School Project

My favorite TV
show
By

Iana Negrescu
8th Grade

Teacher:

Rodica Colesnic

ABOUT
Friendsis an American televisionsitcom, created byDavid CraneandMarta
Kauffman, which originally aired onNBCfrom September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004,
lasting ten seasons. With anensemble caststarringJennifer Aniston,Courteney
Cox,Lisa Kudrow,Matt LeBlanc,Matthew PerryandDavid Schwimmer, the show
revolves around six friends living inManhattan. The series was produced
byBright/Kauffman/Crane Productions, in association withWarner Bros. Television. The
original executive producers wereKevin S. Bright,Marta Kauffman, andDavid Crane.

"It's about sex, love, relationships,

careers, a time in your life when
everything's possible. And it's
about friendship because when
you're single and in the city, your
friends are your family."

F.R.I.E.N.D.S. opening title

Jennifer Aniston
Jennifer AnistonportraysRachel Green, a fashion enthusiast
and Monica Geller's best friend from childhood. Rachel first
moves in with Monica in season one after nearly marryingBarry
Farber, whom she realizes she does not love. Rachel and Ross
Geller are later involved in anon-again-off-again
relationshipthroughout the series. Rachel dates other men
during the series, such as an Italian neighbor, Paolo, in season
one; Joshua Bergin, a client fromBloomingdale's, in season four;
Tag Jones, her assistant, in season seven; and Joey Tribbiani in
season ten. Rachels first job is as a waitress at the coffeehouse
Central Perk, but she later becomes an assistant buyer at
Bloomingdale'sin season three, and a buyer atRalph Laurenin
season five. Rachel and Ross have a daughter named Emma in
"The One Where Rachel Has a Baby, Part Two" at the end of
season eight. In the final episode of the series, Ross and Rachel
finally confess their love for each other, and Rachel gives up a
job in Paris to be with him.

Courteney Cox
Courteney CoxportraysMonica Geller, the
mother hen of the group and a chef,known for
herperfectionist, bossy, competitive,
andobsessive-compulsivenature. Monica is
often jokingly teased by the others for having
been extremely overweight as a child,
especially by her brother Ross. Monica works
as a chef in various restaurants throughout the
show. Monicas first serious relationship is with
long-time family friendRichard Burke, who is
twenty-one years her senior. The couple
maintains a strong relationship for some time,
until Richard expresses that he does not want
to have children, much to Monicas dismay.
Monica and Chandler Bing later start a
relationship after spending a night with each
other in London in the season four finale,
leading to their marriage in season seven and
adoption of twins at the end of the series.

Lisa Kudrow
Lisa KudrowportraysPhoebe Buffay, an eccentricmasseuseand selftaught musician. As a child, Phoebe lived in uptown New York with her
mother, until she committed suicide and Phoebe took to the streets.
Phoebe is ditsy but street smart. Shewrites and singsher own quirky
songs, accompanying herself on the guitar. She has an"evil" identical
twinnamedUrsula, who shares Phoebes quirkiness, but, unlike Phoebe,
seems to be selfish and uncaring. Phoebe is childlike and innocent in
disposition. She tends to use her past misfortunes such as her mothers
suicide as sympathy ploys or rather, to mock others' self-indulgent selfpity. Phoebe has three serious relationships over the show's run: David, a
scientist, in season one, whom she breaks up with when he moves
toMinskon a research grant; Gary, a police officer whose badge she
finds, in season five; and an on-and-off relationship withMike
Hanniganin seasons nine and ten. In season nine, Phoebe and Mike
break up due to his desire not to marry. Phoebe and Mike marry in season
ten.

Matt LeBlanc
Matt LeBlancportraysJoey Tribbiani, a struggling actor and
food lover who becomes famous for his role on soap
operaDays of Our Livesas Dr. Drake Ramoray. Joey is a
simple-mindedwomanizerwith many short-term girlfriends.
Despite his womanizing, Joey is innocent, caring, and wellintentioned.Joey often uses the catchphrase pick-up line
"How you doin'?" in his attempts to win over most of the
women he
meets. Joey rooms with his best
friend
Chandler for years, and later with Rachel.
He falls in love with Rachel in season
eight,but Rachel politely tells Joey that
she does not share his feelings. They
eventually date briefly in season ten, but
after
realizing it will not work due to their
friendship
and, more importantly,
Rachel's complicated
relationship with
Ross, they return to being
friends.

