# Matthew Perry from Friends dies, RIP **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** celebrity-death\ **Created:** [October 29, 2023, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250 "2023-10-29T00:34:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/21 "2023-10-29T02:00:00Z")
Everybody is talking about his acting career, but nobody has mentioned how he opened Japan to the West. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/22 "2023-10-29T02:00:34Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Let’s wait until the full autopsy report is in before stating his cause of death. It may well be natural, and, for instance, a heart attack at 54 is not unusual. True, but also true that given his past, his heart may have been weakened or otherwise compromised, so it’s entirely possible that it’s not a relapse, but not unrelated to drug use. I’d be interested in the actual details; is it likely that autopsy results will be released? ---
**Author:** ![Al128](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/al128/32/16541_2.png) [@Al128](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al128)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/23 "2023-10-29T02:05:42Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > > [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > > > Could he BE any more dead? > > This was the first thing that popped into my head when my son texted me and it made me both chuckle and sob at the same time. Man. . … How YOU doing? ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/24 "2023-10-29T02:08:57Z")
Do NOT jinx Matt LeBlanc! ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/25 "2023-10-29T02:14:35Z")
Perry was also good in the Bruce Willis / Amanda Peet / Rosanna Arquette movie _The Whole Nine Yards_. ---
**Author:** ![Skypist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skypist/32/169_2.png) [@Skypist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skypist)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/26 "2023-10-29T02:22:56Z")
> [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > I find it especially sad as both a former Friends fan and that he was my age. Same here. I mostly enjoyed “Friends” and am exactly his age. RIP. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/27 "2023-10-29T02:24:14Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Oh man this one sucks. Friends is my “comfort food” tv. My go-to when I’ve got nothing else to watch. My 90s nostalgia fix. Same here. We still stream it often. He started Friends when he was just a couple years younger than me. Its like losing an old friend. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/28 "2023-10-29T02:34:00Z")
When he was going around last year to talk up his new memoir, I remember him saying that he spent something like $9 million getting clean. (He also mentioned that for the shooting of the Friends final episode, someone picked him up from rehab, drove him to the set and then took him back right after.) ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/29 "2023-10-29T02:55:59Z")
I hope he is finally at peace now. Life can be very cruel. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/30 "2023-10-29T05:40:42Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > > [@DCnDC](#): > > > > No drugs found at scene, but a history of use. > > If I was a betting man, I’d guess a relapse. You would guess a relapse based on what exactly? As DCnDC said, no drugs found at the scene. Anyone who knows his story would realize his health was seriously negatively impacted by his addiction. In a case like this an early death isn’t out of the question because of the past abuse. But until there is information suggesting current drug use was the cause this is incredibly tacky at the least, particularly in what amounts to an In Memoriam thread for a lot of people. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/31 "2023-10-29T09:31:30Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Everybody is talking about his acting career, but nobody has mentioned how he opened Japan to the West. For the record, I appreciate this joke. My first exposure to the recently-deceased Matthew Perry was as the character “Sandy” in one of _Growing Pains_’s very special episodes. He was Carol’s boyfriend, and he dies in a car crash after driving while drunk. I remember some of his other earlier work, but mostly just in bits and pieces. But when he got the role of Chandler, I was already quite familiar with him to the point that I knew his name just from seeing a picture of him. ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/32 "2023-10-29T10:32:53Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Extended hot tub sits are known to cause increased heart rate and blood pressure. Maybe he had an undiagnosed heart condition. \*decreased blood pressure. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/33 "2023-10-29T12:30:50Z")
I only saw Matt in Ally McBeal. He appeared twice as a romantic distraction for Ally. Matt was a very talented actor that struggled with personal demons. I hope he found some peace at the end. RIP ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/34 "2023-10-29T12:32:18Z")
He was in the movie The Whole Nine Yards with Bruce Willis. Absolutely fantastic move. You must see it if you haven’t. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/35 "2023-10-29T12:47:08Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > Anyone who knows his story would realize his health was seriously negatively impacted by his addiction. In a case like this an early death isn’t out of the question because of the past abuse. Quote from the NYT obit: “His addiction led to a series of complications in 2018 that included pneumonia, an exploded colon, a brief stint on life support, two weeks in a coma, nine months with a colostomy bag and more than a dozen stomach surgeries.” ---
**Author:** ![Nightfall1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@Nightfall1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightfall1)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/36 "2023-10-29T12:50:18Z")
He was a heavy drinker for a long time. Had a friend who drank a LOT of beer through his 20s. Got married in his 30s, his wife cleaned him up. Had kids, turned his life around. Woke up one day. Went to shave and fell over dead with a heart attack. Must have really hurt his heart with all the drinking. Very sad. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/37 "2023-10-29T12:53:12Z")
Sitting in a hot tub can trigger a heart attack. The heat stresses the heart of there’s an underlying condition, which may not have been diagnosed I didn’t care for _Friends_, but Perry had some of the best lines when I happened to catch it. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/38 "2023-10-29T14:22:36Z")
At least he didn’t die during _Shark Week_. The rumors would be running wild… ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/39 "2023-10-29T14:52:42Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Perry had some of the best lines “Joey, you have to stop the Q-tip when there’s resistance.” ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250/40 "2023-10-29T15:08:51Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > You would guess a relapse based on what exactly? His history of abuse. Plus the fact that addicts often relapse. > [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > Anyone who knows his story would realize his health was seriously negatively impacted by his addiction. In a case like this an early death isn’t out of the question because of the past abuse. I believe I said the same thing upthread. I just came across this Matthew Perry quote, referencing his condition. > [@](#): > > I say in the book that if I did die it would shock people, but it wouldn’t surprise anybody. > [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > But until there is information suggesting current drug use was the cause this is incredibly tacky at the least, particularly in what amounts to an In Memoriam thread for a lot of people. My apologies. I was a fan of his character on Friends. I think that Matthew Perry was excellent in that role. And my high school senior year (1996) class song was “I’ll be there for you.” A part of my own adolescence died. > [@Chefguy](#): > > His addiction led to a series of complications in 2018 that included pneumonia, an exploded colon, a brief stint on life support, two weeks in a coma, nine months with a colostomy bag and more than a dozen stomach surgeries. Wow, I never realized how bad he was. > [@Riemann](#): > > Joey, you have to stop the Q-tip when there’s resistance. (Chandler, referencing Chinese food in China): “Of course, over there they just call it food.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/matthew-perry-from-friends-dies-rip/992250.md?page=3)