Bob Saget dies at 65: The Full House star found dead in Orlando hotel room after comedy show

Bob Saget, who went from being a respected stand-up comedian to a successful star of Full House, has died at age 65.

Sources close to the comic say he died Sunday at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, Florida, and police confirmed his death shortly afterward.

Employees of the hotel found Saget in his room around 4 p.m., and Sheriff’s deputies and the fire department arrived soon after.

Few details are currently available about the circumstances leading up to Saget’s death, though sources say that he was pronounced dead in his hotel room.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office told TMZ that it has ‘no information on cause of death, and detectives have found no signs of foul play or drug use in this case.’

Officials added that ‘the Medical Examiner’s Office will make the final call on the cause and manner of death.’

Saget’s family confirmed his death later on Sunday in a statement.

We are devastated to confirm that our beloved Bob passed away today,’ they said. ‘He was everything to us and we want you to know how much he loved his fans, performing live and bringing people from all walks of life together with laughter. Though we ask for privacy at this time, we invite you to join us in remembering the love and laughter that Bob brought to the world.’

The comedian’s unexpected death comes amid his cross-country stand-up tour, which kicked off back in September 2021.

He had recently played a string of dates in Florida, including a show in Orlando.

On Saturday, the night before his body was discovered, Saget sent his final tweet following a show at Jacksonville, Florida’s Ponte Vedra Concert Hall.

‘Loved tonight’s show @PV_ConcertHall in Jacksonville. Appreciative audience,’ he wrote. ‘Thanks again to @RealTimWilkins for opening. I had no idea I did a 2 hr set tonight. I’m happily addicted again to this s***. Check BobSaget.com for my dates in 2022.’

Although he developed a reputation among his fellow stand-up comedians for his profane comedy sets, Saget paradoxically had his greatest success with the heartwarming sitcom Full House.

He starred on the ABC series as Danny Tanner from 1987 through 1995, and then led the Netflix sequel series Fuller House for five seasons from 2016 to 2020.

In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper from July 2021, Saget revealed that he never expected to lean into cleaner comedy shows like Full House.

‘Full House was an accident,’ he said. ‘I got fired on CBS and was asked to be in Full House.’

Saget played a widowed  sports anchor who moves in with his late wife’s brother Jesse (John Stamos) and his childhood friend Joey (Dave Coulier) as they help him raise his three daughters, played by Candace Cameron, Jodie Sweetin and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who split the role of Michelle Tanner.

Saget’s Full House costar John Stamos wrote that he was ‘broken’ and ‘gutted’ after hearing the news.

‘I am in complete and utter shock. I will never ever have another friend like him. I love you so much Bobby,’ he lamented on Twitter.

Candace Cameron Bure, who played the actor’s daughter D.J. Tanner on Full house, was left speechless after learning of his death.

 ‘I don’t know what to say [broken-hearted emoji]. I have no words,’ she tweeted. ‘Bob was one of the best human beings I’ve ever known in my life. I loved him so much.’

The comedian played up his family-friendly bona fides by concurrently starring on America’s Funniest Home Videos from 1989 through 1997.

He hosted the series, which collected humorous home videos sent in by fans, and also provided voiceovers for the clips to ramp up the comedy.

Although he didn’t appear in front of the camera, Saget’s recognizable voice narrated another ABC sitcom, How I Met Your Mother, in which he played an older version of Ted Mosby (played on-screen by Josh Radnor).

The actor and comedian poked fun at his image with a recurring role on HBO’s Entourage, and he also led the single-season WB sitcom Raising Dad, which featured rising stars Kat Dennings and Brie Larson with Sopranos fixture Jerry Adler.

Dennings expressed her sorrow at news of her former costars death on Sunday.

‘Oh god. Bob Saget!!! The loveliest man. I was his TV daughter for one season and he was always so kind and protective. So so sorry for his family,’ she tweeted.

