When it comes to his bizarre appearance on an Australian talk show last week, John Stamos wants fans to heed the words of Uncle Jesse and have mercy.
The actor, who last week exhibited rather uncharacteristic behavior on the Aussie chatfest Mornings with Kerri-Anne, is now speaking out against reports that he's bound for rehab, instead blaming a combination of a sleeping pill and jet lag for his televised misconduct.
During the interview, which has become a YouTube sensation, the 43-year-old small-screen vet insulted a reporter from Sydney's Daily Telegraph—who the previous day had written an article detailing Stamos' odd behavior during a separate interview—made a lewd gesture in front of the talk-show host with the help of an on-set prop, interjected and read lines from the TelePrompTer and insulted the host's outfit, all with slurred speech.
Stamos, who arrived in Australia on June 21 and appeared on Mornings June 26, said in five days he still had not adjusted to the time difference. Prior to his arrival Down Under, Stamos made promotional stops in Japan, Cairo, New York, New Orleans and a personal trip to Greece, vacationing with former Full House mate Bob Saget.
"By the time I got to Australia, my body was so out of whack," he told TV Guide. On the day of the Telegraph interview, June 25, Stamos said he "took a sleeping pill at five in the morning, Ambien. I did not know what continent I was on."
Because he was unable to sleep, Stamos said he continued taking the pills up until his appearance on Mornings with Kerri-Anne but adamantly denies that alcohol played any part in his behavior.
"I was not drinking," he said. "I did not drink either morning. I do not have an alcohol problem. I am not David Hasselhoff. This is not a pattern."
The actor told a similar tale of disoriented woe to Us Weekly, describing the TV interview, which he himself has yet to watch, as "an hour of grogginess."
He told the magazine that after taking an Ambien at 5 a.m. and waking up two hours later, he "was okay and did a few radio interviews. Then I had a break at 10 a.m. and dozed off and couldn't wake up. Security banged on the door, shook me and woke me up. Then they threw a jacket on me and put me in front of the camera.
"I did three or four interviews after that, and no one said a word. It was a weird, very out of character hour of my life."
And no doubt the life of TV host Kerri-Anne Kennerley, who attempted to calm Stamos by talking over his rambling on more than one occasion during the interview.
"She won't let the guest talk," Stamos said into the camera. "I'm the guest."
Of the Daily Telegraph reporter, who simply referred to the actor as "bleary-eyed, staggering and slurring," Stamos posited, "You know why he did that? 'Cause he has a small penis.
"He hit below the belt. He was really quite rude. There's a lot of Greeks here in Australia. Greeks, I'm asking you, don't buy this paper."
Later, the host teased an upcoming craft segment, which included the use of a giant heart hat. After pulling the glass head on which it was propped, Stamos held the head in front of his groin.
"John, put it down," Kennerley said. "You only wish."
At the end of the interview, Stamos read the host's lines off the TelePrompTer, thanking himself for appearing and promoting the next segment, about the Concert for Diana in London, as well as the upcoming memorial for the late Princess of Wales.
"What a great way to end an interview," Stamos said, breaking from the text. "Anyone else you want to talk about whose dead? Elvis died on a toilet. He was fat."
"Was he drunk?" the host jokingly interjected.
Unfazed, Stamos kept on.
"Let's see, who else died?" he asked, before answering his own question. "My career, after coming to Australia."
A day after the appearance, and a day after the interview went viral online, Stamos' rep, Lewis Kay, issued a statement of apology, again citing the actor's hectic travel schedule.
"He acknowledges that his behavior was completely out of character during these interviews and apologizes."