Originally from Detroit, Michigan, Dave Coulier, funnyman, entertainer and perhaps best known as “Joey” from the ABC television series "Full House," will bring his farce, impersonations, wit and storytelling skills to the Foster Family stage at the Gallo Center for the Arts on Dec. 18. He will be performing two shows, at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Specifically selecting the Modesto venue, Coulier will be filming a one-hour standup comedy special called “Glorified Birthday Clown” during his performance at the Gallo. With his wife producing the special and Lex Passaris — assistant director on the upcoming "Fuller House" spin off series as well as directed episodes of the classic sitcom "The Golden Girls" – directing, the show should be a real treat for the crowd.

“I played up there (Gallo) years ago, we did an experimental show called 'Clean Guys of Comedy' and I loved the audience up there so much,” said Coulier. “The theatre setting we played in was the larger theatre and then I took a look at the Foster Family theatre, which is 440 seats and when I walked in there I thought this is the perfect room.

“If I ever shoot a comedy special I am coming back up here.”

Being surrounded by a funny family and having several funny friends growing up, Coulier started drawing cartoons, writing funny songs and making 8 mm movies at a young age.

“In fact, one friend that I have known since we were 9 years old, his name is Mark Cendrowski, he directs the 'Big Bang Theory' television series,” added Coulier. “We were always putting comedy stuff together in one form or another.”

Cendrowski also directed the first two episodes of "Fuller House," which is a spin off from the hit series "Full House" which will primarily focus on the girls (now grown up) and their lives, according to Coulier, who will be making an appearance on the show intermittently along with original cast members John Stamos, Bob Saget, Lori Loughlin and Scott Weinger. The show will be released in the first few months of 2016 on Netflix.

Stamos has a new television series called “Grandfathered” that airs on Fox in which Coulier made a guest appearance where he played a mental patient.

“That show was a blast,” said Coulier. “It was really fun.”

After pursuing stand-up in Detroit, Coulier moved to Los Angeles and at 19 worked at The Comedy Store and the Improv. In the meanwhile he was doing voices for cartoons and his first voice over job was on "Scooby Doo."

Continuing standup, Coulier also went to acting school at the Los Angeles Academy of Performing Arts where he was coached by Gordon Hunt, Helen Hunt’s father.

“So those years of study were very important; the whole time I was continuing to do standup and voice over work,” said Coulier. “Then I was given a series on Nickelodeon called 'Out of Control' that I hosted and that was a great training ground for comedy because it was cable television before Nickelodeon was this big network.

“They really gave us great freedom to create and improvise and for a young comedian that was just an unbelievable experience for me to host that series.”

All the while, Coulier pursued standup, continued to do voices for cartoons and hosted several shows like "America’s Funniest People" on ABC for four seasons, "World’s Funniest Videos," "Animal Kidding" on the Animal Planet Network and he also recently guest starred on the series "How I Met Your Mother" on CBS.

Coulier appeared with Stamos and Saget in a Dannon Oikos commercial for the Super Bowl a couple years ago which led to an appearance on "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon," "The View," and "Good Morning America."

His first late night appearance was on the "Tonight Show with Johnny Carson," early in his career.

“It was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time,” said Coulier. “Back then that was the only show where young comedians could be seen by a huge audience.

“It was like being shot out of a cannon in front of the world so, you know, it was just part of the journey.”

Experiencing several failures along the way, Coulier explained that he knew that show business was a roller coaster ride and “for every success there are 100 failures; that is the nature of show business.”

With standup superstars like Richard Pryor, George Carlin and the late Robin Williams leading the comedy charge, Coulier was inspired to pursue his dreams.

“Steve Martin broke a lot of barriers for comedians,” said Coulier. “Suddenly I realized the parameters are so wide that I fit so nicely into this now.”

A career goal of Coulier’s was to have his own standup hour-long comedy special, which will finally come to fruition at the Gallo in Modesto.