Actor Matthew Perry, who passed away, made millions of people happy throughout the world with his legendary performance as Chandler Bing. Regretfully, despite his ability to make others laugh, he struggled with addiction for years and was unable to assist himself.
Perry published his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing last year, in which he candidly discussed his struggle with addiction. He also disclosed some information regarding co-star Jennifer Aniston among the others.
Over the weekend, Perry’s LA home’s hot tub was discovered to be unresponsive. His death’s precise cause is still under investigation.
The actor, who was born in 1969 to an American father and a Canadian mother, debuted in a movie in 1988 called A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon, which also starred the late River Phoenix.
He also starred in Beverly Hills, 90210, and Growing Pains, Sydney, costarring Valerie Bertinelli.
His breakthrough performance came in Friends as the sardonic Chandler Bing. He spent ten years in the job, from 1994 to 2004.
Throughout the course of his multi-decade career, Perry starred alongside Salma Hayek in the 1997 romantic comedy Fools Rush In. He also costarred with Bruce Willis in the 2000 film The Whole Nine Yards and the 2004 follow-up The Whole Ten Yards.
Perry became well-known after landing a role in Friends, one of the most watched television programs ever. But he also began misusing alcohol at that same period.
Kind of, I could manage it. However, I was deeply involved in a lot of trouble by the time I was 34,” Perry acknowledged. However, I did spend some years sober throughout that period. The year I stayed sober the entire time was Season 9. And you know for which season I received a best actor nomination? That ought to tell me something, I thought.
He experienced a health crisis in 2018 after being admitted to the hospital for a stomach perforation. He spent two weeks in a coma and five months overall.
Perry told People, “The doctors told my family that I had a two percent chance to live.” “I was placed on an ECMO machine, which does all of your heart and lung breathing. That is referred to be a Hail Mary. Nobody makes it out of that.
Perry often acknowledged that the other members of the Friends cast knew about his addiction and supported him because they were close in real life as well as on television.
They were really patient and understanding. It resembles penguins. In the wild, penguins tend to support and embrace each other when one becomes ill or severely injured. Until that penguin can walk on its own, they circumambulate it. For me, the actors kind of did that, according to Perry.
But through thick and thin, Jennifer Aniston was the one who was at his side. It was she who kept in constant touch with him through his highs and lows.
He stated, “She was the one that reached out the most,” in an interview with Diane Sawyer from October 2022. “You know, she has my sincere gratitude for that.”
Simultaneously, Aniston was the first to confront him over his drinking issues.
Sawyer mentioned a surprise in Perry’s book when he remarked, “Jennifer, she says, ‘We know you’re drinking.’”
Perry answered, “Yeah, imagine how scary a moment that was.”
As a friend and actor, Matthew made the world a much happier place. They wrote in their statement, “You all meant so much to him and we appreciate the incredible outpouring of love.
The late actor received tributes from admirers, coworkers, producers, and other celebrities.
Frank Fritz, “American Pickers” star, dead at 60 — rest in peace
Fans are devastated at the news that Frank Fritz, the antiques expert who gained fame on the reality series American Pickers, has died at 60.
Fritz, who left the series in 2021, had been suffering from health problems and was hospitalized from a stroke two years ago.
The news was announced by Fritz’s friend and co-star Mike Wolfe, who said that Fritz passed away last night.
“I’ve know Frank for more [than] half my life and what you’ve seen on TV has always been what I have seen, a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny,” Wolfe wrote in a social media tribute. “The same off camera as he was on, Frank had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself.”
Fritz and Wolfe gained fame as the hosts of the reality TV series American Pickers, which premiered on the History Channel in 2010. The series showed the two “pickers” traveling across the USA, searching for valuable antiques and collectibles in unexpected places.
“We’re looking for amazing things buried in people’s garages and barns,” the show’s opening narration explains. “What most people see as junk, we see as dollar signs. We’ll buy anything we think we can make a buck on.”
“We make a living telling the history of America… one piece at a time.”
The series attracted millions of viewers, becoming one of History Channel’s most popular programs. In its debut year it was the #1 non-fiction series among total viewers and adults 25-54.
While the antiques were often interesting, there’s no doubt it was the chemistry and charisma of the two hosts that kept viewers coming back for more.
In 2021, it was announced that Fritz would be leaving American Pickers after a decade on the hit series. Fritz said the decision was not his own, and that he was pushed out by the network after a back surgery.
“I didn’t leave the show,” he told The Sun at the time. “I finished shooting and then I had a little back surgery and the pandemic came.”
He also suggested that his co-host’s ego was a factor, saying the show had “tilted towards him 1,000 percent.” “I haven’t talked to Mike in two years,” Fritz said. “He knew my back was messed up, but he didn’t call me up and ask how I was doing. That’s just how it is.”
In July 2022, Fritz was hospitalized from a stroke. In 2023, he had a tearful reunion with Mike Wolfe, and the two resolved their purported feud. However, Fritz declined an offer to rejoin American Pickers, deciding to focus on his health.
It’s clear that the two former co-hosts have remained friendly since then, and it seems Wolfe was by his side til the end.
“We’ve been on countless trips and shared so many miles and I feel blessed that I was there by his side when he took one last journey home,” Wolfe wrote on Instagram. “I love you buddy and will miss you so much I know [you’re] in a better place.”
American Pickers remains a staple of the History Channel lineup. Fritz has never officially been replaced as co-host, though series regulars like Danielle Colby, Mike Wolfe’s brother Robbie, and friend and antiques expert “Jersey Jon” Szalay will rotate accompanying Wolfe on his antiquing trips.
Colby also shared her own tribute to Fritz on social media. “Frank, I will miss your ability to make everyone laugh, your love for talking tattoos, your epic collections but what I will miss the most are those little glimpses of vulnerability from time to time,” she wrote.
“Frank, you loved your cat and your momma and we bonded on those things. You will be missed for all of these reasons and so many more.
Rest in Peace Road Dog.”
Rest in peace to the iconic reality TV star Frank Fritz 😢🙏 Please share this story in his memory.
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