Matthew Perry’s Favorite ‘Friends’ Episode Was One Where The Verbose Chandler Had Few Lines

It’s been about a month since Matthew Perry’s unexpected death, and we’re still learning — or just remembering — things about him. Last week Lauren Graham, a longtime friend, revealed that the publication of his memoir brought him happiness in what proved to be his final year. After an old Entertainment Weekly interview with him was rehashed, people discovered his favorite Friends episode — and it’s one where the normally verbose Chandler Bing barely has any lines.

As caught by People, the interview hails from 2004, and it finds Perry picking, out of Friends’ 236 episodes, “The One with the Blackout.” It’s an early one, from Season 1, and it finds the city suffering the titular calamity. (In real life, New York City hadn’t had a blackout since 1977, and wouldn’t have another until 2003.) Most of the gang is safely sequestered in Monica and Rachel’s apartment. Chandler, though, is trapped inside an ATM vestibule with an attractive woman, played by model Jill Goodacre. For once the quippy Chandler is tongue-tied.

“The interesting thing about that episode was I didn’t speak much; it was mostly in voiceover,” Perry said at the time. “We prerecorded what I said, and I had to react.”

He also had a great screen partner, who helped him act awkward.

“Let’s face it: Jill Goodacre is hot, so it wasn’t that difficult,” Perry recalled. “I [remember] spitting my gum out, and it stuck to the wall. It was my choice to just stay frozen in fear and embarrassment. … What was great about that night was that I was also able to watch the other three quarters of the show, which was these five great actors doing ensemble work that was amazing. This was the first time I realized, ‘Gee, this is really clicking.’”

Perry was found dead at his Los Angeles home on October 28. Tributes quickly poured in, with fans and colleagues alike praising his comic chops and his blunt honesty about his struggles with addiction.