Goodbye Chandler, We've Lost One of the Best Friends.

On October 28th at 4:07 PM local time in Los Angeles, a 911 call was made reporting a water emergency. Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Brian Humphrey stated that no one was transported to the hospital, and the Los Angeles Police Department's West LA Division was also on the scene. Matthew Perry was found drowned in his own bathtub at his home, and the cause of death remains unknown, though foul play has been ruled out, and no drugs were found at the scene. Matthew Perry, the beloved actor who played Chandler in "Friends," left us at the age of 54. In 2021, "Friends" had its first official reunion after the end of the show. The cast members revisited the script, and this reunion has since become a swan song.

In November 2022, Matthew Perry's memoir was released in the United States, titled "Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing." It quickly became a bestseller. In this over 500-page memoir, Matthew detailed his lifelong struggle with substance addiction. The question of how much of Matthew's life was shaped by his popularity as Chandler and how much by the torment of addiction is hard to answer. In his memoir, he wrote, "Fame, money, or just me as me - I couldn't enjoy any of them unless I was getting high." He attended over 6,000 AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) meetings, checked into rehab 15 times, went through detoxification 65 times, and spent about $9 million on battling alcohol and drug addiction, which also involved 14 surgeries. His most recent surgery occurred in January 2022. In his memoir, he paints a vivid picture of the pain of alcohol and drug addiction and the extraordinary experiences he went through to cope with it. For example, he lived in a Swiss rehab centre and pretended to be in pain to receive daily doses of 1800 milligrams of Oxycodone (a painkiller, the highest dosage prescribed to late-stage cancer patients is 100 milligrams), along with daily Ketamine injections. In the summer of 2019, his colon ruptured at a rehab centre in California, and doctors gave him only a 2% chance of survival. After a seven-hour operation and two weeks in a coma, he miraculously woke up, albeit with a colostomy bag, and endured five months of regret and anguish in the hospital. After returning home, he used pain as an excuse to deceive doctors into prescribing him opioid medications.

Matthew Perry was born in Canada, and his parents divorced when he was less than a year old. His father moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career, while his mother remained in Canada and eventually remarried, having two more children. In this restructured family, Matthew often felt like an outsider. Being abandoned by his biological father at a young age left him with a deep sense of insecurity. In his memoir, Matthew analysed that his childhood experiences led him to believe that he was not enough for his father, which drove him to seek greater fulfilment in life. He believed this was the reason behind his mother's remarriage and the birth of two more children. His relentless pursuit of alcohol and drugs could be seen as an attempt to find solace in his life. He wrote in his memoir, "What I've always wanted to tell my mom is that the reason I did those shows, including 'Friends,' was mainly to get your attention. And the only thing 'Friends' didn't bring me was my mother's attention."

At the age of 15, Matthew moved from Ottawa to Los Angeles to learn acting at The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, graduating in 1987. This is where he learned impromptu comedy performance, which marked the beginning of his professional acting career. Before landing the role of Chandler in "Friends" in 1994, the 24-year-old had appeared in small roles in several sitcoms. Chandler was initially conceived as an "observer of humanity," a young man who approached life from a comedic perspective, often cracking jokes and commenting on the unnoticed details. "Friends" had two episodes where the six friends lived different lives, and in those episodes, the character Chandler was essentially an embodiment of the initial concept, a young man with a bit of comedic talent who was trying to make it his profession.

However, the show's creators decided to incorporate the actors' own personalities into the characters and thus making them more authentic. Writer Marta Kauffman had dinner with each cast member individually, and when she dined with Matthew, he shared two things with her. First, he told her that despite his lack of self-confidence, he always managed to attract a fair number of girls, but every single relationship he had was a disaster. Second, he admitted that he couldn't stand silence in a room, and he'd instinctively use jokes to break the silence. These two revelations became key aspects of Chandler's character, making him more complex and instantly relatable. Chandler became an integral part of the ensemble, and audiences quickly embraced his character with empathy and love. This also shaped Chandler's approach to intimate relationships. He feared commitment, used sarcasm as his armour, but when he met Monica, he was drawn into a warm, understanding, and caring relationship. His life took a more normal, loving, and family-oriented path. In contrast, Matthew himself seemed to have remained stagnant, grappling with the same issues he had in his twenties well into his fifties. The burden he carried, generated by his own insecurities, was a heavy one.

Matthew Perry was a talented comedic writer. The set of "Friends" was exceptionally open, and everyone could contribute jokes. He was the one who contributed the most jokes among the six cast members. Beyond "Friends," Matthew Perry made notable contributions in the Aaron Sorkin-directed series "The West Wing." He played the role of Joe Quincy, an associate White House counsel, earning him two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series in 2003 and 2004.

Matthew remained single throughout his life. His most well-known romance was with Julia Roberts, which occurred during the filming of Season 2 of "Friends" when she guest-starred on the show. Matthew detailed this romantic interlude extensively in his memoir. It was on the eve of the New Year in 1996, with snow falling, at 11:45 PM. Julia took his hand and said, "Come with me." The two of them hopped into a blue car and drove up to the mountains. Matthew sat in the passenger seat, watching the snow blow by. When they reached the mountaintop, the sky had cleared, and they could see New Mexico in the distance, and even further, Canada, where Matthew spent his childhood. It was on this mountaintop that they welcomed the year 1996. After being together for four months, Matthew broke up with her.

In November 2020, Matthew got engaged to literary manager Molly Hurwitz, but less than a year later, he announced their separation. In terms of intimate relationship, Matthew had similarities with Chandler, as he noted in his memoir, "I was completely useless in love, and I was always afraid of being dumped. But the fear was fake. In 53 years, I've had many wonderful girlfriends, and there's only been one who left me." But Chandler had Monica. And in friendship, Chandler had Joey. At this point, a friend sent me a picture that captures Chandler and Joey in their apartment, specifically the pair of recliners they never wanted to leave. In the picture, Joey is smiling, looking at the empty chair where Chandler used to sit.

The connection between these two characters epitomizes the perfect male friendship and showcases them as the ultimate roommates. Chandler's insecurities found solace in Joey's unwavering loyalty, and Joey's lack of life skills was subtly compensated by Chandler. "Friends" premiered in 1994, and the ideal friendships of these six young people have accompanied several generations for nearly 30 years. Few characters, like these six, blur the lines between the actors and the roles they played. Matthew Perry and Chandler, in particular, are almost indistinguishable. In his memoir, Matthew often refers to both of them as "we," saying, "We were the ones who used humor to avoid real pain." Now, we've lost Matthew, a star far away in Hollywood, but in our hearts, we've lost one of the best friends.