Mattew perry

Matthew PerryportraysChandler Bing, an

executive instatistical analysisand data
reconfiguration for a large, multinational
corporation.
Chandler hates this job,
although it pays well. He
attempts to quit
during season one, but is lured back
with a
new office and a pay raise. He eventually
quits this job in season nine due to a transfer
toTulsa.
He becomes a juniorcopywriterat anadvertising agencylater that
season. Chandler has a peculiar family history being the son of an erotic
novelist mother and a gay,cross-dressingLas Vegas star father.
Chandler is known for his sarcastic sense of humor and bad luck in
relationships. Chandler marries Monica in season seven, and they adopt
twins at the end of the series. Before his relationship with Monica,
Chandler datedJanice Hosensteinin season one and subsequently
broke up with her many times. Matthew Perry has expressed his
similarities to the character, such as his need to break an awkward
silence with a joke and difficulties with women when first joining the
show.

David
Schwimmer
David Schwimmerportrays
Ross Geller, Monica Geller's
older brother, apaleontologistworking at theMuseum of Natural
History, and later a tenured professor of paleontology atNew York
University. Ross is a sweet-natured man of good humor, although he is often clumsy and
socially awkward. Ross is involved in an on-again-off-again relationship with Rachel
throughout the series. He has three failed marriages during the series:Carol Willick, a
lesbian who is also the mother of his son, Ben;Emily Waltham, who divorces Ross after
he accidentally says Rachel's name instead of hers during their wedding vows; and
Rachel, as the two drunkenly marry inLas Vegas. His failed love life is potentially due to
his paranoia and jealousy in relationships, and his divorces become a running joke within
the series. Following a one-night stand, he and Rachel have a daughter, Emma, by the
end of season eight. They finally confess that they are still in love with each other in the
series finale.

Cast Salary
In their original contracts for the first season, cast members were
paid $22,500 per episode.The cast members received different
salaries in the second season, beginning from the $20,000 range to
$40,000 per episode.Before their salary negotiations for the third
season, the cast decided to enter collective negotiations, despite
Warner Bros.' preference for individual deals. The actors were given
the salary of the least-paid cast member, meaning Aniston and
Schwimmer had their salaries reduced. The stars were paid $75,000
per episode in season three, $85,000 in season four, $100,000 in
season five, $125,000 in season six, $750,000 in seasons seven and
eight, and $1million in seasons nine and ten, making Aniston, Cox,
and Kudrow the highest paid TV actresses of all-time

 To maintain the series' ensemble format, the main cast

members decided to enter themselves in the same acting
categories for awards. Beginning with the series' eighth
season, the actors decided to submit themselves in the
lead actor balloting, rather than in the supporting actor
fields.The series was nominated for 62Primetime Emmy
Awards, winning six. Aniston and Kudrow are the only
main cast members to win an Emmy, while Cox is the only
actor not to be nominated. The series won the Primetime
Emmy Award forOutstanding Comedy Seriesin 2002,
receiving nominations in 1995, 1996, 1999, 2000, and
2003.The series
also won anAmerican Comedy
Award,oneGLAAD Media Award, oneGolden Globe
Award, threeLogie
Awards,sixPeople's Choice
Awards,
oneSatellite Award, and
oneScreen
Actors Guild Award

Awards

The Cultural Impact

Although the producers thought ofFriendsas "only a TV show", numerous
psychologists investigated the cultural impact ofFriendsduring the series'
run. Aniston's hairstyle was nicknamed "The Rachel", and copied around the
world. Joey's catchphrase, "Howyoudoin'?", became a popular part of
Western English slang, often used as apick-up lineor when greeting friends.
The series also influenced the English language, according to a study by
theUniversity of Torontothat found that the characters used the emphasized
word "so" to modify adjectives more often than any otherintensifier.
Although the preference had already made its way into the
Americanvernacular, usage on the series may have accelerated the
change.Perry's habit of ending a sentence unfinished for sarcasm also
influenced viewers' speech. Following theSeptember 11 attacks, ratings
increased 17% over the previous season

Did you know that

The show was originally calledInsomnia Cafe. It was then renamedFriends
Like Us, and thenSix of Onebefore becomingFriends.
In 1997, they banded together to negotiate a salary increase
to$100,000per episode. It was the first time in TV history that cast
members had done this.
The cast had ahuddlebefore filming each episode to wish each other luck.
Many people, including Lisa Kudrow, thought that chandler was gay.
They were the first tv cast to negotiate as a group.
All of the six main characters havekissedeach other at one point, except
Monica and Phoebe.
Over the 10 seasons of the show, actor David Schwimmer
directed 10 episodes of the series.
Jennifer Aniston hated her iconic haircut the Rachel, which
explains why Aniston is a such a fan of long, even locks. She told
E! Online that shedrather shave her headthan get that haircut
again.