Saget wasn’t afraid to get a bit silly, and one of his recent appearances was as a disguised figure on The Masked Singer.

He focused more on his preferred brand of comedy in recent years with his podcast Bob Saget’s Here For You, which he began recording in 2020.

Other small but impactful roles include an uncredited part as a cocaine addict in Dave Chappelle’s 1998 stoner comedy Half Baked, and he was one of the many comedians featured in the documentary The Aristocrats, about the infamous foul comedy routine of the title.

When he wasn’t on stage or in front of the camera, Saget also tried his hand at directing.

He helmed the Norm Macdonald–starring comedy Dirty Work, which was reviled by critics but later reevaluated as a cult classic, and he provided voices for and directed the straight-to-video parody film Farce Of The Penguins.

The star is survived by his wife Kelly Rizzo, whom he married in 2018, and his three children — Aubrey, 34; Lara, 32; and Jennifer, 29 — all of whom he shared with his first wife Sherri Kramer, whom he was married to from 1982 to 1997.

Following news of Saget’s death, tributes began flowing in from his famous friends and admirers, most of whom noted Saget’s warmth and kindness.

Although SNL star Pete Davidson doesn’t have his own social media accounts, he had a friend share a statement online in which he revealed that Saget had had played an essential role in helping him with mental health issues.

‘Bob Saget was one of the nicest men on the planet,’ he began.

‘When I was younger and several times throughout our friendship he helped me get through some rough mental health stuff. He stayed on the phone with my mom for hours trying to help in anyway he can — connecting us with doctors and new things we can try,’ he continued. ‘He would check in on me and make sure I was okay.

‘I love you Bob it was an honor to know you. Thank you for your kindness and friendship. My condolences to the family.’

The Office star B.J. Novak, who had appeared on Bob Saget’s Here For You earlier in January, reacted to the news with a simple broken-hearted emoji.

On January 3, he had retweeted a clip from his episode and serenaded the late comic: ‘I have always and will always love Bob Saget.’

Billy Crystal was ‘shocked and saddened’ to learn of Saget’s death. He called him ‘A great friend and one of the funniest and sweetest people I have ever known.’

‘Sail on my friend Bob Saget With your huge heart and abject lunacy,’ Whoopi Goldberg wrote. ‘My condolences to his daughters & other family.’

Saget’s friend and fellow comic Gilbert Gottfried shared a photo of the two warmly embracing in his tribute post.

‘Still in shock. I just spoke with Bob a few days ago,’ he wrote. ‘We stayed on the phone as usual making each other laugh. RIP to friend, comedian & fellow Aristocrat Bob Saget.’

Watch What Happens Live host Andy Cohen tweeted that the Full House star ‘had the biggest heart and wore it on his sleeve.’

‘He was so generous with his feelings. A mensch,’ he added.

Former Daily Show host Jon Stewart simply wrote that Saget was ‘Just the funniest and nicest…’

Legendary television writer and producer Norman Lear was beaming ear-to-ear in a throwback photo he posted featuring Saget.

‘Bob Saget was as lovely a human as he was funny. And to my mind, he was hilarious. We were close friends and I could not have loved him more,’ he wrote.

Star Trek’s George Takei wrote that he was ‘saddened to learn of the untimely passing of comedian Bob Saget,’ whom he said was a ‘regular presence in our living rooms, bring to us the funniest videos and countless belly laughs.’

‘Gone too soon, like so many of the brightest souls,’ he added.

Henry Winkler alluded to Saget’s risqué stand-up comedy in his tribute.

‘BOB … it was great to know you … Oh are you going to make God blush,’ he joked.

Community star Joel McHale wrote that he was ‘shocked at @bobsaget’s passing.’

‘One of the most kind & thoughtful people I’ve ever come across & he just happened to be one of the funniest on the planet,’ he continued. ‘I will miss you so much Bob. Love you dear friend. I’m so sorry @kellyrizzo. And so sorry to the rest of the family.’

