Friends Trivia | 100 random facts & trivia about Friends [Part 1]

Friends is a famous comedy tv series that became a huge tv phenomenon during the late 90s and early 2000s.

The tv series follows the personal and professional lives of six twenty to thirty-something-year-old friends living in Manhattan -Monica, Phoebe, Rachel, Joey, Ross, and Chandler.

Monica and Joey were supposed to be the show’s main couple.
The name of the show during the pilot was “Friends like us”.
The show’s working titles were Insomnia Café, Friends Like Us, and Six of One, before everyone settled on Friends.
Jennifer Aniston also almost lost the role of Rachel because of another series.
While starting Friends, Aniston was filming a series called Muddling Through.
Courteney Cox was asked to play Rachel.
Ellen DeGeneres turned down the role of Phoebe Buffay.
Matthew Perry was filming a pilot for Fox when he auditioned for Chandler.
The show was called LAX2194 — a series about baggage handlers in LAX during the year 2194.
Monica and Chandler’s relationship was pitched in season 3.
Even though it didn’t actually happen until the very end of Season 4.
The opening was shot at Warner Bros. Studios in Californi, not in NYC.
Jennifer Aniston found the idea of shooting the opening to a fountain weird and said that the only reason they did it because they “were told to.”
Before the pilot, they dined at Spago inside Caesar’s Palace to enjoy their “last shot at anonymity.”
The cast would return some six years later to shoot Mr. Rachel’s wedding to Mrs. Ross.
In 1995, show cocreator Marta Kauffman told the Los Angeles Times that Cox had “the neatest” dressing room.
In 1993, Matthew Perry co-wrote and pitched a sitcom to NBC about a group of twenty-somethings called Maxwell’s House.
As we all know the network turned it down as they already had a show in the works that was similar.
“Shiny Happy People” by REM was the original choice for the Theme Song for the show and was used in the pilot.
The Producers David Crane and Marta Kauffman co-wrote “I’ll be there for you” with Phil Solem and Danny Wilde of the Rembrandts.
The same theme song was used for the theme song for all ten seasons.\
In 1995, the song reached number 1 in the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart.
It was there for eight weeks.
Phoebe and Chandler were originally intended to be written as supporting characters.
In early development, writers considered making Chandler gay.
When Lisa Kudrow and Courteney Cox first read their scripts they thought Chandler was gay.
When the show premièred Matthew Perry and Jennifer Aniston were 25, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer were 27, Courteney was 30 and Lisa Kudrow was 31.
The frame around the peephole in Monica’s apartment was initially a mirror but was broken accidentally by a crew member but they agreed it looked better that way and kept it.
The apartments were initially 4 and 5 however the producers realized that it corresponded with the apartments being on the lower floors and changed it to 19 and 20.
The Orange couch in Central Perk was found in the basement of the Warner Bros Studios.
The couch was almost always free for the six friends because it was reserved.
And yes: there was always a reservation sign on the coffee table.
Except from when Ross and Chandler were bullied and Chandler’s hat was taken.
When fans questioned why it was always available to the gang, it was added in an episode where they say it was permanently reserved for them.
We only find out four of their middle names throughout the seasons.
Chandler Muriel Bing, Rachel Karen Green, Ross Eustace Geller, and Joseph Francis Tribbiani Jr.
We do however know Monica’s middle name begins with an ‘E’
Phoebe has a middle name but couldn’t find out because Ursula sold her birth certificate.
Season 2 didn’t air a Thanksgiving episode.
Ellen DeGeneres turned down the role of Phoebe.
Christina Applegate was cast as Amy Green (season 9 Thanksgiving episode) when Reese Witherspoon was unavailable to reprise her role as Jill.
Three cast members of The Simpsons made guest appearances: Dan Casellaneta (Homer) as the ZooKeeper, Hank Azaria (Moe/Apu) as David the scientist and Harry Shearer (Mr. Burns/Smithers) as Dr. Baldhara.
Hank Azaria auditioned for the role of Joey twice.
Jennifer Aniston later stated that she hated the now-iconic “Rachel” haircut.
Courteney Cox was the only one to never get nominated for an Emmy on the show.
