John Stamos's Real Name: John Phillip Stamos

Quick answer: John Stamos's documented full name is John Phillip Stamos. Biography.com and Encyclopedia.com both record that form and date his birth to August 19, 1963, in Cypress, California (Biography.com; Encyclopedia.com).

Real name and early life

He is known professionally as John Stamos. Both sources name his parents as Bill Stamos, a restaurateur, and Loretta (Phillips) Stamos; Biography.com says Bill's father, a Greek immigrant, changed the family name from Stamatopolous, and that John has two younger sisters, Alana and Janeen. He grew up working in the family's Orange County restaurants, Duke's and Yellow Basket, and played drums in the John F. Kennedy High School marching band. Biography.com says a 1976 Beach Boys concert was a formative experience, and that in 1981 he postponed college at Cypress College to try acting.

Career highlights

Three weeks later he was cast as Blackie Parrish on General Hospital. A short-lived sitcom, Dreams (1984), and You Again? followed before he was cast as Jesse Katsopolis, known as Uncle Jesse, on ABC's Full House. Biography.com says the show became a top-20 hit by its second season and ended in 1995 after eight seasons. Stamos later returned as a recurring Uncle Jesse and an executive producer on the Netflix sequel Fuller House (2016). Other television work cited by Biography.com includes a 2005 ER guest appearance that led to a regular role as Dr. Tony Gates, Jake in Progress, Glee, Grandfathered, Scream Queens, Netflix's You, and the Disney+ series Big Shot. He has hosted the concert special A Capitol Fourth since 2017. Biography.com says he first drummed with the Beach Boys at a Fourth of July show in 1985, after meeting the band during his General Hospital years, and later appeared on Broadway in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Cabaret, and Bye Bye Birdie. Encyclopedia.com likewise notes a stint as drummer with the group. In 2008, Biography.com says, he appeared in ABC's A Raisin in the Sun, a production that received Golden Globe and Emmy nominations. After the 2022 death of Full House co-star Bob Saget, Biography.com records that Stamos delivered a eulogy published by the Los Angeles Times.

Name notes for searchers

John Phillip Stamos is the documented full name; the professional name is John Stamos. Searchers looking for Uncle Jesse on Full House, Blackie Parrish on General Hospital, or a later Beach Boys touring drummer are usually aiming at the same person.