Matthew Perry, an actor known for his role as the witty, twenty-something Chandler Bing on the ’90s sitcom “Friends,” spent his life bringing joy to audiences, according to fans.
The TV star, who appeared in all ten seasons of “Friends,” in addition to having roles in the films “Fools Rush In,” “The Ron Clark Story” and “The Whole Nine Yards,” died in his Los Angeles home at the age of 54 on Saturday.
Perry was found dead in a hot tub, as reported by news outlets. His cause of death is still under investigation, according to reporting from The New York Times.
“It was shocking,” said Charlie Stratton, a sophomore teaching English as a second language major. “I was taken aback a bit.”
Perry struggled with a lifelong addiction to alcohol and opioids, and after beating his addiction, he worked to help others battling with substance abuse. He turned his former Malibu home into a men’s sober living facility called the Perry House, which ran from 2013 until 2015.
“I would like to be remembered as somebody who lived well, loved well, was a seeker and his paramount thing is that he wants to help people, that’s what I want,” Perry said in an interview with Tom Power, host of the “Q with Tom Power” podcast.
Perry wrote his memoir “Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing” to share his life journey in hopes of helping others.
“I want people to understand that they’re not alone, that there are other people feeling exactly the way they’re feeling, that their behavior is not insane, that they have a disease, and it’s not their fault,” Perry said in an Instagram post Nov. 4, 2022 at the time of his book release.
Sophomore journalism major Nikki Gasiewski said she has been a fan of Perry’s work as an actor, comedian and writer since she was nine years old.
“Reading [his book], there was a point where I was like, ‘Wow, that’s really heavy and dark’ – but that was him being authentic,” Gasiewski said. “He didn’t hold anything back.”
From helping Ross and Rachel, two of the six main friends in the show, pivot a couch up a narrow staircase to proposing to Monica, his friend-turned-girlfriend, in their apartment to eating cheesecake off of the floor with Rachel, Perry’s role as Chandler Bing has become memorable to some students.
“I definitely liked the show,” sophomore advertising major Julia Pauline said. “He was my favorite character out of the six of them.”
Stratton said his favorite scene of Perry in “Friends” was when Chandler accidentally hit his head while performing a scene in which he was handcuffed to the cabinet of his friend Rachel’s boss in season 4, episode 3, titled “The One With The ‘Cuffs.”
“Chandler was my favorite,” Stratton said. “Middle school was a rough time for most people, so it helped me get through that.”
Gasiewski offered her condolences to Perry, remembering him as a “second dad” to her.
“Thank you, [Perry], for teaching me about comedy and sarcasm, and thank you for being a parent and a friend to me,” Gasiewski said.
Editor’s note: Nikki Gasiewski is part of KentWired’s TV2.
Lauren Bischof is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].