Howie Mandel posted a playful photo featuring his old friend and wrote, ‘Comedy and tragedy are so close together and today they collided.’

Comedian Dane cook wrote that he was ‘stunned beyond belief’ at Saget’s death.

‘I’m confused and sad here… I just spoke with him a couple days ago and we just had the most beautiful podcast chat over the holidays,’ he wrote. ‘I loved him. I can not believe this.’

The Masked Singer panelist Ken Jeong was in ‘shock’ and ‘so numb right now.’

Russell Crowe applauded Saget as ‘a good hang’ and ‘a good chat,’ adding that he was ‘kind, funny, generous.’

‘Damn it @bobsaget you left your body,’ wrote Seth Green,’ who said he would ‘celebrate’ Sage’s ‘genius,’ ‘giant heart’ and ‘joy for life.’

‘Thank you for helping me through the inevitable sadness of life with comedy. At least now you can hang with Rodney & Don again. Love you forever.’

George Lopez simply wrote that Saget’s death was ‘devastating news’ and copied the late comedian’s final tweet.

Comedian Jim Norton bemoaned how ‘Everything I start to write about him just feels inadequate.’

‘He is universally loved. I am so grateful he was my friend.’

Community’s Yvette Nicole Brown wrote that she had recently worked with Saget and bemoaned what seemed like a string of deaths of beloved stars.

‘He was such a lovely, funny man,’ she wrote. ‘What is going on?!’

Tom Green said he was ‘extremely saddened’ to hear of Saget’s death. ‘You were always hilarious and kind. You made my life and so many other peoples lives better Bob. Rest In Peace.’

Pauly Shore recounted how he first met Saget at The Comedy Store ‘when I was just a kid in the 1970s.’

Jane Lynch urged her followers to check out Saget’s acclaimed (and raunchy) ‘impromptu The Aristocrats story on YouTube. It’s brilliant and not for the faint of heart.’

Tom Arnold joked that ‘The only people who said terrible things about Bob Saget were his best friends [broken-hearted emoji].’

‘I f***ing loved that dude,’ gushed comedian Brian Posehn. ‘I’ll never see him in an airport and talk s*** about Stamos again. What a kick in the gut,’ he wrote.

‘My heart breaks for @JohnStamos and @DaveCoulier, so sorry fellas,’ he added.

Artie Lange, who costarred in Dirty Work, wrote that ‘Bob was so special to me and I’ll be sad about this day forever.’

‘Please be kind like Bob always was and considering donating here. It would mean everything to him,’ he wrote, linking to a page for the National Scleroderma Foundation.

Saget’s sister died from the disease in 1994, according to his website.

Paris Hilton was ‘so sad’ to learn of the comic star’s death. ‘You brought so many laughs to so many homes and will forever be an entertainment legend. You will be greatly missed.’

Country singer Mickey Guyton was ‘completely heartbroken’ over the news.

Patton Oswalt revealed that he had Saget over to his house in October to interview him for a documentary.

‘We were going to catch up over coffee when he was done editing and now I’m crying F***,’ he wrote.

Comedian Marc Maron called the America’s Funniest Home Videos host ‘truly one of the nicest guys and so funny.’

Zelda Williams, daughter of the late Robin Williams, urged Saget’s devastated fans to ‘please try to be mindful of the mourning, and privacy, of his loved ones.’

‘Don’t bombard them if they have socials. Don’t consume clickbait media that may have invaded their privacy or violated their safety. They’re human.’

Kathy Griffin seconded B.J. Novak’s love for Saget in her own tweet.

‘You couldn’t find a nicer or sharper wit than Bog Saget. Shocked and devastated.’

Comedian Nikki Glaser added that he was ‘as kind as he was funny.’

‘There wasn’t a kinder person in Hollywood than Bob Saget,’ Josh Gad tweeted. ‘I am having trouble wrapping my head around this. I do not want to believe this. It’s all too much to handle.’