Bruce Willis guest-starred on Friends for free after losing a bet with his co-star Matthew Perry on a Whole Nine Yards that it would reach number one in the box office on the opening weekend.
He was already scheduled to appear on the show then donated the money he earned from Friends to charity.
James Michael Tyler was the only extra to gain a regular part because he knew how to work the espresso machine.
James Michael Tyler was working in a Hollywood coffee shop when he got the role of Gunther.
According to an actor’s interview in 2014 is still around and one of the last independent coffee shops that haven’t been taken over or whatnot.
Gunther had no name until the middle of season 2.
Gunther got his first line in the 33rd episode
His first word was actually “yeah”.
Ben Geller was played for four boys.
Michael Gunderson as an infant, twins Thomas and John Christopher Allen during Seasons 3-5, and Cole Sprouse during Seasons 6-8.
Marcel, the monkey was played by two monkeys: Katie and Monkey.
Crew Member Paul Swain was responsible for the Magna Doodles on the door of Chandler’s Apartment for each episode shot there.
NBC originally thought that the cast was too young and asked writers to include an older character to give advice.
NBC also thought that Central Perk was too trendy and wanted to set the show in a diner, like Seinfeld
Producers initially wanted Courteney Cox to play Rachel. However, she felt she was more like Monica.
Erica and Jack (Monica and Chandler’s twins) were born 3 minutes and 46 seconds apart.
Like Monica and Chandler, Courteney and David (her husband) found it hard to conceive in real life.
However, in the last season, Courteney is seen wearing baggy clothes and scarves to hide her pregnancy.
The scene with Rachel having Emma was filmed not long after Courteney had a miscarriage.
Ross was 29 for… 3 years.
In one season he even had two birthdays.
David Schwimmer directed 10 episodes of Friends.
David Schwimmer was also the first to be cast.
It was later revealed that the writers had written the character of Ross with intentions of David Schwimmer playing the part.
Jennifer Aniston was the last to be cast.
When in London and Monica is seen to pop up from underneath Chandler’s bedsheet, they had been held in position for 27 seconds.
All six cast members have kissed one another except Monica and Phoebe.
Joey wasn’t written as a dim character.
Matt LeBlac suggested it.
Matt LeBlanc started going grey in his twenties and had to have his hair dyed throughout the series.
Malcom (Ursula’s stalker and later Phoebe’s boyfriend portrayed by David Arquette, at that point Courteney Cox’s future husband.
Yasmine Bleeth and Julia Roberts were fantasies of Chandler in the show.
In real like Matthew Perry had dated both of them.
“The One Where No One’s Ready” was filmed entirely in Monica’s apartment.
This happened because after having guest stars the show didn’t have a large enough budget for additional sets.
Lisa Kudrow was actually afraid of the duck.
No live audiences were used when they were filming cliff hangers.
Friends were supposed to be… four!
Phoebe and Chandler were originally written as supporter roles.
The names of all six friends were inspired by characters from “All my children”.
Chandler is for the Chandler family, Rachel’s last name is for Janet Green, Ross is for Ross Chandler (LOL), Monica is for Monique (Daisy Cortland), Joey is for Joseph “Joey” Martin, and Phoebe is for Phoebe Tyler Wallingford.
Phoebe was supposed to be goth.
Janeane Garofalo to turn down the role of Phoebe for this exact reason.
Jane lynch auditioned for phoebe
She eventually appeared in the last season as a real estate agent.
In the opening credits of “The One After Vegas”, everyone had Arquette added to their last name.
This was in order to commemorate the marriage of Courteney and David.
Remarkably none of Phoebe’s relatives attended her and Mike’s outdoor wedding.
Ross and Rachel’s romance were not meant to be central to the show.
However, the storyline was developed after the chemistry David and Jennifer had on screen.
Courteney Cox is older than David Schwimmer in real life, despite playing his younger sister on screen.
The fridge in Monica’s apartment was fully functional and was always stocked with drinks for the cast and crew.
Matthew Perry told the producers that he was awkward with women.
Ans this is why the writers wrote his character Chandler that way.
Phoebe’s triplets were written into the show because Lisa Kudrow was pregnant in real life and the writers needed to have a way of incorporating the pregnancy and not having a child amidst the group.