That Friday Freeling

This week's book: Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry

The news of Matthew Perry's passing struck me. I teared up when I found out. Where was this coming from? It is not like I knew Matthew Perry personally, but the character he played on Friends, Chandler Bing, whether I realized it or not, had an impact on me. His quick one-liners, out-of-place annunciation, and comedic timing brought me so much laughter, and with the full 10 seasons streaming on Netflix, I was able to laugh all over again. So, I put my name on the waitlist at The American Library of Paris for his book, and I started to watch Friends again, starting with Episode One - The One Where It All Began.

Book Excerpt:

“Two weeks later, I was driven to the set of Friends by a technician from Malibu. When I arrived, Jen Aniston said, “I’ve been mad at you.” “Honey,” I said, “if you knew what I’d been through, you would not be mad at me.” With that we hugged, and I got the work done. I married Monica and got driven back to the treatment center—at the height of my highest point in Friends, the highest point in my career, the iconic moment on the iconic show—in a pickup truck helmed by a sober technician.”

~Matthew Perry, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, 2022.

A good reminder

I knew, but I didn't truly know. I knew Matthew Perry had an addiction problem. I heard about it from someone or read it somewhere, but I cannot recall who or where. What I did not know was to what extent his addiction problem was, or had been, how many times he relapsed, and how much money he spent on rehab. Adding to this, I was completely unaware that some of his lowest points were during the pinnacle of his career while filming Friends, the same times he was making me and so many others laugh out loud watching him on TV. This brings me to the adage "Be kind, you never know what others are going through."