'Friends' creators say Matthew Perry's death 'seems impossible'
Send a link to a friend
[October 30, 2023]
By Steve Gorman and Rich McKay
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Family, friends and fellow celebrities on Sunday
mourned the loss of Matthew Perry, the wise-cracking co-star of the
1990s hit television sitcom "Friends," a day after the actor was found
dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home.
"Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a
friend," Perry's family said in a statement published by People
magazine. "We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and
brother."
The statement thanked Perry's fans for their "tremendous outpouring of
love."
"It still seems impossible," the show's principle creative team, Marta
Kauffman, David Crane and Kevin Bright, said in a joint statement on
Sunday. "All we can say is that we feel blessed to have had him as part
of our lives."
Word of Perry's death emerged late on Saturday in a flurry of news media
reports, followed by statements from NBC, the broadcast network that
aired "Friends" for 10 years, and Warner Bros. Television Group, which
produced the show.
No official details were immediately released.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Oct/30/images/ads/current/lincolnprinters_lda_PPP_2023.png)
Asked about the circumstances of Perry's death, a Los Angeles Fire
Department spokesperson, Captain Erik Scott, replied, without referring
to Perry by name, that firefighters called to an address in the Pacific
Palisades neighborhood found "an adult male unconscious in a stand-alone
jacuzzi."
"A bystander had brought the man's head above the water and gotten him
to the edge, then firefighters removed him from the water upon their
arrival," Scott wrote to Reuters by text, adding that a quick medical
assessment at the scene revealed "the man was deceased" before emergency
personnel arrived.
The cause and manner of death is to be determined by medical examiners,
he said.
Scott's account was consistent with several news media reports, citing
law enforcement sources, that Perry was found dead in a hot tub at his
Los Angeles home. No foul play was suspected, according to those
reports.
Perry's death came one year after publication of his memoir, "Friends,
Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing," which chronicled decades-long bouts
with addiction to prescription painkillers and alcohol, a struggle he
said came close to ending his life more than once.
In his introduction to the book, the U.S.-Canadian actor wrote, “Hi, my
name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends
call me Matty. And I should be dead.” At the time, Perry said he had
been sober for about 18 months.
Perry gained fame and remains best known for his role as the
sardonically wry statistical analyst Chandler Bing on "Friends," which
ranked among the top-10 prime-time television shows for much of its
original network run from 1994 to 2004.
[to top of second column]
|
![](../../31/images/103023PIX/ent_b.13.jpg)
Cast member Matthew Perry poses at the premiere of the television
series "The Kennedys After Camelot" at The Paley Center for Media in
Beverly Hills, California U.S., March 15, 2017. REUTERS/Mario
Anzuoni/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Oct/30/images/ads/current/graue_lda_FFARM_2023.png) 'GIFT TO US ALL'
The series, still popular in syndication, made global stars out of
Perry and all five of his lead castmates - Jennifer Aniston,
Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow. The
six earned wide critical acclaim for their on-screen chemistry,
playing a close-knit group of young singles who shared space in each
other's apartments and hung out together at the "Central Perk," a
fictional Manhattan coffee house.
Although Chandler and Cox's character, Monica, were wed in the
show's seventh season, Perry never married in real life.
None of Perry's "Friends" co-stars had yet to publicly comment on
his death as of Sunday afternoon.
But the official "Friends" webpage on Instagram said: "We are
devastated to learn of Matthew Perry’s passing. He was a true gift
to us all. Our heart goes out to his family, loved ones, and all of
his fans."
Singer Adele gave a tearful tribute to Perry and his Chandler
character during her Las Vegas show on Saturday night.
"I'll remember that character for the rest of my life," she said as
the audience cheered, according to the Los Angeles Times. "He's
probably the best comedic actor of all time," she said.
Many celebrities shared their thoughts on social media over the
weekend, such as actor Alyssa Milano, who co-starred with Perry in
the 1988 prom night film "Dance 'Til Dawn," described him as “always
the funniest person in the room.”
"Matty, remember when we used to go play bingo at that church in the
valley?" she wrote. "You made me laugh that painful kind of laugh. A
cry laugh. You made me cry-laugh."
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Oct/30/images/ads/current/burtonview_sda_FFARM_2023.png)
A tribute even came from Canada's prime minister, Justin Trudeau, a
boyhood friend of the young Perry, who was born in Massachusetts but
grew up in Ottawa after his mother, a Canadian journalist divorced
Perry's father, remarried and moved with the boy to Ontario. The
mother served for a time as press secretary to Trudeau's father,
Pierre, while he headed the Canadian government decades ago.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles and Rich McKay in Atlanta;
Editing by Marguerita Choy, Diane Craft and Michael Perry)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Oct/30/images/ads/current/charrons_bch_2022.png) |