raunchy act, which at that time triggered a palpable jolt among those lucky enough who saw him do a set.
"He was killing," said Amber Bickham, the docuseries' casting director. "People were on the floor because it was such a shock to the system to see him kill like it was DefJam -- this white guy in a Black show."
Torry -- who launched the showcase to give Black comedians a legitimate shot at one of the most famous comedy clubs -- noted the overwhelming difference between Saget the actor, and Saget the comedian.
"He was Bob Ratchet," quipped Torry. "He wasn't Bob Saget. He was Bob Ratchet."
The showcase launched the careers of many comedians who are now household names, and their talents attracted some of Hollywood's finest -- from Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant to Prince, Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg. Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall and Mike Tyson also pulled up a chair.
"Phat Tuesdays was not just a showcase, it was a comedy party. We saw comedians become stars. We saw Hollywood stocking its shelves with new Black talent," Torry tells ET. "We experienced the healing of a city that had been divided and burned from the Rodney King verdict because laughter purified the air. Phat Tuesdays was not only a movement, it was the best damn comedy show PERIOD."
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